Baptism and salvation

Christian faith is necessary to enjoy God’s verdict of “not guilty” (Romans 3:28; 5:1). It is the lack of faith that condemns, not the lack of baptism (Mark 16:16).

Baptism is necessary in the sense that the Lord commands us to administer baptism. It is not for us to decide whether or not we are going to do what the Lord says. However, baptism is not absolutely necessary for salvation because the Holy Spirit can bring people to saving faith in Jesus through the gospel in Word alone. In cases like that, people will still want to be baptized—to do what Jesus says and to receive, in addition to the message of the Bible, another guarantee of God’s love and forgiveness in Christ.