Ron Halbrook

The following story has been submitted as proof that our soul can be saved without the necessity of baptism:

“There was a man who gave his life to the Lord at a Billy Graham crusade.  This man repented in tears; those tears were soon replaced with joy unspeakable at the realization of his salvation.

“The man told all his family and friends of his newfound faith. That Sunday he found a church to call home and immediately joined the new believer’s class. Ten days after his salvation, the man discovered Jesus’ command to be baptized through the classes. He joyfully requested to be baptized. The church scheduled his baptism for the next week. During that week, his wife and daughter both gave their lives to the Lord because of his changed life (he no long swore at them, he didn’t get drunk, and he never once hit his wife since the day of his repentance).

“Sunday morning arrived; his wife and daughter accompanied him on his journey to the church. They all hoped the pastor would baptize the two newest believers in his family with him. They prayed that God would let the whole family be baptized together on that very special morning.

“However, a very sad thing happened. The car had a tire blowout; it spun out of control and tumbled over a cliff. The man and his wife died instantly. The daughter was rushed to the hospital and somehow, by the grace of God, survived to relay what had happened that morning.

“Can the daughter take comfort in the knowledge that her mom and dad were believers and saved by the grace of God? Did her parents make it into the loving arms of Jesus, or not?”

God’s Perfect Judgment Not Altered by Our Opinions

If this is a true story, it needs to be said that no man can determine the destiny of another man’s soul.  God makes all final judgments concerning each individual.  It is our role to study and learn what God teaches, then to believe it, submit to it, and teach other men.  It will be God’s role to pronounce the outcome on a case-by-case basis.

Paul referred to the Judgment Day “when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel” (Rom. 2:16).  The words of Christ not our opinions or emotions will be the standard of judgment when he comes “in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jn. 12:48; 2 Thess. 1:8).  Our declaring someone saved when that is not according to God’s Word and God’s will, or our declaring someone lost when that is not according to God’s Word and God’s will, has no effect on the final outcome.  We do not sit in the seat of God (2 Thess. 2:4).  We may have opinions pro and con about particular cases, but our opinions do not alter the perfect and “righteous judgment of God” (Rom. 2:5).

What Is the Purpose of the One True Bible Baptism?

Whether the story about the man at the Graham Crusade is true or fictional, let us consider what the Bible teaches about the conditions of salvation.  The story is designed to prove that faith but not baptism is essential for salvation from past sins.  The “proof” is to be derived from the emotional impact of a tragic story of one man’s death as a believer who was not baptized.  The story is told in such a way as to connect faith to salvation from past sin but to deny any essential connection between baptism and this heavenly pardon from sin.

There is only one true Bible baptism just as there is only one true God and one true Savior (Eph. 4:4-6). What is the purpose of this one true baptism?

When Jesus told his Apostles to preach the gospel to all nations, he told them to preach faith, repentance, and baptism as part of God’s plan for man to receive forgiveness of sins (Matt. 28:18-20; Mk. 16:15-16; Lk. 24:46-47).  Faith is explicitly mentioned in Mark’s account of the Great Commission, repentance in Luke’s, and baptism in both Matthew’s and Mark’s.  What did Jesus say as recorded in Mark l6:16: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved,” or, “He that believeth only and dies without being baptized shall be saved”? We should believe, preach, and practice whatever Jesus said without altering it to fit our opinions or emotions.

We preach to the living not to the dead and therefore our focus should be, “What will we preach to the living about God’s plan of salvation revealed by Jesus Christ in the gospel?”  Preaching the gospel does not mean speculating about the possible salvation of someone who died before he believed, or before he repented, or before he was baptized.  The question is, “Will we preach what Jesus said or will we preach our opinions and emotions?”

In the story as presented, it is evident that even if the man had been baptized, it would not have been the original baptism of the gospel of Christ.  That baptism is received by faith in the blood of Christ for the purpose of receiving salvation (to be “saved,” Mk. 16:16), “for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38), and in order to “wash away thy sins” (Acts 22:16).  That baptism puts us in touch with the atoning death of Christ (Rom. 6:3-4).  That baptism puts us “into Christ,” uniting us with Christ in the one body or church of Christ (Rom. 6:3-4; Gal. 3:27; 1 Cor. 12:13).  The man from the Graham Crusade was scheduled to receive a very different baptism, a baptism for people professing to be saved before baptism, a baptism securing membership in a human denomination not found in the Bible.

The man in the story was taught the false doctrine that his sins were forgiven on a certain day by faith only at the Crusade.  The church he attended scheduled his baptism at a later time because neither the man nor this church understood the true purpose of Bible baptism.  Had they understood, the man would have renounced the false doctrine of salvation by faith only taught by Graham. His baptism would have occurred “the same day,” yes, even “the same hour of the night” (Acts 2:40; 16:33).  Therefore, if the man had lived to receive baptism at this church, his baptism would not have been the “one baptism” of the original gospel of Christ (Eph. 4:4-6). Had he lived, he would have received a false baptism based on a false doctrine for the purpose of joining a false church.

The Revised Version: Hearing Without Faith

If we may alter the conditions of pardon by relating stories, let us repeat the same story with one difference.  Instead of the man reaching the point of faith without baptism, he will reach the point of hearing before faith.

“There was a man who began to hear about the Jesus of the Bible.  This man experienced both tears and joy in the realization that for the first time he might be hearing about the true Savior.  Therefore, he rushed home in his car to get his wife and daughter so that they could all hear the complete message together, and if this was the true Savior, they would all believe in him and receive salvation.  They prayed that God would let the whole family believe and be saved together on that very special morning if Christ is the true Savior. However, a very sad thing happened. The car had a tire blowout; it spun out of control and tumbled over a cliff. The man and his wife died instantly. The daughter was rushed to the hospital and somehow, by the grace of God, survived to relay what had happened that morning. Can the daughter take comfort in the knowledge that her mom and dad were saved by the grace of God? Did her parents make it into the loving arms of Jesus, or not?”

Does the sad emotion of that story eliminate the necessity of faith in order to receive salvation?  No, it merely illustrates the uncertainty of life on earth, and therefore the urgency of teaching lost sinners the way of salvation and the urgency of sinner’s submitting to God’s plan without delay!

If the man in the original story had heard the original gospel given by Christ in the Great Commission, he would have learned immediately that faith, repentance, and baptism are conditions which must be met in order to receive pardon from sin.  On that very day at the moment of his baptism, he would have been united with Christ and added to the church of Christ, the very church established by Christ in the New Testament (Acts 2:38-41, 47).

When he later died in a wreck, his daughter could take comfort in knowing he had been saved by the grace of God and was in the loving arms of Jesus, all based on the assurance of God’s Word not on her opinion or emotion.

God’s Grace Conditional:  Man Is Free to Accept or Reject Grace

Here is the bottom line. The Bible teaches a sinner outside of God’s family must meet the following conditions to receive salvation by the grace of God:  hear the gospel (Rom. 10:17), believe the gospel (Mk. 16:16), repent of sins (Acts 2:38), confess Christ (Rom. 10:8-10), and be immersed in water for the remission of sins (Mk. 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3-4; Gal. 3:26-27; 1 Pet. 3:21).  Death does not nullify the place of hearing in God’s plan.

Death does not nullify the place of faith in God’s plan. Death does not nullify the place of repentance in God’s plan. Death does not nullify the place of confession in God’s plan. Death does not nullify the place of baptism in God’s plan.

Faith, repentance, and baptism are not works of merit earning salvation. They are merely conditions which must be met if we wish to receive forgiveness of our sins by God’s grace through the blood of Christ (Eph. 2:8-9; 4:4-6; 5:26).  These conditions allow man to exercise his free will in accepting or rejecting God’s offer of salvation.  God does not force anyone to receive His offer of mercy and pardon from sin.  When we meet God’s conditions, He freely forgives us based on the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins (Eph. 1:7).  “And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17).

There will be great joy when we learn and obey God’s true plan of salvation! After Peter preached on Pentecost that believers must repent and be baptized to receive remission of sins, “then they that gladly received his word were baptized” (Acts 2:40).  After the Ethiopian official heard the gospel and was baptized, “he went on his way rejoicing” (Acts 8:39).  After the jailor at Philippi learned that Jesus Christ is the true Savior, he was baptized “the same hour of the night...and rejoiced, believing in God” (Acts 16:33-34).

Since death does not alter God’s plan for our salvation, let us accept His grace by obeying the gospel of Christ now while we live!  Without delay!

Truth Magazine, Nov. 2006