Everyone must follow the whole word or council of God to be saved.

One Baptist
preacher recently wrote that Acts 2:38 "isn't the only verse in the Bible which deals with
salvation." True. There's Acts 2:38, 8:12-18, 8:26-40, 10:1-48, 16:15-33, 18:8, 19:1-5,
22:16; Romans 6:1-5, Galatians 3:27, Titus 3:5 and a host of others.
He also states this brilliant observation. "The fact is that most of what the New Testament
says about salvation doesn't include baptism at all!" That's only partially right. "And there
are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every
one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be
written. Amen." (John 21:25). In the Old Testament everyone when entering into
covenant with God would circumcised, and then taught the law. And in the New
Testament each believer who's repentant is baptized in the name of Jesus, and then taught
the good or acceptable will of God. Both were in covenant with the Lord. Baptism simply
gets us into Christ, and then we must maintain a walk before Him. Some examples of the
necessity of baptism are found in the following Scriptures. John 4:1 - here is another
reference to baptism which naturally flows from Jesus' baptismal teaching in John 3:3-5.
Acts 8:36 – The Eunuch recognizes the necessity of water for his baptism. Water and
baptism are never separated in the Scriptures. Acts 10:47 - Peter said, "Can any man
forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as
well as we? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord." Acts
22:16 – Ananias tells Saul, "And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash
away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord." The “washing away” refers to water
baptism. Titus 3:5-6 – Paul writes about the “washing of regeneration, and renewing of
the Holy Ghost. ” “Washing” refers to washing with water in our baptism. Hebrews 10:22
– The author is also writing about water baptism in this verse. “Having our hearts
sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” Our bodies
are washed with pure water in water baptism. 2 Kings 5:14 - Naaman dipped himself
seven times in the Jordan, and his flesh was restored like that of a child. This
foreshadows the regenerative function of baptism, by water and the Holy Spirit. Isaiah
44:3 - The Lord pours out His water and His Spirit. Water and the Spirit are linked to
baptism. The Bible never separates them. Ezekiel 36:25-27 - The Lord promises He will
sprinkle us with water to cleanse us from sin and give us a new heart and spirit. Paul
refers to this verse in Hebrews 10:22. The teaching of Ezekiel foreshadows the salvific
nature of Christian baptism instituted by Jesus and taught in John 3:5, Titus 3:5, 1 Peter
3:21; Acts 22:16.
He uses various Scriptures in an attempt to point out that Salvation does not include
water baptism (John 5:24, John 11:25-26, John 14:6, Romans 4:5, Romans 10:9-13,
Ephesians 2:8-10, etc.). The word of God is very clear showing forth from Jesus Himself
who commanded it, that water baptism was to included in the plan of salvation. John 3:5 -
Jesus answered, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the
Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." Mark 16:16 - "He that believeth and is
baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." Not to mention that
sinless Jesus, who did all things for an example of righteousness and was our Great High
Priest, was baptized Himself by John in the Jordan River. See Matthew 3:12-17; Mark
1:9 and Hebrews 4:15. John 3:22 - after teaching on baptism, John says Jesus and the
disciples did what? They went into Judea where the disciples baptized. Jesus' teaching
about being reborn by water and the Spirit is in the context of baptism. Not to mention
that every apostle baptized believers throughout the book of the Acts.
He said, "Water baptism follows salvation as one of the first steps of obedience for the
new believer." Where can that be found in history or in the Scriptures? It cannot be found
in the Bible and actually contradicts the word of God. History shows that until the
teaching of this strange doctrine was started by Zwingli, and that baptism was always
seen as part of Salvation. Even Luther, who started the Reformation, believed that
baptism was necessary as part of salvation (our belief applied unto God's grace being the
other portion). Here's what history records. "As many as are persuaded and believe that
what we (Christians) teach and say is true, and undertake to be able to live accordingly,
and instructed to pray and to entreat God with fasting, for the remission of their sins that
are past, we pray and fast with them. Then they are brought by us where there is water
and are regenerated in the same manner in which we were ourselves regenerated. For, in
the name of God, the Father... and of our Savior Jesus Christ, and of the Holy Spirit, they
then receive the washing with water. For Christ also said, "Unless you are born again,
you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven" (From the First Apology by Justin
Martyr, 90-165 A.D.). Tertullian
There's a trial record that shows that Zwingli approval for drowning of a man who
believed in adult baptism. (An example of this Reformer's intolerance toward Anabaptists
is the trial and execution of Felix Manz, a Swiss leader of the movement). At his trial in
January 1527, Felix Manz freely confessed to being a teacher of adult baptism, forbidden
in Switzerland: “We bring together those who are willing to accept Christ, obey the
Word, and follow in His footsteps. We unite them by baptism, and leave the rest to their
present conviction.” The Clerk of the Courts wrote this explanatory comment in the
records: “They do not allow Infant Baptism. In this way they will put an end to secular
authority.” This revealing comment shows the concern of the local government to
preserve the practice of infant baptism in order to ensure the commitment of the people to
secular authorities that controlled the state church. Being baptized as an infant into the
state church meant being loyal and committed to the state for the rest of one’s life. Even
more extraordinary is the outburst of Manz’s accuser, Ulrich Zwingli, one of the leading
Swiss Reformers. Speaking at the trial of Anabaptist Manz, Zwingli shouted: “Let him
who talks about going under (the water by immersion) go under.” What seemed to be
poetic justice was carried out literally by the local authorities who condemned Felix
Manz to death by drowning. “Led into the boat, he was forced to sit up and his arms were
passed around his bent knees and bound at the wrists. Next a stick was pushed between
the knees and elbows to secure him in this position. The boat was rowed to the center of
the (Limmat) river, and the helpless prisoner was thrown overboard, to choke in the dark,
deep waters.”
One wonders, how could Protestant spiritual leaders kill Christians for the crime of
obeying their understanding of biblical teachings regarding baptism or other doctrines?
How could Calvin influence the Geneva’s Council on October 24, 1553 to sentence to
death by burning Michael Servetus for denying the trinity and infant baptism? Regarding
infant and trinity baptism, Servetus said: “It is an invention of the devil, an infernal
falsity for the destruction of all Christianity.” Servetus was well-known not only for his
theological treatises, but also for his scientific discoveries. He was the first European to
describe the function of pulmonary circulation of the blood–a discovery that was largely
rejected at that time, yet he died for his biblical belief of baptism in the name of Jesus.
He also argues that the Greek phrase in Acts 2:38 should be translated as "because your
sins are forgiven" instead of the more usual "for the forgiveness of your sins". This goes
against the Scriptures and common sense. Here are a reason examples why. To very
briefly demonstrate against this bias, and to consider the consequences of using this
method, let us consider the following passages where the exact same phrase as in Acts
2:38 is to be found. The Westcott and Hort Greek text shall be used since it is generally
accepted by most evangelicals. However, in these verses there is hardly any variation
with other prepared texts.
In some instances below, the phrase eiv afesin amartiwn ("to" or "towards" or "into the
forgiveness of sins") occurs. Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3 - baptisma metanoiav eiv afesin
amartiwn. In Mark 1 and Luke 3 we are presented with John's baptism (a noun) "of
repentance." Following this line of thought then, John's baptism of repentance was
because of their sins already being forgiven. Odd that John doesn't seem to think that to
be the case at Luke 3:7! In Luke 24, we again find the same phrase. This is a favorite
verse of American Baptists who follow this lead (which made a popular misconception
by a man named Robertson). In most English translations, it is common to find an "and"
joining repentance and forgiveness. However, following Robertson, the meaning
becomes, "the good message of repentance because of the forgiveness of sins shall be
proclaimed." Matthew 26:28 - ekcunnomenon eiv afesin amartiwn
Now we come to the third and most fatal example (from Robertson and his followers).
Instead of baptism or repentance being singled out as the "means of" (Sacramental) or the
"witness to" (Evangelical) the forgiveness of sins, we find Jesus specifying the "pouring
out" of his life's blood. Consistently following Robertson's method, this then becomes,
"...my blood...poured out because of the forgiveness of sins. In other words, before Jesus
shed his blood on Calvary, the sins "of many" were already forgiven! His blood being
poured out (passive voice, just like "be baptized") was to testify to that fact. Surely this
undermines the whole history of New Testament and Christian teaching on salvation! It
also rather demeans Jesus' sacrifice!
Bruce Metzger was the editor of the Textual Commentary on The Greek New Testament,
published by the United Bible Societies. He is currently teaching at Princeton
Theological Seminary in New Jersey. He wrote, "In reply to your recent inquiry may I
say that, in my view, the phrase 'eis aphesin hamartion' in Acts 2:38 applies in sense to
both of the preceding verbs."
F. W. Gingrich was a professor of New Testament Greek at Albright College in Reading,
Pennsylvania. Gingrich, along with William Arndt, published A Greek-English Lexicon
of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature in 1957. He wrote, "The
difference in person and number of 'repent' and 'be baptized' is caused by the fact that
'repent' is a direct address in the second person plural, while 'be baptized' is governed by
the subject 'every one of you' and so is third person singular. 'Every one of you' is, of
course, a collective noun."
Arthur L. Farstad was the chairman of the New King James Executive Review
Committee and general editor of the NKJV New Testament. The NKJV was translated by
over 120 Greek scholars, many of whom teach in Baptist schools. He wrote, "Since the
expression 'eis aphesin hamartion' is a prepositional phrase with no verbal endings or
singular or plural endings. I certainly agree that grammatically it can go with both
repentance and baptism. In fact, I would think that it does go with both of them."
John R. Werner is the International Consultant in Translation to the Wycliffe Bible
Translators. He was also a consultant to Friberg and Friberg with the Analytical Greek
New Testament. From 1962 to 1972 he was professor of Greek at Trinity Christian
College. He said, "Whenever two verbs are connected by kai 'and' and then followed by a
modifier (such as a prepositional phrase, as in Acts 2:38), it is grammatically possible
that modifier modifies either both the verbs, or only the latter one. This is because there is
no punctuation in the ancient manuscripts, so we don't know whether the author intended
to pause between the first verb and the 'and.' It does not matter that, here in Acts 2:38,
one of the verbs is second person plural ("y'all") and the other is third-person singular ("is
to"). They are both imperative, and the fact that they are joined by kai 'and' is sufficient
evidence that the author may have regarded them as a single unit to which his modifier
applied."
Barclay Newman and Eugene Nida edited The Translator's Handbook On The Acts Of
The Apostles. This book, published by the United Bible Societies, says on page 60: "So
that your sins will be forgiven (literally 'into a forgiveness of your sins') in the Greek may
express either purpose or result; but the large majority of translators understand it as
indicating purpose. The phrase modifies both main verbs: turn away from your sins and
be baptized."
Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River (Mark 1:9; Matthew 3;12-17; Hebrews
4:15) He did this to show forth the necessity of it and being like fellow Christians in all
points. Afterwards he began His ministry. Belief must show forth works or it's dead
(James 2:15-26; 1 John 3:15-18; John 6:29). Jesus name baptism was used by the apostles
because the name of the father, son and Holy Ghost is Jesus. In fact, it's the name of the
whole family of God. And to be used alone for salvation and in every word or deed. (See
John 5:43; Matthew 1:21; John 14:26; Ephesians 3:14-15; Acts 4:10-12; Colossians 3:17)
Here's some common excuses for not obeying the word. Some today say that Paul did not
baptize converts. Wrong. 1 Corinthians 1:17 states, "For Christ sent me not to baptize,
but to preach the gospel." But before this he admits to performing baptisms. "I thank God
that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius: And I baptized also the household of
Stephanas." (1 Corinthians 1:14-16) Therefore what he must saying is that Christ must of
called to preach and simply just to baptise others. Many still call Paul the greatest
preacher of all time. Paul also baptized the Jailer, Lydia and John's former disciples
among others. These were all gentiles as Paul was the apostle to them. Peter and the rest
of the apostles all baptized the 3,000 Jewish converts to Christ in the name of Jesus in
Jerusalem, on the day of Pentecost. Philip baptized the Samaritans and the Eunuch in the
name of Jesus. Peter baptized the household of Cornelius in the name of Jesus (he was
the first gentile convert). Paul wrote that he called upon the name of the Lord Jesus in his
baptism (See Acts 2:38-41; Acts 8:12-40; Acts 10:1-48; Acts 9:18; and Acts 22:16).
Some say that the thief on the cross was not baptized therefore they should not. Jesus had
the power to forgive sins while He was on the earth, and did not as yet give the Great
Commission until His death, burial and resurrection. (See Matthew 9:6; Mark 2:10; Mark
16:15-17; and Luke 24:44-48) Every baptism in the New Testament completed was unto
either unto Christ (in John's day, as seen in Acts 19:1-5) or into the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ.
HASTINGS ENCYCLOPEDIA OF RELIGION: Christian baptism was administered
using the words, "in the name of Jesus." – Vol. 2, pg. 377. Baptism was always in the
name of Lord Jesus until time of Justin Martyr when the Triune formula was used. – Vol.
2, pg. 389. NAME was an ancient synonym for "person." Payment was always made in
the name of some person referring to ownership. Therefore one being baptized in Jesus’
name became His personal property. "Ye are Christ’s." – Vol. 2, pg. 377 on Acts 2:38.
BRITANICA ENCYCLOPEDIA: The baptismal formula was changed from the name of
Jesus Christ to the words Father, Son & Holy Ghost by the Catholic Church in the
Second Century. – 11th Edit., Vol. 3, ppg. 365-366. CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA:
Here the Catholics acknowledged that baptism was changed by the Catholic Church. –
Vol. 2, pg. 263.
The New Testament plainly teaches that accountable people have to be baptized into
Christ Jesus in order to have their sins remitted. Have you been baptized for the remission
of sins? "And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins,
calling on the name of the Lord (Acts 22:16).