Some Old Testament

Posted on February 2, 2010 by theoldadam

Ezekiel 36: 25,26 (NIV)  Cherubim by Jepoi Genaldo

 

25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

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Ok… what do you think that language is referring to?

 

If you answered, ‘Holy Baptism’… go straight to the head of the class!

 

 If you answered anything else, you can sit in the corner with a pointy hat.

 

 

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Filed under: Baptism, Old Testament | 18 Comments »

The Baptism of Jesus

Posted on January 11, 2010 by theoldadam

 click here: The-Baptism-of-Jesus…and-your-own-Baptism  The Baptism of Jesus by Loci Lenar

 

 Here’s a sermon from this Sunday, on Baptism, by Pastor Mark Anderson of Lutheran Church of the Master, Corona del Mar, CA

 

If you think of Baptism merely as ‘symbolic’, does this in any give you pause and have you think about it again?

 

If you believe that God really gives us something in Baptism, does this give you comfort and assurance, and why?

 

Thanks!

 

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Filed under: Baptism, Pastor Mark Anderson, Sermon | 94 Comments »

Is God really all that interested in our efforts to make Him our own?

Posted on November 29, 2009 by theoldadam

I don’t think so.   In Safe Hands by Dave Hayward

I think He is busy trying to kill off our efforts.

I think our efforts at making God our own are misguided at best and very damaging at worst.

We are His own. He makes believers out of us. The person who believes he is still in charge needs to be killed off. That’s what God does in Baptism. That’s what God does in His Supper and in His preached Word.

But since we are inveterate non-believers, we find it hard to give up the religious projects that makes little gods of ourselves. And we continue to sin. So we don’t abandon, or forget our Baptisms, but rather we return to Baptism, “daily” as Luther said. Baptism moves through life with us. It carries us.

You may not like it, but our God really is…God. He is in charge. He creates, and gives life where there was none.   

Baptism is a gift of God. He kills off the old sinner in us and clothes us in Christ. St. Paul said that “all of us who were baptized have put on Christ.” That doesn’t sound like a mere ‘symbol’ of something to me.

One would think that would be  Good News for people.(It is)

But many just can’t give up their “free will”.

“Free will” is not the solution…it is the problem.

God’s will, in His Word (and that includes the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion which are visable Word) IS the solution. 

Ironically, rejecting the real presence of God in Baptism, or Holy Communion, doesn’t make one less religious in that self-centered way… but more so!   Now the whole project revolves around you, and what you say, feel, think, or do!

I guess that’s it for now.

Thank you.  Have a nice day.

 

PS- In trusting in our Baptisms, we can concentrate on what God has done, is doing, and will yet do for us…and we can take the onus off of ourselves. And we are free to concentrate on our neighbors. That’s where our “free will” can do some good, if we aren’t so obsessed with staring at our navels and cultivating our own holiness.

 

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Filed under: Baptism, Free will, Sacraments | 13 Comments »

Pastor’s class

Posted on November 21, 2009 by theoldadam

Here is a class/bible study that I’ve edited (just to shorten it a bit) , but still left the gist of the class in tact.

It’s about 40 minutes, but is long enough to ruffle a few feathers and may 
be open some eyes.

No doubt there will be detractors…and that is quite alright.

Listen in to Pastor Mark Anderson as he starts us off with some general descriptions of the sacramental view, the symbolic view, and the Lutheran view of baptism, along with a critique of ‘free will’ theology.

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  click on > baptism, ‘free will’, and other good stuff

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If you enjoy it…pass it along. Thanks!

     (this is a re-post from last year)

 

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When it comes to believing in God, who’s will is determinant ?

 

Does God exercise His will in Baptism, or did He order us to perform an empty religious ritual?

 

 

Filed under: Baptism, Free will, Re-run | 8 Comments »

Baptism Today

Posted on October 18, 2009 by theoldadam

P1670398 

This morning out little grandbaby ‘Chloe’ will be baptized.

She will be adopted into God’s family and given all the promises and love and forgiveness that all of God’s children receive.

Her old sinful self (she’s almost 8 months old!) will be put to death in the water and the Word of baptism (she will participate in Christ’s death), and the new person will be raised out of that water and the grave by God’s Word and the resurrection of Jesus Christ Himself.(Romans 6)

During her life she will share in the sufferings and the grief and the sorrows of our Lord, and she will know the Joy of His resurrection and share in that Joy also, and the Hope of the New Kingdom.

She will be taught and reminded of these facts all throughout her life, that these realities will stay with her, and that she may be kept in the one True Faith of our Lord Jesus.

 We thank the Lord for His graciousness that He would have these little ones come to Him. We thank Him for His gracious gift of Holy Baptism…the forgiveness of our sins, life, and the salvation that only He can give.

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Some of you may not like this.  That’s ok. 

But we absolutely love it!

 

 

 

 

Filed under: Baptism | 278 Comments »

Do you look good on wood?

Posted on October 3, 2009 by theoldadam

PIC00001.JPG by PeterVogelPhoto

Each and every person on this planet faces their own cross.

We will either go to it in this life, or the next.

When I see a cross, that is the first thing I am reminded of…that I will not escape it. The world will have it’s way with me unto the grave.

But that grave will not hold me. Death’s power, it’s sting, is no longer permanent thanks to that very same cross.

Romans 6:3 -11

3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?   4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.   5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.  6 We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the sinful body might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin.   7 For he who has died is freed from sin.   8 But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.   9 For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.   10 The death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.   11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

In my baptism, God has already put me to death…along with Christ Jesus.

But He has raised me from the dead, also…along with Christ Jesus.

This is His promise.

Maybe our promises aren’t always fulfilled, but God never breaks His promises.

That is something we can count on.

And if that is not enough for us, He reinforces that promise and works in us His good and gracious will, giving us the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation each time we ingest His body and blood, and each time we hear His Word preached or taught. And that is apart from anything that we do, say, feel, or think.

No, it’s not magic. 

It is the power of God through the gospel for all who have faith.  The very same faith that He gave us when we were dead in our sins and trespasses.

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Does this post give you trouble?  Do you feel uneasy with it?

Or do you feel relief?  Freedom?  The joy of a new life…yet given to you once again?

 

 

 

Filed under: Baptism, Death, Freedom, The Gospel | 6 Comments »

Off to be killed…

Posted on August 16, 2009 by theoldadam

…and then raised again.Be More Human / Mehr Mensch Sein by an untrained eye

Not going to receive any special instructions. Not going to find out any secrets for spiritual living.

Not going to get prodded with the stick of how I should be feeding the poor and helping the sick, and visiting the lonely…(all of which I should be doing).

I am going to receive the Word of God. I am going to (by the grace of God) receive from Him His law, in order to kill me off yet once again to my little ‘No  thank you God I can do it myself ‘ project. And then recieve from Him His promise of life, the forgiveness of my sins, my salvation…in the gospel, and in the body and blood of our Dear Lord who has poured out Himself for me (us)…which is pure gospel (no law).

This is a picture of baptism, by the way.

Death and Resurrection.  Repentance and Forgiveness.  Dying and Rising.

 

Isn’t that enough?

 

Filed under: Baptism, Dying to Self, Holy Communion, Repentance, The Gospel, The Law, The Sovereignty of God, The Word, Why go to church? | 3 Comments »

Baptism

Posted on March 4, 2009 by theoldadam

This Sunday’s sermon by Pastor Mark Anderson of Lutheran Church of the Master is about   Baptism  < click 

 The author Flannery O’Connor was at  Mary McCarthy’s apartment, and Mary McCarthy said that the communion wafer was merely a symbol of the Holy Ghost and a good one at that, whereupon Flannery O’Connor made her famous reply, “Well, if it’s a symbol, to hell with it.”

                                                                                               Same thing with baptism.  Right?

Filed under: Baptism, Sermon | 27 Comments »

‘Sprinkling’…’Full Immersion’…does it matter to God?

Posted on February 23, 2009 by theoldadam

I was (am)  involved in a discussion over at ‘The Prodigal’s Knot…Untied’  http://prodigalsknots.wordpress.com/   on wether baptism has to be full immersion in water, or if sprinlkling or pouring of water is also effective, and constitutes a proper baptism.twins baptism by BEY CHUAComing Clean In Dirty Water by wvgasguy

 

 

 

 

 

 

The discussion at one point turned to inmates in prison, who coud not be baptised because there was “no water available”.

I said, “use some saliva if necessary”,… and then we went on from there.

Is full immersion the only biblical definition of baptism and is that the only way a baptism can be a real baptism?

Filed under: Baptism | 197 Comments »

Suprising answer from my Mom

Posted on January 26, 2009 by theoldadam

My wife and I were out to dinner last evening with my Mom to celebrate her 74th birthday. If she read this blog it would be the 64th.

We had a very nice dinner and a nice time discussing all matter of topics, mostly family related. My Mom is not a religious person and hasn’t been in church, other than for weddings or funerals, for over 40 years. She and my Father (now with the Lord) were raised as Roman Catholics but really didn’t attend church regularly when they were young.

Anyway, we got onto the topic of baptism in discussing my cousin’s daughter, who just had a baby girl about a month ago. We were talking about where the baby might be baptised since the dad is a Lutheran and the mom is a Roman Catholic. We also mentioned another family member who is always proud to announce, when the subject comes up (every blue moon), that he has not been baptised and will not be, and that his kids weren’t going to be baptised if he had anything to do with it, either.

We discussed how an attitude like that is akin to spitting in God’s face and what a terrible thing that was for the children to be denied baptism.

So I figured I would take the opportunity to teach my Mom something about baptism and maybe get a good word or two in for Jesus.

I turned to my Mom and asked, “Do you know what baptism means, Mom?”

She said, without hesitation, “God makes you His child.” I wasn’t expecting that answer. I didn’t think that she had any idea what baptism was. I was quiet for a moment, stunned I guess, then I said, “that’s absolutely right, Mom…that’s exactly what it is.”

I always pray for my Mom and the other members of my family who do not as yet express too much interest in the things of God. But I have to say, I’m not as worried about my Mom as I used to be. I’m not worried at all. I believe that God adopted my Mom in her baptism, 74 years ago.

I will remind her, when I can, of the great things that God has done for her in her baptism… and she will remind me as well.

I know there are some that visit here, that do not view baptism in the same way that I do, or in the same way that the majority of the world’s Christians do…. and that’s ok. There was a time when I didn’t think a whole lot of it myself. But I have learned that God does the baptising in a baptism, and that Jesus commanded that we be baptised. I have since learned that God does not command us to do anything where He will not actually be present in it. Even though I have learned all this fairly recently, it is still good to be reminded of it as often as possible …even by those whom you would least expect.

Filed under: Baptism | 27 Comments »

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