Words --- Is Baptism "Required"?

The question, "Is baptism required for salvation," is the kind of question that should never be answered with a "yes" or "no".

The question, "Have you stopped cheating on your wife," is the kind of question that should never be answered with a "yes" or "no".  If you answer "Yes," then you are admitting that you have, in the past, cheated on your wife.  If you answer "No," then your are admitting that you are still cheating on your wife.  The reason this question is not valid is because it is built on a false assumption, that is, the assumption that you must have cheated on your wife.

If you answer "Yes," that baptism is "required," then you imply that everyone not baptized must be condemned to hell.  This puts you in the place of God, to decide who may or may not be saved; and by judging others, you condemn yourself (Rom 1:31-2:3)  If you answer "No," that baptism is not "required," then you contradict the commandments and examples from God which He gave us in the Bible.  The reason this question is not valid is because it is built on a false assumption, that is, the assumption that God has a list of absolute requirements; all of which must be met, before He will save someone.

The idea that God has a list of absolute requirements contradicts God's statement, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion," where Paul in Rom 9:15 is quoting Moses from Ex 33:19 who is quoting God Himself.  God looks on the heart, not only on external actions.  If a person loves and obeys God (and baptism is one act of obedience), then that person will be saved.  If a person does not love God, it does not matter how many times he dunks himself in baptism.  God is not a vending machine, required to mindlessly dispense salvation after the insertion of X tokens of good works.  God is a person, and he has the freedom to save anyone He loves, whether or not that person has ever heard of Him in this life (1Pet 4:5-6, Philippians 2:10), whether or not that person has been baptized for the remission of sins. (Rom 2:12-16)

Our job is not to create a list of absolute requirements; our job is to learn what God wants us to do (including baptism), and then to do it.  It is not our job to condemn anyone for their failings of religious duty.  It is our job to teach people what the Bible says about what God wants us to do, and to leave the judging of hearts up to God.