It is only the blood that washes away our sins. When Jesus was baptized by his cousin John The Baptist it was immersion because it represents going under the water the death and burial, and coming out of the water the resurrection. Baptism does not save remember the 1 thief on the cross who repented who believed Jesus is the son of God was told by Jesus today thou shall be with me in paradise.
“Baptism does not save remember the 1 thief on the cross who repented who believed Jesus is the son of God was told by Jesus today thou shall be with me in paradise”
we don’t know wether he was baptized or not so it’s not a good example of someone being saved without baptism
There’s nothing to say he wasnt baptized in water in fact there’s a tendency to think he probably was baptized because of several examples like these two
“And there went out unto him
all the land of Judæa, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.”
Mark 1:5 KJV
“And
all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John.”
Luke 7:29 KJV
awe know the thief
was in the region and also had heard Jesus preaching before the cross because he talks about his kingdom which is what Jesus preached immediately following the baptism of John
This doesn’t prove he was baptized , of course but my point is we just don’t know if he was or wasn’t but there’s nothin to suggest anywhere in scripture he wasn’t there’s some things suggesting he probably was because it says the people
the sinners and yet believers , in the region were flocking to John to confess thoer sins and get baptized believing John was the immediate , predecessor of the messiah like the prophets foretold
Johns place is the last annointed witness of Christ
before he came and John is in the prophets wrotten as the immediate predecessor of the messiah
“There was
a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same
came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light,
that all men through him ( Jesus ) might believe.
He was not that Light, but
was sent to bear witness of that Light.”
John 1:6-8 KJV
When they were getting baptized for remission of sins
before Jesus death it’s because they believed what the prophets said out the messiah , they believed was about to be made known after John
For instance they heard this in the concluding chapters of the prophets
“
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: ( John )
and
the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.”( Jesus )
Malachi 3:1 KJV
And they believed John was that messenger and so
“
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;
As
it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, Which shall prepare thy way before thee.
John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.”
Mark 1:1-2, 4 KJV
they believed the messiah was about to arrive and so remission of sins comes in Here before it happened ( Old Testament ) they we’re told by wotnesses and believed
“Surely he hath
borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
But
he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
Isaiah 53:4-6 KJV
and after it happened ( new testaments ) we are told by witnesses and believed
“For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.”
1 Peter 2:21-25
christ and remission of sins goes forward to the end and backwards to the beginning by the witness of God we heard it after , they before it’s faith either way if you believe Gods word about Christ
many of the ot believed in Jesus but they didn’t know it yet
when they got baptized it was because they
believed John was that preeecessor of the messiah who would take thier sins upon himself , because the prophets said he would all along
So even before Jesus was announced and died for sin , they got baptized believing he would because of the prophets baptism hasn’t changed is the point in any way only Jesus name is now known
before the cross
“John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the
baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all the land of Judæa, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him
in the river of Jordan,
confessing their sins.”
( because they believed in the remission through the messiah death the ot promised even before it happened because God said it would and they believed )
Mark 1:4-5 KJV
After the cross
“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. ( this can now happen because Jesus does and rose and was glorofied )
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. ( baptism is part of the promise )
Then they that gladly
received his word were baptized: and
the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”
Acts 2:38-39, 41 KJV
Baptism in water doesn’t “ save anyone “ it’s a word of faith meaning it is something God said to hear and believe and do and you will be saved “
basic faith is believing what God said and acting upon that belief