From Discipleship Weekly

(a publication of the Presbyterian Church of Islip)

Go to Week 27  Discipleship Weekly Main Page  Return to Home

A Word from Our Sponsor "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." -- John 3:5-6 The Heidelberg Catechism: Part 2- Of Man's Redemption Week 26: Holy Baptism 69. Q. How does holy Baptism remind and assure you that the one sacrifice of Christ on the cross avails for you? A. In this way: Christ has instituted this external washing with water and by it has promised that I am as certainly washed with his blood and Spirit from the uncleanness of my soul and from all my sins, as I am washed externally with water which is used to remove the dirt from my body. [Matt. 3:11; 28:19; Mark 16:16; John 1:33; Acts 2:38; Rom. 6:3-4; I Pet. 3:21] 70. Q. What does it mean to be washed with the blood and Spirit of Christ? A. It means to have the forgiveness of sins from God, through grace, for the sake of Christ's blood which he shed for us in his sacrifice on the cross, and also to be renewed by the the Holy Spirit and sanctified as members of Christ, so that we may more and more die unto sin and live in a consecrated and blameless way. [Ez. 36:25; Zech. 13:1; I Cor. 6:11; Eph. 1:7; Col. 2:11-12; Heb. 12:24; I Pet. 1:2; Rev. 1:5; 7:14] 71. Q. Where has Christ promised that we are as certainly washed with his blood and Spirit as with the water of baptism? A. In the institution of Baptism which runs thus: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19)."He who believes and is baptized will be saved: but he who does not believe will be condemned (Mark 16:16)." This promise is also repeated where the Scriptures call baptism "the water of rebirth" and the washing away of sins.[Titus 3:5; Acts 22:16] Suggestions for discussion and review: The apostle Paul wrote of our being baptized into the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ (Rom. 6:3-4; Col. 2:11-12). How does the language of the Catechism reflect this idea? What other images are used in the Scriptures to describe the "new birth"? Does the method of baptism (sprinkling, pouring, submersion) make a difference in how we understand the Sacrament? * * * * * * * * * * A sacrament is when something holy happens. It is transparent time, time which you can see through to something deep inside time. . . .If we weren't blind as bats, we might see that life itself is sacramental. -- Frederick Buechner