Baptized Into Christ

Bo Giertz was a Lutheran Pastor and Bishop in Sweden in the mid 20th century, but more to the point, he ranks in my top 4 theologians to read.  He was pastoral, faithful, bold, caring, and winsome in his writing and preaching and I hope that I can follow his lead. Below is a short exerpt on baptism that gives you just a taste of why I enjoy Giertz.  It comes from a tract published by The Evangelical Lutheran Church of England.  In this short section Giertz addresses the topic of those who were baptized as babies, children or adults and have walked away from faith in Christ. That baptism truly can be the foundation for a person’s deepest personal faith—this is rarely seen when one looks out into the world. Rather, the vast majority break their baptismal covenant. It can occur through wilful defiance of God’s commandments or disregard of God himself, which most clearly manifests itself in that one never prays and never seeks His church. More or less intentionally, man ...

"We never become really and genuinely our entire and honest selves until we are dead -- and not then until we have been dead years and years. People ought to start dead and then they would be honest so much earlier."  -Mark Twain Twain was on to something here.  Throughout our lifetimes we tend to try to cover up who we really are.  We put up fronts.  We play the part expected of us.  We struggle to be genuine for fear of offending someone, giving them a reason to dislike us, or sometimes just because it is the path of least resistance. Then, after death, we can no longer control our reputation, we can no longer manage people.  Death does away with trying to win the approval of other people.  Often, its not until after a person has died that we truly find out about that person, through their diary, e-mail correspondences, or other things that have been left behind.  But what if we could start off life, as Twain suggests, dead?  Wha...

Inigo Montoya: "He's dead. He can't talk." Miracle Max: "Whoo-hoo-hoo, look who knows so much. It just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead. There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. With all dead, well, with all dead there's usually only one thing you can do." Mostly dead, but not all dead. Such is the way in which many churches and pastors view the fallen nature of humanity.  We're born "mostly dead," but not all the way dead.  Many believe that there is a "divine spark" that still exists within humanity.  The Hollywood version of this is Darth Vader having a spark of good still within him that allowed him to turn from "the dark side." Sorry Miracle Max, but when it comes to humanity, mostly dead is a lie. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me." (Psalm 51:5) And you were dead in the trespa...

"In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Have you ever wondered why we begin the Divine Service with these words? There are two key reason for beginning with these words. It publicly declares to everyone who is there that we are gathered in the name of the Triune God.  It is God's house and God's service. It is a reminder of our Baptism.  When you were baptized, whether your remember it or not, you were baptized into the name of the Triune God.  Jesus instructed in Matthew 28:19-20 that we baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and so the church has done just that. And since the time of the Apostles, Christians have started the Divine Service by using the same words used when they were baptized.  It has served as a reminder for Christians throughout the history of the church of the promises of God that are theirs in Holy Baptism. The invocation can serve as a reminder to Christians today as well.  Beginning the...

  Without a doubt, this book is the best I've come across on the subject of baptism.  The author, A. Andrew Das, is a world class scholar, but writes in a style and with vocabulary that is easily grasped by a general audience.  In this book he defends the Biblical teaching of baptism, explains the background and history of baptism, and teaches what God does through baptism. The chapter titles give a good summary of what the book covers. 1.  Baptism and Original Sin 2.  Baptism for Salvation and Forgiveness of Sins 3.  Infant Faith and Baptism--Part I 4.  Infant Faith and Baptism--Part II 5.  Christ's Command in Matthew 28:18-20 6.  Paul's Comparison of Circumcision and Baptism 7.  Jewish Baptismal Customs at the time of Christ 8.  The Baptism of Entire Families and Households 9. Members, by Baptism, of the Family of God! 10.  The Testimony of the Early Church 11.  The Summary of the Early Churc...