They Say That Faith Alone, Without Water Baptism Cannot Save You
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- Baptizing for The Dead
This article is not speaking out against water baptism. I am questioning whether water baptism is a legalistic demand. I am questioning whether the bible actually teaches that without baptism, a believer is lost to hell, because this is exactly what many mainline denominations are teaching.
Let us first consider this imaginary example:
One Sunday morning, after the morning’s preaching, Lee Ah Wai went up to a Pastor Savan Leong and said “Pastor, I want to accept Christ as my saviour. Please baptize me.” And the Pastor Savan Leong replies, “Praise the Lord! The bible says that even the angels rejoice whenever a new soul is saved!”, and goes on to lead Ah Wai to say the sinner’s prayer and to pray over him.
After that, Pastor Savan says, “Ah Wai, you will have to first attend the 3 baptism classes in order to obtain understanding of the fundamentals of Christianity. We cannot baptize you before that. We plan to have the next round of classes about 4 weeks from now. After that, we will baptize you together with all the others. Praise the Lord for saving your soul today.” And everybody crowded around Ah Wai to congratulate him, and welcome him into the family of Jesus Christ.
Half an hour later, Ah Wai rode his motorcycle to go home and as he was negotiating a bend on the road, he fell. A heavy vehicle which was following behind ran over him and Ah Wai died on the spot.
Incidentally, Pastor Savan Leong preaches that baptism is necessary for salvation. And by his own teaching, Ah Wai goes to hell, after the good pastor praised the Lord for saving Ah Wai’s soul today.
Now, answer these questions:
- Isn’t the pastor highly irresponsible for not baptizing Ah Wai immediately, since he knows that salvation is through baptism?
- Can the pastor justify through bible verses, his practice for forcing new believers to attend bible study classes before they can be baptised ?
- In what manner will the pastor be accountable for his irresponsibility for sending Ah Wai to hell?
- Or does the bible really teach that a person is saved through belief and faith, and not through baptism?
As usual, I am taking on another thorny issue. There are 2 groups who have diametrically opposing interpretation. Both cannot be right. Yet for hundreds of years they have not bothered to sit together to thrash it out. Or maybe they have, but there is just too much pride at stake to admit “defeat”; you know, that “how can the “hand-me-down grandfather teaching be wrong” attitude?
But then on the other side, that is the beauty of Christianity, you can agree to disagree and not kill each other over it, or jail the other side for having opposing views. However, this was not always the case in the past. How many of you know that John Calvin, 1553 AD one of the “great reformist” of protestant Christianity had the Anabaptist, Michael Servetus burned at stake for opposing his “once-saved-forever-saved” doctrine? ( Go here for detailed history of the event ) And in connection to the subject of baptism, another “great” protestant reformer Zwingli, in 1526 ordered the Anabaptists ( rejectors of infant baptism, who survive today as Amish Christians ) to be drowned by decree? Anabaptists like Hans Huth, Balthasar Hubmaier and his wife, Felix Manz and Jacob Hutter were foremost of his victims. So it wasn't just the Roman Catholics who were killling Prostestants. Protestants were killing Protestants who prostested against them!
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| The Drowning of Felix Manz For Preaching Adult Baptism |
Today, I am sure that I would also be killed for stating my various opposing stands against established wrongful teachings, had the laws and concept of justice not changed. That is not to say that I will not face persecution in other forms though. So, my statement on the beauty of Christianity may not apply to many of the leaders of Christianity today. Many would still persecute you for your opposing views, not physically maybe but socially, congregationally and mentally. I only rejoice that I know that the devil delights in persecuting those who speak the truth of God. For the devil does have the power and ability to work through people who believe in Jesus. Note how Jesus told Peter in Mat 16:23
“But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan:”
But there is indeed a beauty to Christian truths, and that is: Christians who persecute, kill and destroy others are acting in disobedience to Jesus and the bible. Whereas in other religions, we find the same violence perpetuated in obedience to their god and holy book. What a difference!
Why Water Baptism Is Not A Necessity
Let me first table out the verses that teach against legalistic baptism. These are verses which are awkward to the “must baptize” teacher to explain :
Notice how that Cornelius and company were baptized by the Holy Spirit even before they were baptized by water. So were they saved at that very moment or were they put on “probation” until they were baptized in water? | |
Observe that the crucified criminal was to be in paradise with Jesus as soon as he had believed in Jesus. Did Jesus did tell him “Now get you down from the cross for my disciples to be baptized first, and I will see you in paradise today” ? Jesus did not dictate water baptism! | |
Here, Paul clearly states that salvation is given by confession with the mouth together with belief in the heart. Water baptism is not included. | |
Here, Paul in very certain terms stated that salvation is by belief, and water baptism came after that. | |
Other verses: | The bible consistently maintains that salvation comes by faith, not through legalism and legalistic works. There are more verses to prove the consistency of salvation through belief and faith, than by legalism of doing something as a ritual. The legalistic teaching of “must baptize” is very weak in the face of scriptures. |
If water baptism is an absolute necessity one would find it strange that Paul has this to say about his task to baptize others :
1Co 1:17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel;
Think deeply about this verse too, :
Joh 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
I sure don’t see Jesus saying that he is baptizeth not is condemned; but He does say that he that believeth not is condemned. See how consistent the bible is? It is belief in Jesus that saves.
The “Must Baptize” Camp’s Defenses
Let me now rebut the “must batize” defences, which is fond of quoting these passages :
What they push | Their error is: |
“He who believes and is baptized will be saved “ (Mark 16:16) | Using this verse to justify their teaching causes them to contradict the Cornelius episode, where Cornelius was saved by baptism of the Holy Spirit, which happened even before the baptism of water came about. Now, what do they have to say if, supposing that Cornelius out of excitement or some other reason, dies immediately after the baptism of the Holy Spirit, seconds or minutes before the water baptism was carried out? By the doctrine of the “must baptize” teachers he wouldn’t have been saved? Nahh! They hate to answer questions like this one. It causes them to squirm. |
“Repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts 2:38) | They simply assume that "for" means “in order to” in terms of the future, because it suits their purpose. What an error by people who use English, as a 1st language! Okay, now I say to you, “Thank you for the gift of love” am I saying thank you in order to receive your gift of love, or because I have received it already? We need to keep an open mind on such readings, and see if it checks out consistently with all other verses on the matter. Their understanding obviously doesn’t. |
"The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: (1 Peter 3:21-22) | So, here they emphasize up to “ now save us “ and ignore the succeeding phrase. This is the usual tactic of taking scripture out of context to support any stand. Does not the verse emphasize that the change of heart and good conscience, that saves and that baptism does not remove the filth of the flesh? |
‘Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the | “Water” in John 3:5 is interpreted as “baptism” in order to support the idea water baptize is necessary in order to be saved. Let us consider the spiritual connotations of “water” in reference to scripture: Jn 5:7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 1Jn 5:8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.” Eph. 5: 26" That He might sanctify it and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word" No, the use of the word water does not automatically refer to water baptism. It can refer to the word of God as well, and also to physical birth. |
“We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4) | Is this a symbolic representation of the death of our old sinful being? Does it say in anyway that without baptism, we cannot walk in the newness of life with Jesus living in us through our faith and belief? |
“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” (Ephesians 4:4-5) | I do not know how this verse relate to water baptism. But arguing this to mean water baptism is really a contortionist trick. Remember there is also a baptism by fire by Jesus? Does one baptism refer now to water baptism or baptism of the Holy Spirit? Or both? What is “one baptism” referring to here? |
Theologians and their Turf-protectionist Behaviour
Theologians are fond of highlighting only verses that seem to favor their interpretation, while playing down, and even ignoring verses and phrases that say the opposite. As an example, Observe how this article totally ignores opposing verses, while defending its own stand. Personally, I find theologians to be very biased even though they are supposed to be experts.
Water baptism is a ritual, an act of obedience and a physical confirmation of belief. In that sense, it ought to be done in every instant, and has to done where no obstacle to its performance is present. But the bible has clearly shown that salvation can come about even without it being done, and before it is even carried out.
The demand for carrying out water baptism smells of legalism, and this legalism is being practiced by those very denominations that speak out against legalism. Sheesh! Whatta bunch of hypocrites and Pharisees!
The scriptures in Rom. 2:29 and Col. 2:11-12 in no uncertain terms put the legalistic practice of water baptism to rest. Just as it is the circumcision of the heart, and not of the flesh that counts for the Jews, it is definitive that it is baptism of the heart, and not of the flesh that counts for Christians. Our burial in water baptism is symbolic of the death of our past sinful self.
Conclusion
The imaginary Pastor Savan Leong did not send Ah Wai to hell. By faith, Ah Wai has been saved by the Lord. But the pastor Savan Leong does put himself in a very awkward situation with his teaching. If he really believes that it water baptism to save a soul, the only rightful action was to baptize Ah Wai immediately. That is what the bible shows us in the book of Acts, or even in the case of Philip and the Eunuch, remember? Do you ever read of anyone in the bible telling a new believer that he must go through a baptism class first? Such is the nonsense and the vain philosophy of men. He preaches one thing and does another. He slaps his own face, and remains blindly prideful of what he has been taught.
How many Pastor Savan Leongs are out there? Go, read your scriptures instead of following vain philosophies taught by men.
Jesus says in John 8:32 “And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free”.
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