Your Destiny (Part 2)

(Please first read “Your Destiny” [Part 1] before you continue.)

Our first installment is very important and we hope that you have taken the time to read it—“Your Destiny” (Part 1). Let us now continue.

Let’s make sure that we read, understand, and accept all that God (in Scripture) has for us regarding salvation. In our first installment, we cited Mark 16:16 where we read: “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.”

This looks quite simple—and it is. To repeat, Jesus says that the person who “believes”. . . . This means the person who believes and accepts the fact of Jesus Christ. Who was and is He? He is the Son of God (John 3:16). He is the Lord (Romans 10:9). He died on the cross for our salvation and rose from the grave three days later (1 Corinthians 15:3-11). He is actually “God” or deity (John 1:1-4, 14, 18). Further, the person must not only “believe” this but must trust that God in Christ is our Savior and Lord. We must rely on Christ for our salvation—for there is no salvation apart from this basic fact or these basic facts (cf. Acts 4:12).

As you know, there are millions of professing “Christians” who do not believe this. We refer to “Jesus Only” or “Oneness” (or Sabellian) people. Further, there are many millions of professing “Christians” who do not believe all of the Bible, thus they do not believe in Jesus as He is revealed to us on the pages of Scripture. Therefore, we see that a person must “believe” in Jesus as He is revealed in the Bible. Do you?

The cited Scripture goes on: “. . . and has been baptized shall be saved” (Mark 16:16). Many of you have not really looked into Scripture on this but have merely taken the word of your pastor, priest, preacher, minister, or teacher. However, “baptism” comes from a Greek word with this meaning: “. . . consisting of the process of immersion, submersion and emergence” (Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words). Did you read this? Baptism actually consists of “immersion, submersion and emergence.” One is immersed (dipped) into water (not flowers, petals, snow, etc.), then one is submerged into that water (covered over as in death and burial), then one “emerges” or comes from that water as one would be risen from the dead. Let’s remember that the New Testament was originally written in the Greek language—and not Spanish, English, French, or any other modern language.

What does this mean? It means that one who comes to Christ for His forgiveness must “believe” in Him and be immersed into Him (into the water) and then drawn out from the water. Those in certain parts of the world may be more familiar with this than those living in other parts. We know that places where the Anglican Church, Methodist Church, or Catholic Church have gone may be more confused about the meaning of baptism (immersion) than others. In fact, some of these churches may actually deny the meaning of baptism and think that it merely means an application or moistening of water to a baby—even to a baby’s head. They seem to be totally unaware of the meaning of baptism—the immersion of a person who believes in Christ. We don’t mean by this that everyone is totally “in the dark” regarding the meaning of baptism for even if we don’t know Greek we can determine the meaning of baptism.

The scripture we have been examining (Mark 16:16) is also found in other portions of the Bible. The actual verse may not be quoted in all of these places but the meaning can be derived if we examine the whole New Testament (see particularly Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38; 8:12, 36-39; 22:16; Romans 6:3-5; Galatians 3:26-27; Ephesians 4:5; Colossians 2:11-13; 1 Peter 3:21). Thus we are not limited to the passage we have cited—Mark 16:16.

Maybe we can better see now that many who claim they are saved or will be saved are confused. If they have never even obeyed the “Great Commission” of the Lord (Mark 16:15-16), how can they claim the salvation that this verse extends to us?

Do you see what this means?  For example, have Catholics submitted to Christ’s words and can they thereby claim the salvation that Jesus promises?  Let me ask you another question: Have 98% of Catholics ever obeyed Jesus words? Have they believed at the time they think they were baptized—or do they say that their parents or their so-called “godparents” or the “church” believed for them? (This would be a sort of “proxy” baptism.) Have Lutherans “believed” and been “baptized” when they assume they were saved from their past sins? What about Methodists, Presbyterians, Anglicans, Episcopalians, or other Reformed people? Did they really “believe” and were baptized (immersed) when they think they were saved—or were they crying babies at the time?

Further, did these Catholics, Anglicans, Episcopalians, Lutherans, Methodists, and Presbyterians really submit to baptism (immersion) when they think they were saved? From what we have noted above, most of them have not. We don’t know the percentage, but probably 95 to 99% have not really believed and were immersed in water at the time they think they were baptized. Of course, the Orthodox people may or may not have been immersed but they surely didn’t “believe” at the time they think they were baptized.

We know that there are a lot of unanswered questions about this. There are many defects even regarding “believer’s” baptism or adult baptism (as practiced in the Baptist Church, the Church of Christ, the Christian Church, the Adventist Church, and various Protestant denominations and cults). But we just don’t have the time or space to devote to this matter at this time. But we have seen and read enough to see that most people who think they have been saved and converted actually have accepted a counterfeit conversion or a counterfeit salvation. This is a very dangerous position to be in, don’t you agree?

If we have spoken to your heart here, we call on you to submit your heart and will to the God who created you. We are speaking to some 2 billion or more people here! Now is the time to truly come to the Lord Jesus for the salvation that only He can give. Now is the time to turn to Him with all of your heart as He has described Himself. Only in this way will you be able to honestly say, “I have been saved! I have been converted! I have come to God through Jesus Christ for His full and free salvation!”

There are many different articles available and we hope that you will use the “Search” feature to locate some of them. There is no excuse for further delay. He calls on you today!

Please read “Your Destiny” (Part 1).