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NASB | John 3:16 ¶ "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 3:16 ¶ "For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life. |
Subject: forgivness of sins |
Bible Note: Greetings DD4Truth! Scripture clearly teaches that salvation is by faith alone, and water baptism is not necessary for salvation. John 3:16-17 presents a clear, excellent example: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him." Now, in Acts 2:38, "Peter replied, 'Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins", the word 'for' is understood in a causal, or resultant, sense. Therefore, the verse could be paraphrased: "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ because of (or as a result of) the remission of sins." You don't get baptized in order to attain the remission of your sins, you get baptized following the salvation experience. In Mark 16:16, "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned." Without delving into the textual criticism of whether or not this verse should actually be in the Bible (By the way, I agree with you that it should be there!), it is 'unbelief' that brings the condemnation, not a lack of being baptized. When a person rejects the gospel in a refusal to believe it, then that person is condemned to face judgment. Paul writes, "For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel- not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power" (1 Cor. 1:17). Here, Paul clearly draws a distinction between baptism and the gospel. And since it is the gospel that saves (1 Cor. 15:1-2), baptism is clearly not necessary to attain salvation. It is our faith in Christ that saves us (Acts 16:31; John 3:16), not baptism. Baptism is a public profession of faith that identifies us with Christ. Blessings to you, Makarios |