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| Q: | Is it possible for someone to enter the kingdom of God without ever being baptized, even if that person believes that Jesus Christ is our Savior? | ||||||
| A: | Please pardon me for having a bit of trouble understanding your question. If I might be so bold, I am going to answer as if you didn't intend to write the word "even" after the word "baptized." I'm going to answer as if you said, "...without ever being baptized, if that person believes that Jesus Christ is our Savior." Scripture is clear in John 3:16 that faith in Jesus is what will make the difference between heaven and hell when someone dies. It is also (Romans 10:17) clear that such faith comes through the message of Christ--what we typically call the gospel. That spiritual life-giving gospel God has chosen to communicate to us in Word and Sacraments. If persons were brought to faith in Jesus through the gospel they had heard, and, before they had an opportunity to be baptized, were to die, they would still be a children of God through faith in Jesus. However, if someone were brought to faith through the Word, and then came to understand the beauty of baptism as the Word teaches it, and yet would despise that gift of God which strengthens faith (where faith already exists), that rejection of what God's Word teaches would be incompatible with saving faith. Many students of the Word have put it this way. Merely lacking baptism does not condemn someone. It is despising baptism that condemns. | ||||||
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