Just a thought- To be saved, it doesn't end with a dunk. Most of our churches tend to get to this point, hit baptism out of the park, preaching series after series on it, and fail to teach people how to live for Christ effectively. I only knew two CoC kids growing up. One was in a rock band in High School and thought it was ludicrous that he was allowed to play Metallica but not Third Day. (I thought so too.) I haven't talked to him in a while, but he married a Pentecostal. The other one married a Baptist, and attends there. He really does not have a firm understanding of his faith. There is so much more to a Christian life than baptism. Let me also add that other churches baptize for the forgiveness of sins and I believe that we will see more than CoC members in heaven. I have "faith-only" friends that I talked with calmly, not attacking them. I just started talking about baptism. Some had already been baptized, some as a child. We opened up the Bible when they were ready and most of them have since read it for themselves and been immersed. Helping "weaker" Christians in their journey is our job, and it is wonderful to see someone take that step. I have many immersed Christian friends from other churches that are working on their friends in those congregations. Other churches are not the enemy. Satan is the enemy and he works through ignorance and man-made doctrine.
I would like to see a study actually of how many people my age who grew up in the church are still involved in a CoC church. Many of my friends have left for denominations or go Nowhere. What kind of a future is this?? How many kids are involved in our churches?? By involved, I mean digging in and getting a firm foundation rather than simply attending. Any thoughts?