Advocates of Baptismal Regeneration - the doctrine that water baptism washes away your sins and gives you the new birth - typically use five main verses to support their teaching:
This article will go through these one at a time, explaining what they mean, and refuting the idea that they teach Baptismal Regeneration. At the end, there will be a section with various proofs against the doctrine in general.
Acts 2:38
38 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.
The "remission of sins" mentioned in the verse is achieved by repenting (changing your mind from belief to unbelief), and the mention of baptism is an aside to that point. How do we know? Same book, same speaker (Peter):
Acts 10:43, 47
43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
After you're told that belief in Christ is what remits your sins (no mention of baptism), you are told of a group that already has the Holy Ghost that hasn't been water baptized. They had both the remission of sins, and the Holy Ghost, without water baptism.
This proves that Peter's mention of baptism in Acts 2:38 is a parenthetical statement, with the second part of the verse pertaining to the command to repent, which as we see in verse 43 of chapter 10, in this Salvific context, is synonymous with belief.
Baptism is mentioned alongside belief because it's the first step after belief as a public display of your faith (Acts 8:36-37). The faith (repenting from unbelief to belief), though, is what gives you Eternal Life, as supported by many other statements in Scripture, none of which mention water baptism (John 3:16, 3:18, 3:36, 5:24, 6:47, etc.).
Mark 16:16
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
Notice that belief is on both sides of the dichotomy, whereas baptism isn't. This would only prove Baptismal Regeneration if baptism was on both sides alone, or on the final side alone.
We can compare this with two similar dichotomies given to us in John chapter 3:
John 3:18
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.
John 3:36
36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
Notice that baptism is clearly absent altogether.
It's true in Mark 16:16 that whoever believes and is baptized shall be saved, but the baptism plays no part in the Salvation. Whosoever believes and does 50 jumping jacks shall be saved. What's the essential part? Well, the more complete testimony of scripture shows us that the essential part is belief.
If water baptism was required for Salvation, it would need to be mentioned in every verse regarding Salvation. Take the above verses from John 3 for example. Teachers of Baptismal Regeneration assert that one can believe on the Son and not have Everlasting Life if they don't get water baptized. If that's the case, these verses are deceptive lies, because they exclude vital information on Salvation, while making authoritative, close-ended statements on how to get Salvation, with no caveats provided for in their context.
1 Peter 3:20-21
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
21 The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:
In this passage, baptism is likened to being on the ark during the Flood. In the same way that "8 souls were saved by water" from their wicked generation, baptism saves us. A Baptismal Regenerationalist sees "8 souls were saved by water", and asserts that baptism is being likened to eternal Salvation.
Firstly, "souls" here is referring to "lives"/"people", as is often the case in the Bible (Genesis 12:5, 12:13, Joshua 10:35, 39, Job 12:10, Jeremiah 2:34, Lamentations 1:19, Ezekiel 7:19, 13:18-20, Luke 12:20, 21:19, Acts 3:23, 7:14, 27:37, Revelation 16:3, 18:13, etc.). The Ark saved Noah and his family's earthly lives from floodwater, it did not give them eternal Salvation.
Those on the Ark were saved from God's temporal wrath here on this earth, and from the wickedness of those who had corrupted the earth - and Peter is likening baptism to that salvation. Salvation from Hell is foreign to the passage. As the passage states, baptism gives us "the answer of a good conscious toward God" as the first step in obedience as a Christian. It saves us from the chastening of the Lord (Hebrews 12:6), and calls us out of the world (2 Corinthians 6:17). It does not give us the new birth - faith does (John 1:12).
The word "saved"/"salvation" in Scripture does not always refer to eternal Salvation from Hell (Matthew 14:30, Romans 13:11, Philippians 1:19: 1 Timothy 2:15, 4:16: 2 Corinthians 1:6, Acts 27:31, etc.). You can be saved from many things, including judgement or guilt here on earth, and that's what this passage refers to.
In summary, this false interpretation comes from foisting the wrong meaning on the words "soul", and "save" - which comes from ignoring the context of what actually happened to Noah and his family.
John 3:5
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God
Baptismal Regenerationalists teach that the "born of water" in this verse refers to water baptism, and therefore it is required to enter the kingdom of God.
Let's examine the context of the verse:
John 3:3-7
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, 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 into 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.
Jesus mentions being "born of Spirit" twice. In the first instance, He adds "born of water". The second time, He mentions being "born of flesh". Therefore, being born of water finds it's parallel in being "born of flesh". In what sense? Well, before a woman gives birth, we say, "Her water broke". It's the tell-tale sign that someone is about to be "born of the flesh", and come into this world.
Therefore, Christ is telling Nicodemus that he already has one type of birth (fleshly, aka "water"), but he needs a second, spiritual birth, which we learn from John 1:12, Galatians 3:26, and 1 John 5:1 is accomplished by belief without mention of water baptism:
John 1:12
12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
It is also possible that the "water" birth, rather than referring to physical birth, means being born of the "Living Water", which Christ mentions in the very next chapter:
John 4:10, 14
10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
Therefore you could say that we are "born of water" when we are born again by faith in the Living Water (Revelation 21:6, 22:17), and thereby receive "the washing of water by the word" (Ephesians 5:26, John 15:3), the Word, of course, being Jesus Himself (John 1:1, Revelation 19:13). That's another way to look at this passage that refutes the shallow interpretation put on it by Baptismal Regenerationalists.
It's also strange that every denomination that I can think of that teaches Baptismal Regeneration also teaches that you can lose your Salvation. If water baptism is when a person receives the new birth, how can they wind up in Hell?
Here there are two options:
If the second option is true, we would need to be re-baptized after every major sin/bout of apostasy, since if water baptism gives us the new birth, and sin causes us to lose it, we logically would need to repeat the process.
However, since none of these groups re-baptize after apostasy or major sins, that means that they must hold to the fact that a born-again person - someone in born into God's family, a sibling of Jesus Christ - can wind up in the Lake of Fire. This despite being "born of incorruptible seed" (1 Peter 1:23) and being utterly sinless (1 John 3:9 - see this article explaining the new birth).
False doctrine always has deeper implications, and the above demonstrates that getting the new birth via water baptism invalidates, or renders nonsensical, other things that Baptismal Regenerationalist denominations teach.
Acts 22:16
16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.
Those teaching Baptismal Regeneration would like you to believe that this is when Paul was saved, which is false. Paul called Jesus Lord after his experience on the Damascus Road (Acts 9:6, Acts 22:10) - 3 days before the events in this verse took place. The idea that Paul didn't believe that Jesus was the Messiah at that point (thereby receiving Salvation - John 6:47), is untenable.
The experience on the road to Damascus was when Paul was told by God that he will be sent to preach Salvation by faith (not baptism):
Acts 26:17-18
17 Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,
18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.
Paul was saved at that very moment, as he believed that Jesus was the Christ, and therefore was born of God (1 John 5:1). This is why Ananias calls him "brother Saul" before he tells him to be baptized:
Acts 9:17-18
17 And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.
18 And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized.
Paul received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that had accompanying it signs and miracles, but was already indwelt by the Holy Spirit the moment he believed (Ephesians 1:13). Also as you can see from the passage in Acts chapter 9 above, Paul received the outpouring of the Holy Ghost before he was actually baptized, when Ananias spoke to him.
But if Paul was already saved, why does Ananias say "wash away thy sins"?
Well, in the eternal sense, the Blood of Christ, not water baptism, is stated clearly to wash away our sins:
Revelation 1:5
And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
1 John 1:7
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
This indicates that Ananias's mention of "wash away thy sins" in Acts 22:16 is not referring to the once eternal washing that the Holy Spirit provides when you get saved, but rather a temporal washing that restores your fellowship with God, as Peter says in his passage on baptism, "the answer of a good conscience toward God". It's an important public declaration that you are now a Christian, which was especially relevant in Paul's case, as he had previously been persecuting and executing Christians (Acts 8:1-3, 22:4-5, 22:19-20, 26:9-11, Galatians 1:13, Philippians 3:6).
I'd also contend that it's possible that the "wash away thy sins" is accomplished through the "calling upon the name of the Lord", not the water baptism, so be careful how you're reading the verse. This is because calling upon the name of the Lord is a Christian's recourse when they want salvation from temporal judgement here on this Earth (1 John 1:9, Romans 10:9-14).
We need to interpret this passage in light of rest of the book of Acts, and the teachings of the rest of the Bible, and not the other way around. When we do, the Baptismal Regenerationalist interpretation becomes impossible.
What follows are a few concise arguments against the doctrine of Baptismal Regeneration, now that the major verses used to support that doctrine have been addressed.
First, notice how in First Corinthians, the Apostle Paul explicitly separates baptism from the Gospel:
1 Corinthians 1:17
17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.
Paul details the Gospel message in the same book, and logically, it does not include water baptism anywhere:
1 Corinthians 15:1-4
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
So, Paul wasn't baptizing people, and what he was preaching, the Gospel message, doesn't include baptism. Yet this Gospel message is said to be the power of God that leads a man to faith in Jesus and Salvation:
Romans 1:16
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
The Gospel message, which has no water baptism, is the power of God unto Salvation - this would make no sense if we needed to be dunked underwater in order to be saved.
In fact, we are told by the same author that those who heard the Gospel message and believed in Jesus were immediately sealed with the Holy Spirit, with no mention of water baptism in the entire chapter:
Ephesians 1:13-14
13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
In summary, the Gospel message that leads us to Salvation and Eternal Life by faith does not include water baptism, either in word or in deed.
For a final proof that Baptismal Regeneration is a false doctrine, notice what Paul says in Ephesians:
Ephesians 4:4-5
4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
As God sees it, there is only one baptism. Is this a water baptism?
1 Corinthians 12:13
13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
We are born into God's family by a spiritual baptism when the Holy Spirit indwells us. Romans 6:3-4, Galatians 3:27, and Colossians 2:11-12 are referring to this spiritual baptism, and water baptism is a symbol of that spiritual baptism. Naturally, these verses are also twisted by groups arguing for Baptismal Regeneration, because every time that they see the word 'baptism/baptized', they make it refer to water baptism.
Water baptism is a public declaration that you are deciding to follow Jesus Christ, and it pictures His crucifixion and resurrection in a way that parallels us dying to self and walking in the new nature. It also pictures our spiritual baptism, when our dead spirit was made alive (Ephesians 2:1, Colossians 2:13).
Baptismal Regenerationalists maintain that one receives the spiritual baptism, and the Holy Spirit, when they are water baptized. However, reception of the Spirit, as we already saw in Ephesians 1:13-14 above, is not connected in context with water baptism at all, but rather faith.
There are other verses that indicate the same thing - the Spirit is received by faith, without water baptism anywhere in context:
John 7:39
39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
Galatians 3:2
2 This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
There's no reference to water baptism in these passages. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit the moment we believe, and it can never be lost (Ephesians 1:14, 4:30) - this is the "one baptism" spoken of in Ephesians 4:5. It's a spiritual baptism when our souls are washed clean in the blood of Christ. This is called being "baptized into Christ":
Galatians 3:26-27
26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Also, Acts 10:47, which was already discussed above under the Acts 2:38 section, refutes the notion that a person must be water baptized to receive the Holy Ghost, as people are explicitly said to have the Holy Ghost before they've been baptized.
In summary, the one baptism that God recognizes happens at the moment of faith, and so making a big deal out of water baptism - which is only a symbol of that one baptism - misses the point entirely, and requires mishandling of many other passages of Scripture, often resulting in a shallow interpretation which exalts a mere symbol above the spiritual truths it serves to represent.
The fact that 85%+ of all Christians belong to groups which teach Baptismal Regeneration is proof positive that the true way is narrow, and the broad way leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-14).
Is baptism important, as one's first public confession of Christ after Salvation? Yes. However, making that part of Salvation is teaching works Salvation, as you will not levitate to a public area, and be baptized automatically, when you believe in Jesus. In certain places throughout history - including the Muslim world today, which has the death penalty for apostasy - this could get you killed. It is a work - a good work - but a work nonetheless, and needs to be kept separate from the Gospel, precisely as the Apostle Paul kept it.