The Sacraments

In a couple of past posts I have written about baptism and the Lord's Supper. Recently, in a worship class I just finished, I had to write six sacramental homilies, three on baptism and three on the Lord's Supper. Since I have already shared some about each sacrament, I figured I would share these homilies. They are designed to be about three minutes long; for use right before the sacrament is celebrated. With such a short time, they can hardly do the doctrine of each sacrament justice, so each homily focuses on an aspect of the sacrament or explains something in a different way.

Lord's Supper:

• Homily One
• Homily Two
• Homily Three

Baptism:

• Homily One
• Homily Two
• Homily Three

By His Grace,
Taylor

Baptism

"Baptism is a sacrament of the New Testament, wherein Christ hath ordained the washing with water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, to be a sign and seal of ingrafting into himself, of remission of sins by his blood, and regeneration by his Spirit; of adoption, and resurrection unto everlasting life; and whereby the parties baptized are solemnly admitted into the visible church, and enter into an open and professed engagement to be wholly and only the Lord’s." ~ Westminster Larger Catechism, answer to question #165

Last week I wrote briefly about what I learned in my recent preaching concerning the Lord's Supper. Today I thought I would share a little bit of what I learned about baptism by sharing with you some great resources as well as the two sermons I wrote for this class on baptism.

First, I would like to call your attention to question #167 of the Westminster Larger Catechism, "How is our baptism to be improved by us?":

The needful but much neglected duty of improving our baptism, is to be performed by us all our life long, especially in the time of temptation, and when we are present at the administration of it to others; by serious and thankful consideration of the nature of it, and of the ends for which Christ instituted it, the privileges and benefits conferred and sealed thereby, and our solemn vow made therein; by being humbled for our sinful defilement, our falling short of, and walking contrary to, the grace of baptism, and our engagements; by growing up to assurance of pardon of sin, and of all other blessings sealed to us in that sacrament; by drawing strength from the death and resurrection of Christ, into whom we are baptized, for the mortifying of sin, and quickening of grace; and by endeavoring to live by faith, to have our conversation in holiness and righteousness, as those that have therein given up their names to Christ; and to walk in brotherly love, as being baptized by the same Spirit into one body.

This one of the key things I learned while taking this course. I had probably read this question and answer a dozen times but it never hit me. Our baptisms, which for many of us was a very long time ago, can be improved by us. Baptism is not just a sacrament that is administered and forgotten about. It is something that can be improved by us and something that God uses for our sanctification. Apparently I am not the only one who had neglected this, for even in the 17th century, when this was written, it was neglected: "The needful but much neglected duty of improving our baptism..." So, my first sermon, which was normal length sermon (just a hair over seven pages), was written on this subject from Titus 3:1-8.

Some of you may be unsure what baptism really is. I think a lot of us who have grown up in the Church have, at best, a nebulous idea about what baptism really is. Well, my second sermon was written to (hopefully) answer that question. It is a short (only about two pages), pre-baptismal sermon, which was written as if I were about to baptize someone.

There are some good resources out there on baptism that I would recommend:

• Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin (Book 4, Chapters 14-16): Again, like with the Lord's Supper, I highly recommend Calvin's work on this subject.
• Jesus Loves the Little Children: Why We Baptize Children by Daniel Hyde: This is an excellent source on the subject of baptism that clearly explains baptism from a holistic, biblical perspective; answers the questions many people have about infant baptism; and compares infant baptism to "baby dedication" noting the fundamental differences between the two. It is well written, short, and charitable to opposing viewpoints. 
• "Baptism and the Benefits of Christ: The Double Mode of Communion in the Covenant of Grace" by R. Scott Clark: This is an excellent journal article written on the subject. 

As with my post about the Lord's Supper, I pray that these resources would increase your view of baptism and ultimately God's glory in giving this sacrament to us.

By His Grace,

Taylor

Church II

I have come with one purpose
To capture for myself a bride 
By my life she is lovely 
By my death she’s justified 

I have always been her husband 
Though many lovers she has known 
So with water I will wash her 
And by my word alone 

So when you hear the sound of the water 
You will know you’re not alone 

Chorus:
‘Cause I haven’t come for only you
But for my people to pursue
You cannot care for me with no regard for her
If you love me you will love the Church

I have long pursued her 
As a harlot and a whore 
But she will feast upon me 
She will drink and thirst no more 

So when you taste my flesh and my blood 
You will know you’re not alone 

Chorus:
There is none that can replace her 
Though there are many who will try 
And though some may be her bridesmaids 
They can never be my bride

This song is by Derek Webb. He is a member of Caedmon's Call and also does side projects on his own. Caedmon's Call is one of my favorite bands and his solo stuff is also very good. I love the lyrics to his songs (and Caedmon's Call's songs) because they are so rich and have so many poetic allusions to biblical stories and/or doctrine. This one in particular I really like because of the bridge lyrics:

   So when you hear the sound of the water 

   You will know you’re not alone 

   ...

   So when you taste my flesh and my blood 

   You will know you’re not alone 

Seeing baptism and taking the Eucharist, among many other spiritual signs and symbols they represent, reminds me of the greater covenant community that Christians are a part of. The Eucharist is a covenant meal, which is an act of covenantal ratification much like the meal shared by the elders of Israel before God in Exodus 24. It proclaims Christ, seals the benefits of union to Christ in believers, spiritually nourishes the believer, and pledges the believer’s fidelity to Christ and His body. (I wrote a paper called "Covenant-Renewing Worship" that speaks some about this.) Baptism is a covenant sign that brings the children of believers, or new believers, into the covenant community so when you "hear" the water you know that you are not alone. 

Last week at church we had two baptisms: the baby of a member couple of the church and a believer's baptism of a young woman who had grown up Muslim (nominal Muslim, but Muslim none-the-less). Seeing both of those really encouraged me. When the baby was baptized I thought, "This is a lucky child because he will grow up in a covenant family that will love and support him." When the believer was baptized I thought, "She is now one of my own." I do not know her personally but she is now a professed Christian and part of the covenant community of the Church and just knowing that another has been brought into the Kingdom is encouraging. They were both encouraging because, like the song says, seeing them reminded me that I am not alone. Like John Wesley says, "Everyone who belongs to Jesus belongs to everyone who belongs to Jesus" (whether we like it or not). 

By His Grace,
Taylor