I see a lot of questions on baptism and a lot of different opinions.  In Romans 10:9, it says that if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be SAVED.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.  Verse 13 states, “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  I have found over 300 verses promising salvation for those who simply believe in the name of the Lord.  Why are you so focused on baptism for salvation?  Yes, it is very important, but I do not see anything saying if I'm not baptized, I'm not saved.  I do see, though, that if I don't believe, I do not get eternal life.

Sincerely,
Full Of Belief

Dear Full Of Belief,

Everyone agrees that we must believe in order to be saved because there are many verses that point out the importance of faith (‘belief’ and ‘faith’ are the same word in the Greek language).  However, just because one thing is required for salvation doesn’t mean other things aren’t also required.  You mentioned Rom 10:9 (which states that confession is a requirement of salvation).  Rom 8:24 says that we are saved by hope.  Rom 10:1-2 says that knowledge is a requirement for salvation (knowledge of God’s Word – Rom 10:17, Rom. 1:16).  2 Thess 2:10 says that love of truth is a requirement for salvation.  All of these things are requirements for salvation.  God tells us that the sum of His Word provides us with the truth (Ps 119:160) and that we can’t add or subtract a single verse (Rev 22:18-19).

There are verses that teach that belief saves you (Acts 16:30-31), but there are also verses that teach that baptism saves you (1 Pet 3:21 is the clearest).  If we cut out baptism, which is mentioned in every single case of christian conversion, we can no longer say that we are taking the total of God’s Word.  We are called friends of Christ when we do what He commands us (Jhn 15:14).  He commands us to be baptized to wash away our sins (Acts 22:16)… if we want a new life free of sin, we must be buried with Him in baptism as He commands us (Rom 6:3-4).  You mentioned Rom 10:9 as a very simple verse – confess with your mouth and believe with your heart, and you will be saved.  Mk. 16:16 is equally simple – “He who believes and is baptized will be saved”.

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I'm married with a family.  I have had feelings for men since I was younger.  I still do.  I've acted upon them a few times while married.

I don't want a divorce, but I’m not sure I can handle the situation (and be faithful from here on out).

I am so tired...tired of being tired.

I'm to the point, sometimes, I just wish something bad would happen to me, so I don't have to face the situation...and that scares me.

What do I do?

Sincerely,
Struggling Husband

Dear Struggling Husband,

Homosexuality is like all other sins; we sin when we act upon a lust.  God does not tempt us to sin (Jas 1:13).  It is our own lusts that entice us to do the wrong thing (Jas 1:14-16).  One person has a tendency toward anger, another has a tendency toward alcoholism, and some may in fact have a tendency toward homosexuality – but that tendency does not force them to sin.  We need to put away all filthiness of the flesh and be doers of God’s Word (Jas 1:21-22).

Nobody is forced to have a sinful homosexual relationship.  The argument of the homosexual community is that they are born desiring people of the same sex and that they have no choice.  That simply cannot be true.  God makes it clear that He will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able (1 Cor 10:13).  Even if someone is born with a predisposition toward homosexuality – they aren’t forced to act upon it.  We always have a choice.  There is always a way of escape from sin.

Which brings us to our advice.  Your desire for men is exactly the same as any other addiction – and needs treatment.  There are groups that will help treat those trying to leave homosexual lifestyles (we would be happy to help get you in contact with a counselor near you).  It is possible to stop.  In fact, Paul noted that some of the christians of the first century used to be homosexuals (1 Cor 6:9-11).  The bottom line ­– you don't have to be homosexual!  You can lead a life of fulfillment and holiness as God intended, a life far better than what you have experienced so far.

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I'm an elder at my church, and recently someone that was in ministry stated that she heard from God to leave the ministry and move away.  But this was not confirmed by the pastor over the church.  Is this Biblical?  If yes, where?  Thank you.

Sincerely,
Skeptical

Dear Skeptical,

There are a couple of doctrinal problems that your question brings up.  Let’s deal with them in turn.

1. There are no visions and prophecies today.  1 Cor 13:8-10 makes it clear that now that the perfect law of liberty has come (Jas 1:25), all direct visions have gone away.  Jude 1:3 tells us God has handed down His Word once and for all to guide us.  Any new message or teaching isn’t from God… it is from the devil (Gal 1:8).
2. God never intended for women to be in the church leadership and ministry.  The Scriptures are very clear on that topic (1 Cor 14:34-35).
3. We are confused by the statement that you are an elder in the church and that there is also a pastor over the church.  Elders are pastors (1 Pet 5:1-3).  Every congregation is supposed to be led by a group of elders (Acts 20:17).  There is no example of a congregation being led by a single man; it was always a group of elders (the qualifications for elders can be found in 1 Tim 3:1-7 and Tit 1:5-9).

All of these issues are major doctrinal problems that need to be dealt with.  You are right to be concerned about the congregation and its leadership.