Question 12: Does not the principal passage of Mark 16:16 prove the very contrary, where Jesus pr...

Question 12: Does not the principal passage of Mark 16:16 prove the very contrary, where Jesus prudently says: "...he who does not believe (not he who is not baptized) will be condemned?"

Answer: We do indeed believe and profess that eternal life is not promised because of baptism, but only through faith in Christ (John 3:15, 18). Why should a believer not wish to do the will of Him in whom he believes? If it is the will of Christ that a believer should be baptized, then it is also the will of the believer. If he thus wills and believes as Christ wills, he is saved, even if it were impossible for him to receive baptism. Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son Isaac, but it did not happen; the son was not sacrificed. Yet obedience was fulfilled, and the blessing was received. Therefore, a believer who desires to be baptized, but cannot obtain it because of necessity - like the criminal on the cross - is still saved. If, however, a man does not desire to be baptized, he is rightly to be judged as unbelieving and disobedient, not because of the baptism, but because of his unbelief and disobedience. Christ has rightly said, "He who believes..." [Mark 16:16]. If He had made salvation dependent on the water, men would be much more willing to be baptized, and retain their own will in other things. The Antichrist does this in assigning salvation to the water only, although the person lives otherwise as he pleases.