The answer to this question once and for all is: NO! Baptism is NOT NECESSARY to "get into heaven."
John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." What this means is that the gift of heaven (what we call eternal life) is a FREE gift that has been given to us through our FAITH in Jesus Christ and in full recognition that we gain this gift through GRACE (as in, we could never "work" for this gift and gain it with our good deeds, but that Jesus allows us to have it because He loves us so much).
If we believe that Christ is our Savior who died for our sins, and then resurrected as He promised, we have eternal life. It's as simple as that. With or without baptism, a person who proclaims and believes Jesus Christ as their Savior, has been granted eternal life.
[Answered by Pastor Kelly J. Tam]
