* * * * *

WHY BAPTISM HAS POWER TO CONFER SUCH BENEFITS.

IT IS NOT THE WATER, INDEED, THAT PRODUCES THESE EFFECTS. Water alone
cannot wash away sins. Yet the water of baptism is necessary, because
Christ has commanded its use, and has connected the promise of salvation
with it.

BUT THE WORD OF GOD WHICH ACCOMPANIES AND IS CONNECTED WITH THE WATER.
It is the Word of God, with its command and promise, that makes baptism
a sacrament, and gives it power to confer such great benefits. [John
6:63]

AND OUR FAITH WHICH RELIES ON THE WORD OF GOD CONNECTED WITH THE
WATER.[13] The baptism is a real baptism and offers these great benefits,
whether we believe or not. But the benefits become ours, only when we
believe the promises of God. [Mark 16:16]

[Footnote 13: The story of Naaman the leper (II Kings 5:8-14) illustrates
how water, the Word of God, and faith can produce great effects. It was
not the water of the Jordan that cured Naaman; yet he could not have
been cured without the water, because the promise of healing was
connected with its use. When he _believed_ the Word of promise and used
the water as he was commanded, he was healed. So the water, the Word,
and our faith, which trusts in the Word, cleanse us from the leprosy of
sin.]

IT IS A GRACIOUS WATER OF LIFE, because the Word and promise of God,
which are connected with it, give it power to bestow life and salvation