"BUT AS FOR ME AND MY HOUSEHOLD, WE WILL SERVE THE LORD!"(JOSHUA 24:15).

Some teach that there is nothing left to do after one has repented, and that at the point of repentance one has completed that "plan" of salvation. I would like to draw their attention to 2Corinthians 7:10. "Godly sorrow produces repentance which leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death." It is plainly stated in black and white that repentance leads to salvation. It does not say that repentance is salvation. It says that godly sorrow produces repentance which leads to salvation. There are those who claim this verse means that godly sorrow is the same as repentance and that repentance is the same as salvation. Let's illustrate this verse with an analogy. If a farmer plants a seed, it will then, in time, produce a stalk. Is the seed the same thing as the stalk?--of course not. The stalk will , in time, then lead to a head of grain. Is the stalk the same thing as the head of grain?--of course not. I hope you see now that godly sorrow does produce repentance, yet it is not the same as repentance, and that repentance does lead to salvation, yet it is not the same of salvation.

Salvation is then, of course, obtained after repentance. Salvation is being saved from ones sins and being reconciled to God (MATTHEW 1:21/1PETER 3:18). So, therefore, when ones sins are initially forgiven, they are saved (have obtained salvation). It can be easily determined from scripture that this occurs at baptism. Baptism is for the forgiveness of sins (ACTS 2:38). One puts off the sinful nature at baptism (COLOSSIANS 2:11-12). One's sins are washed away at baptism (ACTS 22:16). One is baptized into Christ and, therefore, becomes a new creature (GALATIANS 3:27/2CORINTHIANS 5:17). One is raised to live a new life from baptism (ROMANS 6:1-4). Even though these things can be plainly seen in black and white in scripture, very few people teach them.

There are many who do not teach what the Bible plainly says about baptism. There is only salvation in Jesus and one is only a new creature if he/she is in Jesus (2Timothy 2:10/2Corinthians 5:17). So then the question arises--'how does one get into Jesus?' Galations 3:27 gives us the answer plainly--"for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ" (additional reference--ROMANS 6:3). The Bible also tells us plainly that baptism is for the remission of sins~"Repent and be baptized everyone of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and you will receive the gift of the holy spirit" (ACTS 2:38), "And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name" (ACTS 22:16). Many do not teach that baptism is for the forgiveness of sins. My question to them is "is the Bible all true?" Of course, the answer is "yes". If the Bible is all true, then so are these verses which plainly tell us that sins are initially forgiven at baptism.

Some teach that infants should be baptized. They claim that humans are born into an original sin~that they are guilty of the actions of Adam and Eve. No where in the New Testament can one find that we are guilty of the sin of Adam and Eve. The Lord said the exact opposite: "The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will be charged against him"(EZEKIEL 18:20). God said plainly that the son would not share in the guilt of the father, and that it is the soul who sins who is the one that will die. It is also plain in scripture that the wages of sin is death ( ROMANS 6:23 ). Wages are something earned, not inherited. Infants have committed no sin, and, therefore, have no sin to be forgiven of. In ACTS 2, when Peter was addressing the crowd of Jews who had just crucified Jesus, he told them that they should repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. They had to be baptized for sins they had committed, not inherited. It had to have been for sins that they had committed, or else Peter wouldn't have wasted his breath proving to them that Jesus was the Christ, and pointing out that they had committed sin by crucifying him. Baptism is, therefore, for the forgiveness of sins that we have committed, not inherited. It simply doesn't make any sense to baptize an infant. An infant has absolutely no understanding of the gospel. An infant does not believe in God. An infant cannot repent, nor does he/she have anything to repent of. Why, then, would the baptism of an infant be anything more than a baby getting wet? Why, then, would the baptism of an infant be anything more than a baby taking a quick bath? If no understanding of the gospel is required before baptism, then why wouldn't a women giving her newborn a bath count as a baptism? Of course, it is only simple logic that one must have some understanding of the gospel before one can be baptized. This is well exemplified in ACTS 16. Paul and Silas were being held in prison. The jailer rushed in and asked them what he must do to be saved. Paul told him that he must believe to be saved. Wait a minute, why didn't he tell them to be baptized? Obviously, one must believe before they can be baptized. Then, after this, Paul and Silas spoke the word of the Lord to the jailer and his family. Wait a minute, why didn't he go ahead and baptize them? There are people that teach that one does not need to have any understanding of the gospel to be baptized (why else would they baptize infants?), so why then didn't Paul go ahead and baptize the jailer and his family? Instead of baptizing them, Paul and Silas taught them the word of the Lord. Obviously then, hearing the word must have been of greater importance than immediate baptism. Obviously, the jailer and his family had to have an understanding and belief of the gospel before being dunked in water would mean anything. So after Paul and Silas had taught the jailer and his family, he, then, took them and baptized them. Why, then, would anyone baptize an infant which is completely incapable of understanding the gospel, which is completely uncapable of believing in God, and has committed no sin of which he/she needs to be forgiven? The Lord never commanded it~No Apostle ever sanctioned it~No New Testament writer ever authorized it~No New Testament church ever practiced it. Neither the practice of infant baptism, nor the command to baptize infants can be found anywhere in the Bible. As we have seen in scripture and in logic, infants need not and should not be baptized.

Many people want to say that the belief that baptism is neccessary for salvation is saying that we are saved by works. This is very much not the case. For we are not saved by works at all. It is not our belief that saves us, its not our repentance that saves us, its not our confession that saves us, its not our baptism that saves us~it is only GOD that saves us. However, it is up to us to come to Him (JOHN14:6) so that he may do so. This obviously requires some sort of work on our part. Let me use an analogy to illustrate this.

A man goes to his long time enemy on christmas with a gift. He tells his long time enemy "Let us no longer be enemies. I have a free gift for you, and by this gift, we are no longer enemies, but friends."
So the enemy reached out and took the gift from the man, and he unwrapped it. From then on, as long as he had the gift, they were no longer enemies.

The man came to his enemy with a free gift. Now consider this: does the fact that the enemy had to reach out and take the gift from the man make it any less a free gift? --no, of course not. Does the fact that the enemy had to unwrap the gift make it any less a free gift?--no, of course not. It was a free gift, and it was the man who got him that gift. It wasn't the taking or the unwrapping that gave the enemy the gift--it was the man. However, the enemy would not have received the gift had he not taken it and unwrapped it. You see now that receiving free gifts does require work. This work that is required does not make you anymore worthy or deserving of the free gift. The same is with salvation. Salvation is a free gift that is freely offered. However, we still have to "take it and unwrap it" (so to speak). In doing this work, you do not become any more worthy, or deserving of salvation, nor have you earned it. It simply must be done in order to receive the gift. If there was absolutely nothing we could do in order to obtain salvation (as many believe and teach) then everyone would be saved no matter what they believe or do or say. So therefore, we are not saved by works, but we are not saved without them. Let's look again at those things that we are told to do in order to receive the gift from God.

HEAR(ROMANS 10:17)
BELIEVE(JOHN 3:18/ACTS 16:31)
REPENT (ACTS 17:30/LUKE 13:3/2CORINTHIANS7:10)
CONFESS (ACTS 2:21/ROMANS 10:9)
BE BAPTIZED (MARK16:16/ACTS22:16/COLOSSIANS2:11-12)
CONTINUE AND ABIDE IN THE WORD (2JOHN 9)

If you have come to realize the truth of God's word and you realize that you need to do these things that the Bible instructs you to do, I will do all i can to help you carry these things out.

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