February 15, 2004, Vol.4,
No.4.
Two new articles every two weeks.
Bible Question? E-mail
us.
THIS ISSUE: "Were
the thief and Saul saved without baptism?"
(see below)
and "What is Truth?"
ANSWERING YOUR QUESTIONS:
Were the thief and
Saul saved
without baptism?
by Tom Rainwater
 QUESTION: About your friend's
article on The
Thief on the Cross: Certainly John the Baptist could've baptized
this man prior to the cross, but that would be purely speculative
and difficult if not impossible to prove. You will remember the
Damascus Road conversion of Saul, and he called Jesus "Lord."
Paul was not baptized prior to his conversion.
My point is that there is not any solid evidence in the
scriptures for the baptism of the thief on the cross. With a
lack of evidence for his baptism, one would seriously question
any teaching that teaches baptism is necessary for salvation.
ANSWER: Hi! Thanks for
your comments.
Was He or Wasn't He?
Friend, I think you missed major points in Mr. Sharp's article.
First, indeed no one can prove whether or not the thief had been
baptized by John or Jesus or one of the disciples. You admitted
the possibility of it, but then argued against it. For you to
say that he wasn't baptized and for me to say that he
was would be presuming something not stated. So making
a case for or against baptism using the thief on the cross
is, using your words, "purely speculative and difficult
if not impossible to prove." We have to turn to other scriptures
that discuss baptism.
Scriptures Addressing Baptism
Secondly, you didn't answer the first major question posed
by the original article:
"Does this one case nullify the plain teaching of Jesus
and His apostles?" They clearly taught baptism as a requirement
for salvation:
Jesus after His resurrection: "He who believes and
is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be
condemned." (Mark 16:16).
Peter on the first Pentecost after Jesus' resurrection: "Repent,
and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ
for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of
the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38).
You stated that if there wasn't any solid evidence for the
thief's baptism, that "one would seriously question any
teaching that teaches baptism is necessary for salvation."
Do you seriously question the clear words of Jesus and His apostles?
Conditions for Salvation
in the New Testament Age
Thirdly, you also ignored passages given in that article
that show us the Gospel Age began after Jesus' death,
burial and resurrection. Before then, the Law of Moses was still
in force to the Jews. When Jesus walked the earth, He submitted
to the Law and obeyed it perfectly. Meanwhile, He taught the
moral principles of His coming spiritual kingdom which would
replace that of Moses' Law. At His death, He took the Law of
Moses "out of the way, having nailed it to the cross."
(Colossians 2:14). His will (or testament) as given to the apostles
was then to be followed. As Brother Sharp stated in the article:
"We live in the New Testament age (Hebrews 9:13-15).
The New Testament did not acquire force until after Jesus died
on the cross (Hebrews 9:16-17). The Lord blessed the malefactor
with the promise of paradise as they both hung on crosses, before
the death of Christ. The conditions of salvation were different
at that time. For example, we must believe in the death, burial,
and resurrection of Christ to be saved (1 Corinthians 15:1-4),
but no one could believe these facts before Jesus' resurrection."
Upon His resurrection, He said to His apostles:
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have
commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end
of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20).
Did Jesus say, or did He not say, that baptism would be required
of all the nations? Did He say, or did He not say, that this
is how you make disciples? Please answer.
Regardless of what Jesus did on the earth before His death,
even directly forgiving the sins of some people to demonstrate
His power (Matthew 9:2-8; Mark 2:3-12; Luke 5:17-26; 7:47-49),
His will for this age is clearly stated. Friend, how did
Jesus and His apostles say that your sins are forgiven?
The Conversion of Saul
About Saul's conversion: (1) You need to reconsider when
he was converted, and give scriptural proof exactly when that
was. Do not assume it was on the road to Damascus. (2) Remember
that the account is told in three different chapters in Acts:
Acts 9, Acts 22, and Acts 26.
When Jesus appeared to him on the road, he told Saul to "arise
and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do"
(Acts 9:6). In Acts 22:16, Ananias tells him what he must do:
"And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized,
and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord."
Salvation is being saved from our sins, isn't it? According
to Acts 22:16, Saul still had his sins though he had seen the
Lord on the road and believed, and had been praying and fasting
for three days afterwards (Acts 9:9,11). What did Jesus want
Saul to be told that he must do? When did Ananias say Saul's
sins would be washed away?
What must we do today? What washes our sins away today?
Conclusion
Faith in Jesus as the Son of God is absolutely essential for
salvation, but it is not the only thing. Let's gladly accept
the truth given to us in Scripture, and humbly follow "all
the counsel of God" (Acts 20:27).
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