Baptism

Promises and Joy

/ The Pastor

I experienced a first this past Saturday…

…I got the privilege to perform an adult baptism.  She is a 20 year old woman (Samantha) who a member of my congregation has been mentoring for the past few months.  This member (Dave) lives at a local nursing home and the young woman is a nurse’s aid at that nursing home.  This woman knew of Dave’s strong faith and went to him with questions.  Through the course of their conversations she mentioned that she wanted to be baptized.  Since she wasn’t currently connected to a church Dave said “I think I can help you with that“, and contacted me.

I joyful agreed to baptize her.

I met with this young woman (and Dave) and we chatted for awhile, but left the bulk of the discipling up to Dave since he had already established a relationship with her.  From the time Dave first started talking with Samantha he would call me and tell me some of the questions she had and how he responded.  We would discuss those questions and I would encourage Dave.

He was doing a great job.

The day of the baptism finally arrived.  The service was performed in the family room at the nursing home.  Samantha invited her family, friends and residents of the nursing home.  As we began, Samantha had to step away to get a tissue.  She was starting to get emotional (and so was I).  I read from Romans 6 and talked about what GOD is doing in baptism.  We went through the confession of faith and when I eventually announced the promises of baptism to Samantha and poured the water over Samantha’s head in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…

…tears were flowing down her face (and down many other faces in that room).

I laid my hands on her head, prayed over her and made the sign of the cross on her forehead.  I also invited her sponsors to make the sign of the cross on her forehead.

Tears were still flowing.

Salem Lutheran Church (the congregation I serve) presented Samantha a quilt and a study Bible.

Tears were still flowing.

For me this whole experience was very powerful.  For my first time I got to experience a baptism where the person was aware of what was going on, what the promises being made to them meant and was showing pure joy as those promises were being announced.  Now don’t get me wrong…I still love performing baptisms for infants (baptisms are the favorite thing I get to do as a pastor), but to see the recipient express that joy was…well…awesome.

Praise be to God!

And here’s the other cool part of all of this…

…Dave is currently in conversations with another nursing home staff member about getting her three older children baptized.  Wow…God is awesome!

And I can hardly wait 🙂

edh -|—

Sealed and marked

/ The Pastor

This past Sunday (yesterday) the Gospel text was from Matthew 22:15-22.  It is the text where the religious leaders are trying to trap Jesus by asking him whether it is lawful to pay the tax to Caesar.  After Jesus asks for the coin used for the tax and after quizzing the quizzers on who’s image and inscription is on the coin, Jesus says:

“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s“.

Jesus never directly answers the question.  He never says whether it is lawful or not.  Jesus simply states what is truly important; leaving the quizzers speechless.

So on Sunday I talked about being marked.  The coin was marked and so are we.

How?

We are “sealed with the Holy Spirit and MARKED with the cross of Christ forever.” (from the order of Baptism in the Evangelical Lutheran Worship book)

So what does this really mean for you and for me?  What does it mean to be marked?

(1)  It is about placing a claim on something (or someone).  You claim a brand new car by putting a license plate on it.  You claim a household pet by putting a collar/tag on it.  God places a claim on us in baptism through the mark of Christ ~ the cross.  God says to you through baptism, “You are mine“.

(2) The mark says something about the claimer.  A car license plate says a lot about the person who claimed (bought) the car.  An animal tag says something about who owns that pet.  The mark of Christ, the cross, shows us how serious God is about us.  Jesus went to the cross, an instrument of torture and death.  The cross shows us how much God loves us.    Indeed…the mark says a lot about God’s love for you.

(3) Lastly…marking something says something about the claimed. You don’t mark something if you don’t intend to claim or redeem it.  You only mark something that has value.  The very fact that Jesus went so far as the cross and that through baptism we are sealed and marked with the sign of the cross, says that we are valuable (to put it mildly).  God has claimed us and through faith in Christ, God intends to redeem us.

So at the end of the sermon I invited people to come forward to the baptismal font to receive the sign of the cross on their foreheads.  I told the people that this is  NOT because their mark from their own baptism has worn off, but rather this is a simple reminder that they are claimed by God.

One by one people came forward.  I dipped my finger in the water; making the sign of the cross on their foreheads, I said these words: “Child of God, you have been sealed with the Holy Spirit and MARKED with the cross of Christ forever.” It was a very powerful moment for me; to see most everyone come forward to acknowledge their gift of baptism.

As Martin Luther told people, I encouraged people whenever they splash water on their face, let the water remind them of their baptism.  Make the sign of the cross on your own forehead and say, “I am baptized“.  What a great way to start your day.

Reflect on your own baptism today (and everyday for that matter).  Consider the MARK God has placed on you.  Contemplate the fact that God considers you valuable.  Ponder the lengths Jesus went to in order to show how serious he is about you.  And rejoice in God’s love for you.

What an awesome God we have!

edh -|—

Claimed

/ The Pastor

Matthew 22:18-22
18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, 20 and he asked them, “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?”21 “Caesar’s,” they replied.Then he said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

I share with you the following prayer with the invitation for you to use it as your own today. Dip your finger in some water and make the sign of the cross on your forehead as you say, “I have been seal with the Holy Spirit and MARKED with the cross of Christ forever.”

Almighty and merciful God, through my baptism you
sealed me
marked me
claimed me
and spoke to me: “Child of God, you have been sealed with the Holy Spirit and MARKED with the cross of Christ forever.”

Wow God…that is amazing.

When I consider this “marking” I can’t help but think that you claimed me because I am somehow valuable, otherwise why would you claim me?  After all…
I am sinful
I am unfaithful
I am disobedient
I am definitely not worthy

But despite that you have placed a claim on me through baptism.  You have said that I belong to you.  You have comforted me with the gift of life.  You have saved me from this world.  What belongs to Caesar is that which belongs to the world.  What belongs to you is that which you have marked and claimed…  

ME

Thank you, God.  May water be that everlasting reminder of you your:
Love
Faithfulness
Sacrifice
through Jesus Christ my Lord.

Thank you, God that I belong to you.  May your name always be praised.

Amen!

May God bless your day 🙂

edh -|—

From the “mouth” of a babe

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

I got to baptize Kelcie yesterday during worship.

But my story starts on Saturday when I met with Kelcie (3 months old), her family and sponsor.  We were sitting in my conference room and I was sharing with them what baptism is about.  I read Romans 6 to them and we discussed what God is doing.  I enjoy these meetings; I enjoy sharing with people what this great gift is all about.  It is a great time to share the truth of the gospel with people (some of which don’t normally come to worship).

During our time together, though, I noticed that Kelcie was staring at me as if she was listening intently to every word I was saying.  She never deviated her eyes.  It was almost wigging me out.   I half expected her to start nodding in agreement (which would have wigged me out even more). It was like she just couldn’t get enough of this Good News about…

being joined to the death and resurrection of Jesus;
this thing about the forgiveness of sins,
and becoming part of the Body of Christ and the church.

Her eyes seemed to be saying “keep going, I want to hear more“.  It was the cutest thing I have seen in a long time.

During the baptism on Sunday she continued her gaze upon me; on what I was saying and doing as if to say “This is really happening.  This is so cool.  Hurry up.”

I poured the watered on her head and she flinched (I guess the water was a little cool), but she didn’t cry.  After the blessing was pronounced, prayers were prayed and gifts given I had the privilege of carrying her up and down the aisle. And as I carried Kelcie, she laid in my arms very content.  Her eyes seemed to say “Thank you!”  But of course the proper response is “Praise be to God!”  Oh well, she’ll learn…after all she is only 3 months old 🙂

My prayer for Kelcie is that she grows to know more about this awesome God of ours; to learn more about those promises given to her on Sunday and to grow realize how to use her baptismal verbs:  Kelcie IS baptized not WAS.

Her baptism and yours is a present reality not just a past event.  Hold on to and praise God for those promises that were given and continue to remain with you.

And Praise GOD always and forever.

edh -|—

Exploring confirmation

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

Hey all…I am doing some rethinking of confirmation and would welcome your thoughts and feedback.  Last month I started a series of articles for our church newsletter to help people think about what confirmation is; why we do it, etc.  A number of questions have been running around in my head.  And this is a good time since I won’t have a confirmand for a couple years.

Below is the article that I wrote and turned in today that will be coming out in the August newsletter.

What is confirmation and why do we do it?
Those were the two questions I challenged you to consider last month.  How many of you did your “homework”?  Now let’s be honest…did you really consider those questions or did you just blow them off as something that isn’t all that important or figured Pastor Eric would write about it so why bother think about them?  I hope you did think about them because I would venture to say that a good number of you have either confirmation students, kids that will be in confirmation, grandchildren in confirmation or know of someone in confirmation.  And I am not even mentioning the fact that most of you have gone through confirmation yourselves.  So let’s start with that category ~ those who have gone through confirmation.

Those of you who have gone through confirmation answer this question:  Why confirmation?  My guess is that your answer will be “because mom and dad said so”.  And I would also venture a guess that is the reason for many students today.  Don’t get me wrong…I have had students who actually wanted to be in confirmation and enjoyed it.  But the fact that many attend because of mom and dad is not all that bad.  It actually shows mom and dad are following through with promises they made when their children were baptized.

You see…when children are baptized they generally have no clue what is going on; they generally have no memory of the event (I am assuming infant baptism here of course).  So during the service the parents and sponsors confess the faith for their child and then promise to raise them in the faith.  They promise to place in their hands the Holy Scriptures, bring them to the services of God’s house, teach them the creed, the Lord’s Prayer and the 10 Commandment, to bring them to Sunday school…and confirmation.  Basically…parents promise to ensure that their children learn about God, so much so, that they can someday make their own confession of faith.  Confirmation helps students down this road.  So it is not bad that kids are in confirmation because mom and dad say so.

I have described briefly the “What” and “Why” of confirmation but there is still another issue that needs to be addressed.  As I mentioned, parents are responsible to teach their children the faith.  This happens so that their children “…may learn to trust God, proclaim Christ through word and deed, care for others and the world God made, and work for justice and peace.” (Service of Holy Baptism, ELW pg. 228)  No where in that description does it say that they need to make sure their children make a confession of faith but yet I fear that we, as a church, are doing that very thing.  Students are brought to a confirmation service at a particular time of the year at a certain point in their lives.  They are brought to the service and expected to make a confession of faith ~ ready or not.  Students are to stand up front as the pastor asks them questions.  They are told to respond “Yes, by the help of God”.  But what if their answer is “No”?  What if they say that they do not believe in God the Father, in Jesus Christ and in the Holy Spirit? What if we are forcing students to confess a faith they don’t believe in?  What if they need more time?  What if?

I can’t help but to wonder if we have turned confirmation into a rite of passage in the church rather than a celebration of faith.  As a church and as parents we are doing the very thing we need to do but are we taking it too far?  Are we driving kids away from the church by forcing them into a service and confession of faith that cheapens the Gospel?  Are we making ourselves out as hypocrites by turning the Good News of the Gospel into something that is “forced”?  So with that I am lead to a couple more questions; questions I would like you to consider for next month:  (1) When should it (confirmation) happen and (2) Who should it (really) involve?  Don’t cheat this time…actually do your homework and answer these questions.  Let me know what you think ~ I really want to hear from you.

Next month I will dive into confirmation a little more deeply and challenge you.  Stay tuned and let’s talk…

-edh-

New Bibles

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

Yesterday in worship we gave Bibles to our 3rd graders (one at Belmont and one at Salem).  In the past I have ordered children’s Bibles from somewhere (I can’t seem to remember now), but this year we gave away a NRSV Spark Bible (Augsburg Fortress).

During the worship service I had the student and their parents come up front and I spoke to the student about the promises their parents made when they were baptized.  I told the 3rd graders that one of the promises their parents made was that they would place in your hands the holy scriptures (among a number of other things that I mentioned as I walked through the baptismal liturgy).  I then handed the Bible to the parents and they in turn handed it to their child.  We then all prayed together over the 3rd grader and their new Bible.

The fun part for me (besides getting to hand a 3rd grader a new Bible) was watching them (periodically) during worship.  Both these 3rd graders spent the worship service paging through their new Bibles…checking it out.  They didn’t seem to be paying attention to anything that was going on (if they ever do) but at least they were paying attention to their new Bible.  My prayer is that their curiosity doesn’t end.

At what point does this curiosity end for many people?

-edh-