WEBVTT 00:00:00.050 --> 00:00:02.589 Today we're going to talk a little bit about 00:00:02.589 --> 00:00:05.129 baptism now I realize we talked about it about 00:00:05.129 --> 00:00:08.589 eight months ago But you all saw the pool that's 00:00:08.589 --> 00:00:11.509 outside as we were coming in and there's a reason 00:00:11.509 --> 00:00:13.289 I think we need to be talking about it again 00:00:13.289 --> 00:00:16.289 today You see we've been baptizing more people 00:00:16.289 --> 00:00:18.449 who are a little bit older and whether they're 00:00:18.449 --> 00:00:21.550 children who can speak for themselves or or adults 00:00:21.550 --> 00:00:25.129 that They finally learned what it is to to know 00:00:25.129 --> 00:00:28.660 Christ Jesus and when we baptize someone who's 00:00:28.660 --> 00:00:31.440 older, they come to faith, they stand there and 00:00:31.440 --> 00:00:34.979 they say, yes, I trust Jesus, I want to follow 00:00:34.979 --> 00:00:38.369 him. But that ends up raising some interesting 00:00:38.369 --> 00:00:41.590 questions for us. What exactly are we doing when 00:00:41.590 --> 00:00:45.450 we baptize somebody? Why do we ask adults whether 00:00:45.450 --> 00:00:49.570 they really believe, but we baptize babies who 00:00:49.570 --> 00:00:52.390 can't answer the question for themselves? Why 00:00:52.390 --> 00:00:54.609 does baptizing even matter? And what happens 00:00:54.609 --> 00:00:57.490 if somebody is baptized but then they walk away? 00:00:57.719 --> 00:01:01.119 from faith. It's not just Lutherans that ask 00:01:01.119 --> 00:01:04.659 these questions. It's for the whole church. I 00:01:04.659 --> 00:01:06.840 think sometimes, though, we make baptism more 00:01:06.840 --> 00:01:09.500 complicated than it needs to be. And our gospel 00:01:09.500 --> 00:01:11.799 reading this morning gives us a good place to 00:01:11.799 --> 00:01:14.540 start. Because Jesus tells the story of two sons. 00:01:15.000 --> 00:01:18.340 The father tells the first son, go and work in 00:01:18.340 --> 00:01:21.819 the vineyard. And the son says, I will not. Don't 00:01:21.819 --> 00:01:24.519 you love sons like that? Just right to your face, 00:01:24.760 --> 00:01:29.780 no. but later he changes his mind and goes. Then 00:01:29.780 --> 00:01:31.980 the father tells the second son the same thing, 00:01:32.319 --> 00:01:35.780 and the second son says, I go, sir. But guess 00:01:35.780 --> 00:01:39.280 what? He doesn't actually do it. Yeesh. How's 00:01:39.280 --> 00:01:42.260 that helpful? And Jesus asks, which of the two 00:01:42.260 --> 00:01:44.959 did the will of his father? Now clearly, the 00:01:44.959 --> 00:01:47.980 answer is the first one. But that's important 00:01:47.980 --> 00:01:50.859 for today, because Jesus is showing us that what 00:01:50.859 --> 00:01:53.640 we say at one moment doesn't always tell the 00:01:53.640 --> 00:01:57.640 story. of where we are going. Someone can say 00:01:57.640 --> 00:02:02.819 no, but they turn around and they go and follow. 00:02:03.569 --> 00:02:05.930 Someone may say yes, but they fail to follow 00:02:05.930 --> 00:02:10.139 through. We may wander one day. We may come back 00:02:10.139 --> 00:02:13.139 the next. And that is going to matter because 00:02:13.139 --> 00:02:15.740 we are talking about baptism. And we have to 00:02:15.740 --> 00:02:18.039 ask this question because practically at Christ 00:02:18.039 --> 00:02:20.879 Memorial, what happens when someone cannot fit 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:23.319 easily into the baptismal font? I mean, you've 00:02:23.319 --> 00:02:26.000 got a little bowl inside of that font. And so 00:02:26.000 --> 00:02:27.680 some adult comes along and I'm supposed to like 00:02:27.680 --> 00:02:29.879 pick them up and shove their head inside of it. 00:02:30.060 --> 00:02:31.960 I mean, I've been working out, but come on, give 00:02:31.960 --> 00:02:35.740 me some credit. I gotta work on my core. What 00:02:35.740 --> 00:02:37.599 happens though when someone says, I'd really 00:02:37.599 --> 00:02:40.919 like to be immersed? That's perfectly valid. 00:02:41.639 --> 00:02:43.340 You know, the Bible doesn't tell us that you 00:02:43.340 --> 00:02:46.240 have to sprinkle or pour or immerse. The word 00:02:46.240 --> 00:02:50.219 baptizo means just to wash with water. The important 00:02:50.219 --> 00:02:52.780 thing is the water, the word, and the name of 00:02:52.780 --> 00:02:56.479 the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So sometimes... 00:02:56.330 --> 00:02:58.889 We have to figure out what we're gonna actually 00:02:58.889 --> 00:03:01.289 do. And a couple times we've had people go out 00:03:01.289 --> 00:03:04.069 into the fountain that's out there. Unfortunately, 00:03:04.150 --> 00:03:06.069 that fountain hasn't been working as much lately, 00:03:06.270 --> 00:03:08.909 so one of them wanted to be immersed in it, and 00:03:08.909 --> 00:03:11.150 when he did, there was almost no water in it, 00:03:11.169 --> 00:03:13.189 so he'll have to take the water and splash it 00:03:13.189 --> 00:03:16.080 on top of him, trying to get it done. And we're 00:03:16.080 --> 00:03:18.319 asking these questions of, did we get enough 00:03:18.319 --> 00:03:21.020 water on him? Do I need to dunk him again? Do 00:03:21.020 --> 00:03:23.159 I need to make sure, hey, Father, Son, and Spirit, 00:03:23.259 --> 00:03:25.379 and make sure that I got you under well enough? 00:03:25.969 --> 00:03:28.430 It's not a question of if you're sufficiently 00:03:28.430 --> 00:03:33.389 wet. It's a question of what is God doing. Baptism 00:03:33.389 --> 00:03:37.530 is not primarily my statement about God. Baptism 00:03:37.530 --> 00:03:41.870 is God's promise to us. Because God is acting. 00:03:42.129 --> 00:03:45.770 God is calling us His own. God forgives sins. 00:03:45.969 --> 00:03:50.270 God gives us the Spirit. God brings us to Christ. 00:03:50.710 --> 00:03:53.550 And that last part is especially important because 00:03:53.550 --> 00:03:57.000 baptism... is not ultimately about the water 00:03:57.000 --> 00:04:02.139 as much as Christ. Paul says in Romans 6, we 00:04:02.139 --> 00:04:05.620 have been baptized into Christ Jesus, into His 00:04:05.620 --> 00:04:09.990 death, buried with Him and raised with Him. The 00:04:09.990 --> 00:04:13.319 baptism did it. Galatians says that those who 00:04:13.319 --> 00:04:16.319 have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 00:04:16.660 --> 00:04:20.079 So what is God doing in baptism? He is giving 00:04:20.079 --> 00:04:23.100 us Christ. He is giving us the forgiveness that 00:04:23.100 --> 00:04:26.389 Christ won for us. His death on the cross. And 00:04:26.389 --> 00:04:31.180 then as we are then coming forth that resurrection 00:04:31.180 --> 00:04:35.199 that Christ won for us is ours. That's why the 00:04:35.199 --> 00:04:38.579 two sons matter. Because baptism is not a declaration 00:04:38.579 --> 00:04:41.639 to say, you know what, I have now for the rest 00:04:41.639 --> 00:04:44.480 of my life permanently demonstrated that I will 00:04:44.480 --> 00:04:47.910 always follow Jesus perfectly. The Christian 00:04:47.910 --> 00:04:51.379 life is not that simple. We may say yes and stumble. 00:04:52.329 --> 00:04:56.670 We may say no and turn back. but Christ keeps 00:04:56.670 --> 00:05:00.230 calling us. Baptism gives us a place to hear 00:05:00.230 --> 00:05:03.649 God's promise again because God gives and faith 00:05:03.649 --> 00:05:08.790 receives. But I'm sure nobody here has ever struggled 00:05:08.790 --> 00:05:13.350 in their faith or wandered away, right? And there's 00:05:13.350 --> 00:05:15.269 another way we see this in the Christian life. 00:05:15.769 --> 00:05:18.410 When we think about prayer, if I'm praying for 00:05:18.410 --> 00:05:20.649 somebody who is sick and maybe I anoint them 00:05:20.649 --> 00:05:23.790 with oil, pray over them, what is it that's making 00:05:23.790 --> 00:05:28.439 God act? You see, This may be used in the midst 00:05:28.439 --> 00:05:32.459 of prayer, but it's an anointing. This physical 00:05:32.459 --> 00:05:35.339 reminder is that we're bringing this person to 00:05:35.339 --> 00:05:39.160 God and asking God to work. Not because oil is 00:05:39.160 --> 00:05:43.399 magical, but because God is the one acting. But 00:05:43.399 --> 00:05:46.899 I'm going to take it even simpler. What if I 00:05:46.899 --> 00:05:51.259 pray for you and you don't know it? What if... 00:05:51.259 --> 00:05:54.740 I am praying for you and you've never found out 00:05:54.740 --> 00:05:57.160 that I did. Does that mean it doesn't do anything 00:05:57.160 --> 00:06:00.100 in your life because you never heard that I prayed 00:06:00.100 --> 00:06:04.879 for you? Of course not. What if I pray for you 00:06:04.879 --> 00:06:08.160 and you never know what happened as a result? 00:06:08.360 --> 00:06:11.120 Or what if something happens in your life and 00:06:11.120 --> 00:06:16.310 I never find out what my prayers did? Does that 00:06:16.310 --> 00:06:19.449 mean God is not going to work? Absolutely not. 00:06:19.980 --> 00:06:23.319 See, we trust that God hears prayer and that 00:06:23.319 --> 00:06:27.259 God is at work even when we cannot see or immediately 00:06:27.259 --> 00:06:30.779 know the results. See, God's action is not limited 00:06:30.779 --> 00:06:34.449 by our understanding. We don't have to understand 00:06:34.449 --> 00:06:38.170 exactly how God is working for God to be working. 00:06:39.110 --> 00:06:41.069 We don't have to be conscious of everything God 00:06:41.069 --> 00:06:44.670 is doing in order for Him to act. And that's 00:06:44.670 --> 00:06:47.069 true in prayer, it's true with God's Word, and 00:06:47.069 --> 00:06:51.240 it is true in baptism. Because if everything 00:06:51.240 --> 00:06:54.740 God does depends on whether we understand everything 00:06:54.740 --> 00:06:58.620 perfectly, then God's grace would still be waiting 00:06:58.620 --> 00:07:02.350 on us to get our lives together. But that's not 00:07:02.350 --> 00:07:08.420 the gospel. God comes to us, speaks, gives, acts. 00:07:08.680 --> 00:07:10.860 And by the work of the Holy Spirit, we learn 00:07:10.860 --> 00:07:16.420 to recognize and trust what He has done. So if 00:07:16.420 --> 00:07:19.860 baptism is God's action, then why even ask the 00:07:19.860 --> 00:07:23.310 adults? Why don't I just come along with a super 00:07:23.310 --> 00:07:25.370 soaker, and I'll just go ahead and get all of 00:07:25.370 --> 00:07:27.550 you at once. We'll make sure we get everybody 00:07:27.550 --> 00:07:29.730 covered. Maybe I could go do it at the mall, 00:07:30.050 --> 00:07:32.550 too. Are there still malls out there? I don't 00:07:32.550 --> 00:07:34.410 know. But I'll just go ahead and get everybody. 00:07:34.649 --> 00:07:36.250 I'll say, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and we're 00:07:36.250 --> 00:07:40.879 good, right? But you see, an adult standing here 00:07:40.879 --> 00:07:44.040 says, yes, I trust Jesus. I want to follow Him. 00:07:45.189 --> 00:07:49.509 That is beautiful. We confess Christ every chance 00:07:49.509 --> 00:07:53.839 we get. We do not force baptism on someone who 00:07:53.839 --> 00:07:55.819 understands and can speak up and says, no, I 00:07:55.819 --> 00:07:58.939 don't want it. It's not about coercing people 00:07:58.939 --> 00:08:03.420 into God's grace. But confession, that's not 00:08:03.420 --> 00:08:06.889 what made the promise true. Faith is not what 00:08:06.889 --> 00:08:10.550 it is that made the water work. Water is what's 00:08:10.550 --> 00:08:13.829 creating the faith that's inside of us. That 00:08:13.829 --> 00:08:17.029 confession though, it is appropriate to respond 00:08:17.029 --> 00:08:20.980 that way to what God has done. But you know we 00:08:20.980 --> 00:08:22.920 were sitting there we were talking getting ready 00:08:22.920 --> 00:08:25.920 for some of the baptisms and I remember hearing 00:08:25.920 --> 00:08:28.819 One lady talking to another and saying are you 00:08:28.819 --> 00:08:31.360 sure you know what this is? Are you sure this 00:08:31.360 --> 00:08:33.820 is something you want to do? Do you really understand 00:08:33.820 --> 00:08:35.820 all the different parts? We've been talking about 00:08:35.820 --> 00:08:39.200 and it was kind it was sweet. It was considerate 00:08:39.779 --> 00:08:42.539 But the response was I know what it is and I 00:08:42.539 --> 00:08:47.990 want to do it Isn't it wonderfully simple? How 00:08:47.990 --> 00:08:50.269 often do we make baptism more complicated than 00:08:50.269 --> 00:08:53.610 it ever needs to be? See, we start thinking that 00:08:53.610 --> 00:08:55.490 the important thing is whether we've understood 00:08:55.490 --> 00:08:57.710 it well enough, if we've explained it well enough, 00:08:57.809 --> 00:09:00.610 if we've articulated every single thing, but 00:09:00.610 --> 00:09:04.679 it's about what God is doing. But pastor, you 00:09:04.679 --> 00:09:07.419 said we don't coerce people into faith. What 00:09:07.419 --> 00:09:10.700 about those babies? You're making them go to 00:09:10.700 --> 00:09:14.419 baptism. Isn't that coercing them? Well, first 00:09:14.419 --> 00:09:18.820 off, Jesus welcomes the children. In that same 00:09:18.820 --> 00:09:20.980 chapter, the children are crying out, Hosanna 00:09:20.980 --> 00:09:23.580 to the son of David. And Jesus points us to the 00:09:23.580 --> 00:09:26.899 words of Psalm 8 about praise coming from the 00:09:26.899 --> 00:09:31.730 mouths of infants and nursing babies. Jesus does 00:09:31.730 --> 00:09:35.110 not consider any children too young to belong 00:09:35.110 --> 00:09:39.120 to him. And even more than that, I want to remind 00:09:39.120 --> 00:09:42.299 you of something historical. You see, before 00:09:42.299 --> 00:09:45.200 the time of Christ, circumcision was the mark 00:09:45.200 --> 00:09:48.120 of the covenant. See, God gave circumcision to 00:09:48.120 --> 00:09:50.980 Abraham as the sign of his covenant. Now, Abraham 00:09:50.980 --> 00:09:53.360 was an adult when he went through circumcision. 00:09:54.059 --> 00:09:56.759 But from there forward, for the covenant family, 00:09:57.379 --> 00:09:59.519 they would circumcise the boys at eight days 00:09:59.519 --> 00:10:02.620 old. Child doesn't understand what's happening. 00:10:03.279 --> 00:10:06.000 Child didn't decide to be circumcised. The child 00:10:06.000 --> 00:10:09.299 didn't say, mother and father, now that I am 00:10:09.299 --> 00:10:11.340 eight days old, I would like you to go ahead 00:10:11.340 --> 00:10:13.379 and circumcise me. That sounds like a wonderful 00:10:13.379 --> 00:10:17.970 idea. the parents brought the child into the 00:10:17.970 --> 00:10:20.590 covenant community and God gave the covenant 00:10:20.590 --> 00:10:25.080 sign. The children who were circumcised, they 00:10:25.080 --> 00:10:28.490 could actually grow up and reject God. They could 00:10:28.490 --> 00:10:32.539 decide to become unfaithful. But their unfaithfulness 00:10:32.539 --> 00:10:35.980 did not make the circumcision invalid. And that's 00:10:35.980 --> 00:10:38.460 important for us to remember when we hear from 00:10:38.460 --> 00:10:41.940 Ezekiel. Because the people of Israel were suffering. 00:10:42.639 --> 00:10:45.639 And they're saying the fathers have eaten sour 00:10:45.639 --> 00:10:49.049 grapes, And the children's teeth are on edge. 00:10:49.850 --> 00:10:53.110 It's a poetic way of saying, we're dealing with 00:10:53.110 --> 00:10:56.399 the consequences of what the parents did. But 00:10:56.399 --> 00:10:59.429 God is looking at them and saying, no, each person 00:10:59.429 --> 00:11:03.409 is accountable before me. And God calls the people 00:11:03.409 --> 00:11:06.529 to repentance. Repent and turn from all your 00:11:06.529 --> 00:11:08.850 transgressions. Make yourselves a new heart and 00:11:08.850 --> 00:11:12.529 a new spirit. Turn and live. But I want you to 00:11:12.529 --> 00:11:16.159 notice who God is actually talking to. God is 00:11:16.159 --> 00:11:18.659 actually talking to the people marked by the 00:11:18.659 --> 00:11:22.200 covenant. The people who are already marked as 00:11:22.200 --> 00:11:25.279 His people are the ones He is saying, repent 00:11:25.279 --> 00:11:29.830 and turn so that you can live. God is still having 00:11:29.830 --> 00:11:32.610 to call them back. And we need to remember that 00:11:32.610 --> 00:11:35.669 when we think about baptism. Because baptism, 00:11:36.009 --> 00:11:38.049 it doesn't mean, well, now I just live however 00:11:38.049 --> 00:11:41.919 I want and it doesn't matter anymore. Baptism 00:11:41.919 --> 00:11:44.919 doesn't mean that it's okay just to reject Christ. 00:11:45.509 --> 00:11:49.379 It means that God has made a promise. That's 00:11:49.379 --> 00:11:52.759 also why Colossians 2 is important. Because Paul 00:11:52.759 --> 00:11:55.700 connects the circumcision and the baptism when 00:11:55.700 --> 00:11:58.519 he says that with Christ we have been circumcised 00:11:58.519 --> 00:12:01.860 with the circumcision made without hands. And 00:12:01.860 --> 00:12:04.039 he then connects that with being buried with 00:12:04.039 --> 00:12:06.659 Him in baptism and raised with Him through faith 00:12:06.659 --> 00:12:10.129 in the powerful working of God. You see, Paul 00:12:10.129 --> 00:12:14.210 is not just saying baptism is the same thing, 00:12:14.210 --> 00:12:17.149 but what he's doing is He's putting them together. 00:12:17.809 --> 00:12:20.809 And we are reminded that even as the old covenant 00:12:20.809 --> 00:12:24.009 was given to all the people, including the children, 00:12:24.690 --> 00:12:28.259 the new covenant is meant for all people. And 00:12:28.259 --> 00:12:30.299 it joins us to Christ's death and resurrection. 00:12:31.139 --> 00:12:33.200 See, the sign is not just something about what 00:12:33.200 --> 00:12:35.679 we've accomplished. It's about what God is giving. 00:12:36.440 --> 00:12:39.039 So instead of asking, is the baby old enough 00:12:39.039 --> 00:12:42.419 to make their decision, the bigger question is, 00:12:42.750 --> 00:12:47.519 If we are all born into a world of sin, and we 00:12:47.519 --> 00:12:51.889 are all under the punishment, then is God's grace 00:12:51.889 --> 00:12:55.070 big enough to come to this child before they 00:12:55.070 --> 00:12:58.429 understand it? And the answer of God's grace 00:12:58.429 --> 00:13:03.110 is always yes. But we do have to be careful. 00:13:04.240 --> 00:13:06.379 Are we saying that repentance doesn't matter? 00:13:07.289 --> 00:13:11.049 Absolutely not. Repentance matters tremendously. 00:13:11.269 --> 00:13:15.190 And Acts 2 says, repent and be baptized every 00:13:15.190 --> 00:13:17.429 one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the 00:13:17.429 --> 00:13:20.330 forgiveness of your sins. But we need to be clear, 00:13:20.570 --> 00:13:23.690 Peter is not saying, okay first, make sure you've 00:13:23.690 --> 00:13:26.049 done all of this repentance that you've got to 00:13:26.049 --> 00:13:28.169 get done, make sure you've done it perfectly, 00:13:28.269 --> 00:13:30.169 and then you'll be qualified enough and we'll 00:13:30.169 --> 00:13:33.789 go ahead and let you be baptized. Repentance 00:13:33.850 --> 00:13:38.970 is what goes with baptism. It is a part of the 00:13:38.970 --> 00:13:40.850 life that God creates in us through His grace. 00:13:41.190 --> 00:13:43.889 But what we need to remember is that repentance, 00:13:44.250 --> 00:13:47.669 the turning back toward God as the Spirit moves 00:13:47.669 --> 00:13:51.610 us, it doesn't happen at just one moment. Our 00:13:51.610 --> 00:13:55.129 whole life needs to be marked with repentance. 00:13:55.769 --> 00:13:59.009 The first son says, I will not do what you've 00:13:59.009 --> 00:14:03.750 asked, Father. But he repents. He turns around. 00:14:05.679 --> 00:14:08.200 said no, but He turned around. And that's the 00:14:08.200 --> 00:14:12.110 Christian life. Sometimes we say yes and we stumble, 00:14:12.169 --> 00:14:16.590 and other times we say no and we turn back. We 00:14:16.590 --> 00:14:19.169 may be faithful for a season and then wander. 00:14:21.289 --> 00:14:23.909 But Paul says in Philippians, for it is God who 00:14:23.909 --> 00:14:26.629 works in you, both to will and to work for His 00:14:26.629 --> 00:14:29.909 good pleasure. See, God is at work in the whole 00:14:29.909 --> 00:14:33.509 thing, giving His grace, faith, and creating 00:14:33.509 --> 00:14:37.909 in us repentance. Because repentance does not 00:14:37.909 --> 00:14:40.990 happen because we wanted it hard enough. Repentance 00:14:40.990 --> 00:14:44.110 happens because God is speaking into our hearts 00:14:44.110 --> 00:14:48.830 and changing us. And that's what happens when 00:14:48.830 --> 00:14:51.990 we are baptized, is receiving a new heart to 00:14:51.990 --> 00:14:55.220 come from God. And it also helps us to understand 00:14:55.220 --> 00:14:58.299 faith because sometimes we focus so much on our 00:14:58.299 --> 00:15:01.870 decisions. We're Americans. We make all the decisions 00:15:01.870 --> 00:15:05.059 for ourselves, don't we? I decided to believe. 00:15:05.279 --> 00:15:09.220 I accepted Jesus. I made the choice. And yes, 00:15:10.120 --> 00:15:13.080 there is a human response. I certainly hope that 00:15:13.080 --> 00:15:16.250 you choose to follow Jesus. But scripture has 00:15:16.250 --> 00:15:20.159 a deeper picture. Because faith is trust that 00:15:20.159 --> 00:15:23.840 relies on Christ. Not about having enough information 00:15:23.840 --> 00:15:27.320 in our minds that we somehow passed an exam. 00:15:28.460 --> 00:15:31.950 And frankly, babies can trust before they can 00:15:31.950 --> 00:15:36.230 explain. A baby trusts a parent to feed them. 00:15:37.279 --> 00:15:39.679 Every time that they cry, they trust that someone 00:15:39.679 --> 00:15:42.860 will be there. They trust the voice of the person 00:15:42.860 --> 00:15:46.139 that they know will comfort them. They reach 00:15:46.139 --> 00:15:49.919 out to be held to the one that they know. It's 00:15:49.919 --> 00:15:52.919 not as if that baby is sitting there able to 00:15:52.919 --> 00:15:55.700 explain, I'm sorry, I don't actually know you, 00:15:55.779 --> 00:15:58.279 sir. I'm not ready for you to pick me up yet. 00:15:59.519 --> 00:16:02.299 But instead, we realize that trust goes deeper 00:16:02.299 --> 00:16:06.250 than what we can know. Our confidence is not 00:16:06.250 --> 00:16:08.610 about the strength of our trust. It is about 00:16:08.610 --> 00:16:12.250 the One that we trust. The One who died and rose 00:16:12.250 --> 00:16:15.710 again to give Himself for us. And maybe we do 00:16:15.710 --> 00:16:20.529 have to remember that we all must come to Christ 00:16:20.529 --> 00:16:25.360 as little children, vulnerable and ready to be 00:16:25.360 --> 00:16:28.909 taught. So we come back to those two sons again. 00:16:29.179 --> 00:16:32.700 What happens when someone has said yes to Christ 00:16:32.700 --> 00:16:37.169 and then walks away? What happens when somebody 00:16:37.169 --> 00:16:39.210 has been baptized but decides that they're going 00:16:39.210 --> 00:16:42.210 to reject their faith? Because that does happen. 00:16:42.490 --> 00:16:45.269 We don't like to think about it. A baptized person 00:16:45.269 --> 00:16:48.230 can reject Christ. They can wander. They can 00:16:48.230 --> 00:16:50.789 become indifferent to their faith. And we need 00:16:50.789 --> 00:16:54.549 to not pretend otherwise. But the person may 00:16:54.549 --> 00:16:58.610 have wandered. God's promise did not. Because 00:16:58.610 --> 00:17:01.639 there is nothing that can separate us from the 00:17:01.639 --> 00:17:05.819 love of God. Think about that first son. He said 00:17:05.819 --> 00:17:11.880 no, but then he changed his mind and went. Did 00:17:11.880 --> 00:17:14.599 the father look at him and say, you know, you 00:17:14.599 --> 00:17:16.779 said no earlier, so I'm going to need you to 00:17:16.779 --> 00:17:19.940 go and find a different father now because I 00:17:19.940 --> 00:17:22.480 said to do this, you walked away and now you're 00:17:22.480 --> 00:17:27.670 trying to do it now? He returns to the father 00:17:27.670 --> 00:17:30.920 who has been faithful the whole time. And this 00:17:30.920 --> 00:17:34.319 is a picture of repentance. is to remember that 00:17:34.319 --> 00:17:36.680 even though we have wandered, that does not mean 00:17:36.680 --> 00:17:39.799 that now we have to start Christianity all over 00:17:39.799 --> 00:17:45.259 again. An example, if you will. A lot of times 00:17:45.259 --> 00:17:47.359 I'll be thinking about when there's a reset, 00:17:47.559 --> 00:17:49.400 and I think about my sister and my brother -in 00:17:49.400 --> 00:17:52.599 -law. See, they dated in college, and they were 00:17:52.599 --> 00:17:55.059 together for quite a while, but they broke up. 00:17:55.119 --> 00:17:59.130 And they were broken up for years. But years 00:17:59.130 --> 00:18:02.670 later, they got back together, and eventually 00:18:02.670 --> 00:18:06.309 they got married. The relationship was real, 00:18:06.910 --> 00:18:10.740 but so was the separation. And then the reunion 00:18:10.740 --> 00:18:14.500 was real too. And often times we may be saying, 00:18:14.599 --> 00:18:18.509 wait a minute, wait a minute. Would we now think 00:18:18.509 --> 00:18:21.470 that their whole dating life when they were kids 00:18:21.470 --> 00:18:25.420 doesn't count because they broke up? Absolutely 00:18:25.420 --> 00:18:28.849 not. That's still a part of their relationship 00:18:28.849 --> 00:18:31.769 and their story. You see, that's the same thing 00:18:31.769 --> 00:18:35.589 though with baptism. Is that when we come back, 00:18:35.740 --> 00:18:39.299 We don't need a new baptism, because we are coming 00:18:39.299 --> 00:18:42.480 back to the one who has marked us the whole time. 00:18:43.319 --> 00:18:47.140 It says in Ephesians 4, one faith, one baptism. 00:18:48.069 --> 00:18:51.329 One baptism. Not one when you were young, and 00:18:51.329 --> 00:18:53.170 another for when you finally understood later 00:18:53.170 --> 00:18:56.519 on. Not one baptism when you were following Christ, 00:18:56.740 --> 00:18:59.079 and another so that after you wandered and came 00:18:59.079 --> 00:19:03.349 back, you got it all right. We'd have to be baptized 00:19:03.349 --> 00:19:06.109 every day, wouldn't we? because the foundation 00:19:06.109 --> 00:19:09.329 is not about how well you performed. It's about 00:19:09.329 --> 00:19:12.089 what Christ has done. And just in case you need 00:19:12.089 --> 00:19:17.230 just a little bit more, even the earliest Christian 00:19:17.230 --> 00:19:20.599 writings, they talk about baptism being in the 00:19:20.599 --> 00:19:22.319 name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. 00:19:22.960 --> 00:19:25.559 They talk about using running water if possible. 00:19:26.240 --> 00:19:28.539 But if not, you could just pour it over the head 00:19:28.539 --> 00:19:32.859 three times. The Didache talks about this. See, 00:19:32.880 --> 00:19:35.160 even early on, the Christians were not worried 00:19:35.160 --> 00:19:38.819 about how much water was there, but it also talked 00:19:38.819 --> 00:19:40.740 about what it was when children were baptized 00:19:40.740 --> 00:19:44.059 and could not speak for themselves. Even Tertullian, 00:19:44.359 --> 00:19:46.640 as much as people talked about how he wanted 00:19:46.640 --> 00:19:50.460 baptism to be delayed for children, he even was 00:19:50.460 --> 00:19:52.940 admitting that the children were being brought 00:19:52.940 --> 00:19:56.519 to baptism, and no one was denying what baptism 00:19:56.519 --> 00:20:00.640 was doing. Of all these things, The practice 00:20:00.640 --> 00:20:02.640 that we do, it wasn't made up in the medieval 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:04.940 ages, and it wasn't just the Catholic Church 00:20:04.940 --> 00:20:07.970 trying to do something after Constantine. This 00:20:07.970 --> 00:20:11.390 is something we have held to throughout. And 00:20:11.390 --> 00:20:15.869 Matthew brings us back to those children. Hosanna 00:20:15.869 --> 00:20:20.960 to the son of David. Jesus receives the children 00:20:20.960 --> 00:20:24.900 who praise His name. The weak ones. The little 00:20:24.900 --> 00:20:28.980 ones. The sinners. But isn't that like all of 00:20:28.980 --> 00:20:33.789 us? and He saves because He's merciful. So here's 00:20:33.789 --> 00:20:36.130 what I want you to be taking away with you today. 00:20:37.039 --> 00:20:40.599 Where is your confidence today? Is your confidence 00:20:40.599 --> 00:20:43.099 in how well you've understood God and His salvation? 00:20:43.660 --> 00:20:45.660 Did you make the right decision well enough? 00:20:46.140 --> 00:20:49.630 Have you been a good enough Christian? Because 00:20:49.630 --> 00:20:53.769 those change from day to day. Our emotions fail. 00:20:54.269 --> 00:20:59.470 Our faith feels weak. We stumble. We fail. But 00:20:59.470 --> 00:21:03.450 Christ does not change. So baptism is God's promise 00:21:03.450 --> 00:21:07.750 in Christ to us, not our achievement for God. 00:21:08.619 --> 00:21:11.960 So we can baptize a baby who says goo goo gaga. 00:21:12.640 --> 00:21:15.799 We can baptize an adult who can say very clearly 00:21:15.799 --> 00:21:18.809 what they believe. We don't need to worry about 00:21:18.809 --> 00:21:21.390 how much water there is. I don't need to worry 00:21:21.390 --> 00:21:23.609 whether I got you fully under that water in the 00:21:23.609 --> 00:21:27.420 pool. But repentance, it belongs with baptism. 00:21:28.319 --> 00:21:31.369 But it's also because every day thereafter. is 00:21:31.369 --> 00:21:35.750 a day to repent. And that's why we don't rebaptize 00:21:35.750 --> 00:21:38.779 people who just wandered. But that's also why 00:21:38.779 --> 00:21:42.059 baptism matters so much. Because in baptism, 00:21:42.220 --> 00:21:45.279 God is saying, you belong to me. Your sins are 00:21:45.279 --> 00:21:48.440 forgiven. Christ has died and risen for you. 00:21:48.740 --> 00:21:52.859 And you have my promise. So today, remember your 00:21:52.859 --> 00:21:56.960 baptism. Remember Christ. And when you wander, 00:21:57.799 --> 00:22:00.140 remember that He is the one calling you home. 00:22:01.230 --> 00:22:02.049 Thanks be to God.