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THE NORTHERN KENTUCKY SEARCHER VOLUME 1, NUMBER 38, OCTOBER 21, 2001 "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED" In every formal, public discussion concerning the necessity of baptism for the remission of sins that I have attended, passages such as Romans 10:11, which comprises the title of this article, are continually brought up. The point is generally made in this way, "If baptism is necessary why does it say, 'Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed?'" Most often there will be an overhead projection, a beautifully made chart,
listing a number of passages that mention belief and nothing else. John 3:16 is
usually included, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal
life." John 3:36 is inevitably included as well. It says, "He who
believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not
see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." John 6:40 is on all of the
lists because it says, "For this is the will of My Father, that everyone
who beholds the Son and believes in Him, may have eternal life; and I Myself
will raise him up on the last day." Frequently the entire exchange between
Jesus and Martha in John 11 is on the list as well, and we must not forget Eph.
2:8 & 9, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not
of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one
should boast." I have even heard the argument made that a person could list
four times as many passages that deal with belief than passages that deal with,
or even mention, baptism. How then could baptism be essential? In Luke 13: 3 & 5, Jesus made the exact same statement. He said, "I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." Would we be correct if we went to these verses and said that repentance is all that is necessary? The verses do not contain the word "belief", or any other form of it. We could go to Acts 17, to the midst of the Areopagus with Paul, and read his words of verses 30 & 31, "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." Would we be correct if we said that Paul only mentioned repentance in this passage, therefore repentance is all that is necessary? For that matter, we could go to Acts 22:16, and read the words of Ananias to Saul (later to become Paul), "And now why do you delay? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name." I don't see belief mentioned there, or repentance either. Would it be right to say that baptism to ""wash away your sins" is all that is necessary? We could quote 1 Peter 3:21, which says, "And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you - not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience - through the resurrection of Jesus Christ." Would it be fair and good scholarship to say that on the basis of 1 Pet. 3:21, only baptism is necessary? The answer to every one of those questions is no. It is not right to take a verse out of the context of the entire New Testament revelation and assign to it a significance that it does not have. Yet, each one of those verses teaches the absolute truth. How can that be? The answer is simple. Brethren, John 3:16, 3:36, 6:40, & 11:25f; as well as Eph. 2:8 & 9, Luke 13:3 & 5, Acts 17:30 & 31, Acts 22:16, and 1 Pet. 3:21, all teach the truth and do it in the following way. They are examples of synecdoche, which is a fancy name for something that we both read and use all the time. Synecdoche is a "figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole or the whole for a part, the special for the general or the general for the special, as in ten sail for ten ships or a Croesus for a rich man." (Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary) So, when Jesus said, "that whoever believes in Him should not perish" that includes everything that is involved in belief. When the Lord said, "Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish", everything else that is involved in salvation is implied. Repent was a part being used for the whole. When Peter said, "baptism now saves you", he did not mean baptism only, everything else was implied. It was synecdoche, a part being used for the whole. The interesting thing is that every single person I have discussed this issue with, whether it be in private conversation, formal, public debate, or on the radio, has recognized the use of synecdoche even though they didn't know it. They have all believed that repentance was necessary. When pressed, they would all admit that confession was necessary. They simply refuse to admit, because of previously held ideas and spiritual prejudice, that the same is true of baptism. I did have one fellow argue that belief and repentance were the same thing, or at least occurred simultaneously and could not be separated. That is so easily disproved that it makes you wonder why anyone would be so determined to cling to a belief that is just not true in spite of all the evidence to the contrary. In Mark 1:14 & 15, we find this statement made about Jesus. "And after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel". It is evident that Jesus did not view repentance and belief as the same thing. Yet, when one understands and appreciates what the New Testament has to say about salvation, he will know that the one who truly believes, will repent, as well as confessing and being baptized for the remission of sins. I make this point again because it is such a wonderful truth. For the faithful child of God, every single verse is his verse. Every single verse is true and teaches the truth. The faithful child of God does not have to run to a few memorized "proof-texts", because they are all our texts. That is how God intended it to be and it is a comforting and glorious position to be in. Every verse harmonizes perfectly with every other one. It is the marvelous presentation of truth. "Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth." (John 17:17) Greg Litmer
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