Sermon on Holy Baptism [2 Corinthians 5:17-21] (15 December 2013)

Taking the fine example of many Lutheran preachers, today's sermon is on the catechism.  This sermon was preached at St. John's Lutheran, Karoonda (9 am) and Trinity Lutheran, Tailem Bend (11 am).

The Six Parts of the Catechism are the six chief parts of Christian doctrine. And that means every Christian ought to know them, including the 4^th part which is Holy Baptism. And today's text allows us to bring in our Lord's institution of Baptism as well as answer the question why so many churches have eight-sided baptismal fonts. If they have that many sides, that has to be on purpose, because no one would go to all that effort if it wasn't.

St. Paul writes, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ – new creation.” We sort of supply the rest of that sentence in translation – if someone is in Christ, well that person is a new creation. But the Word of God as God puts it has that new creation front and center. Now as we know, the creation, that is the creation of the world, is all wet. First, it's all wet because water is a large part of the creation of the world in Genesis chapter 1. The Holy Spirit hovers over the face of the waters; God separates the waters, putting them in their place. And in Eden is the river that splits into four and waters the earth. None of this is surprising, because water is necessary for life. We drink it, water the crops with it, wash with it, try and get fish out of it, and even play in it. You can't do without water.

But creation is all wet in another sense. Looking around, water is also dangerous, dangerous enough to drown in whether it's the middle of the ocean or a bathtub. It's dangerous enough to wash away whole communities by flood. You look around and you see that. You look around and see that creation is all wet meaning all of creation is a mess. But what you can't look around and see is that the sin that was brought into this world by Adam and Eve is the cause of the mess that the whole creation is in, even down to today. Even down to your heart. You can't look around and see that death is the wages paid for the price of your sin. God's Word makes all the difference to show the root of the problem clearly, of what's happened to the good creation because of sin. God's Word makes all the difference to show where the rescue of the creation must come from. Because of sin you can't do without God and his Word.

Transition: But death is the price paid out to Christ for your sin, so when he rises it may be made clear what he has done for his creation.

But Paul mentions the new creation, the reconciliation that is only through Christ's work, so that you may see that the new creation too is all wet. It's why many baptismal fonts are eight-sided. The final day of God's creation was the seventh day when he rested. On the last day of the week Christ rested in the tomb, having been crucified. So the day when he rose, the day of resurrection, is the first day of the week, or the day that comes after the seventh day: the eight day of creation, the new creation by the victory of his shed blood. When you were baptized you were put into that eighth day!

You have been made a new creation!

When God created the heavens and the earth, his Word made all the difference. He spoke, and it was so. The same goes for Baptism. Christ himself instituted it, as we hear in the last chapter of Matthew “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Christ instituted it; it's his idea, his invention, so to speak. And because God's Word makes all the difference, Baptism isn't just plain water. It's the water that has God's creative Word attached to it, so that it is, as the Catechism explains, “a baptism, that is a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new (!) birth in the Holy Spirit”. And because God's Word makes all the difference, here's who needs Baptism: Whoever needs the new creation! That includes adults and infants. Luther adds, “Note well, therefore, that baptism is water with the Word of God, not water and my faith. My faith does not make the baptism but rather receives the baptism, no matter whether the person being baptized believes or not; for baptism is not dependent upon my faith but upon God’s Word.”

Baptism is God's work of the new creation just as much as heaven and earth are his work of creation. So why did God give Baptism? Is there a purpose to it? The answer, of course, is yes. Luther says this: “[To] state it most simply in this way: the power, work, profit, fruit, and purpose of Baptism is this [Fasten your seat belt!]—to save” (LC IV 24).1 Pet 3:21, “Baptism . . . now saves you”. That’s why God gave it to you, to give you the blessings of salvation won for you by Christ on the cross. Martin Luther goes on to say, “To be saved is nothing other than to be delivered from sin, death, and the devil . . . to enter into Christ’s kingdom . . . and to live with Him forever” (LC IV 25).

Baptism saves, so when we baptize infants, we trust in God's Word and promises that faith receives this salvation, even though we can't see any faith in infants. For that reason, we can't call Baptism an empty thing; we must call it what it is: the Gospel (which saves).

Baptism is then a present reality treasure for the Christian. That's because the water of your Baptism is dangerous, dangerous to sin, death, and the devil. It's a treasure that is presently there for you, so you say “I am baptized”. Let me illustrate. Now if someone said to you “Are you married?” and you said “I was married”, what would they think? That in the past you were married but now that's over. 

And if someone says to you “Are you baptized?” and you say “I was baptized”, that's the same sort of thing. “I am baptized” is a confession to the world and against the devil, a confession of the new creation by water and the Word.

Conclusion: Creation is all wet because water is so important to everyday life while at the same time everyday life shows the terrible effects of sin in the whole creation. But it is in Christ that the new creation is given, and it is given to you through the Baptism he has given, so that you have been made a new creation. It's his Word, his creation, and his gift. It's your new birth, your joyful confession, and your treasure. Amen.