Q:  When John the Baptist talks about “baptism unto repentance” and “worthy fruit,” is he saying that repentance is incomplete without water baptism?

A.  No, and we have a prime example of this in the thief on the cross.

First I want to point out how this thief addressed Jesus. The thief on the other cross was blaspheming and mocking Jesus like the rest of the crowd, but in Luke 23:42, this second thief said, “Lord….” He addressed Jesus with honor, and then he said, very humbly, “Remember me when You come into your kingdom.”

He called Jesus Lord, and Jesus responded to that humble attitude and recognition by saying, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).

Jesus didn’t say, “Confess your sins so that you can be with Me.” He didn’t say, “I’m going to sprinkle water on you so you can be saved.” He didn’t say anything about that man’s actions or his ability — redemption is just so powerful that Jesus could simply say to that man, “You will be in Paradise with me.”

That is just so powerful. Friend, aren’t you grateful that your redemption doesn’t have anything to do with you trying to be good enough? It only has to do with how great and powerful and merciful He is.

I heard about one man who was 92 years old when he repented of his sins and received Jesus, and when that happened, he even had a vision. Then a little time passed, and he fell into a coma and died shortly afterward.

He was never able to get baptized, but does that mean he wasn’t saved? No, friend, he was saved, because it’s not about baptism.

Now, I am all for water baptism. I believe that if you get saved and nothing physically prohibits you from being baptized in water, then you should do it. It’s a powerful symbol and declaration, and the Bible does command us to take part in it. But what I want you to understand about this is that it’s not the baptism that saves you — it’s your faith and trust in Jesus, just like we see from that broken man on the cross next to the Savior.