These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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1 Peter 3:
20 [Noah built] the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water.
21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience.
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Argument:
This teaches the Catholic doctrine about Baptism in utter simplicity -- just as water raised Noah's Ark aloft, and became a source of death to the world but a source of life to faithful Noah and his family, in the same way Baptism has become a source of life to all who accept the Lord Jesus, while those who reject it cannot be saved. And to be more specific about the truth of the Catholic teaching, Peter says that Baptism, though it saves us, does not save us by washing our body but by cleaning our soul, i.e. by appealing to God for the gift of forgiveness. That is precisely the Catholic teaching: it is not the physical work of Baptism that saves us, but the spiritual effect.
Protestant translations sometimes say Baptism is an "appeal to God from a clear conscience," rather than for it. The problem with that is that it makes the passage nonsense: how does getting baptized save us, if we do it from an already-clear conscience? If Protestants are right, then the passage is wrong to say that Baptism is how we are saved, since we would already be saved if our conscience had already been made clear. So such a way of looking at the passage is fundamentally incompatible with it, but rather, (as the above translation has it,) the passage is clearly stating that Baptism saves us by a divine cleansing of conscience -- just as the Catholic Church teaches.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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Acts 22:
16 And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.
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Argument:
Baptism is clearly connected to the washing away of sins -- the play on words is clear: Baptism does not only wash away dirt, but it also washes away sins, and that = salvation. Notice that Paul did three things:
(1) He was baptized;
(2) He was forgiven; and
(3) He called on Christ's name, i.e. he repented.
The passage doesn't say which came first or last, so some Protestant interpreters have taken the opportunity to add a distinction to this passage that is nowhere found in the text: there are Protestants who say that the washing away of his sins came only from his repentance, and not from his Baptism! But the passage doesn't say that, it merely names the three things together. It says nothing about either repentance or Baptism being the sole source of forgiveness, it simply connects them both to forgiveness; a natural reading would say that both were part of Paul's conversion, hence there is nothing in the text to support the idea that you can reject the one and say it came by the other alone. So Catholics, who say that Baptism and repentance are both necessary for a complete conversion, are more Bible-based than any Protestant who would read into this passage a distinction that the Holy Spirit Himself did not make.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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Romans 6:
3 Or are ye ignorant that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
4 We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have become united with him by the likeness of his death, we shall be also by the likeness of his resurrection;
6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away, that so we should no longer be in bondage to sin;
7 for he that hath died is justified from sin.
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Argument:
Here St. Paul makes an express connection between justification and Baptism. He effectively states that Baptism = uniting ourselves to Christ's death = justification. That is much more than many of you Protestants would admit; "No!" you might object, "for that means we are justified by our works!" But that is not true, because Baptism isn't our work but Christ's work, one that He made the means of applying His righteousness to us -- hence we say that the physical work of baptism doesn't save us, but its spiritual effect does.
How much more clear could the passage be? Baptism grants us "newness of life," "[so] that the body of sin might be done away," "[so that] we should no longer be in bondage to sin." If these don't describe forgiveness of sins, then nothing in Scripture could say it in such a way that some Protestant couldn't wrest it to say the opposite.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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Galatians 3:
24 the law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith.
25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a custodian;
26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
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Argument:
Once again, a connection is drawn between Baptism and justification: "[You are] justified by faith...as many of you as were baptized into Christ." Let this also be a reproof to those who say that justification through Baptism means justification through works: for Paul is arguing in this very passage against the idea that we can justify ourselves by our deeds (see Gal. 3:1-3, 6, 10-14, 18); never would he have thought that justification is produced by the physical act of being dunked in water; rather, justification is the spiritual effect of Baptism, and we are only baptized because of our faith in God's power to save humanity by this means.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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Colossians 2:
11 In [Christ] also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the circumcision of Christ;
12 and you were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.
13 And you, who were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses.
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Argument:
"In baptism," says the Bible, "you who were dead in trespasses...God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses." In so many places, the Scripture teaches -- again and again -- that Baptism is part of being forgiven of sin, much like faith is a part; and Baptism is based in the faith we have in God, for this same passage says that we are baptized because we have faith in the works of God. That implies that Baptism is the work that God has given in order to apply to us the forgiveness of sin; for in what else would we place all our faith, and what else would we trust in for salvation, except in something that could actually save us?
Now in all these passages, and in so many others, O Protestant, you may be under the false impression that the Baptism referred to isn't actually "water Baptism," but being "plunged into the Holy Spirit," because your spiritual heritage knows no limits to how far from the text it may take us. But that interpretation, which would be fine except for its denial of the presence of water Baptism in these verses, is absolutely horrifying to those who follow the Word of God: for the Scripture always and everywhere uses the word Baptism, in its most natural readings, to refer to normal water Baptism (as in Matthew 21:25, Acts 2:41, Acts 8:36, Acts 10:47-48, and Acts 19:4-5; passages that use it in an alternative way include Matthew 3:11, Mark 10:33-39, and Acts 11:15-17, but they all specify that they use the term in an alternative way). Therefore if the Scripture uses the word "Baptism," and unless it specifies that it means something else by the term, we should interpret it to carry its natural meaning of water Baptism. And that is exactly the way Scripture speaks in the ways I refer to on this page; hence it refers to natural water Baptism as a means of salvation, and this reference appears again and again in the Bible.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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Acts 2:
38 And Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
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Argument:
This passage specifies that in conversion forgiveness of sins comes from both repentance and Baptism. It is impossible to think of a Scripture that more clearly teaches the role of Baptism in the forgiveness of sins, than one like this which simply states without equivocation or ambiguity that Baptism is to be obtained "for the forgiveness of your sins." Please join me in praying that those who deny this may be drawn closer to this, which is the express teaching of the Word of God. Amen.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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John 3:
3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
4 Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"
5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Do not marvel that I said to you, `You must be born anew.' "
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Argument:
Here Jesus specifies that in our original state at birth we are incapable of attaining the blessedness of heaven; hence it is necessary to be "born again," and this involves both "water and the Spirit." That proves that water is involved in being born again to eternal life; which is the very claim we make, regarding Baptism.
Now, if you have been a Protestant for long, you may have heard your pastors try to get around this obvious meaning by saying that being "born of water" refers to physical birth, (and has nothing to do with Baptism,) and that being "born of the Spirit" refers to a faith-alone acceptance of Jesus. But that is impossible -- Jesus says that being "born of water" is part of entering the Kingdom of God (verse 5), and that cannot refer to physical birth because in the very next verse He specifies that physical birth does not help us get to heaven: "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, `You must be born anew' " -- because being born of the flesh means being born in sin, but being born of water and the Spirit means being born to eternal life. Just as the Church has always confessed.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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Titus 3:
5 [God] saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit.
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Argument:
This is a very important parallel to John 3:5; together, the two verses comprise 2 of the 3 verses that speak of a Christian re-birth (the third is 1 Peter 1:3, 23). This should be interesting to those Protestants who maintain that the re-birth in John 3:3-5 has nothing to do with water, (even though it says it does,) because here is another verse that connects the re-birth to water and the Spirit -- and no one would attempt to say that the water here refers to physical birth, as many try to say with John 3:5; but the only possible Christian rite that involves water is Baptism.
Now, if you who are Protestants would just grant that this speaks of Baptism as the means of being re-born to eternal life, and as a means of salvation, then this verse proves my second point about Baptism: that it is not the physical act of being dunked that saves us, but its spiritual effect. For if it was the physical act, then Paul would have contradicted himself in the same breath where he said that God has saved us "not because of deeds done by us in righteousness."
To say this all shortly, Paul here teaches that we cannot earn our salvation by deeds, for it is by grace alone; but this unmerited salvation is applied to us in a Baptismal rite that does indeed involve a physical act, and its spiritual effect is salvation.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach the Catholic doctrine that Baptism is a necessary part of becoming saved!
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Mark 16:
16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.
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Argument:
Here Jesus specifies that Baptism is a pre-requisite for salvation, just as the Catholic Church teaches. Will you continue to say that belief alone is a pre-requisite, O dearest brother in Christ, despite the plain words of Jesus Christ? For if you will not listen to what the Lord almighty has spoken, then I do not know what can be done for you, but I would pray that God open your eyes.
I have seen one blind guide who said that in the phrase "He who believes and is baptized will be saved," the clause "and is baptized" could be replaced by anything, even sin, because (said this Protestant) since faith alone saves you, "He who believes" can do anything he wants and still be saved -- and Jesus was (apparently) just giving Baptism as an example of one thing that he might want to do. This idea is horrifying, because it makes Jesus put in a meaningless qualifier; what evidence is there that He meant belief is any more necessary than Baptism? on what basis did this teacher who I saw, choose to reject Baptism as necessary rather than belief? For the passage simply names both of them as pre-requisites for salvation -- there is no basis for removing either one or the other.
Of course, there are some Protestants will say that Baptism isn't really necessary because the second phrase doesn't mention it, and you may be one of those -- "he who does not believe will be condemned," it says, and not "he who does not believe and refuses Baptism will be condemned." But that is a misguided distinction too: faith always comes before Baptism in a conversion, so if someone doesn't even make it to belief, then much less would he make it as far as Baptism. Jesus didn't need to point that out. It is as if I said, "He who gets up and goes to Grandma's house will get pie, but he who does not get up will go hungry." That proves that both getting up AND going to Grandma's are necessary; the second phrase doesn't negate the first one. In the same way, Mark 16:16 proves that both faith and Baptism are necessary for a complete conversion; the fact that someone who does not believee will not be saved is true, but it does not affect what was previously said about Baptism.
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