Saved but not baptized?

Baptism is essential and Baptists are very strict about total emersion. They only make exceptions if someone is too ill to be dunked.

You could change denominations or your could talk to your pastor and let him know your fear of the water.

My son in law is a Baptist pastor and I've watched him baptize people. He holds their nose with one hand and has his other hand on their back. They're only under for a split second and then he raises them up swiftly.

Getting baptized is not required for salvation, however the Lord is not stopping you from doing such a thing. The only thing required to enter heaven is faith in Jesus.

Colossians 1:13-14

"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,

in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

Jesus said everyone has to be baptized by someone at least as good as John The Baptist , and where you make the same covenant Jesus made . Only my Church can perform true Baptisms . See my answers for evidence and location .

Don't let a fear based religion ruin your life.

First things first, the United Methodists, Presbyterians, and Lutherans are all mainstream Protestant denominations who have common roots with the Baptists, and they all baptize by sprinkling. So, if your Baptist pastor is uncomfortable baptizing you by sprinkling, you can always go next door to one of those other denominations and they will be happy to do it.

Otherwise, in the ancient Church, converts who had not yet been baptized were still given Christian funerals, and many individuals put off baptism until their death beds (assuming they didn't die suddenly). To add another example from the Bible, the household of Cornelius converted and miraculously spoke in other tongues without being baptized first. So, while baptism is the traditional method for inducting new converts, it is not necessary for salvation, and you will not be defying God if you don't do it. That is especially true if you are afraid of immersion in water.

On one occasion, Jesus was accused of violating the Sabbath. His response was that the Sabbath was created as a day of rest for human beings, and not human beings for the benefit of the Sabbath. The same thing applies here. Baptism is something that is done for your benefit, to help strengthen you in the belief that your sins have been washed away, and to help you make a clean break between your old lifestyle outside the church and your new life as a Christian. It is not something that you do for God's benefit. If being baptized terrifies you instead of helping you, then it is defeating the whole purpose.

As for church membership, some denominations want you to be baptized before you can consider yourself to be an "official" member of the Church. This is certainly true for Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches, where baptism is required before you can take communion (which they do every Sunday). Most Protestant churches are not as strict. Even those that require baptism usually make no distinction between those who are official members and those who are not. Also, most Protestant churches still consider you to be a full Christian as long as you have repented of your sins, regardless of whether or not you have been baptized. A great number of Protestant churches do not care if you are baptized at all. In the Pentecostal Holiness Church, for example, baptism is frequently something that well-established members request if and when they feel the need. New converts are generally brought into the church without even mentioning baptism to them.

(Note: Don't confuse the Pentecostal Holiness Church, who does not typically care whether you are baptized, and the so-called "Oneness Pentecostals," who emphasize the need for baptism more than pretty much any other Protestant denomination, including the Baptists.)

The repentant thief on the cross was not baptized and Jesus told him that he would be with Jesus in Paradise that very day. Jesus didn't say anything to the thief about baptism. The act or ritual of baptism is all about a public testimony and has no part of salvation other than a profession of faith. If a prisoner in a North Korean jail accepted Jesus as Savior, an act that brings about the death penalty, would that person be saved or not - because the prison certainly would not accommodate the wishes of the new Christian to be baptized?

Salvation: confession of Jesus as Lord and Savior (Romans 10:9-10; Ephesians 2:8-9)

At some time, you have to show some trust. First in the Lord, and then in your pastor's ability to bring you back out of the water. Baptism is not a means of salvation, but it is a sign of your profession of faith.

I read...repent and be baptized.

Find a church where they would just have you stand in water, pour a glass over your head. It's moving, losing control. Explain it. I had a hard time also having 'drowned' literally. They should accommodate you.

I pray for this for you.

The Bible clearly teaches that if you want to serve God, you should get baptized.

Jesus told his followers: “Make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them.” (Matthew 28:19) Jesus also set the example by getting baptized himself.

He was completely immersed in water, not just sprinkled with water on his head. Matthew 3:16

Today when a Christian is baptized, he must also be completely immersed, or dipped, in water.

The Bible examples of baptism corroborate this fact. Jesus was baptized in a sizable river, the Jordan, and after being baptized he came up out of the water. Mr 1:10; Mt 3:13, 16

John selected a location in the Jordan Valley near Salim to baptize, because there was a great quantity of water there. Joh 3:23

The Ethiopian eunuch asked to be baptized when they came to a body of water. They both went down into the water. Afterward they came up out of the water. Ac 8:36-40

All these instances imply, not a small ankle-deep pool, but a large body of water into and out of which they would have to walk.

You are not reading the bible....because the bible does not say that.

thats what happens when you start reading man's word

Read God's word

Mind you baptism is a wonderful experience and expression of faith and I suggest everyone get baptized.....but it does not bring salvation. Grace through Faith does