That is very good question! There are many people who believe that baptism is necessary for salvation and they often quote the Apostle Peter in Acts 2:38, “repent and be baptized,” as evidence that asking Jesus into your heart plus baptism results in salvation. Well guess what? Scripture clearly doesn’t support that view.
For example, when the thief on the cross placed his faith in Christ, Jesus said to him, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43), even though the dying thief had no chance of being baptized. Then, as the book of Acts demonstrates, baptism is a sign of becoming a Christ Follower, but not the way we become a Christ Follower.
When the jailer asked the Apostle Paul, “what must I do to be saved?” Paul responded, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:30-31)
Baptism isn’t the way we’re saved, but it is the symbolic way we show our friends that we’ve turned away from our sin and have asked Jesus into our life. It’s a symbolic gesture to show everyone that we’re no longer our own – that we’ve been adopted into the family of Christ.
Bottom line, God knows your heart. He loves you because you are fearfully and wonderfully made! And, He knows you love Him. Whenever you’re ready to show your faith to your friends and family and you want that symbolic washing of the water, that’s when you should get baptized?
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