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According to the Internet, what are the Prerequisites for Baptism?
I found this interesting article that I would like to explore. What is to come before baptism? The article lists three things in the following order:
1. Confess your sins. The Bible says of John the Baptist: “Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins (Matthew 3:5, 6, NKJV). We need to acknowledge that we are sinners and confess our sins to God. If we do, He will forgive us (see 1 John 1:9). 2. Repent of your sins. When Peter preached to the people in Jerusalem on Pentecost following the resurrection of Jesus, many of them were convicted by the Holy Spirit and asked Peter what they should do. He replied, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38, NKJV). 3. Believe Believe on Jesus Christ and accept Him as your Savior from sin. When Philip met an Ethiopian and told him about Jesus, the Ethiopian wanted to be baptized. Philip told him, “‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ . . . . And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him” (Acts 8:37, 38, NKJV). “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16, NKJV). https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/questions/are-there-any-prerequisites-it |
My first question is this, how or why would you confess your sins and repent of your sins BEFORE you believe? That doesn’t make any sense. The “order” of things is very important. Try opening a combination lock by taking the numbers out of correct order. Why would anyone repent or confess their sins BEORE they believed on the Lord?
The Bible clearly teaches when our sins are forgiven. Acts 2:38 “…Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins….” also Acts 22:16 “…arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins….”
To believe that God will save someone before baptism is to believe that God will save us while we are still in sin, for we will still have our sins.
Certainly confession is essential as is repentance, but they come before baptism, and it is when we are baptized that our sins are taken away. We need to do Bible things in Bible ways.
