Baptism and Catechesis

In many Protestant churches the only prerequisite for Baptism is some kind of loosely defined profession of faith. The candidate may simply confess a faith in Jesus and a desire. Then he or she is baptized. Since such a Baptism is seen as a sign of this profession, many are re-baptized upon moving to a new fellowship. How strange and how confusing.

There is no support in the New Testament for such a practice. In the Apostolic church the prerequisite for Baptism was a fully informed faith. Adult candidates, especially people with no knowledge of the Old Testament, were instructed at times for years before being baptized. Along with their confession that the crucified and resurrected Jesus was Lord and Christ, the Church required candidates to confess their sins.

This confession was in line with what happened when John baptized the Jews. They had prior knowledge of the promised Messiah and Old Testament teachings. For them the basics were in place. So upon confessing their sins, they were baptized. Jesus fleshed this out by claiming His crucifixion and resurrection fulfilled the Old Testament. He was the Christ, the Son of God. He said:

"These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things” (Luke 24:44-48).

Several prominent scholars present strong evidence that the Gospels of Matthew and Luke were the form of the catechesis or full instruction of candidates for Baptism in the first centuries of the Church. The Gospel of Matthew was aimed at the Jews. Luke probably directed his Gospel to both Jews and Gentiles.

For Lutherans instruction in the Small Catechism follows the model of the New Testament. It is intended either to bring believers to Baptism or to confirm that faith. So the Catechism begins with repentance (10 Commandments) and the Gospel (Creed). The catechumen is then taught the Lord’s Prayer as his model and receives Baptism, the gateway to participating in the Lord’s Supper. This process helps believers to understand that faith is much more than a mere intellectual exercise. It is above all a relationship of trust in the mercy and love of our Lord Jesus.

Children Who Die Without Baptism

The married daughter of one of our church families recently had a miscarriage. While I did not personally minister to this mother and her husband, I can relate. The same thing happened in the early years of our marriage. I remember the pain and the confusion that filled our lives for many months after that. The premature death of a child is a frequent occurrence in many families. With that so are the questions about the eternal destiny of that child, especially when the family shares the Christian faith in the mercy and love of our heavenly Father. With that in mind, I'd like to share a few thoughts, about premature death and about abortion.

In the days when the Church began it was common among pagans to kill unwanted children. Newborns were simply abandoned and left to perish. As horrible as that sounds, the crime of our modern world, abortion, is no less horrible. A mother chooses to kill a helpless child, the fruit of her own body. These children are denied both physical birth and rebirth in Holy Baptism.

What about the millions of children who die unbaptized? They must be committed to the unsearchable judgments of God: “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” (Romans 11:33). Possibly He will not hold them accountable since they die by treacherous hands.

What Luther says about the uncircumcised in Israel is applicable to aborted children:

“Even though infants bring with them inborn sin, which we call original sin, it is nevertheless important that they have committed no sin against the Law. Since God is by nature merciful, He will not let their condition be worse because they were unable to obtain circumcision in the Old Testament or Baptism in the New Testament” (Luther’s Works, vol. 3, p. 103).

This concern also applies to grieving parents whose children are stillborn or who die shortly after birth. Any suggestion that all children who die without Baptism are necessarily consigned to damnation is essentially a Christianized version of Manicheanism, an ancient pagan religion that attributes to God both good and evil motives at the same time. In this teaching physical death automatically carries the penalty of eternal death. This is not the Lutheran position.

Children of believing parents come under the influence of God’s Word through their parents, even before birth. The congregation also prays for them. Even before birth such children hear the Gospel and believe. The case of John the Baptist who leaped for joy in the womb of his mother Elizabeth is critical in helping bereaved parents (Luke 1:38-44). The Word of God has power to create faith also in unborn infants. Faith is present in such children both before and at the time of Baptism. Let this be a source of comfort and encouragement. Baptism remains important for many reasons, but it is the Word of God that creates faith in children as well as in adults, both in and outside Baptism.

Living in the Living Savior

The first of this month of March I began to serve what we, in our circles, call a vacancy. That's not a Biblical term. It is simply a way of saying that the congregation is searching for a full time, permanent pastor and in the meantime another pastor--or in our case two--is called by the Lord through the congregation to serve them with the Word of God and the Sacraments. That's where I am. I'm one of a team of two pastors serving Living Savior Lutheran Church in this 'vacancy'.

I love the name of this congregation--Living Savior. I love it because it points directly to Jesus. When the LORD confronted Moses on Mount Horeb to send him to lead Israel out of captivity, Moses asked, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?"

God said to Moses, "I am who I am . This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.' "

The name means not only that the Lord exists, but that He is present and active in the lives of His chosen people. He is the Living One, the Eternal One who is sending Moses in answer to their prayers. That is His name. This name became known among them by four letters, YHWH. In Hebrew the vowels are implied, but were not originally written in the text until after the time of Christ.

Anyway, to make a well known story short, they began to regard this Name as being so unique and holy that they would not even speak it. Instead, they substituted their word for LORD or Master whenever they saw it written in the sacred texts. In many English translations we see all the letters of the name capitalized as LORD. This is a way of indicating that the Name YHWH is in the original Hebrew, a name unspoken by the pious Israelites, because they feared to take the Name of the LORD in vain.

When Jesus, the Word of God, came among us, He laid claim to this Name. The Apostle John records many instances of this in his Gospel. For instance, confronted by the Pharisees about His age and His claims, Jesus replied, "Before Abraham was, I AM!" Of course, they all knew what He meant. That's why they tried to stone Him to death. He was making himself equal to the LORD.

This LORD tells us directly why He has come among us. In that same Gospel we hear Him speaking of Himself as the sheep gate through whom His sheep pass on their way to abundant and full life. He says, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

We who call ourselves by His Name (we translate it as Living Savior), are now asking ourselves what it means to go through Him to live. What is this abundant life that this Living One, this Living Savior, brings? And how is He leading us to live it?

We have some clues. We have much to learn. One of the vital clues is to be found in the writings of the Apostles. Peter, for instance, speaks of us Christians as living stones built upon THE Living Stone. Paul picks up this understanding when he asks the question, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body." In this instance the words 'your body' are plural. That is, Paul is not talking about a single person, but rather about the entire body of believers gathered by and filled with the Holy Spirit.

So we Living Savior people are asking ourselves what this means for us. How is the Living Spirit of the Living Savior living in us leading us to live? As we grow together and prepare to go together out into our part of the world, we will keep asking such questions. I am quite assured that our Living Savior will answer them. We need only to listen and to follow.