How does those that were never born fit into your definition of water baptism?
This thread has posed more questions than answers. We are Saved by Grace through Faith. That is as plain and simple fact. Yet Jesus, was baptized in water. John the Baptist also told us that he baptized with water, but Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. From there things get a little murky. Jesus never said that we were to be baptized to be saved.
[SUP]3 [/SUP]Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
[SUP]4 [/SUP]Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
[SUP]5 [/SUP]Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Yet he sent His disciples out to "teach us and to baptize us" (make disciples out of us). There was a promise to the disciples who did this. He would be with them until the end of the world. But. He never baptized any of His disciples. Eleven of them were Saved by their faith. Then we get to the disciples. They baptized those who came for Salvation (most of the time) in the water. Here we are today. The real question is should we or must we be baptized in water in order to be saved, or should we or must we be after we are saved. Since God's Word does not contradict itself, there is an answer.
37 [/SUP]Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
[SUP]38 [/SUP]Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
[SUP]39 [/SUP]For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
If the promise holds for us today the commands holds also
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[SUP]46 [/SUP]For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
[SUP]47 [/SUP]Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
[SUP]48 [/SUP]And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.
Here we see men being commanded to be water baptised after having received the Holy Ghost. So it is clear Holy Spirit is not the baptism.
John 3 says, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Here are the evidence of both. The evidence also shows the order can be reversed.
Now it's time for us to take every scripture that is used to support a position and find the answer that isn't contradicted by another scripture. I see why your scriptures support your position, but your positions are also contradicted by the scriptures used to support other positions.