Tag Archives: baptism

Antediluvian

Noah’s ark

I have always loved the word antediluvian. It sounds fancy and kind of dramatic. It simply means, “the time before the Flood.” After the Flood was over and they were saved, Noah and his family must have constantly organized their memories into two camps: before the Flood and after. There must have been a sense on their part that the time before the Flood was old, outdated, intrinsically bad and out of touch with God. “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually,” the Bible says of those antediluvian days (Genesis 6:5). All that horrible stuff was behind them. The Flood had literally washed all of that away, and life after the Flood would never be like it was ever again. Noah‘s family had a new start, a fresh beginning, a chance to live for the Lord with love in their hearts for him. “And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.’” The sons of Noah who went forth from the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan.) These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the people of the whole earth were dispersed” (Genesis 9:1, 18, 19).

St. Peter later reminds us of this major event and makes a connection to other events in time: “God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 3:20-21). The Flood is like the washing we receive in Baptism. The Flood is like the new life we receive through the Resurrection.

Before our baptism, we are drowning in sin, but after we are safe. Before the Resurrection, we are dead in our sins, but after we are alive in Christ to live forever. What was before is no more. A new world opens up daily for us through Baptism, through Resurrection, through Christ. The Flood reminds us of that.

Speech Acts

speech acts

The field of linguistics often uses the term speech acts. Speech acts are expressions by a person that not only present information but also perform an action. Speech acts commonly include such things as apologizing, promising, ordering, answering, requesting, complaining, warning, inviting, refusing, and congratulating. We experience speech acts when a couple says, “I do,” to one another in a wedding ceremony, when witnesses swear in court to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, or when we confess our sins in church. Speech acts such as these change the reality of the situation and often require a response from the addressee.

In Genesis, we read of God using speech acts one after the other:

“Let there be light,” and there was light” (Genesis 1:4).

“Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so (Genesis 1:9).

“Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so (Genesis 1:24).

You get the idea. When God speaks, things happen. The same can be said of Jesus who proclaimed: “Be healed,” and people were healed, “You are forgiven,” and sins were removed, “I am with you always,” and he was.

From his very birth Jesus as the Word Made Flesh accomplished that which God purposed and succeeded in the thing for which God sent him (see Isaiah 55:11). And the Word of the Lord is still at work in our world today as pastors say through water and the Word, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The Lord speaks in Holy Communion through the words, “Take and eat; take and drink.” Reality changes through these speech acts: children of earth become children of God; partakers of blessed bread and wine become united with Christ.

The Word of the Lord matters. The Word of the Lord has power. The Word of the Lord speaks into existence what we need most: a relationship with him. Let the Word dwell in you richly (Colossians 3:16).

Living Water

water circle

Today is the second in a series on the 7 Last Words of Christ.

I thirst.

Jesus was thirsty, which reminds us that he is human with very human needs right up to the very end. The need for water reminds us of our need for the waters of Holy Baptism. We need the reminders of water and the Spirit. We are washed clean of our sins every day through water and the Word. We are reminded that Jesus told the woman at the well that he is the Living Water that will never run dry. Jesus is taking on our thirst for everlasting water so that we do not need to be thirsty spiritually again. Jesus’ human thirst for water was not satisfied well—vinegar on a sponge—but his death would satisfy the spiritual thirst of us all forever. To make that clear, the Bible records that after Jesus died, a soldier cut Jesus’ side with a spear, and blood and water poured out.

Water and the Word

baptismMy parents recently reminded me that I was baptized using water my grandparents brought from the Jordan River on their trip to the Holy Land. I was touched and moved by this news that I had forgotten, but it got me to thinking that when it comes to baptism, it does not really matter where the water comes from.

What matters most is its connection to the Word. The Word spoken over the baptized person as water is poured: I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. It is the Word that reminds us: “This water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 3:21).

Through baptism, we are made brothers and sisters of Jesus, the Word made flesh. It is in this Word that we find our hope with the sprinkling of water from wherever it may come from, through the work of the Holy Spirit.

Accompaniment

accompanimentOur sister company, Twenty-Third Publications, came out with a publication recently called The Art of Accompaniment, a term expressed by Pope Francis in The Joy of the Gospel. Here is the link to the booklet:

http://www.twentythirdpublications.com/artofacniesc.html

By the term “the art of accompaniment,” Pope Francis is referring to the call of the Church to walk with people in compassion and love in whatever circumstances of life they are given.

The concept of the art of accompaniment can be applied to our journeying with younger generations through their milestones of faith as well (baptism, First Communion, confirmation). Our presence at these events and our encouragement of them in their faith can go a long way in keeping them grounded and confident in their relationship with Christ.

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The Art of Accompaniment

accompaniment in prayerOur sister company Twenty-Third Publications has published a booklet called The Art of Accompaniment, which talks about how parishes are called to journey with their parishioners through their lives of faith.

Creative Communications offers products that help with this endeavor. Shepherd Guides cards are for use by the parish to send at milestones and church year holidays to those who were married in the church, who had a child baptized and who buried a loved one within the last year. (See links below.)

http://www.creativecommunications.com/Products/GU1/shepherd-guides-resources-for-baptisms.aspx

http://www.creativecommunications.com/Products/GU2/shepherd-guides-resource-for-weddings.aspx

http://www.creativecommunications.com/Products/GH6/complete-set-of-five-cards.aspx

Creative also offers a journal for godparents to give to their godchildren to encourage them in their faith at their confirmation:

http://www.creativecommunications.com/Products/CA4/called-and-confirmed-confirmation-journal.aspx

There are many ways beyond these publications, of course, to accompany fellow members of God’s family on their faith journey. I know that I personally have been on the receiving end of some uplifting faith-filled texts or emails from church friends who knew I was having a hard week. Those little gestures go a long way to help people stay strong and keep growing in their faith.

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The Joy of the Creator

potterOn June 16, 2017, the Friday before Father’s Day on the Moment in the Word on 99.1 Joy FM in St. Louis, the DJ talked about the joy he sees in the eyes of his children when they bring him gifts they have made themselves for him for Father’s Day. His children are overflowing with pride in their creations.

That must be how God felt after creating each of us, the DJ said. The Bible reminds us: “But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand” (Isaiah 64:8). God is the one who has formed us and shaped us and molded us into exactly what he wanted us to be. And he could not be more excited about his creation of us. He wants to show us off to the world. Each creation is precious to him.

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The Advance Team

advance teamIn Holy Vocabulary: Rescuing the Language of Faith, Michael Kelley compares the Church to a military advance team called the Delta Force. “The Delta Force is an advance team of specially trained agents who act as the precursor for the army. They perform secret missions, do the hard prep work, and engage the enemy before the entire army arrives. They are the ones who announce that the full army is going to invade” (p. 104).

I like the picture that paints of the value and position of the church. We are doing necessary and important work. Our calling is to wake people up to the reality of what is yet to come: the holy invasion of Christ and all his angels to take believers back with him to heaven.

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Recovery

fontThe image above appeared beside the article “The Church and Recovery,” in the February 2017 issue of Living Lutheran. It is a unique baptismal font at Common Ground Recovery Ministry based in Wyomissing, PA.

The shattered pieces of glass used in the design of the font represent “booze, bottles, glass syringes and other paraphernalia that separated us, not only from God, but also from all that sustains life,” according to the ministry. The light blue cross represents the waters of baptism in which we are all washed clean and given new life in Christ.

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The 7 Visible Marks

churchWhat is the church? It is a question that comes up more frequently these days amid technological and cultural shifts. Amazingly, Martin Luther actually wrestled with that same question 500 years ago. And thankfully for us, Martin Luther expressed what a church is by writing down what he called the seven visible marks of the church:

  1. The Word of God
  2. Baptism
  3. Holy Communion
  4. The Office of the Keys (Confession and Absolution)
  5. Called ministers
  6. Prayer, public praise and thanksgiving to God
  7. Bearing suffering patiently

Luther called these the seven principal parts of Christian sanctification or the seven holy possessions of the church.

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