In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. [Amen.]
"When all the world was cursed By Moses' condemnation,
Saint John the Baptist came With words of consolation.
With true forerunner's zeal The greater One he named,
And Him, as yet unknown, As Savior he proclaimed."
(Lutheran Service Book, © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
346:1)
Gospel Reading...................................................... St.
Mark 1:1-8 (esp. 1-4)
1The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 2As it is
written in Isaiah the prophet, "Behold, I send my messenger before your
face, who will prepare your way, 3the voice of one crying in the wilderness:
'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.'" 4John appeared,
baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the
forgiveness of sins.
Prologue: On the one hand, it seems to some (especially children) that
Christmas is coming at a snail's pace. On the other hand, it seems to
others (especially us adults) that it's coming at breakneck speed . and will
be here before we're ready for it. After all, there's so much preparation
that still needs to be done, . like getting ready to host friends and
relatives . or travel to visit friends and relatives; unpacking and putting
up Christmas decorations; baking the many delightful Christmas cookies that
we love to devour but know we shouldn't because the resulting weight
increase will force us to go on a crash diet after the New Year; planning,
buying the items for, and then cooking the delicious meal that will be the
centerpiece on Christmas day; and, oh yes, finish or continue . or begin
shopping for the gifts that we intended to buy during last year's
after-Christmas sales and throughout the course of the twelve months between
last Christmas and the one that's now only 21 days away.
Ah yes, preparation . it reminds me of my Boy Scouts days and the
motto, "Be prepared," that was impressed on me. After all, preparation is
the focus of Advent . penitential preparation for the coming celebration of
Christ's past incarnate-birth arrival some 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem even
as we try to patiently await His future Last Day arrival while recognizing
His present-day arrival in the reading and hearing of God's Holy Word, the
declaration of Holy Absolution, and the participation in the Blessed
Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion.
Well, that's an effective transition to the emphasis of today's
Gospel Reading and sermon text. While we strive to patiently wait for
Christmas to arrive, let's use at least some of the time to remember and
ponder the reality that .
"Advent's Advice Is Recognize the Spiritual Significance of Baptism."
As we do so, let's review the Nature, Blessings, and Power of
Baptism as well as What Baptism Indicates. Let's do so by turning to page
325 in the Lutheran Service Book hymnal, page 325, where we find "The
Sacrament of Holy Baptism as the head of the family should teach it in a
simple way to his household." Please join with me in reading the answers to
the questions about Baptism.
First: What is Baptism? Baptism is not just plain water, but it
is the water included in God's command and combined with God's word. Which
is that word of God? Christ our Lord says 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." Matthew 28:19
Second: What benefits does Baptism give? It works forgiveness of
sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all
who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare. Which are these
words and promises of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of
Mark: "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not
believe will be condemned." Mark 16:16
Third: How can water do such great things? Certainly not just
water, but the word of God in and with the water does these things, along
with the faith which trusts this word of God in the water. For without God's
word the water is plain water and no Baptism. But with the word of God it
is a Baptism, that is, a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of
the new birth in the Holy Spirit, as St. Paul says in Titus, chapter three:
"He saves us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,
whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so
that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the
hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying." Titus 3:5-8
Fourth: What does such baptizing with water indicate? It
indicates that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance
be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should
daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity
forever. Where is this written? St. Paul writes in Romans, chapter six:
"We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that,
just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we
too may live a new life." Romans 6:4
Now don't put your hymnals away yet because we'll use them again
in just a couple minutes to review "Confession" on page 326. But first,
notice that "contrition and repentance" were contained in the first sentence
of part four.
We recalled last weekend that Advent, like Lent, is a time to
review and rehearse repentance. We do so by remembering the five elements
of repentance . and doing them. 1. Recognize sin as sin and the fact that
we are sinful, thereby deserving God's temporal wrath and eternal
condemnation. 2. Grieve the fact that we sinfully rebel against God with
thoughts, words, and deeds that transgress His holy Law as summarized in the
Ten Commandments. 3. Confess both privately and publicly the sins that we
commit. 4. Receive God's merciful and gracious forgiveness that Jesus
gained for us with His holy life, innocent suffering, crucifixion death, and
majestic resurrection from the dead in victory over sin, death, and the
devil. And, 5. Resolve and strive by the Holy Spirit's power to change from
sinning to living sanctified lives of gratitude and praise to God for His
gifts of forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life.
Notice that the third element of repentance is that .
I. We Privately and Publicly Confess Our Sins. (5)
5And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and
were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
You see, confession of sins is a part of our Baptism both at the
time we were baptized and throughout our lives as baptized Christians. So,
let's review "Confession how Christians should be taught to confess" on page
326 of the Lutheran Service Book hymnal.
What is Confession? Confession has two parts. First, that we
confess our sins, and second, that we receive absolution, that is,
forgiveness, from the pastor as from God Himself, not doubting, but firmly
believing that by it our sins are forgiven before God in heaven.
What sins should we confess? Before God we should plead guilty of
all sins, even those we are not aware of, as we do in the Lord's Prayer; but
before the pastor we should confess only those sins which we know and feel
in our hearts.
Which are these? Consider your place in life according to the Ten
Commandments: Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, or
worker? Have you been disobedient, unfaithful, or lazy? Have you been
hot-tempered, rude, or quarrelsome? Have you hurt someone by your words or
deeds? Have you stolen, been negligent, wasted anything, or done any harm?
You see, we don't confess sins only when preparing for Holy
Communion. We confess sins every time we pray the Lord's Prayer. And, we
confess sins every time we pray Luther's Evening Prayer. In fact, hopefully
we confess sins every time we realize that we've sinned. But what we need
to especially realize at this time is that, as we just said, "Before God we
should plead guilty of all sins, even those we are not aware of, as we do in
the Lord's Prayer. Before our neighbor we should confess all sins we have
committed against him or her. [And,] Before the pastor or confessor we
confess those sins which we know and feel in our hearts, especially those
that trouble us. [However,] No one may be forced to make private
confession." (Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation. Copyright © 1986,
2008 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Pages 218f.) Of course,
that just reflects the truth of Holy Scripture, where the apostle James
wrote, "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one
another . ." (James 5:16 ESV)
Okay, so we've somewhat thoroughly reviewed Holy Baptism and
Confession of Sins. Now let's .
II. Recognize that Water Baptism Is Also Spirit Baptism. (6-8)
6Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his
waist and ate locusts and wild honey. 7And he preached, saying, "After me
comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy
to stoop down and untie. 8I have baptized you with water, but he will
baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
Unfortunately, some people are confused by and misunderstand those
words of John the Baptizer. They wrongly think that there are two Baptisms:
a water Baptism and a Spirit Baptism. It's explanation is actually very
simple when we read the Bible in its fullest context and allow it to
interpret itself. You see, "In Acts 1:5 Jesus said, 'John baptized with
water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' Thus
the words of John referred to the Day of Pentecost, when the church was
indeed to experience the power of the Holy Spirit. On Pentecost after Peter
proclaimed Christ, we read: 'Those who accepted his message were baptized,
and about three thousand were added to their number that day' (Acts 2:41).
But all this depended on something else, something that had to precede, and
that is our Lord's work of redemption. It is only because of that, that
John's baptism brought forgiveness of sins and that God today deals with us
in the same way in Word and Sacrament. Without Christ this could never be
accomplished. That's why John was sent-to prepare the people to receive
Christ. His coming assures us that this Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is
our Savior. John is and remains one of Jesus' credentials. John the
Baptist is part of the beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son
of God." (Harold Wicke in People's Bible Commentary: Mark. Copyright ©1992
Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 15.)
Our newest Synodical Catechism explains it this way: "Beyond
sacramental Baptism we are to seek no other 'baptism' because A. there is no
other God-given Baptism today beside the Sacrament of Holy Baptism; B. the
sacrament is not a water-only or a Spirit-only baptism, but a
water-and-Spirit Baptism; [and] C. the special signs granted by the Holy
Spirit were not another 'baptism,' but they proved the truth and power of
the apostles' preaching." That is, "there are [not] several Christian
baptisms, but [only] one true Baptism [that] must be clearly distinguished
from the many religious washings which were common in the ancient world."
In other words, "The difference here is not between sacramental Baptism and
some sort of 'Spirit baptism,' but between the preparatory mission and
baptism of John the Baptist and the full, permanent mission and Baptism of
Jesus Christ. While John's baptism also gave the forgiveness of sins, it
was different in that it pointed forward to the redemptive work of the
Savior." (Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation. Pages211f.)
The bottom line is that "[We] must match words with actions, to
show by the latter the reality of the former. This teaching of John
foreshadowed remarkably the moral and social teaching of the Messiah whose
herald he was. Yet the Messiah's ministry would concentrate on mercy rather
than judgment. He would bestow the gift of the Holy Spirit, which John's
baptism never could. . John prepared the way for the Messiah. He preached
the good news, but mixed it with warnings. Always he was pointing to
another. He was no more than a voice." (Donald Guthrie in Jesus the
Messiah: An Illustrated Life of Christ. Copyright © 1972 by The Zondervan
Corporation, Grand Rapids, MI. Page 39.)
One last comment about this before I conclude today's sermon.
"The work of [Jesus Christ] that was thus expected could be summarized in
one short sentence: He will baptize you with the Holy Ghost. And this in
contrast to the mere baptism with water, which John was sent to do. That is
a feature, the most significant part of Christ's ministry and work for
mankind, the baptism with, the communication of, the Holy Ghost, John 20,
20. There may not always be evidence of His presence in extraordinary
manifestations, as in the early days of the Church, but the Holy Spirit
lives, by the gift of Christ, in the hearts of all that have come to faith.
And the evidence of His presence is never entirely wanting, if the Christian
but make diligent use of the means of grace, through which alone the Spirit
is communicated to [us] at the present time, especially the Word of the
Gospel and the Lord's Supper. There will be a growth in grace and knowledge
of Jesus Christ, the Savior; there will be cheerfulness in the midst of the
various distresses and tribulations of these latter days; there will be,
above all, the greater willingness to serve Him in His kingdom, in
everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness." (Paul E. Kretzmann
in Popular Commentary of the Bible: The New Testament Volume I. Copyright ©
Unknown Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 166.) With that in
mind, we fervently pray in the words of today's Collect, "Stir up our
hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of Your only-begotten Son, that by His
coming we may be enabled to serve You with pure minds."
In conclusion, our urgent Advent desire and prayer is what we
spoke in today's Introit, "Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we
may be saved! Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may
be saved!" (Ps 80:3, 7 ESV) In the context of that heartfelt desire that we
seek to never forget is that .
"Advent's Advice Is Recognize the Spiritual Significance of Baptism."
We do so with the joyful assurance that in our Baptism God spoke
to us the words Isaiah spoke to the Israelites some six centuries before
Jesus was born and continue to ring eternally true, "Comfort, comfort my
people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her
warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from
the Lord's hand double for all her sins." (Isa 40:1-2 ESV) In grateful
response we echo the words of today's Gradual, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter
of Zion. Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, your king is coming
to you; righteous and having salvation. Blessèd is he who comes in the name
of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless You." (Zech 9:9, Ps 118:6
ESV)
So it is that .
I. We Privately and Publicly Confess Our Sins. (5)
We do so because, as today's Epistle Reading said, "The Lord is
not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient
toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach
repentance. Therefore, beloved, . be diligent to be found by him without
spot or blemish, and at peace." (2 Peter 3:9, 14 ESV) At the same time,
with that mindset and resolve, we .
II. Recognize that Water Baptism Is Also Spirit Baptism. (6-8)
God grant it all for the sake of Jesus Christ, His humble Son, our
holy Savior. [Amen.]
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
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