Ken Lovelace Ministries


F a i t h M a t t e r s with Dr. Ken Lovelace Emphasis: Survivor Series Saved by Faith…or by Baptism? A couple of weeks ago, I began a series of devotionals that revolve around the Survivor theme. In my first installment, I wrote on Surviving Death and explained what it means to be lost and how to be saved. A dear friend of mine wrote to ask why I had not included being baptized as an essential part of salvation. As I responded to his questions and addressed his objections, I realized that there may be others who were exploring the relationship between salvation and baptism. In today's article, I am taking a break from the devotional I'd planned to write, Surviving Death - Part 3, to address the relationship between salvation and baptism. I am including the majority of my reply to my friend in hopes of bringing clarity to a seemingly unclear subject. Dear Christian Friend: Greetings in Jesus' name. I am honored that you took time to read my devotional; thank you. What we do with Jesus is, indeed, life's most important decision. Salvation, then, is the most important aspect of this life and the next. But you're right; I didn't mention baptism in my discussion of salvation. The reason I didn't was because I don't consider it essential for salvation; in other words, one can be saved, forgiven, and go to heaven without being baptized, and there will be multiplied thousands who were converted near the end of their lives who will be in heaven who never had time before their execution, or the opportunity because of circumstances, to follow the Lord in believer's baptism. The Mark 16:16 passage is a wonderful passage, but I'm not sure Mark intended to communicate that baptism is essential to salvation. Rom. 10:9-13 provide a very clear synopsis of the salvation experience: "For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile -- the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Salvation, then, is dependent on what Jesus did on the cross, something we accept by faith; not by what we do on earth, like the physical act of baptism. Baptism is considered an ordinance, a "silent sermon," as Chuck Swindoll says. It is a means of identifying with Jesus. When we go down into the water, we identify unashamedly with the death of Christ. When we come up out of the water, we are identifying with His resurrection. I believe we are commanded to be baptized, not for salvation, but to proclaim to the world that Jesus is now our Lord and Savior and we are not ashamed to identify with Him. A friend of mine served as pastor of a church in Memphis. He died on November 15, 2005, and even though we didn't agree on everything politically, he's always been like a pastor to me. His name was Adrian Rogers and he said, "We believe that water baptism is an act of obedience to the command of Christ and is by immersion after salvation." Our salvation is not determined by baptism but comes through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Following are a few of my thoughts on the Bible verses you cited in support of baptism being essential to salvation. I have kept them categorized as you listed them to make it easier to follow. The Command - be baptized Acts 10:48: "So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days." -- After having already received Jesus, after having already repented and been forgiven of their sins, as was evidenced by their having already received the Holy Spirit, then they were baptized as a means of identifying with Jesus, not for the purpose of being saved. They were already saved or they would not yet have had the Spirit. Matthew 28:19: This verse is part of the verses 18-20 portion commonly referred to as The Great Commission. "Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.'" -- This passage is often misinterpreted in that many assume the command is in the word "Go!" But in the Greek text, the command is to "make disciples." The word "go" in the Greek text is actually part of a prepositional phrase which is most correctly translated "As you are going." Jesus was saying that as you go about your business, everywhere you go, take advantage of opportunities to disciple those the Lord brings across your path. And part of the process of making disciples is to do what we're told in the other two verbs of the Great Commission: "baptizing" them for the purpose of identifying with Christ and "teaching" them to know how to live for Christ. Baptism is Essential Mark 16:15-16: "He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.'" -- As I said previously, I'm not sure Mark's intention was to imply that baptism was essential to salvation. One reason is because of what he said at the end of the verse, that those who don't believe will be condemned. If baptism was to be as integral a part of our salvation as was believing, then he would have said that those who don't believe and refuse to be baptized will be condemned. Another reason is because when we consider the whole counsel of God's Word, baptism isn't made a condition of salvation, faith in Jesus and believing in Him are. 1 Peter 3:21: "and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also -- not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ" -- Just like the water of the Flood didn't save Noah, but rather the ark in which he was kept secure, Peter is saying that that water of baptism symbolizes the salvation that comes through "the resurrection of Jesus Christ." It's a symbol of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus and symbolizes the washing away of our sin. Baptism doesn't wash away the dirt of sin; it can't. Rather is symbolizes the washing away of sin by the blood of Jesus. Acts 2:38: "Peter replied, 'Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'" -- Again, this is a reference to the dual command of repenting and being baptized, but when we consider these ideas in light of the rest of Scripture, it's clear that it's the repentance that saves and the obedience of being baptized that allows us to symbolically identify with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Baptism Puts One Into Christ Gal. 3:27: "for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." -- baptized into Christ (as opposed to the baptism of John, for example) was to identify with Him. We put on Christ, or identify with Him. Rom. 6:3: "Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?" -- The symbolism portrayed here is powerful. Though we were not literally baptized into His death, we do identify with Him in that our baptism causes us to relate to Him and identify with Him. As Jesus denied Himself to become obedient unto death on the cross, so we also indentify with His death through baptism (we are buried with Him in the likeness of His death), resulting in our gaining the supernatural ability to die to sin and to stop living a lifestyle of sin, as is the subject of the context of this verse. 1 Cor. 12:13: The context of this passage is that of Spiritual Gifts or the gifts given by the Spirit to believers for the purpose of building up the Kingdom of God. As you know, it's unwise to pull a verse out of its context and use it by itself to try to build a distinct theology with it; there are those who try to do that with verses like this one. The verse out of context says: "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body -- whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free -- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." - The one body into which we were baptized was, of course, that of Jesus' body. Now we belong to and are one with Him. The act of being baptized into this body is, again, symbolic, aiding us in identifying with our precious Lord Jesus. Supporting Verses I was not clear as to why you included these verses in your letter to me except that you seemed to be suggesting that salvation cannot be had without baptism. It's important to note that the key salvation passages of Scripture do not make this demand. Sometimes our denominational affiliations influence our interpretations of Scripture. Some denominations believe baptism is essential to salvation and many of its followers blindly accept that without searching the Scriptures for themselves. Conversely, many denominations don't believe baptism is essential to salvation and many of its followers accept that without searching the Scriptures for themselves. I want to say to you that I know what my denomination believes and yet I have searched the Scriptures objectively to determine for myself what I believe they are teaching. One person can read one verse and conclude that it's necessary; another person can read a different verse and conclude that it is not. What's important is that we consider all the verses and the whole counsel of God on the matter. Having done that, I don't believe baptism is essential to salvation because of an absence of any reference to it in the primary salvation passages of Scripture. Let me show you what I mean as we consider a few of these passages in an attempt to bring some clarity to this issue. John 3:16: Let's consider this one verse in light of its context of verses 16-21: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." -- If I'm going to objectively consider this verse in my study of verses regarding salvation, I must admit, if I'm to be intellectually honest, that my argument for using this verse is weak given the fact that it pre-dates the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ as well as the New Testament teachings on baptism. Still, I feel it's an important verse to include. In this passage, Jesus is helping Nicodemus understand what it takes to be saved. The only thing He mentions as being adequate for salvation is belief; a faith in God and nothing else. Nothing in addition to what God was doing through Jesus. Jesus in and of Himself was sufficient. That's why He told others who believed in Him that "your faith has made you whole." He could have mentioned baptism as a part of salvation, and I'm sure He would have if it had been essential, for He was trying to help Nicodemus to be saved and would never have misled him. Rom. 10:9-13: I already quoted this passage above so let me add just one more thing. According to this passage, it's a heart issue: for it is with your heart that you believe and are justified. Period! Eph. 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." -- Salvation is a gift from God that we receive by faith; it is a faith thing, meaning that it is a God thing. In other words, concerning salvation, there is nothing we can do to secure it or lose it. I'm not big enough to gain it through my own efforts nor am I so important that I can lose it through some random act or failure to do something. Paul also said it's not a works thing; I can't secure salvation by some act done on my part, like baptism; it's a faith thing…I simply believe! 1 John 5:11-13: "And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." -- Verse 11 reminds us that salvation is from God and is rooted in His Son, the Lord Jesus. Verse 12 puts the salvation issue very bluntly and clearly: the Son=life; no Son=no life. And then, the bow on God's gift to us is His assurance of salvation, verse 13: that we may "know" that we have eternal life. Many say it's impossible to know without doubt that we're saved, but God says otherwise. If we have His Son, our salvation is secure, sealed, absolute…and there's nothing we can do to lose it -- we're not so powerful that we can unseal what God has sealed. Dear brother, thank you for "listening" as I've sought to share my heart in light of my study and understanding of Scripture. I hope I haven't further muddied the waters for you but I pray that God will make it clear to both of us that which He'd have us to learn from these passages. God's blessings on you, Dr. Ken Lovelace Dr. Ken Lovelace, Pastor Letter Two, a few days later Dear Christian Friend: I so appreciate this open and honest dialogue. This is an issue that has been debated for centuries and I know we won't resolve the issue, but it's so important that we keep the debate going so as to make you, me, and others dig more deeply into God's Word and learn our Bibles all the more. I want to thank you, too, for your willingness to confront me on a subject about which you think I am wrong. Your candidness and concern are refreshing and I'm thankful you care enough to confront me. I'll be the first to admit that there are many difficult passages in Scripture that challenge biblical scholars far greater than I am. I also acknowledge that what we think is of no importance, what God says is all that matters; you are right about that. In the end, we may agree to disagree, but please know I have the greatest respect and admiration for you and will always consider you a dear brother in Christ. With regard to the Mark 16:16 passage, it's important that we understand that it was not written by Mark nor did it appear in the original Greek Manuscripts. In fact, Mark ends with Mark 16:8. I looked it up in the Greek New Testament this morning and it does appear there, but it has a dividing note between verse 8 and verse 9 that says: "The most reliable early Manuscripts and other ancient witnesses do not have Mark 16:9-20." So what are we to make of that? William Barclay says: "Mark's gospel really stops at verse 8. We have only to read this passage to see how different it is from the rest of the gospel and it appears in none of the great manuscripts of the gospel. It is a later summary which replaces the ending." What does that mean for us? I take the Word of God as having been fully and completely inspired by God. That these verses do not appear in the original Greek means to me that they might not need to be depended on as heavily as those that did. But, since it eventually wound up in the Bible and since God is sovereign and allowed it to be included in later manuscripts means that I must give it consideration. My faith in God is not shaken in the least to learn that this passage was not in the early copies of Scripture but was later added by another author who felt there needed to be a different conclusion to Mark's gospel. I can safely assume that since it was eventually added that God inspired it as well since it doesn't contradict the greater counsel of God's Word. The difficulty comes when the English translations don't correctly communicate what the Greek text says. In this case, the various translation committees did an okay job in translating Mark 16:16 from the original Greek. The Greek text says literally: "The [one] believing and being baptized will be saved, but the [one] disbelieving will be condemned." The words in brackets [ ] are words that don't appear in the original Greek text but are implied. This gets a little tricky with the word this other author used for baptism, a word not used in Acts 2:38, for example. It is a word that is translated in other places as "submission." To further add to the difficulty, the author of this alternate conclusion to Mark's gospel uses a verb tense that means "on an ongoing basis;" being baptized (or learning to submit) continually. So, the most logical translation would more likely be submission since we can't be baptized continually and would suggest that the one who believes and is learning to continually submit to God is the one who is saved; the continual submission, or being transformed into the image of Jesus, gives evidence that our believing in Jesus has brought about the change/transformation one would expect to see in someone who was saved. In his commentary on Mark, John Phillips of Moody Bible Institute adds: "Those who refuse to believe will face condemnation. The condemnation rests on their unbelief, not on their failure to be baptized. We are saved by Christ, not by baptism, blood, or water." Another way to look at it is that a man who wants to be saved, believes; that is God's demand for salvation. But, a man who believes naturally wants to be obedient and God commands that the saved be baptized. So, the lost believe and are saved, in obedience to God's demand for salvation; and the saved are baptized as a way of identifying with Jesus, in obedience to God's demand. With regard to Acts 2:38, Luke wrote Acts and quoted Peter as having said, literally in the Greek New Testament: "Peter and to them: repent ye, and let be baptized each of you on the name of Jesus Christ [with a view] to forgiveness of the sins of you, and ye will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." The word Luke used for baptism here, quoting Peter, of course, was the usual word for baptism in the usual verb tense: be baptized, a one-time event. The way "baptized" is separated from "repent" indicates that the two are related to the same experience but not dependent on each other for the end result of salvation. Salvation, then, comes from repenting and believing; identification with Jesus, and giving a witness to the world, occurs when we are baptized. You asked how can we receive the Holy Spirit without baptism and I would ask how can you receive the Holy Spirit through baptism? We receive the Holy Spirit at the moment we believe, for by Him we are sealed for the day of redemption (Eph. 4:20). You asked how can our sins be forgiven without baptism and I would ask how can our sins be forgiven through baptism? 1 John 1:9 tells us that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." "Confess" comes from a Greek word that means "to agree with." When we confess our sins, we are agreeing with God that what we've thought, done, or failed to do is sin. When we do that, we receive forgiveness. Forgiveness comes through confession and repentance, not through baptism. Salvation is something that takes place in the spiritual world. When we are convicted of sin and our lost condition, that takes place in the world of the spiritual; when we repent and believe, by faith, that takes place in the world of the spiritual; when we receive and are sealed by the Spirit in the moment of salvation, that takes place in the world of the spiritual. Baptism is a physical event that takes place in the physical world to proclaim to the world we have been saved and are identifying with Jesus; to give witness to what has taken place in the spiritual world. About Saul, he was saved before he was baptized; he had to be. There would not be a need for baptism unless he was saved. I guess the most convincing point is the thief on the cross. He placed his faith and trust in Jesus on the day he hung on the cross and Jesus Himself told him that "today you will be with Me in paradise." If salvation and forgiveness can only come through baptism, then the thief would not have gone to heaven as Jesus said he would. It's important that we remember that salvation is a faith experience and baptism is a physical experience. When I repented of my sins, invited Jesus to come into my heart to be my Lord and Savior, I knew right away that I had become a child of God. The Holy Spirit surged within me, sealed me for the day of redemption, and began communicating with me in my spirit right away. It was two or three weeks before I was baptized and when I was, I didn't sense that anything special happened like the receiving of the Spirit because I knew He was already indwelling me and was already at work in my life. When Martin Luther nailed his ninety-five theses to the door at Wittenberg, it was for reasons similar to these. The Catholic church had begun to add various acts of works and penance and other things to the salvation experience; even buying pieces of wood that priests claimed were from the actual cross of Christ that would supposedly gain the buyer guaranteed forgiveness before God. After searching the Scriptures, even Martin Luther concluded with Paul in Romans 3:21-24 that our redemption comes through faith to those who believe. Over the years, I have been the fortunate recipient of several retiring pastors' libraries. In all my books, commentaries, and works of theology, I've not been able to find anyone who teaches that baptism is essential to salvation. Would you mind giving me some names of biblical scholars who support that idea? I would be most grateful. Also, are you affiliated with a particular denomination? If so, I'd love to read up on what your denomination teaches, the positions they hold, and why. I'm always wanting to learn and to expand my understanding. God's blessings on you, Dr. Ken Lovelace Dr. Ken Lovelace, Pastor Copyright © 2010. Faith Matters by Dr. Ken Lovelace. All rights reserved. KDT011110

F a i t h M a t t e r s
with Dr. Ken Lovelace
Emphasis: Survivor Series

Saved by Faith…or by Baptism?

A couple of weeks ago, I began a series of devotionals that revolve around the Survivor theme. In my first installment, I wrote on Surviving Death and explained what it means to be lost and how to be saved. A dear friend of mine wrote to ask why I had not included being baptized as an essential part of salvation. As I responded to his questions and addressed his objections, I realized that there may be others who were exploring the relationship between salvation and baptism. In today's article, I am taking a break from the devotional I'd planned to write, Surviving Death - Part 3, to address the relationship between salvation and baptism. I am including the majority of my reply to my friend in hopes of bringing clarity to a seemingly unclear subject.

Dear Christian Friend:

Greetings in Jesus' name. I am honored that you took time to read my devotional; thank you. What we do with Jesus is, indeed, life's most important decision. Salvation, then, is the most important aspect of this life and the next.

But you're right; I didn't mention baptism in my discussion of salvation. The reason I didn't was because I don't consider it essential for salvation; in other words, one can be saved, forgiven, and go to heaven without being baptized, and there will be multiplied thousands who were converted near the end of their lives who will be in heaven who never had time before their execution, or the opportunity because of circumstances, to follow the Lord in believer's baptism.

The Mark 16:16 passage is a wonderful passage, but I'm not sure Mark intended to communicate that baptism is essential to salvation. Rom. 10:9-13 provide a very clear synopsis of the salvation experience: "For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile -- the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

Salvation, then, is dependent on what Jesus did on the cross, something we accept by faith; not by what we do on earth, like the physical act of baptism. Baptism is considered an ordinance, a "silent sermon," as Chuck Swindoll says. It is a means of identifying with Jesus. When we go down into the water, we identify unashamedly with the death of Christ. When we come up out of the water, we are identifying with His resurrection. I believe we are commanded to be baptized, not for salvation, but to proclaim to the world that Jesus is now our Lord and Savior and we are not ashamed to identify with Him.

A friend of mine served as pastor of a church in Memphis. He died on November 15, 2005, and even though we didn't agree on everything politically, he's always been like a pastor to me. His name was Adrian Rogers and he said, "We believe that water baptism is an act of obedience to the command of Christ and is by immersion after salvation." Our salvation is not determined by baptism but comes through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

Following are a few of my thoughts on the Bible verses you cited in support of baptism being essential to salvation. I have kept them categorized as you listed them to make it easier to follow.

The Command - be baptized

Acts 10:48: "So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days."

-- After having already received Jesus, after having already repented and been forgiven of their sins, as was evidenced by their having already received the Holy Spirit, then they were baptized as a means of identifying with Jesus, not for the purpose of being saved. They were already saved or they would not yet have had the Spirit.

Matthew 28:19: This verse is part of the verses 18-20 portion commonly referred to as The Great Commission. "Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.'"

-- This passage is often misinterpreted in that many assume the command is in the word "Go!" But in the Greek text, the command is to "make disciples." The word "go" in the Greek text is actually part of a prepositional phrase which is most correctly translated "As you are going." Jesus was saying that as you go about your business, everywhere you go, take advantage of opportunities to disciple those the Lord brings across your path. And part of the process of making disciples is to do what we're told in the other two verbs of the Great Commission: "baptizing" them for the purpose of identifying with Christ and "teaching" them to know how to live for Christ.

Baptism is Essential

Mark 16:15-16: "He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.'"

-- As I said previously, I'm not sure Mark's intention was to imply that baptism was essential to salvation. One reason is because of what he said at the end of the verse, that those who don't believe will be condemned. If baptism was to be as integral a part of our salvation as was believing, then he would have said that those who don't believe and refuse to be baptized will be condemned. Another reason is because when we consider the whole counsel of God's Word, baptism isn't made a condition of salvation, faith in Jesus and believing in Him are.

1 Peter 3:21: "and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also -- not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ"

-- Just like the water of the Flood didn't save Noah, but rather the ark in which he was kept secure, Peter is saying that that water of baptism symbolizes the salvation that comes through "the resurrection of Jesus Christ." It's a symbol of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus and symbolizes the washing away of our sin. Baptism doesn't wash away the dirt of sin; it can't. Rather is symbolizes the washing away of sin by the blood of Jesus.

Acts 2:38: "Peter replied, 'Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'"

-- Again, this is a reference to the dual command of repenting and being baptized, but when we consider these ideas in light of the rest of Scripture, it's clear that it's the repentance that saves and the obedience of being baptized that allows us to symbolically identify with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

Baptism Puts One Into Christ

Gal. 3:27: "for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ."

-- baptized into Christ (as opposed to the baptism of John, for example) was to identify with Him. We put on Christ, or identify with Him.

Rom. 6:3: "Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?"

-- The symbolism portrayed here is powerful. Though we were not literally baptized into His death, we do identify with Him in that our baptism causes us to relate to Him and identify with Him. As Jesus denied Himself to become obedient unto death on the cross, so we also indentify with His death through baptism (we are buried with Him in the likeness of His death), resulting in our gaining the supernatural ability to die to sin and to stop living a lifestyle of sin, as is the subject of the context of this verse.

1 Cor. 12:13: The context of this passage is that of Spiritual Gifts or the gifts given by the Spirit to believers for the purpose of building up the Kingdom of God. As you know, it's unwise to pull a verse out of its context and use it by itself to try to build a distinct theology with it; there are those who try to do that with verses like this one. The verse out of context says: "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body -- whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free -- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink."

- The one body into which we were baptized was, of course, that of Jesus' body. Now we belong to and are one with Him. The act of being baptized into this body is, again, symbolic, aiding us in identifying with our precious Lord Jesus.

Supporting Verses

I was not clear as to why you included these verses in your letter to me except that you seemed to be suggesting that salvation cannot be had without baptism. It's important to note that the key salvation passages of Scripture do not make this demand. Sometimes our denominational affiliations influence our interpretations of Scripture. Some denominations believe baptism is essential to salvation and many of its followers blindly accept that without searching the Scriptures for themselves. Conversely, many denominations don't believe baptism is essential to salvation and many of its followers accept that without searching the Scriptures for themselves.

I want to say to you that I know what my denomination believes and yet I have searched the Scriptures objectively to determine for myself what I believe they are teaching. One person can read one verse and conclude that it's necessary; another person can read a different verse and conclude that it is not. What's important is that we consider all the verses and the whole counsel of God on the matter. Having done that, I don't believe baptism is essential to salvation because of an absence of any reference to it in the primary salvation passages of Scripture. Let me show you what I mean as we consider a few of these passages in an attempt to bring some clarity to this issue.

John 3:16: Let's consider this one verse in light of its context of verses 16-21: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

-- If I'm going to objectively consider this verse in my study of verses regarding salvation, I must admit, if I'm to be intellectually honest, that my argument for using this verse is weak given the fact that it pre-dates the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ as well as the New Testament teachings on baptism. Still, I feel it's an important verse to include.

In this passage, Jesus is helping Nicodemus understand what it takes to be saved. The only thing He mentions as being adequate for salvation is belief; a faith in God and nothing else. Nothing in addition to what God was doing through Jesus. Jesus in and of Himself was sufficient. That's why He told others who believed in Him that "your faith has made you whole." He could have mentioned baptism as a part of salvation, and I'm sure He would have if it had been essential, for He was trying to help Nicodemus to be saved and would never have misled him.

Rom. 10:9-13: I already quoted this passage above so let me add just one more thing. According to this passage, it's a heart issue: for it is with your heart that you believe and are justified. Period!

Eph. 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
10 For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

-- Salvation is a gift from God that we receive by faith; it is a faith thing, meaning that it is a God thing. In other words, concerning salvation, there is nothing we can do to secure it or lose it. I'm not big enough to gain it through my own efforts nor am I so important that I can lose it through some random act or failure to do something. Paul also said it's not a works thing; I can't secure salvation by some act done on my part, like baptism; it's a faith thing…I simply believe!

1 John 5:11-13: "And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life."

-- Verse 11 reminds us that salvation is from God and is rooted in His Son, the Lord Jesus. Verse 12 puts the salvation issue very bluntly and clearly: the Son=life; no Son=no life. And then, the bow on God's gift to us is His assurance of salvation, verse 13: that we may "know" that we have eternal life. Many say it's impossible to know without doubt that we're saved, but God says otherwise. If we have His Son, our salvation is secure, sealed, absolute…and there's nothing we can do to lose it -- we're not so powerful that we can unseal what God has sealed.

Dear brother, thank you for "listening" as I've sought to share my heart in light of my study and understanding of Scripture. I hope I haven't further muddied the waters for you but I pray that God will make it clear to both of us that which He'd have us to learn from these passages.

God's blessings on you,
Dr. Ken Lovelace
Dr. Ken Lovelace, Pastor

Letter Two, a few days later

Dear Christian Friend:

I so appreciate this open and honest dialogue. This is an issue that has been debated for centuries and I know we won't resolve the issue, but it's so important that we keep the debate going so as to make you, me, and others dig more deeply into God's Word and learn our Bibles all the more.

I want to thank you, too, for your willingness to confront me on a subject about which you think I am wrong. Your candidness and concern are refreshing and I'm thankful you care enough to confront me. I'll be the first to admit that there are many difficult passages in Scripture that challenge biblical scholars far greater than I am. I also acknowledge that what we think is of no importance, what God says is all that matters; you are right about that. In the end, we may agree to disagree, but please know I have the greatest respect and admiration for you and will always consider you a dear brother in Christ.

With regard to the Mark 16:16 passage, it's important that we understand that it was not written by Mark nor did it appear in the original Greek Manuscripts. In fact, Mark ends with Mark 16:8. I looked it up in the Greek New Testament this morning and it does appear there, but it has a dividing note between verse 8 and verse 9 that says: "The most reliable early Manuscripts and other ancient witnesses do not have Mark 16:9-20." So what are we to make of that? William Barclay says: "Mark's gospel really stops at verse 8. We have only to read this passage to see how different it is from the rest of the gospel and it appears in none of the great manuscripts of the gospel. It is a later summary which replaces the ending."

What does that mean for us? I take the Word of God as having been fully and completely inspired by God. That these verses do not appear in the original Greek means to me that they might not need to be depended on as heavily as those that did. But, since it eventually wound up in the Bible and since God is sovereign and allowed it to be included in later manuscripts means that I must give it consideration. My faith in God is not shaken in the least to learn that this passage was not in the early copies of Scripture but was later added by another author who felt there needed to be a different conclusion to Mark's gospel. I can safely assume that since it was eventually added that God inspired it as well since it doesn't contradict the greater counsel of God's Word.

The difficulty comes when the English translations don't correctly communicate what the Greek text says. In this case, the various translation committees did an okay job in translating Mark 16:16 from the original Greek. The Greek text says literally: "The [one] believing and being baptized will be saved, but the [one] disbelieving will be condemned." The words in brackets [ ] are words that don't appear in the original Greek text but are implied. This gets a little tricky with the word this other author used for baptism, a word not used in Acts 2:38, for example. It is a word that is translated in other places as "submission." To further add to the difficulty, the author of this alternate conclusion to Mark's gospel uses a verb tense that means "on an ongoing basis;" being baptized (or learning to submit) continually. So, the most logical translation would more likely be submission since we can't be baptized continually and would suggest that the one who believes and is learning to continually submit to God is the one who is saved; the continual submission, or being transformed into the image of Jesus, gives evidence that our believing in Jesus has brought about the change/transformation one would expect to see in someone who was saved.

In his commentary on Mark, John Phillips of Moody Bible Institute adds: "Those who refuse to believe will face condemnation. The condemnation rests on their unbelief, not on their failure to be baptized. We are saved by Christ, not by baptism, blood, or water."

Another way to look at it is that a man who wants to be saved, believes; that is God's demand for salvation. But, a man who believes naturally wants to be obedient and God commands that the saved be baptized. So, the lost believe and are saved, in obedience to God's demand for salvation; and the saved are baptized as a way of identifying with Jesus, in obedience to God's demand.

With regard to Acts 2:38, Luke wrote Acts and quoted Peter as having said, literally in the Greek New Testament: "Peter and to them: repent ye, and let be baptized each of you on the name of Jesus Christ [with a view] to forgiveness of the sins of you, and ye will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."

The word Luke used for baptism here, quoting Peter, of course, was the usual word for baptism in the usual verb tense: be baptized, a one-time event. The way "baptized" is separated from "repent" indicates that the two are related to the same experience but not dependent on each other for the end result of salvation. Salvation, then, comes from repenting and believing; identification with Jesus, and giving a witness to the world, occurs when we are baptized.

You asked how can we receive the Holy Spirit without baptism and I would ask how can you receive the Holy Spirit through baptism? We receive the Holy Spirit at the moment we believe, for by Him we are sealed for the day of redemption (Eph. 4:20).

You asked how can our sins be forgiven without baptism and I would ask how can our sins be forgiven through baptism? 1 John 1:9 tells us that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." "Confess" comes from a Greek word that means "to agree with." When we confess our sins, we are agreeing with God that what we've thought, done, or failed to do is sin. When we do that, we receive forgiveness. Forgiveness comes through confession and repentance, not through baptism.

Salvation is something that takes place in the spiritual world. When we are convicted of sin and our lost condition, that takes place in the world of the spiritual; when we repent and believe, by faith, that takes place in the world of the spiritual; when we receive and are sealed by the Spirit in the moment of salvation, that takes place in the world of the spiritual. Baptism is a physical event that takes place in the physical world to proclaim to the world we have been saved and are identifying with Jesus; to give witness to what has taken place in the spiritual world.

About Saul, he was saved before he was baptized; he had to be. There would not be a need for baptism unless he was saved.

I guess the most convincing point is the thief on the cross. He placed his faith and trust in Jesus on the day he hung on the cross and Jesus Himself told him that "today you will be with Me in paradise." If salvation and forgiveness can only come through baptism, then the thief would not have gone to heaven as Jesus said he would.

It's important that we remember that salvation is a faith experience and baptism is a physical experience. When I repented of my sins, invited Jesus to come into my heart to be my Lord and Savior, I knew right away that I had become a child of God. The Holy Spirit surged within me, sealed me for the day of redemption, and began communicating with me in my spirit right away. It was two or three weeks before I was baptized and when I was, I didn't sense that anything special happened like the receiving of the Spirit because I knew He was already indwelling me and was already at work in my life.

When Martin Luther nailed his ninety-five theses to the door at Wittenberg, it was for reasons similar to these. The Catholic church had begun to add various acts of works and penance and other things to the salvation experience; even buying pieces of wood that priests claimed were from the actual cross of Christ that would supposedly gain the buyer guaranteed forgiveness before God. After searching the Scriptures, even Martin Luther concluded with Paul in Romans 3:21-24 that our redemption comes through faith to those who believe.

Over the years, I have been the fortunate recipient of several retiring pastors' libraries. In all my books, commentaries, and works of theology, I've not been able to find anyone who teaches that baptism is essential to salvation. Would you mind giving me some names of biblical scholars who support that idea? I would be most grateful. Also, are you affiliated with a particular denomination? If so, I'd love to read up on what your denomination teaches, the positions they hold, and why. I'm always wanting to learn and to expand my understanding.

God's blessings on you,
Dr. Ken Lovelace
Dr. Ken Lovelace, Pastor

Copyright © 2010. Faith Matters by Dr. Ken Lovelace. All rights reserved.

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