You Don't Have To Be Water Baptized To Get To Heaven

Mark 16:16, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”

Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

1st Corinthians 1:17, “For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.”

Pastor Curtis Hutson (1934-1995) rightly said that a good rule to follow when interpreting the Bible is to never use an obscure passage to contradict a clear one. That is absolutely right! One of our text passages from Mark 16:16, taken by itself, might give the wrong impression that water baptism is required to get to Heaven, but it certainly is not. We must never base a doctrine on a single passage of Scripture! The Bible teaches that the man who does not believe is damned, which is consistent with the rest of Scripture. John 3:36, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” Baptism does not save!

The inspired King James Bible is teaching in Mark 16:16 that water baptism cannot save someone. Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do. What saith the Scripture? Galatians 3:26-27, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” The word “baptized” here does not refer to water baptism; but rather, to being submersed by faith into Christ. Jesus plainly said in John 6:47, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.”

According to John 20:31, the apostle penned the Gospel of John to shew us the way of salvation. Yet, not once does John teach the reader to be baptized to be saved. John 20:31, “  ” Clearly, faith in Jesus Christ is all that is required to be born again. Any admitted sinner who receives Christ's sacrifice on the cross as full-payment for sins, believing that Jesus was buried, but then physically resurrected from the dead three days later is saved. This is “the gospel” (Good News) according to 1st Corinthians 15:1-6.

Water baptism is simply NOT a part of the Gospel of free grace. In literally hundreds of Bible passages we are taught to have faith in Christ to be saved, without any mention of baptism. Acts 10:43, “To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.” So, all of the Old Testament prophets gave witness that salvation came only through faith in Christ.

According to Galatians 1:6-7 there has always been only one plan of salvation, which includes both the Old and New Testaments. Anyone who comes to God as a needy sinner, and by faith places their reliance (trust) in Jesus, believing that He did it all for them through Calvary's cross, is instantly and forever saved. It is that easy, free and simple to be saved. Everything that is hard about getting saved is God's part. Our part is simply to BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST (Acts 16:30-31).

Here are several biblical reasons why we know you DON'T have to be water baptized to get to Heaven...

1. No one in the Old Testament was water baptized to be saved.
2. The repentant thief on the cross was not baptized to go to Heaven (Paradise).
3. Nowhere does the Bible explicitly command anyone to be water baptized to be saved.
4. The Apostle John penned the Gospel of John for the purpose of convincing us that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God, the Christ; so that by BELIEVING we will be saved (John 20:31). John never teaches that baptism is required to get to Heaven.
5. In the Epistle of 1st John, the apostle states in 1st John 5:13 that the purpose of writing his epistle is help believers “know” that we are saved, yet John never mentions “baptism” once. If water baptism were required to be saved, then you can be assured that John would have emphasized the importance of making sure you've done it.
6. The Apostle Paul plainly said that Christ did NOT send him to baptize people, but instead to preach the Gospel. If water baptism were necessary for the new birth, Paul wouldn't have diminished baptism on his list of priorities as a missionary.
7. Many of the Samaritans believed on Christ and were saved in John chapter 4, but there is no mention of any of them being baptized. We know that Jesus' disciples did baptize some converts (John 4:1-2), but there is no evidence to confirm that all converts were baptized. Clearly, the thief on the cross didn't get baptized and it is very wrong to conclude that he was given an exception by God, which would constitute a different plan of salvation. Jesus taught in no uncertain terms in John 3:1-7 that unless a man is born again he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. So, if water baptism is required for the new birth, then the repentant thief on the cross could not have been saved.

The inspired Holy Bible is full of examples of sinners who were saved without being baptized...

1. In Luke 7:37-50 we read about a woman who was saved without being baptized. Jesus said unto her in Verse 48, “Thy sins are forgiven.” And the Lord further adds in Luke 7:50b, “Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.” There is no mention of her being baptized. It would be wrong to attribute meaning to the Bible which it doesn't say.
2. The publican in Luke 18:13-14 was saved by faith without being baptized. He simply cried out, “God be merciful to me a sinner.” The Scripture tells us that the publican sinner was justified by faith. There is no mention of him being baptized. Luke 18:14a, “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified....”
3. In Luke 18:35-43 we read about a blind man who was saved by faith without being baptized. Luke 18:42, “And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.” Faith is the only righteous thing that anyone can do.
4. In Luke 23:42 one of the dying thieves on the cross turned to Jesus and cried out, “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” Amidst His own pain and agony, Jesus replied, “Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” The man's hands and feet were literally nailed to a wooden cross, so that he could do nothing to be saved except LOOK TO JESUS. Isaiah 45:22, “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.”

The inspired Holy Bible plainly defines “the gospel” for us...

1st Corinthians 15:1-6, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.”

There is no mention of being baptized in Paul's gospel, which Galatians 1:12 says Paul received directly from Jesus Christ Himself. Then, how wicked and wrong it is for anyone to insist that someone must be water baptized to be saved. No such teaching is taught in the inspired Word of God. We are not saved by works. Salvation is not doing your best, it is having Christ's best put to your account through receiving Him by faith.

Those fools who errantly teach that baptism is required to get to Heaven wrest, misuse and pervert the Scripture, to their own destruction (2nd Peter 3:16-17). As Dr. Curtis Hutson wisely says, when studying the Bible we must never use an obscure passage of Scripture (like Mark 16:16) to contradict many clear passages. To the man with a hammer in his hand, everything begins to look like a nail sticking up. And to the man who views everything through a lens of baptism, he wrests the Word of God to agree with his false teaching.

The wicked Roman Catholic church does the same thing with the Bible, wickedly removing the second of God's Ten Commandments in a sinful attempt to hide their idolatry worshipping graven images and bowing to idols. Romans 1:25 warned that wicked people would change the truth of God's Word into a lie, and so it is. Beware of anyone who foolishly says that you cannot go to Heaven without being water baptized.

In every case of those who insist that you must be baptized with water to get to Heaven, they base their false doctrine on a tiny handful of cherry-picked Bible verses, obscure passages, while ignoring the vast majority of other Scripture passages that totally contradict them. The Bible makes it very plain that those who are trusting Christ are saved, and those who don't aren't. John 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.” It is so obvious biblically that water baptism has no part in the new birth.

Dear reader, please beware of the deadly Church of Christ, Lutherans, Mormons, Roman Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventists and other religious denominations that foolishly require water baptism for salvation. What they are teaching was inspired by demons. There is no controversy if you believe the inspired Holy Bible. The required new birth to enter into God's Kingdom can be freely obtained through faith alone in Jesus Christ, not by water baptism. John 6:47, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.”