Holy Baptism
Matthew 28:16-20
“To Jordan Came the Christ, Our Lord” (LSB 407)
We’ve been considering, during this midweek series, the Small
Catechism of Martin Luther along with some of his “catechism hymns”. Luther wrote many hymns, hymn texts, hymn
tunes and updated old tunes to align their theology with Scripture. He wrote hymns for his German Mass – to take
the place of the Kyrie, Gloria, Creed, Sanctus, etc. He wrote hymns that were metrical paraphrases
of the Psalms. And he also wrote hymns
specifically to teach the doctrine of the Catechism – and this one is one of
those. It bore an original heading, “A
spiritual song of our Holy Baptism, which is a fine summary of what it is, who
established it, and what its benefits are”
Luther involved many others in his production of hymns, poets,
theologians and musicians, and none more prominent than Johan Sebastian
Bach.
This particular hymn was written late in Luther’s career,
sometime in 1540 or 1541, in conjunction with a couple of sermons on the topic
of Holy Baptism. But it wasn’t until
1962 that it was translated into English and heard on the radio – as part of the
Lutheran Hour program. Then, in 2004 a
new tune was written to go with it – the tune our congregation has become
familiar with. So we have quite a little
history wrapped up in this little hymn.
But beyond that, just on its own terms, the hymn is an
excellent sermon on the doctrine of Baptism.
Verse 1 tells us about Christ’s baptism, which Luther then
uses as a springboard to teach about our own baptism. Jesus comes to baptism to do his Father’s
will, or pleasure. In His baptism, Jesus
the “Father’s Word” is given us to treasure.
It is, as it were, his ordination as Messiah – God sets him aside as the
one appointed to do his will – the one Lamb of God who would take away the sins
of the world. Luther doesn’t wait till
verse two, but immediately connects Jesus’ baptism to the cross. Of course, Jesus does the same when he tells
James and John that he indeed has a cup to drink and a baptism to undergo. Luther refers to it this way: “And by his
blood and agony release from death’s oppression”
You see, Jesus’ baptism is part and parcel of his death on
the cross. They go together. They may be separated by three years but they
are all bound up together and inseparable, indivisible. But so too is Jesus’ baptism and your
baptism. And so too therefore, Jesus’
cross and your baptism. Paul says, “we
were buried with Christ, by baptism, into death”. These waters run deep, and drip with
blessings.
Verse 2 begins rehearsing the main teachings of the
Catechism about Holy Baptism. Here we
have the question, “What is baptism?”
which Luther answers, “[it’s] not just plain water, but the water included in
God’s command and combined with God’s word”
or sung in the hymn, “Our Lord here with His Word endows pure water
freely flowing”. It is the word of God
that makes baptism baptism. It’s not
some power of the pastor, or magic incantation.
It’s not some special process our mystical ritual done to the
water. But rather the word takes center
stage, and the promises that word holds out to us in baptism. It is Christ’ own charge to “Go and make
disciples of all nations… baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” And here,
in baptism, the Holy Spirit our kinship here avows. That is, baptized into the name of God, we
are incorporated into him, made one with him, as close as family.
Verse 3 and 4 return to Jesus’ baptism and the voice of the
Father which commands and invites our trust in Christ, and in the word he has
spoken. The Trine God was present that
day and on full display – the Father’s voice, the Spirit’s descent, the Son
standing in the water. So, also in our
baptism, we receive the name of the Trine God “assuring us with promises compelling”.
Verse 5 re-tells the “Great Commission” of Matthew 28, the chief
passage in the New Testament concerning baptism (also my own confirmation verse). There Jesus commands the 12, as they go, to
make disciples of all nations. And the
making of disciples has two verbs – to things to do – baptize and teach. Here Luther also shows that baptism
incorporates repentance – that is that we would “abandon sin and come in true
contrition”. In the catechism he
expounds that baptism, for the Christian, is a daily event, drowning the Old
Adam by repentance and faith.
Baptism is, in this way, very much what the Christian life
is all about. A daily renewal, an
ongoing cycle of sin and grace, law and gospel, repentance and
forgiveness.
Verse 6 is a stern warning that Baptism is a gift that can
be thrown away, cast aside. Just as
faith itself can be. Apart from the
grace of God, the gifts of God – given in Word and Sacrament. People, of
course, try to do this – through works (that must fail), through striving, that
can’t succeed, and by pious acts that may look very religious on the outside,
but have no power to save. There is no
other way of salvation than that comes by the blood of Christ, the gift of God’s
free grace, and all that comes to us, through the waters of baptism. With Christ we have everything. Apart from Christ we have nothing, and worse.
And verse 7 shows us that Baptism hold far more gifts and
blessings than the eye can see. Only the
perception of faith can unfold the power of baptism. It is the power of Jesus blood – that brings
healing to all our ills. It reveals the
love of God, and assures us of pardon.
We can hardly say enough about the blessed gift of Holy
Baptism. We can scarcely do it
justice. We can sing of it, teach it to
our children, confess it, and live it.
We can remember this divine flood of blessings every day.
And what a better reminder of it than that common everyday
thing – water. Luther said, “when you
wash your face, remember your baptism”.
In these days of everyone trying to stay clear of a nasty virus, washing
our hands perhaps like never before – what a good time to remember your
baptism! With every squirt of hand sanitizer
(if you still have any), why not give thanks for the sanitization of our
soul? With every trip to the sink to
wash your hands – why not sing a hymn, say the Lord’s Prayer, and give thanks to
the one who has saved us through the waters.
Dear Christian, you are baptized. Your baptism connects you with Jesus, who by
his baptism united himself with you. And
if we have been united in baptism, then we are also united with him in a death
like his, and we will also be united with him in a resurrection like his. Yes, baptism is the seal that marks you as
one destined for resurrection, and life in heaven forever.
All that, packed into a little water and some simple but
powerful words.
As we inch ever closer to Holy Week and Easter, we consider
all that Christ has done for us. How he
suffered and died for the sins of the world.
Of course that includes you and me, and all people. But in Holy Baptism, he gets personal. He calls you by name, and makes you his own,
and bestows a flood of blessings. Thanks
be to God that you and I are baptized, in the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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