Do you have to be "saved" to go to Heaven?

Question

I live in the southern US, and I've been confused about this whole "saving" process. I'm a Lutheran and I believe in the Savior Jesus Christ. But what do I say to Southern Baptists and Pentecostals that say I must go to the front of the church and be dunked in a tub of water to go to Heaven?

Answer 1

If it were me, I would tell them that I was "Saved" when my parents had me baptized as a child. That would probably set your Baptist and Pentecostal friends off. They may even blow a gasket. The problem that I have (being a Lutheran) with the Baptists and Pentecostals is that they have devised a "Decision Theology" in order to boil Justification down to a very formulaic process that man follows to know he is “Saved.” The problem is that not all of us come to faith in the same formulaic manner. And when someone’s “Conversion Experience” doesn’t go as planned, and then they can start to doubt their faith. The sheer emphasis on “being Saved” to these people is on what Man can do to save himself, not what God has done for YOU in Jesus Christ.

I don’t even use the word “Saved” anymore, because it implies a whole line of thinking that is unscriptural. You can drop me an email if you want and I will help as I can.

Answer 2

My friend, yes you must be saved(born again) in order to go to Heaven. Once we accept Jesus Christ in our hearts as our Lord and Savior are names are now written in the Lambs Book of Life in Heaven. Howeve, being baptized(in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) in water is commanded by God for all believers but in order to go to heaven you must only be saved - Faith in Jesus Christ (ex: Thief on the Cross that believed Jesus was who He said He was and How Jesus promised the thief that on the same day he will be in Paradise with Him). If we love God we will do what He has commanded us. We will practice walking out His Word in righteousness. For get about the different denominations and seek God.

Answer 3

You are already saved. Jesus died for the sins of all the world, so everyone is already saved. We've just been conditioned into thinking otherwise. To those who think you have to be baptized, they are incorrect as far as I'm concerned. If you had to be baptized to be saved then that would imply that Jesus dying on the cross was not enough to do the job and save you. Being baptized and whatever else would get the job done. I don't think Jesus needs our help in that department. People just need to change their mentality and realize we are all sinners, Jesus died for the sins of all, God loves all, and we should show that same kind of love to our neighbor. After all, just like you and me, our neihbors were made in God's image too. And when you love, you manifest God because God is love.

Answer 4

Salvation was and is a gift. All you need to do is to accept it. For some monetary reason many of these various doctrines want you to think you owe them something for revealing it to you. Would you really think Jesus is going to church when he gets here? He preferred the outdoors anyway and turned the tables over in the temples. Just say a prayer while taking your shower or bath. Yeesh. Many religiously minded people have set better examples by their character not their style of preaching.

Answer 5

There are some really bad answers on here. Let me correct a few errors.

The Notorious Dr. Zoom Zoom said, "Everybody has their own way of following Jesus, and their own terminology and customs. Why knock it?"

Not every custom and terminology is correct. His source, coming from the Episcopal Church, has very poor theology.

Chef Bob said, "baptism has nothing whatsoever to do with salvation or being saved."

Chef Bob needs to read his Bible more. Matthew 28:19 says, "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Mark 16:16 says, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved." 1 Peter 3:21 says, "There is also an antitype which now saves us--baptism (not for the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ." Roman 6:3-4 says, "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."

Romans 6 is also the proper response to Chloe E's comments.

Scott Fritz said, "You already WERE "saved"... as we all WERE... when Christ died on the cross. AT THAT MOMENT, all sins were forgiven... all debts to God were paid. If you confess that... if you believe it... all the better. But as a Universalist, I believe that God will find a way to reconcile all of us to Himself, in the end."

He started to get it right, but completely dropped the ball at the end. Confessing the crucified and resurrected Christ is a necessary component to salvation, for that is how God reconciled us all to Himself. Universalists are as bad as Episcopals.

Lee Cappella said, "You are already saved. Jesus died for the sins of all the world, so everyone is already saved. We've just been conditioned into thinking otherwise. To those who think you have to be baptized, they are incorrect as far as I'm concerned. If you had to be baptized to be saved then that would imply that Jesus dying on the cross was not enough to do the job and save you. Being baptized and whatever else would get the job done. I don't think Jesus needs our help in that department."

Baptism is required, for even Jesus Himself was baptized. Baptism is not OUR work, but the work of God, so we are not participating in it at all other than that God is working in us. He doesn't need our help nor does He get our help. This is a part of His means to bringing us about to Him. See my previous bible verses to support this. And not everyone will be saved.

God Anointed Me 2 said, "Once we accept Jesus Christ in our hearts as our Lord and Savior are names are now written in the Lambs Book of Life in Heaven."

You cannot accept Jesus. He chose you. You can reject Him, but you cannot accept Him for He is already yours.

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So what, then, is necessary for salvation? Faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is what saves you. Baptism connects you with that death and resurrection as well as it creates faith in the individual through the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it should be viewed as necessary.

The manner in which baptism is performed is not mandatory. You can be dunked, sprinkled, poured, or supersoaked. It doesn't matter. What is important is the water connected with the Word of God.

Answer 6

baptism has nothing whatsoever to do with salvation or being saved.
here is the only requirement:
John 3: The Words of Jesus Christ (God in the flesh)
3. "Verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God."
4. Nicodemus saith unto Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?"
5. Jesus answered, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God."
6. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again."
16. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
18. He that believeth on Him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."

Answer 7

Being dunked (baptism) is something a Christian should do out of obedience to Christ, but it does not save you.
You can tell your baptist and pentecostal friends that the thief on the cross was not baptized and Jesus promised that he would be in Paradise with him that very day.
We are saved by grace, not by works, so that no one can boast.
We are saved by grace alone. Recall that in Acts 16:31 the jailer asked Paul and Silas how to be saved. They responded, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved." The jailer believed and immediately became saved.
Close to 200 times in the New Testament salvation is said to be by faith alone - with no works in sight. Consider the following:
John 3:15 tells us that "everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
John 5:24 says, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my words and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life."
In John 11:25 Jesus says, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies."
John 23:46 says, "I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness."
John 20:31 says, "But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."
If salvation were not by faith alone, then Jesus' message in the Gospel of John - manifest in the above quotations - would be deceptive, stating that there is one condition for salvation when there are allegedly two - faith and works.
I must emphasize that we are saved by faith for works. Works are not the condition of our salvation, but a consequence of it We are saved not by works, but by the kind of faith that produces works.

Eph 2:8-10 God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can't take credit for this: It is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Answer 8

Atheist i think of heaven could be cool in case you ought to fulfill people from historic previous and locate out what rather befell. of direction, quite some my faves might probable be in hell. Or get to stay as an animal of a few type. being waiting to zoom around and discover the universe could be exciting. limitless intercourse or despite is the celestial version for the reason that procreation does no longer be mandatory. What i does no longer want is infinite eternity being a praising sycophant to the deity who I by no skill asked to create me in the 1st place. i think of after a hundred trillion years it might get style of boring.

Answer 9

Yup, just have to ramble out a few verses and 'believe it with your heart' and ask 'jesus into your heart as your personal savior'

and you are in like Flynn.

You can sin and do whatever you want after that, even kill. If you keep being sorry and just keep believing and having faith and trust in the LOrd,
you'll never have to repay for your sins in the afterlife and you get into heaven free and clear.

Answer 10

You already WERE "saved"... as we all WERE... when Christ died on the cross. AT THAT MOMENT, all sins were forgiven... all debts to God were paid. If you confess that... if you believe it... all the better. But as a Universalist, I believe that God will find a way to reconcile all of us to Himself, in the end.