Question:
Is water baptism the new birth?
Answer:
No, water baptism is not the new birth. Millions have been born of God (some would prefer to say “begotten”) who have never known water baptism. We are begotten of God through the Word (1 Peter 1:23). We are born of the Spirit (Rom. 8:14, 15; John 3:5, 6). We are regenerated by a new life from above (John 3:3, margin). Water baptism is the outward ceremony of this entrance into new relation before the world (Gal. 3:27).
