Tag: Water baptism

Did Christ Do ALL the Work on the Cross?

Christ finished His main mission on earth by giving His life on the cross, saying, “It is finished” (Jn. 19:30), but today some are twisting His statement into a false doctrine. They claim that since Christ said, “It is finished” on the cross, there are no “works” (no actions) men can do today that will have any effect on their salvation. This has led some to the conclusion that baptism cannot be essential, and that once a person is saved, there is no work he is required to do.… Read more

Was Water Baptism Only Required for Jews?

When Jews in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost asked what they should do to be saved, Peter commanded them to “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins…Save yourselves” (Acts 2:38, 40). In efforts to explain away the clear teaching of Acts 2 and the necessity of water baptism for salvation today, some claim that water baptism was only required for Jews, not Gentiles, and only for a temporary period.… Read more

The One Body of the Saved

What do the following things from the Bible have in common?

– The body of Christ

– The flock of Christ

– The fold of Christ

– The kingdom of Christ

– The nation of Christ

– The church of Christ

– The nation of Christ

– The family of Christ

– The bride of Christ

They are all Biblical descriptions of the one group of people saved by Christ, the group purchased with the blood of Christ in the first century A.D.… Read more

The Great Commission Commands Water Baptism, Not Prayer

Do you know how John prepared people for the Savior? He was “preaching the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Mk. 1:5; cf. Lk. 24:47; Acts 2:38). People were being baptized in water “to flee the wrath to come…unquenchable fire” (Mt. 3:7-12). John was getting people ready for the Great Commission of Jesus, who had come to save people from their sins and would thus command the whole world to be baptized in water for the forgiveness of sins.… Read more

Is God’s Word Strange to You?

God spoke of Israel and said: “I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing” (Hos. 8:12). God had revealed great and wonderful things, but the people had no interest in learning, and they loved worldly things more than God (Hos. 4:6; 8:11-14). Even today great things from the Bible are no longer understood by most people. Numerous truths are not being preached because of “political correctness,” and many people do not study the Bible at all; therefore, many things in God’s Word sound strange to people today.… Read more

Simple Logical Arguments for Baptism

  • Salvation/reconciliation to God is only in the one church/body of Christ (Eph. 2:16; 5:23; cf. 1:22, 23; 4:4). One is not in the one body/church of Christ until he is “baptized into one body” (1 Cor. 12:13; Acts 2:38-41, 47); therefore, one is not saved/reconciled until he is baptized (cf. Jn. 3:5; Mk. 16:16; Acts 22:16; Gal. 3:27; Eph. 5:26; Rom. 6:3-5; Col. 2:11-13; Titus 3:5; Heb. 10:22; 1 Pet. 3:20, 21).

  • Salvation is “in Christ” (2 Tim.
… Read more

Sincere, but Sincerely Lost

Just because someone is sincere and religious, that does not mean that he is a saved child of God. Even if he believes in Christ, that does not automatically make him saved. There were sincere religious people in the Bible who were lost, and even people who believed in Jesus were still lost until they were “baptized into Christ” (Gal. 3:27; Rom. 6:3; cf. Acts 2:36-41; 1 Pet. 3:20, 21).

The Ethiopian was sincere, but sincerely lost until baptism (Acts 8:26-39).… Read more

Holy Spirit Baptism, or Water Baptism?

When Paul wrote his first inspired epistle to the church at Corinth, he wrote these words: “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:13).

When reading the verse above, those who are familiar with the Bible probably automatically think of similar passages, such as Acts 2:38-47, when people were added to the church upon baptism, or Galatians 3:26-28, where Paul said we are “baptized into Christ” and “there is neither Jew nor Greek…neither bond nor free,” etc.… Read more

Which Comes First – Salvation, or Baptism?

Can alien sinners (sinners who have never been saved) be saved before water baptism, or without water baptism?

Notice the Biblical order:

  • Believeth…baptized…saved (Mark 16:16).
  • Born of water and of the spirit…enter the kingdom (John 3:5).
  • Repent…be baptized…remission of sins (Acts 2:38).
  • Gladly received his word…baptized…added to the church (Acts 2:41, 47).
  • Be baptized…wash away thy sins (Acts 22:16).
  • Baptized into Jesus Christ…raised to newness of life…made free from sin (Romans 6:3-18).
  • The unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God…And such were some of you: but ye are washed…sanctified…justified in the name of the Lord Jesus (1 Corinthians 6:9-11; cf.
… Read more

20 Things to Understand About Romans 10:9, 10

Romans can be a difficult book to understand. Even Peter said some of Paul’s writings are difficult to understand (2 Pet. 3:15-18), but one should not get discouraged like those of John 6:66. Be like Peter, who persevered (Jn. 6:67, 68). Sadly, Romans 10:9, 10 has been misunderstood or twisted by untold numbers of people. Some seem to think this is the only passage in the Bible telling man how to be saved, and many have interpreted this confession to be “the sinner’s prayer.”… Read more

If Repentance is Required, So is Baptism

The honest person will concede that repentance is required for salvation; however, when he does, he simultaneously concedes that John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8-9, and Romans 10 do not explicitly state everything a person must do to be saved (because repentance is not mentioned in any of those passages). In fact, neither “repent” nor “repentance” is found in the Gospel of John or Ephesians at all, and repentance is only mentioned twice in the 16 chapters of Romans, though it is absolutely necessary for salvation.… Read more

Cornelius Does Not Help “Faith Only” Advocates

The account of Cornelius’ conversion in Acts 10 does not support the false doctrine of “faith only salvation.” If one actually reads the entire book of Acts, by the time he gets to chapter 10 he has already read of thousands of people who were required to be baptized in water for their sins to be forgiven. In Acts 10 and subsequent chapters the reader will find even more people who were required to do the same.… Read more