4. "I'm saved because I was baptized as an infant..."

I f you were baptized as a child or had your children baptized, then that is a wonderful way to have been dedicated to the Lord. However, that is all that it was. Being dedicated to the Lord simply means that it is your desire that one will come into a personal trusting relationship with Jesus. The “act” of baptism, like any other “religious act” plays no part in the personal surrendering of your heart to Jesus or coming into relationship with Him. It is Him you must trust for your salvation, not your baptism. Mark 16:16 says, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.” Your belief must be in Him and His death on the cross for your sin. You must trust Him, surrendering your heart and life to Him; then He will come in and bring His salvation with Him. Look at what Jesus says in Matthew 7:21-23, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of Heaven , but he who does the will of My Father in Heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” The words, “I never knew you,” still ring. A person can do many wonderful and seemingly spiritual things in the name of Jesus but never be in right relationship with Him or have a life surrendered to Him. This includes baptism. Let’s take a liberty in what Jesus said and re-phrase it like this to make a point: “Many will say to me in that day, ‘Hey Jesus, remember me? We’re friends, right? Remember when I was a baby and baptized in Your name? How about all the times I attended church and gave money to charity?’” He most surely will say to you in that day, “Depart from Me, I never knew you. You used My name but ignored Me. You never invited Me into your heart or pursued a relationship with Me.”

Jesus is saying that all the “religion” in the world cannot save you. Only trusting in Jesus’ death on the cross for you can save you. When you put all of your trust in Jesus as your personal Savior rather than in yourself or in your religious beliefs, then He sends His Spirit to dwell inside of you, bearing witness with your spirit that you are a child of God (Romans 8:16). Romans 8:9 says, “Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” He goes on in verse 11 to say that “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”

Do you see it? Your eternal life and resurrection power is the indwelling Holy Spirit when you put faith in Jesus! It is Jesus dwelling in you, not faith in any act or observance. It all happens the moment you repent and put faith in Jesus and ask Him into your heart to be your Lord and Savior. That’s it! Now you can be baptized as your public confession of the transaction that has taken place between you and Jesus. Baptism represents the death, burial and new life in Jesus that took place the moment you trusted in Him and Him alone as your Savior.