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Baptism Is a Tool From Scripture we learn that Baptism, gives us forgiveness, life and salvation. But how can Baptism do such great things? Ordinary water only has the ability to wash away dirt, not sins. As Luther points out in the Small Catechism, it is not the water all by itself that does these great things but God's word and faith, which takes hold of God's promise. The water of Baptism is wrapped in God's command and promise. Because of this, the water is a great treasure. Since God has given Baptism to us and attached His promise to this ceremony, the water of Baptism is not to be treated as ordinary. Instead it is to be highly valued for through this Sacrament God places His name on us--He claims us as His dear children. When people hear such marvelous things said about Baptism, they wonder does that mean faith is not necessary. Of course, faith is needed. Baptism is not magical. The benefits do not come to us automatically, like flipping on a light switch or knocking over the first one of a row of dominoes. Since a promise is involved trust must be involved too. Let's say a fireman came to your rescue and said "I will lead you to safety." But you were afraid of him and instead of taking hold of his hand and letting him lead you out of the burning building, you ran away from him. Then even though his promise was true, it would not do you any good. Christ has promised to use Baptism as a means of washing our sins away and bringing us into His kingdom. But we can run away from our Savior and try to make it to heaven on our own. If we discard Christ's gifts and try to win forgiveness on our own, then our Baptism does not help us. Baptism is not unique in this regard. None of the tools God uses to save us work automatically. When the Gospel is preached and the pastor announces that your sins are forgiven, you should not think that your sins are now gone simply because you are sitting in the pew or standing in church. Faith takes hold of God's promises in the Gospel. Without this the word of forgiveness goes in one ear and out the other. When we trust God to keep His promises, we should not boast, "Look at what I have done. I have believed." Faith is also a gift from God. You believe because He has given you His Spirit and enabled you to cling to His promises. We are constantly tempted to think that we have in some way contributed to our salvation. We may be tempted to think that it is our listening skills and our cleverness in deciphering God's word that has saved us. Or we may think that it is our decision to go forward and be baptized that wins us salvation. We should watch out for such thoughts. They will lead us to trust in ourselves. It is God who saves us from first to last. If we have any understanding of His word and any confidence in His promises, He has brought this about. Having said this we need to watch out that we do not go to the other extreme. We are also tempted to think that faith is all that is needed so why bother with Baptism and listening to sermons. We bother because this is where God has promised to be at work. We cannot invent tools for God to use in blessings us. Instead we should use the tools He has given to us. The Gospel and the Sacraments are where God comes down to us. Here He brings us to faith and strengthens us in that faith. The Christian therefore delights in these tools God has given. We are confident that through them God will give us what we need. He uses the Gospel and the Sacraments to take our sins away, to deliver us from death and the devil, and to give us eternal life. Therefore, faith responds by coming again and again to hear the word and make use of the Sacraments. We go to those places where our dear heavenly Father has promised to be. |
