Question 13: If water baptism is so absolutely necessary, why did Christ not mention it in His Se...

Question 13: If water baptism is so absolutely necessary, why did Christ not mention it in His Sermon on the Mount when speaking of the Beatitudes (Matthew 5)? Why did He not make the least mention of it in His description of the judgment (Matthew 25), where He deals especially with all those who should be saved or condemned?

Answer: It is surprising how little men recognize the pure mind of God! Christ indeed speaks (Matthew 5) about many kinds of blessings. We might well ask from where such blessings may be obtained. Christ says: "Blessed are the meek..." [Matthew 5:5]. Now notice well how Christ calls (Matthew 11:28, 29), "Come to me... and learn from me." Therefore, we profess that Christ alone is the Savior. Whoever wishes to be blessed, as He preaches in Matthew 5, must necessarily accept Him in true faith, and must submit himself to Him in obedience, as clay in the hands of its potter. It is He who must make everything new and save all, and of Him all of the prophets have spoken. God himself refers to His Son. Since then, Christ, as Savior and as the Good Physician, considers baptism necessary for believers, obedience to this commandment of baptism is also necessary for salvation. Even though Christ counts as blessed (Matthew 25) those who fed and clothed Him - and mentioned nothing of the new creature or rebirth about which He spoke (John 3), that without rebirth no one could enter the Kingdom of God, and at the latter place in turn did not say anything about visiting Him in prison or feeding His members - who would think that He counts as blessed in Matthew 25 those who were unreborn men or unbelievers, merely because of their outward works? Oh, no! Who would assume that they despised baptism? I believe that not a single person was among them who despised water baptism. There may have been some who were not baptized out of necessity, but not out of contempt for it.