Do You need to be baptized to be born again?

This is a very important question!

If we do not understand the Bible teaching on this we could miss heaven when we die. How we respond to this question must be answered by the Bible only.

Consider the following…

Many people turn to John chapter 3 to prove that you must be baptized to be born again. We will look and see if that is true.

Jesus said you MUST be Born Again

John 3:1-3 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

On this night, Nicodemus came to see Jesus.
He was a teacher of the Old Testament Bible.
We see in verse three that Jesus told him that he needed to be born again or he could not see the kingdom of God.
When Jesus says you must be born again he is saying that you must have a second birth.
Nowhere in that verse does Jesus say anything about water baptism.

Jesus simply says you must be born again.

Now we need to understand what it means to be born again.

What Nicodemus says next is very important to understand.

John 3:4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?

Nicodemus asked about being born when he is old.

What kind of birth is he thinking about? Physical or spiritual?
It is very clear that he is talking about a physical birth.
He asked about going back into his mother’s womb to be born.

It is clear that he does not understand what Jesus is talking about.

But he does think that Jesus means he has to start his life all over again to have this second birth.

Notice what Jesus says in verse 5 – There are 2 kinds of births!

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.

Jesus had told Nicodemus that he needed to be born again. The birth Jesus was talking about was a spiritual birth.
But Nicodemus thought that he was talking about a physical birth.
Now Jesus says that a man must be born of water first, and then of the spirit second.

To be born of the spirit is clearly a spiritual birth.

The question is what does it mean to be born of water?

Some tell us that this is baptism. But the word baptism is not used at all!
He is not talking about baptism!

He is agreeing with Nicodemus, that you must have a physical birth.
To be born of water means to be born physically. When a baby is born the first thing that breaks is the water sack around the baby inside the mother’s womb.
When Jesus says to be born of water he is referring to that physical birth.
Once a person is physically born, then he must be born of the spirit to enter the kingdom of God.

There is no reason to believe that born of water is talking about baptism.

Pay careful attention to the next verse. 2 Kinds of Birth

John 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Jesus goes on to explain to Nicodemus that he does not understand the truth that Jesus gave him.
If he is born of the flesh it is a physical birth. But a person born physically will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
He must also be born of the spirit. This is the spiritual birth, or being born again.
This happens when a person believes on the gospel of Jesus Christ and turns to Christ in repentance and faith.
Nowhere is baptism for salvation taught.
Salvation only comes by faith in what Jesus Christ has done for us by dying on the cross.

The Thief on the Cross – He was NOT Baptized

When Jesus was crucified, there were two thieves he was crucified with. One of them hung on his right hand and the other on his left hand.
Before they died the man on the right hand of Jesus admitted his sin. We see his request to Jesus Christ.

Luke 22:42-43 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

He clearly understood that he was a sinner. And that only Jesus Christ could save him.
For that reason he cried out to Jesus Christ and asked him to remember him after death.

Luke 22:43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

While he was yet hanging on the cross, Jesus said to this man that he would be in paradise with Christ that very day.
This thief did not get off the cross. He died there.
And yet Jesus promised that he would be with him in eternity. This is Bible salvation.
This thief did not get baptized. And yet Jesus promised that he would be in heaven with him.

If Jesus beleived baptism is necessary to be saved (born again) he would not have told the theif he would go straight to paradise that day.

Paul was a Gospel Preacher

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.

From the day that Paul got saved, he began to preach the gospel to others. He was never ashamed to speak about Jesus Christ, and about the gospel (good news) that was the only way of salvation for all men.

1 Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;

Here we see that Paul declared the gospel. This is the same gospel that he had preached before to them and to others.

1 Corinthians 15:2-4
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Notice there are three things that are involved in the gospel.
1. Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. Verse three
2. Jesus was buried. Verse four
3. Jesus rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. Verse four

Nowhere in this passage does Jesus even talk about baptism.

It is very clear that Paul was glad to be a preacher of the gospel. He was thankful for what Christ had done for him in saving him. But he was also thankful to be able to speak to others about Jesus Christ and give them that same gospel.

Paul was the one who started the church in Corinth. He went there and preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and many were saved.

Yet look what Paul says in this verse…

1 Corinthians 1:14 I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;

Paul is glad that he did not baptize people?  YES! That is what he said! Paul continues to speak in that passage and say that there were a few people in Corinth that he had baptized… but the next statement is very important to understand.

1 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.

Paul was sent to preach the gospel! Yet he says he was not sent to baptize!

If baptism is part of the gospel, and the way of salvation then this statement by Paul does not make any sense.
It is clear that Paul did not believe that baptism was necessary to be born again. Otherwise, he would have been sent by Jesus Christ to baptize people.

So in summary…

Jesus did not teach that you need to be baptized to be born again.

Jesus told the theif on the cross he would be in paradise that day, without being baptized.

Paul was a gospel preacher who said he was NOT sent to baptize, but to preach the gospel.

You be the judge, is baptism necessary for salvation?

(Write out the questions and the answers to each question. Then
email it to me at BibleStudyAfrica@gmail.com.
If it is better to send your answers by WhatsApp, please message
me at +27-71-122-2706)

Questions:

  1. Jesus told Nicodemus he must be __________  ___________.
  2. Nicodemus thought Jesus meant that he must

a. be baptized

b. join a church

c. be physically born a second time

3. What does “born of water” as used by Jesus mean?

4. Was Paul a gospel preacher Paul was not sent to ____________.

5. When Paul wrote to the Corinthian church he was very glad that

a. many had been baptized

b. he had not baptized very many

c. he had not preached the gospel to them

6. What did Jesus promise to the theif on the cross before he died?

7. Do you think the thief on the cross was baptized? Why?

Other Bible Baptist Church Ministries:
Tzaneen/Limpopo Province
George Hammett +27-766206910
Brits/Northwest Province/Gauteng
George Wyatt +27-827878842
Marikana/Northwest Province
John Botilo +27-722887102 or +27-794868365
Majakaneng/Mooinooi/Northwest Province
Zebulon Rametsi +27-729377888
Mpumalanga Province/Swaziland
Pastor Scott +27-767936816
Bloemfontein/Free State Province/Lesotho
Gary Norberg +27-846027129
Francistown, Botswana
Garry Castner +267-72544835