1. Calculation?
    What many people mistakenly do when considering this (apparently unavoidable) question, is to begin to reason through the events of the New Testament, and by means of some spiritual calculation determine whether one can get saved without water baptism. Then, upon their determination, or merely echoing what they have heard, give their answer. But this is a proper process to follow? Does such a process not place ourselves on the Judgment Seat of Christ where only He belongs?

2. The Ambassador's Responsibility
    Understanding the role of an Ambassador will reveal the proper way to respond to the above topic question. The Apostle Paul said this, about believers in Jesus Christ;

2nd Corinthians 5:20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.

    You become an Ambassador for Christ as;

• You believe in Jesus as Lord
• You have been born from above (born-again)
• You are in the kingdom of God spiritually
• You will be in the eternal Kingdom of God when Jesus returns
• You now represent the Gospel of that Kingdom to all the world

    Take heed, not to casually read 2nd Corinthians 5:20. An Ambassador of any nation serves a specific purpose... to speak to those outside the Kingdom he represents, the will of the King. In our case, it is the King of kings whose will we represent. And Yeshua the King, has commanded that all those who would come to Him by faith and in repentance, would be baptized in water, in His name; Matthew 28:19, Acts 2:38, Acts 10:47-48, Acts 19:3-5. It is clear to us that water baptism is God's will for His believers.

3. Answering the Question
    So as an Ambassador for Christ, when faced with this question;

...how can you answer with any other reply than, "Yes, It's necessary?" Because if you enter into your own scriptural calculation for the purpose of making an independent determination as to whether water baptism is necessary, are you not placing yourself in a position above the King? The King Who has sent you into the world (John 20:21) saying;

Matthew 19:18 "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:"

...and

Mark 16:16 "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned."

4. Understanding the Situation
    Please understand the situation. We are not approaching the discussion of whether a person will or will not be granted access to the coming Kingdom of God in light of their water baptism or lack of same. What we are considering is whether it is proper to enter into an evaluation process of a commandment of Jesus Christ in response to a question from anyone, with an end result of deciding whether that commandment is "necessary"?

    When you think of the subject question in this manner, you begin to realize that (1)it is an unlearned question in the first place, and (2)that the second part of the question is irrelevant. When the first words of the question were asked, "Is water baptism necessary?", now in our role as ambassador of Christ's Kingdom, we understand that to be what the person asking really wants to know or what the real issue is. What you are really being asked is whether water baptism is actually necessary. As an ambassador of the Kingdom of God, your only answer can be "Yes, it is necessary", to faithfully represent the will of the King to that person asking.

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And May God grant that one day, that same person asking, will be drawn by the Holy Spirit to ask you, or another ambassador of Yeshua's Kingdom, "How can I be saved" and you will be given a precious opportunity to share about the blood He shed for them and about placing faith in that redeeming power.