Old Lutherans

116. Quinquagesima Sunday. I.

Lord send us thy Holy Spirit. Amen.

Gospel Lesson, Matthew 3, 13-17. Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

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1) By his baptism Jesus entered into our sin. 2) By his baptism he consecrated the water for our baptism, so that we are baptized into his righteousness.

1) He was consecrated as our high priest, prophet, and king. As our high priest: He who knew no sin is made to be sin for us. The Righteous One has taken his place in the midst of sinners; and the scripture says: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” He is baptized into our sinful estate, in order that he may make atonement for sin by suffering death. From the time of his baptism he enters on a career of pain. — As our prophet: From the time of his baptism he enters on his office as a preacher. From now on he goes about teaching the truth, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people; and in his doctrine he reveals heaven on earth. — As our king: The fight against the devil, who attacks him with fury, now begins in earnest, until he, in his resurrection, wins a complete victory over the prince of death. As the one who is anointed to be our high priest, prophet and king, he is here declared to be the beloved Son, in whom the Father is well pleased.

2) By his baptism he consecrated the water as the means of baptism for us. What a glorious and precious water is not baptism now become! In it is the blood of Christ and the life of his resurrection. In my baptism I received that which he became for us in his baptism. a) He was baptized into my sin; I was baptized into his righteousness. Says Paul: “For as many as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” As my Savior who was sacrificed in death, and as my advocate who now sits on the throne of heaven and makes intercession for me, he is become mine, and I am become his in holy baptism; I am united with him, even as he died for me and lives for me, so that in him I have died for sin and am dead from sin (Romans 6, 3). b) I have received his Spirit, and have entered into the light; I am numbered among his disciples, and am certain that he shall neither lead me wrong, nor permit me to go wrong. c) I have put on him, the victor over the devil; I have been received into his kingdom; I now fight in his strength, and shall therein win a victory in every battle with the evil one. Christ is my high priest, my prophet, my king. — Now the one thing of supreme importance is to have faith. All the promises of God are in Christ yea and amen. Blessed is he that believes, and keeps the blessings conferred on him by his baptism. He is the beloved child of God, and in him the heavenly Father is well pleased.

Lord, give us grace to believe, and to preserve in our faith; to stand fast in the grace of our baptism, and remain in living communion with thee unto the end. Amen.

Now Christ, the very Son of God,
On sinners sends another flood;
It is the water which the Lord
Has comprehended in the word.

That by the water and the word
We’re born again, we thank thee, Lord!
In life and death thine let us be,
And thine in all eternity.

117. Quinquagesima Sunday. II.

Help us, Lord, that we may hear thy word today. Amen.

Epistle Lesson, 1 Peter 3, 18-22. For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.

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“Baptism doth save us.” In regard to this matter Luther writes: “Every Christian has, throughout his whole life, enough to learn and practice in connection with his baptism; for it behooves him always to labor toward the end that he may firmly believe that which his baptism promises and brings: victory over death and the devil, forgiveness of sins, the grace of God, the whole Christ, and the Holy Ghost with all his gifts. In short, it is so much, that if we in our weakness were able to grasp the whole truth, we would regard it as beyond belief. Suppose that there were found to be a physician whose skill was such that persons treated by him would escape death, or, if they died, would come to life again and live for ever; would not the world rain money on him, and make it impossible for the poor to approach him? Now, in baptism every person receives such a gift without price; there is brought to his very door a remedy which swallows up death and keeps all men alive. Thus must we regard our baptism and make use of its benefits, in order that we may, when oppressed by sin and our conscience, take heart and say: ‘After all, I am baptized; and since I am baptized, I have the promise that I shall be saved body and soul, and have everlasting life.’ For this reason baptism has two sides, as it were; water is poured over the body, which is not capable of receiving more than this; and the word of God is pronounced over us, in order that the soul, also, may receive benefit. Now, as water and the word taken together constitute baptism, it follows that both soul and body must be saved; the soul by means of the word, in which it believes; but the body, because it is united with the soul and accepts baptism in so far as this is possible. We have, therefore, nothing more valuable for soul or body; for in baptism we receive full sanctification and salvation; something which can not be brought about by a saintly life or by any work of ours whatever. — Thus we see what a high and excellent thing baptism is, which snatches us out of the jaws of the devil, makes us God’s own people, destroys and takes away our sin; and then daily strengthens the new man, and endures until we are removed from this world of sorrow into everlasting glory. Every Christian should, therefore, regard his baptism as a garment for everyday use, in order that he may continue in faith and good works, subdue the former man, and grow in the new. For if we wish to be Christians, we must diligently pursue that which makes Christians of us. But if any fall from grace, let him return. For Christ, our mercy seat, does not forsake us; neither does he prohibit us from coming to him, even though we sin. So we continue in possession of all that with which he has endowed us. We have received forgiveness of sin in baptism; and we continue to receive it every day while we live, or, in other words, while we have our old sinful nature with us.”

O glorious and precious estate of grace! Give us, O God, thy Holy Spirit, and give us faith in our heart, for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

God of eternal love,
Our Father and our friend,
We lift our hearts to thee above;
Do thou our prayer attend.

Baptized into thy name,
We all have Christ put on:
O may thy love our hearts inflame,
The course of truth to run.