V.31 …but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.
Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Dear friends in Christ, we were blessed to witness a miracle this morning at CLH. For little Abigail Anderson–born premature–just over 4 pounds–was baptized today! She was washed clean of all her sin, given everlasting life and salvation, all through the gift of faith in Jesus by the working of the Holy Spirit. This means that this beautiful, tiny, fragile baby girl has now overcome the world. For as St. John writes in our epistle reading (1 John 5:4-5), “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world–our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”
How is one born of God? Baptism! It is as St. Paul writes to Titus (3:5b), “...the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit…” To be born of God is to be born from above or from heaven by the working of God Almighty Himself. Therefore, as little Abigail has been baptized in God’s triune name, she has been born again–regenerated and renewed by the Holy Spirit in this blessed washing. And so, even though she is wonderfully fragile and tiny, Abigail has overcome all the assaults of the devil, the world, and her own sinful flesh–because of the Lord Jesus in whom she now believes–for His blood has washed away all her sin and granted her everlasting life and righteousness.
Yet the unbelieving world, and our own disbelieving flesh questions this miraculous truth. After all, “How can water do such great things?” the skeptics ask? Seems impossible for mere water to have such an amazing effect. Indeed yes, as impossible perhaps as someone rising from the dead?
Thomas certainly didn’t believe THAT! In fact, he wouldn't believe it. Despite the clear and consistent testimony of the other disciples, Thomas refused to believe the news that Jesus had risen from the dead. As our sermon hymn (LSB 472 st.3) so eloquently puts it, “His reasoned certainties denied That one could live when one had died, Until his fingers read like braille The markings of the spear and nail.”
Beloved, Thomas is certainly not alone–especially in our day and age–where skepticism reigns supreme over all things. Whether it be baptismal regeneration–that Holy Baptism actually does something for the baptized–washing sins away and bringing the individual into union with Christ’s death and resurrection–or the deeper skepticism concerning the very resurrection of Jesus Himself. How can one who has died ever live again? It is contrary to all our experience and scientific knowledge. Dead is dead. Water is just water. These are simple facts that no one can dispute!
Yet, beloved, what does God’s Word say? What does Holy Scripture plainly teach regarding how the Holy Spirit brings life? The prophet Ezekiel’s vision of the Valley of Dry Bones in our O.T. reading is helpful in enlightening us here. For it was the Word of God that does it all–at the Spirit’s working. The Spirit works through the Word to bring life and salvation through the forgiveness of sins in Jesus Christ our Lord. As Jesus demonstrated when He appeared to the disciples that first Easter evening (John 20:22-23), “And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.’”
Just so Ezekiel was told to prophesy to the House of Israel in bondage, who had complained that as a nation they were dead and cut off from the Promised Land–bereft of hope of ever living in God’s promise ever again. Yet as God’s Word went forth from Ezekiel’s mouth to bring life to a valley of dead dry bones, so the Lord said through Ezekiel (37:14) to the whole host of Israel, “And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.”
So, there is a deep and abiding connection between the working of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. And there is further connection between God’s Spirit and the gift of the water of Baptism. For when the Jews were gathered for the festival of Pentecost 50 days after Easter, Peter gave the great Pentecost sermon in which the gathered assembly was convicted of their sin in crucifying the Lord of Life. Acts 2:37-39 says, “Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’ And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.’”
What joy, beloved! What grace! For in the face of our great sin against the Lord–our skepticism and unbelief–our unholy living and wickedness of thought, word, and deed, we have the promise of Holy Baptism to cling to. For you have been baptized! You have put on Christ and His blood which bestows the forgiveness of sins. This wondrous miracle has been wrought by the Holy Spirit who was sealed unto you in your Baptism. And what’s more, this promise is for everyone! Man, woman, child–no matter who you are or what you have done–the blood of Jesus covers over every sin–and the Spirit comforts you by testifying to you of Jesus’ love and mercy, wherein He gave up His life into death on the cross–all for you.
Baptism GIVES the forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe. Luther asks the skeptics’ own question in his Small Catechism, “How can water do such great things?” It seems too crazy–too fantastical! Yet Luther clearly answers, “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 3:5-8.”
This is why we can say that Abigail has overcome the world–just as you and I have–on account of our faith in Jesus Christ–which was GIVEN in Baptism! Having this new life wrought by the Holy Spirit and the Word through the water of Holy Baptism, we now crave and hunger for the Word of God much as newborn babies crave milk to grow and become strong and healthy. This is why the Latin name for this Sunday is Quasimodo Geniti–taken from the opening words of the appointed Introit for this Sunday–which have been drawn from 1 Peter 2.
We have all been reborn children of God through this blessed washing of Baptism. By the Word and the Sacraments Christians receive the forgiveness of sins and so grow stronger in our faith. We trust evermore in the blood of Jesus outpoured on the cross for every sin–yours, mine, and Abigail’s too.
This miracle of faith MUST be given by the Holy Spirit working through the Word. Jesus gives His perfect peace to all those who believe. In love, He exhorted Thomas, “Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to Him, “Have you believed because you have seen Me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
All of you, beloved, have been blessed by God with faith in the Lord Jesus. You have not seen Him with your eyes, but you have beheld Him with your ears through His marvelous Word. You have been anointed with His Spirit and washed clean by His blood in Holy Baptism. And you have taken His body and blood to eat and to drink in your mouths for the forgiveness of your sins! Your faith has been greatly strengthened all the days of your life by the Holy Spirit working in these ways. Why? “So that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” (LSB 472 st.4) “May we, O God, by grace believe And thus the risen Christ receive, Whose raw imprinted palms reached out And beckoned Thomas from His doubt.” For Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Dear friends in Christ, we were blessed to witness a miracle this morning at CLH. For little Abigail Anderson–born premature–just over 4 pounds–was baptized today! She was washed clean of all her sin, given everlasting life and salvation, all through the gift of faith in Jesus by the working of the Holy Spirit. This means that this beautiful, tiny, fragile baby girl has now overcome the world. For as St. John writes in our epistle reading (1 John 5:4-5), “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world–our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”
How is one born of God? Baptism! It is as St. Paul writes to Titus (3:5b), “...the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit…” To be born of God is to be born from above or from heaven by the working of God Almighty Himself. Therefore, as little Abigail has been baptized in God’s triune name, she has been born again–regenerated and renewed by the Holy Spirit in this blessed washing. And so, even though she is wonderfully fragile and tiny, Abigail has overcome all the assaults of the devil, the world, and her own sinful flesh–because of the Lord Jesus in whom she now believes–for His blood has washed away all her sin and granted her everlasting life and righteousness.
Yet the unbelieving world, and our own disbelieving flesh questions this miraculous truth. After all, “How can water do such great things?” the skeptics ask? Seems impossible for mere water to have such an amazing effect. Indeed yes, as impossible perhaps as someone rising from the dead?
Thomas certainly didn’t believe THAT! In fact, he wouldn't believe it. Despite the clear and consistent testimony of the other disciples, Thomas refused to believe the news that Jesus had risen from the dead. As our sermon hymn (LSB 472 st.3) so eloquently puts it, “His reasoned certainties denied That one could live when one had died, Until his fingers read like braille The markings of the spear and nail.”
Beloved, Thomas is certainly not alone–especially in our day and age–where skepticism reigns supreme over all things. Whether it be baptismal regeneration–that Holy Baptism actually does something for the baptized–washing sins away and bringing the individual into union with Christ’s death and resurrection–or the deeper skepticism concerning the very resurrection of Jesus Himself. How can one who has died ever live again? It is contrary to all our experience and scientific knowledge. Dead is dead. Water is just water. These are simple facts that no one can dispute!
Yet, beloved, what does God’s Word say? What does Holy Scripture plainly teach regarding how the Holy Spirit brings life? The prophet Ezekiel’s vision of the Valley of Dry Bones in our O.T. reading is helpful in enlightening us here. For it was the Word of God that does it all–at the Spirit’s working. The Spirit works through the Word to bring life and salvation through the forgiveness of sins in Jesus Christ our Lord. As Jesus demonstrated when He appeared to the disciples that first Easter evening (John 20:22-23), “And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.’”
Just so Ezekiel was told to prophesy to the House of Israel in bondage, who had complained that as a nation they were dead and cut off from the Promised Land–bereft of hope of ever living in God’s promise ever again. Yet as God’s Word went forth from Ezekiel’s mouth to bring life to a valley of dead dry bones, so the Lord said through Ezekiel (37:14) to the whole host of Israel, “And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.”
So, there is a deep and abiding connection between the working of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. And there is further connection between God’s Spirit and the gift of the water of Baptism. For when the Jews were gathered for the festival of Pentecost 50 days after Easter, Peter gave the great Pentecost sermon in which the gathered assembly was convicted of their sin in crucifying the Lord of Life. Acts 2:37-39 says, “Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’ And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.’”
What joy, beloved! What grace! For in the face of our great sin against the Lord–our skepticism and unbelief–our unholy living and wickedness of thought, word, and deed, we have the promise of Holy Baptism to cling to. For you have been baptized! You have put on Christ and His blood which bestows the forgiveness of sins. This wondrous miracle has been wrought by the Holy Spirit who was sealed unto you in your Baptism. And what’s more, this promise is for everyone! Man, woman, child–no matter who you are or what you have done–the blood of Jesus covers over every sin–and the Spirit comforts you by testifying to you of Jesus’ love and mercy, wherein He gave up His life into death on the cross–all for you.
Baptism GIVES the forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe. Luther asks the skeptics’ own question in his Small Catechism, “How can water do such great things?” It seems too crazy–too fantastical! Yet Luther clearly answers, “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 3:5-8.”
This is why we can say that Abigail has overcome the world–just as you and I have–on account of our faith in Jesus Christ–which was GIVEN in Baptism! Having this new life wrought by the Holy Spirit and the Word through the water of Holy Baptism, we now crave and hunger for the Word of God much as newborn babies crave milk to grow and become strong and healthy. This is why the Latin name for this Sunday is Quasimodo Geniti–taken from the opening words of the appointed Introit for this Sunday–which have been drawn from 1 Peter 2.
We have all been reborn children of God through this blessed washing of Baptism. By the Word and the Sacraments Christians receive the forgiveness of sins and so grow stronger in our faith. We trust evermore in the blood of Jesus outpoured on the cross for every sin–yours, mine, and Abigail’s too.
This miracle of faith MUST be given by the Holy Spirit working through the Word. Jesus gives His perfect peace to all those who believe. In love, He exhorted Thomas, “Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to Him, “Have you believed because you have seen Me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
All of you, beloved, have been blessed by God with faith in the Lord Jesus. You have not seen Him with your eyes, but you have beheld Him with your ears through His marvelous Word. You have been anointed with His Spirit and washed clean by His blood in Holy Baptism. And you have taken His body and blood to eat and to drink in your mouths for the forgiveness of your sins! Your faith has been greatly strengthened all the days of your life by the Holy Spirit working in these ways. Why? “So that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” (LSB 472 st.4) “May we, O God, by grace believe And thus the risen Christ receive, Whose raw imprinted palms reached out And beckoned Thomas from His doubt.” For Alleluia! Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.