Is baptism necessary for salvation according to Galatians 3:27?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

In the early church, it was unheard of for a believer to not be baptized (see Acts 8:36, 38). Indeed, perhaps the only recorded case of an exception is the thief on the cross in Luke 23:39–43. While that exception proves the testimony of Scripture that faith is all that is required for salvation, the fact believers were assumed to be baptized shows how closely faith and baptism were related. That was also Paul’s assumption.

In the verses just before Galatians 3:27, Paul is making an adamant defense that salvation comes through faith. He says that salvation is to those “who believe” (Galatians 3:22) and that they are “sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26). Therefore, he just finished saying that salvation comes by faith and so he cannot be now saying that salvation is also by baptism. Instead, like other writers in Scripture, he is assuming the believers who had been saved (by faith) had also been subsequently baptized. Identifying the Christians as “you who were baptized,” he was encouraging them to clothe themselves in Christ’s righteousness, not their own righteousness by trying to obey the law.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• The Old Testament does not talk about baptism.

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Galatians 3:27 says, “For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” At first, this can sound as if being clothed with Christ is another way of saying “be saved,” and, thus, meaning that baptism results in salvation.
• However, such an interpretation contradicts the immediate context. In Galatians, Paul was arguing against men known as Judaizers who were trying to add obedience to the law as necessary for salvation. Paul was teaching that, contrary to that, the purpose of the law was never to save, but to show our need for salvation. That is, it was a “tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24). Notice that Paul says justification (salvation) is “by faith” not “faith and baptism.”
• Continuing his argument from the previous verse he says, “now that faith has come you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:25–26).. Notice that throughout, Paul has referred to their faith, not baptism, as what brought salvation. Then why does he now mention baptism? Because all Christians at that time were assumed to be baptized (see the last point in this section). Therefore, rather than meaning that baptism was necessary for salvation, Paul was identifying the Christians by their external expression of baptism in contrast to the Judaizers who were identified by their law keeping. He reminded them that they had “clothed themselves with Christ” so they would stop being deceived that salvation came from putting on (obeying) the law.
• That Galatians 3:27 does not mean salvation is by baptism is consistent with the rest of Scripture. For example, Ephesians 2:8–9 notes, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” John 1:12 says, “as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” These and other passages clearly show that only faith in Jesus is necessary for salvation.
• The thief on the cross in Luke 23 clearly shows that only faith in Jesus is necessary for salvation, not baptism. He expressed faith in Jesus when he said, “remember me when You come in Your kingdom” (Luke 23:42). Jesus’ reply was not, “you need to be baptized, first” but “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). The thief was unable to be baptized, and yet Jesus affirms that he was still saved because salvation is based on faith, alone.
• Part of untangling passages that talk about baptism so closely with salvation is considering the early church’s understanding of baptism. For them, it was unheard of for someone to delay between being saved and being baptized. For example, when Philip taught an Ethiopian the Gospel of Jesus from a scroll he had acquired, the Ethiopian believed and then immediately asked to be baptized (Acts 8:36). This sense of immediate baptism is consistent with Jesus’ final command to the disciples to “make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you” (Matthew 28:19– 20a). The expectation of Jesus was that all believers are baptized believers. The early disciples were following His example and why they often mentioned baptism and salvation so closely.

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

Baptism does not bring about salvation—it is the outward sign of the inward faith that saves. In Galatians 3:27, Paul speaks of believers being “baptized into Christ” and having “put on Christ,” not to suggest baptism is what saves, but to describe the new identity they received through faith, which was publicly affirmed through baptism. Throughout this letter, Paul insists that salvation comes by faith alone, not by works—not even the act of baptism (Galatians 3:26; cf. Ephesians 2:8–9). However, baptism was the expected and immediate response of all who believed. In the early church, no separation existed between belief and baptism, which is why Paul could speak of the baptized as a shorthand for all who had placed their faith in Christ.

Jesus’ commission in Matthew 28:19–20 assumes that disciples will be baptized and taught to obey Him. Baptism is the visible testimony that someone has turned from sin and now belongs to Christ (Romans 6:3–4). While faith alone unites us with Christ and makes us children of God, baptism marks that union in the eyes of others. It is an act of joyful obedience that affirms our allegiance to the Savior who saved us—not a requirement to earn that salvation, but a response to it. Therefore, even though baptism follows faith, it should not be neglected. It is the first step of proclaiming that we are clothed with Christ.

UNDERSTAND

• Galatians 3:26 says believers are “sons of God through faith,” making it clear that faith, not baptism, is what saves.
• Galatians 3:27 speaks of being “baptized into Christ” and “putting on Christ” as a visible sign of the new identity already received through faith.
• Paul assumes believers were baptized after coming to faith, using it as a marker of identity—not as a means of salvation.

REFLECT

• If salvation is through faith alone, how does that truth shape your view of baptism in your own spiritual journey?
• Have you treated baptism more as a requirement or as a joyful response to your salvation in Christ?
• How can you live out the truth that you are “clothed with Christ” by faith, even before or beyond the act of baptism?

ENGAGE

• How should we understand why Paul spoke of baptism in Galatians 3:27 right after emphasizing faith in verses 24–26?
• Comparing Galatians 3:27 with Romans 6:3–4 and Acts 8:36–38, how did early Christians understand and practice baptism?
• What are healthy ways we can uphold the importance of baptism without confusing it as a condition for salvation?