Posted on 06/03/2023 2:13:21 PM PDT by Charles Henrickson
“Baptized in the Name: Confidence, Belonging, Relationship, Identity” (Matthew 28:16-20)
Sometime during the forty days between his resurrection and his ascension, our Lord Jesus Christ met with his disciples on a mountain in Galilee, and he told them: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
And that is what the church has done for all these many centuries. And that is what has happened to you, every one of you here who has been baptized in the name of the triune God. What does this mean for you? What has God given you in your baptism? Let’s find out now on this Holy Trinity Sunday, under the theme: “Baptized in the Name: Confidence, Belonging, Relationship, Identity.”
“Baptized in the name”: What does this give you? First, it gives you confidence. You can have confidence in your baptism. Why? Because God’s authority stands behind it. The baptism you received was not some quaint custom invented by men. No, this is Holy Baptism, God’s baptism, instituted by Christ himself. He is the one who told us to baptize. Jesus Christ, the Son of God from heaven, the crucified and risen Lord, having completed his saving mission on earth, comes to his apostles and says, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” It is on this authority that he commissions his church to baptize. Baptism has been instituted by Christ himself, invested with his full authority.
Baptism is done “in the name of” the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. “In the name of” designates the authority behind an act. For example, when a policeman says, “Stop in the name of the law,” the power of the law stands behind his order to stop. Well, baptism has behind it not law but gospel authority. Baptism says not, “Stop in the name of the law,” but rather, “Go in the name of the gospel.” Go and live free by the power of the gospel! Go, knowing that God has done this good work for you and in you. God’s own name stands behind your baptism, backing it up with his gospel power. In the Large Catechism, Luther writes: “To be baptized in God’s name is to be baptized not by men but by God himself. Therefore, although it is performed by human hands, it is still truly God’s own work.” Thus, God’s authority gives you confidence, knowing that God was doing his own mighty work when he baptized you.
“Baptized in the name”: What does this give you? Second, it gives you a real sense of belonging. Because now you belong to God. He put his claim on you by putting his name on you. His name is the brand you wear. It shows that you are his. God bought you at a price, the price of Christ’s own blood. For Christ my Lord has redeemed me, purchased and won me, that I may be his own and live under him in his kingdom. Christ owns you, my friend. He purchased you at a price. In fact, you belong to God three times over. He created you, giving you life and breath. He redeemed you, with the precious blood of Christ. He sanctified you--the Holy Spirit gave you new life and the gift of saving faith. You belong, quite literally, to God. He bought you and put his claim and his name on you.
But this is not an oppressive bondage, this is no awful slavery, this ownership that God has over you. No, this is a most blessed thing, that you belong to God. You have come under God’s protection and provision. His lordship over you is the best thing that could ever happen to you. It sets you free from the slavery to sin and death that we were hopelessly locked into. Now you are free. Now you belong to God. Now you bear his name.
“Baptized in the name”: What does this give you? First, confidence. Second, belonging. Now third, relationship. Because being baptized in the name of the triune God means that now you are in a right relationship with the one true God. Now we know who God is and that we have come into a living, life-giving relationship with him. Beforehand, you and I did not know who God really is. Men by nature have only the vaguest notions of what God must be like. They know that there must be a God. That’s obvious from nature and from conscience. But who is God? What is he like? And who am I in relationship to him? Is God for me or against me? My guilty conscience gives me no peace. Nature does not give me a clear picture. If the sun is shining and the crops are good, then I figure God must like me; he must think I’m pretty good. But if the rain washes out my crops--or if my wife dies, or I lose my job or--pick your misfortune--then God must be against me. Is it because he is a mean God or because I am a bad person? How do I get back on God’s good side? Do I offer sacrifices? Do I try harder? Do I compare myself to people who aren’t as good or as moral as I am? These are the questions that haunt and hound man to the grave, when man has only nature and his own warped conscience to go on.
But God has revealed himself to us clearly in the gospel. Now we know who the true God is. That’s what this “name” business is all about. The “name” of God is his revelation of himself, God making himself known to us. For Christ Jesus, the only Son come from the Father, makes God known to us. Now in Christ we know a God who is with us and for us, no matter what. Christ has revealed the Father to us, his Father, who now in Holy Baptism becomes our Father also.
“Baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” We have been baptized into a relationship with the Father--a dear Father who regards us as his own dear children, children of the heavenly Father who hears our prayers and takes care of us, who has an inheritance waiting for us in heaven. Likewise, we are baptized into a relationship with the Son--Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who died on the cross for our sins, who rose from the grave and ascended into heaven, assuring us of forgiveness, life, and eternal salvation. And we have been baptized into a relationship with the Spirit--the Holy Spirit who brings us to faith in Christ and keeps us in the faith, through the gospel and the sacraments, in the communion of the church. Thus, as the Large Catechism says about being baptized in the name of the triune God: “Where God’s name is, there must also be life and salvation.”
“Baptized in the name”: This gives us confidence and belonging, and it puts us into relationship with the triune God. Now fourth, being baptized in the name gives us a strong sense of identity. And this identity guides and empowers our life every day of our life.
How can you remember and live out your baptized identity from day to day? Well, here’s a way that can help, and you learned it in the Small Catechism, under Daily Prayers. Start each day as a baptized child of God: “In the morning when you get up, make the sign of the holy cross and say, ‘In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.’ Then, kneeling or standing, repeat the Creed and the Lord’s Prayer.”
This is a good way to live out your baptism, to live in and from your baptism. To live each day, consciously, in the name that was put on you in your baptism. By calling on the name of the triune God, we commit ourselves and that day into God’s hands. By invoking that holy name, we remember who we are and whose we are. We are new people in Christ, led by the Holy Spirit. By recalling our baptism, we take to ourselves all the gifts that God has given us with his name: forgiveness, new life, the power to live as God’s people, the sure hope of the resurrection--the resurrection of this body that God has put his name on. By invocation of the name of the triune God, you claim your identity as a baptized child of God. And every time the divine name is placed on you here in the Divine Service--at the Invocation, the Absolution, the Benediction--you can likewise make the sign of the holy cross and remember your baptism.
The bottom line is to regard your baptism as your greatest treasure. Think of it! You have been baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit! The Father, who loves you so much that he sent his Son to be your Savior. The Son, Jesus Christ, who carried out his saving mission and returned to his Father in heaven and from there sent us the Holy Spirit, that we would know who we are and whose we are and what is ours in Christ. In Holy Baptism, we become God’s children, we are washed clean by the saving blood of Christ, and we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, who works faith and new life in us. The triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all working together for your good!
“Baptized in the name”: What does this give you? Today we have seen that your being baptized in the name gives you confidence, knowing that God’s authority stands behind your baptism. Second, it gives you a real sense of belonging, because God literally owns you. Third, your being baptized in the name puts you into a saving relationship with the one true God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And fourth, your baptism gives you a strong sense of identity for your daily life, knowing who you are whose you are.
Brothers and sisters, listen to what Luther says in the Large Catechism about being baptized in the name of the triune God: “His name is a treasure greater and nobler than heaven and earth.” Friends, this is what it means to be “baptized in the name.” And this is the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to you! “Blessed be the Holy Trinity and the undivided Unity. Let us give glory to him because he has shown his mercy to us.”
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Ping.
Amen 🙏🏻!!!!
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