Until last Thursday I had never given much thought to my Baptism. That is to say, I have never given much critical, analytical thought to it. I remember it clearly; I was seven-years-old in the Southern Baptist Church and it was a night service. In my mind then, and up to now, the act of Baptism served as an external symbol for an internal change. My sins were forgiven; I was washed clean. And the Baptism reminded me, and the entire congregation at my first church, of that change.
Last Thursday, however, I had a conversation with a classmate from a small country in Southeast Africa. Being from a region torn apart by genocide and war, the act of Baptism meant something entirely different for my friend. Coming home one day, my friend asked his mother why he should continue as a Christian. Constantly confronted with individuals who had once murdered or shown violence to his own family and friends, the love of Christ became more of an ideal and less of a reality in his own life. He told me how his mother turned to him and simply said, "*Name*, remember your baptism." And he did. For my friend, his baptism (although occurring when he was an infant) became not only a symbol of internal conversion, but of his adoption into the body/family of Christ. The faces of his enemies became the faces of people who needed the love of Christ. Therefore, by joining with Christ in Baptism (which 'kick-started' Christ's own ministry), all Christians become capable of serving as literal members of the body of Christ. In this light, my friend could do nothing but love his enemies, for that is what Christ would do and did.
In order to understand all the implications of baptism, I had to first recognize that my own Baptism was not a private act of obedience between myself and God. I also did not receive my Baptism so that other Christians could remember their own private moment with God during their Baptism; rather, Baptism incorporates new believers and children of believers into a real relationship with the Church (body of Christ). In this way Baptism becomes an act of community, not only with the Church but with God as well. When Christ was baptized, God said, "You are my beloved Son." This same phrase is offered to us; "you are beloved." This is our worth as Christians. Money, power, knowledge, beauty, material goods, athletic ability, and other markers within society tend to dictate a person's worth in the secular world. But no matter the outward condition of a person, whether poor or rich, fast or slow, beautiful or ugly, intelligent or not, and so on and so forth, the true worth of a person rests in the eyes of God. As a result, baptism marks the moment when we become the "beloved" children of God. In this do we have hope and value. This is what my friend remembered during difficult times in his own country; he was "beloved" by God.
With this in mind, if we are beloved by God through His grace alone, earning nothing by ourselves and understanding even our faith itself comes from God (Eph. 2), who are we to deny love to others, even to our enemies?
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I have heard this sort of thing referred to as "improving" one's baptism, a phrase from the Westminster Larger Catechism:
ReplyDeleteQuestion 167: How is our Baptism to be improved by us?
Answer: 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.
I know barging in and throwing down some section of the Westminster Standards is typical Presbyterian behavior. Sorry.