Our Baptismal Promises

First, take a deep breath. It is going to be helpful as we dive into the deep end of the Baptismal pool, remembering what we promise before God and one another. Second, remember God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness is not dependent on our promises. This will be helpful too, as we recognize our vows call us to a life that looks radically different than the “me first” mainstream approach. As those called to follow, a quick look at Jesus’s way of doing things will make that clear. So, what are these promises?

“To live among God's faithful people, to hear the word of God and share in the Lord’s supper.”

What does it mean to be among the faithful? While this might sound nearly impossible, especially for us steeped in a Lutheran understanding of our sinful human nature (see Romans 3:23), notice ‘faithful’ does not mean ‘perfect’. We must also make the distinction that to be faithful is not the same as being successful, that is, success in worldly terms is not proof that God has deemed you as such. All one needs to do is look to the cross.

To live among God’s faithful people is linked with the second part. Faithfulness recognizes we have some capacity to love our neighbors, but when we fall short, and we will, we come to hear the word of God among the community of faith. If the preacher, me, is doing their job, the whole assembly will hear that God graciously forgives and frees us from our sin. Then, renewed and refreshed, we can head back out into the world in love and service to our neighbor.

“To proclaim the good news of God in Christ through word and deed,”

We promise to share the good news of Jesus, in what we say and what we do. This might sound a little too simple. The unconditional love of God demonstrated in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is pretty straightforward, but two primary obstacles often get in the way.

First, there are very few examples of unconditional gifts in this world. Instead, the gospel of Jesus runs contrary to the primary messages of our world. That you have to give in order to receive, that you have to earn what you get. When it comes to our relationship with God, this lie of the world sounds like this, “God will give you what you deserve.” I don’t know about you, but that is not very comforting, and most certainly not good news.

Second, we are called to proclaim it, not timidly resign the good news as a personal private mantra. It is to be bold in transforming the way we live and in how, when given the opportunity, we publicly testify to Jesus. Could we be so bold to forgive those who have wronged us, to say it out loud, and instead of holding it over their heads, free them from the expectation that they will reap what they sow?

“To serve all people, following the example of Jesus, to strive for justice and peace in all the earth?”

To serve all. Well shoot! There are some people I just don’t want to serve. Some who I just don’t understand, some who see the world so differently than I do, and some who seem so lost, so misaligned with God’s goodness, I don’t want to give them the time of day. If we’re going to follow the example Jesus though, we ought to remember, he served the morally bankrupt, the social outcasts, the unexpected stranger, and on the cross he died for every person. (While there are no lost causes in God’s eyes, for our own safety, we might need to encourage or allow others to serve those who have harmed us personally.)

Finally, and perhaps most challenging, we are to strive for justice and peace. The word justice has become a trigger word as of late and confusing when wondering whether we mean the retributive or restorative kind. We can simplify things by using the other translation from the Hebrew words צדק (Tze-dek)  משפת (mish-pat), righteousness or what is right. This does not mean what we think is right, because what we usually end up thinking is right is good for us. Instead, this requires careful discernment and prayer in determining what God deems right.

Pastor Matt