Well it should be clear. Jesus explains it. Part of the problem here is you are misquote the scripture it says: Except a man be born again of water and of the Spirit. You added an again before the water that is not there in scripture. John 3:5 ...Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. The water baptism is of the flesh, it's the natural birth from your mother. The born of the spirit is the spirit baptism, that comes through faith in Jesus. Any one who has the spirit baptism is born again and has eternal life. And that happens before water baptism occurs.
God's word is a unified whole, not a collection of bits and pieces.
Agreed, that's exactly why it should be obvious that water baptism is not a critical part of the salvation process.
you seem to think there's some opposition between faith and baptism. There isn't. One leads to the other.
I don't think there is any opposition between faith and baptism. And I agree one leads to the other. But baptism is an act of obedience and testimony. That's why Jesus Himself was baptized, not because He was going through a salvation experience. Technically baptism isn't part of salvation. It should naturally follow salvation as the first act of obedience. And the exceptions to that are pretty rare.
But if you are on the cross next to Jesus or you are on your death bed and you finally get the motivation to accept Jesus, you don't have to worry about the lack of a baptism ceremony damning you to hell. It won't.
Love leads to marriage, marriage seals love in a sacred covenant. Faith leads to baptism, baptism seals faith in a sacred covenant.
Bad example. Marriage seals in a sacred covenant. When it comes to salvation, it's faith that claims God's promise that seals in a sacred covenant, not baptism.
Well, I did, but not by very much. Jesus says in 3:3 that one must be "born again" or "born from above" (the Greek is ambiguous). Nicodemus, confused, asks whether one can enter a second time into his mothers' womb and be born. Jesus then says (3:5), "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a man is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God".
The idea that Jesus is giving a gynecology lesson here is preposterous, and is flatly contradicted just by the language of the verse. He doesn't say "a man must be born of his mother, and then born a second time of the Spirit". "Of water and the Spirit" is appositive to "born". Jesus is talking about one birth, which is "of water and the Spirit".
Given the context of baptism in John 1:24-34 and again in 3:22-23, to write baptism out of John 3:5 in favor of gynecology is absurd.
Agreed, that's exactly why it should be obvious that water baptism is not a critical part of the salvation process.
Everything God commands is absolutely critical.
Bad example. Marriage seals in a sacred covenant. When it comes to salvation, it's faith that claims God's promise that seals in a sacred covenant, not baptism.
You aren't responding to the analogy, Danny, just denying that it's applicable. I think it's absolutely applicable. If baptism is empty ritual, marriage is equally empty.
Eph 1:13 In whom ye also [trusted], after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,