I'm a Christian - Chapter 8

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Chapter 8

Worship, Christian Year

Worship

How we define the beginning of worship often defines what we believe about our heritage and our faith. Some would argue that worship begins with the early Christians as they gathered to share the details of Jesus life, his teachings, his miracles and healings and his death and resurrection. Some would go further and say that our worship derives from its Hebrew roots. Most scholars would say that our worship follows patterns that come from synagogue worship. We must always remember that the earliest Apostles were all Jews first, even Paul, who began the path that led the early church away from its Hebrew rules and requirements. Early Christian leaders called our pattern of worship as “synagogue liturgy.” The word “liturgy” comes from the Greek word meaning, “work of the people” or “service to the people.”

            Liturgy in the Eastern Church has not changed much in two thousand years. The service follows preset patterns established by early church leaders, it is primarily the work of the Clergy and the Choir and/ or musicians with the congregation simply listening without great participation. Liturgy in the Western Church has driven in different directions. Some churches like the Ana-Baptist, Quakers and Puritans have no set liturgical flow in worship, while most Protestant movements have some informal order of worship. Most United Methodist churches follow an order of worship that is recognizable from church to church, though the appearance of contemporary and praise styles of worship is changing the face of worship across America.

            A traditional Christian worship service consists of two elements, the Synaxis (the service of the Word) and the Eucharist (Holy Communion). Synaxis comes from the same Greek word as synagogue and means gathering together. This part of the service is centered on the Word of God and involves scripture, message, and prayers. The Eucharist is the service of Communion. At most Protestant religious services this is not present every week but at preset times throughout the year. As United Methodist we believe that worship is:

1. Worship is encounter – meaning that at every worship participants have opportunities to encounter Jesus Christ. We believe that worship is an opportunity to strengthen our relationship with Jesus Christ.
2. Worship is central – we believe that worship is central as a whole, to lead your local congregation, and to your participation as a Christian in the church and in the world. In worship we discover that we are the church.
3. 5 principles of worship – We believe there are five principles of worship that should be evident in every worship:
1. God’s word is primary
2. Active congregation participation is crucial
3. Spontaneity and order are both important
4. Worship must be relevant and inclusive
5. Worship is communal
4. Our pattern for worship follows a basic pattern but may be structurally different in churches from location to location. The basic pattern for worship is:
1. Entrance (Processional, Hymn, Praise liturgy, Response liturgy)
2. Proclamation and response (Hymn, Sermon, Scripture, Prayer)
3. Thanksgiving and communion (Prayer, Hymn, Communion)
4. Sending Forth (Benediction)

What you will see in the church

            Churches may vary in floor layouts, in pulpit design and the display and location of the altar table so take this lesson to be a model of a typical church. Within the sanctuary you will find at least one pulpit. If there are two within the church one tends to be a little higher than the other. The lower pulpit is where scripture is typically read, announcements are made, and prayers are offered, in other words, all the non-message related parts of the service. The message almost without exception comes from the high pulpit. Some pastors may preach from outside the pulpit, some may move around the stage or front of the church, but almost all start at some semblance of a pulpit. If there are chairs in the pulpit area, these are the places speakers will sit. If there are more than three, typically three will be placed in the center or located adjacent to the Altar table. To the right of the Altar sits the “Moses” or “Law” chair symbolizing God’s law sent to the world through Moses. To the left of the Altar table sits the “Prophet” or “Elijah” chair symbolizing the prophecy of God. If there is a third chair in the middle that is often referred to as the “Jesus” chair. The Presider who is bringing the message would typically sit in this chair as Jesus representative bringing the Word of God through the message.

            Churches that have more elaborate traditions in the church may have an Acolyte, a young man or woman who lights the candles on the Altar table.  The symbolism here is that they are bringing in Jesus through the lighted candle they carry. They reach the Altar and then light the two candles at either end of the Altar table, one representing “The Divinity of Christ” and the other representing “The Humanity of Christ.” At the end of the service they will extinguish the two candles into one light symbolizing Jesus leading the church out into the world for mission. The candles themselves represent the three elements of Christ in the church. The candle wax symbolizes his body, the candle wick his soul and the candle flame his divinity. During Communion, the elements of Communion are on the table. When we look at the table during a communion Sunday we should reflect on what we see there. What we see reminds us of Jesus at the burial place, the candles representing the angels on either end which also creates a beautiful picture of the Ark of the Covenant.

            The church year is divided up into periods of time representing the birth, life and death and resurrection of Jesus. Our Christian year begins the first Sunday of Advent, which is the first Sunday following Thanksgiving. During this time we celebrate the prophecy of the Messiah, anticipating the birth as the arrival of this promise of God to the people of the World. On Christmas Day and for the next twelve days we celebrate Christmas, the Birth of the Messiah, the Anointed One, and God in the World. This season ends with Epiphany which in the Western Church is the traditional time we believe the Magi or Wise Men arrived to see Jesus in person. During the season of Epiphany we celebrate the Baptism of Jesus in the church, transfiguration and it is during this time of the year that we typically focus on Jesus ministry and his teachings. Following Epiphany we enter into the season of Lent. It begins with a celebration in many cultures called by various names like “Fat Tuesday” or “Shrove Tuesday”. Lent is a time of reflection, fasting and prayer that lasts 46 days from Ash Wednesday till Easter Sunday. The week prior to Easter Sunday is “Holy Week” in the United Methodist Church and during that week we celebrate “Palm Sunday (Jesus entrance into Jerusalem)”, “Maundy Thursday (the gathering of Jesus and the Disciples and the beginning of Communion)”, “Good Friday (which is a misnomer meaning the day of Jesus death)”, and then “Easter Sunday (the day of resurrection).” Following Easter the church celebrates Ascension Sunday (the day Jesus Ascended to heaven), Pentecost (the day the Holy Spirit indwelled in the Apostles and the Christian church is born), and then a period called “Ordinary Time (that gives the church time to focus on various aspects of our faith life.

The calendar is set by two events in the year. In the Western world Thanksgiving establishes the season of Advent with Christmas falling on December 25^th. Why December 25^th was chosen is lost in the muck of time. Some suggest it is because the Hebrew “Festival of Lights” is celebrated on this day while others base it on the timing of Easter minus nine months. The why is not as important as what we are celebrating. Easter is set as the Sunday following the Paschal Full Moon on or after the Vernal Equinox. The Paschal moon on or after the Vernal Equinox sets Passover and for those studied in the scriptures know, Jesus dies during the season of Passover.

We celebrate these various times in the Christian Calendar with colors.

Blue or purple is the color of royalty and a color of hope. Blue or Purple are the colors of Advent and sometimes used during the season of Lent.

White or Gold are joyous colors representing purity. It is used during the Christmas season up until Epiphany, the season of Easter and during Communion, Weddings, Baptisms and special occasions of the church.

Red is the color of fire and represents the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. It is used during Pentecost Sunday, some display red during Holy Week, Thanksgiving and at certain services like the service of Ordination.

Green is the color of Ordinary time and represents growth and earth.

During certain seasons symbolism is often used to celebrate the meaning of that season. Advent wreaths, Christmas trees, palm leaves and flowers are some of these.

Questions

1.    What are the important elements of worship that allow you to experience God’s presence?

2.    How does the historical traditions shape your focus on worship?

3.    How do the symbols of worship enhance or take away from worship as you understand it?

4.    Some would say that our Christian holidays are actually Pagan Holidays. How do you respond to this statement?

God

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^NRS  Genesis 1:1 In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, ² the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. ³ Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.

Today we are going to talk about God. Our concept of who God is has been defined for us many times in many different ways. Let me start out by saying that historically we have a defined God in every early civilization on this planet. Every one of us if we take our ancestry back far enough understood there was a God. It is the definition of that God that has haunted us over the generations. We know that the earliest civilizations all lifted one single being among other beings as the supreme God. Whether we called that God Zeus, Odin, The great white spirit or Yahweh, we all are descendants of cultures that understood there is a God. We know that ancient cultures believed there were many God’s. Our own biblical text reminds us that the world knew many Gods when God decrees that we shall have no other Gods before me says to us that even God recognized that we have many Gods. Our Gods today may not be as well defined as ancient cultures but believe me when I say that money, material possessions, certain athletes and Hollywood types have become our idols, our Gods. So all that to say, what is our definition of God? My point is that it depends on who we want or believe God to be. If we think that God is a God of justice, then our God is that. Everything about God is black or white, good or evil, right or wrong and this God applies justice to every situation. If we believe God to be a benevolent being then the God we worship is a caring God of giving. And so our worship is often the worship of requesting that God give us this or give us that. If we believe that God is the God of creation then we experience God in nature, in the beauty of the sunset, and in the flowers that bloom. If we believe that God is a God of love then we experience God in that love. My own definition of God includes at the very least the last two, a God of creation and a God of love. Quoting Franciscan Priest Richard Rohr who quotes St John of the Cross,  “St. John of the Cross says in many ways throughout his writings that God refuses to be known in the way we know all other objects; God can only be known by loving God. I like to call this "center to center" or "subject to subject" knowing where neither participant is ever objectified. Yet much of religion has tried to know God theologically, by words, theories, doctrines, and dogmas.

So how is your God defined? What if I told you that one of the basic challenges of modern Christianity is this very question. The Hebrew God was a God that existed. In fact when I teach about God I simply say that the definition of God that I like is that God IS. Is what you ask? And my answer is that anything you can use to describe God most likely fits within the definition of IS. If I see a hummingbird I know that God exists within the creation story that created the hummingbird. If I see a beautiful sunset I know that God exists within that sunset and the entire world surrounding it. When I look at nature I view it in the same context as the Native Americans that God is, meaning that God exists within every living thing. That means that within nature nothing has been left out from the touch of God and we experience God when and only when, we allow ourselves to become one with God in the world around us. The earth gives up its essence of God when we plow it under and plant crops and the nutrients in it are given to the plants that allow them to grow. And the plant gives up its essence of God when we harvest it and use it for food or decoration. Trees give up their essence of God when we cut them down and make beautiful tables like our table here in this sacred space. Likewise animals give up their essence of God when we take their lives to become food at our table. In other words, everything we touch, eat, see and breathe has the essence of God within it. Nature itself is the primary Bible story. Paul says in Romans 1:20, “What can be known about God is perfectly plain, for God has made it plain. Ever since God created the world, God’s everlasting power and deity is there for the mind to see in all the things that God has created.” The world itself is the primary locus of the sacred, and actually provides all the metaphors that the soul needs for its growth

But the best definition of God of God is that God is love. In that love is everything of creation, everything of existence and everything we need to know about God. So the next piece that I want to share with you is what is our relationship with God all about? Well just as our definition of God defines us more than God, our relationship with God says more about who we are than about who God is. Again quoting Richard Rohr, “What does it mean when Jesus says you should love God with your whole heart, with your whole soul, with your whole mind (not just your dualistic mind), with your whole strength? What does it mean, as the first commandment instructs us, to love God more than anything else? The only way I know how to love God and to teach you how to love God is to love what God loves. To love God means to love everything . . . no exceptions. Of course, that can only be done with divine love flowing through us. And we can only allow divine love to flow by way of contemplative, non-dualistic consciousness, where we stop eliminating and choosing. This is the transformed mind (Romans 12:2) that allows you to see God in everything, and empowers your behavior to almost naturally change.” To help with this think in terms of living our lives as if God’s love is our life, not a separate thing we think about and try and show to the world through actions that are more attuned with good works, but a life that is totally committed and encompasses God’s love.

I often think how the world would be different if we simply learned to love completely as God loves completely. Even in our sinful nature, even when we turn our backs on God, God never wavers in God’s love to us. Being a disciple then is this understanding of becoming in the image or likeness of God by allowing ourselves to surrender to the essence of God. All of nature except humanity does it without thinking. We like to say that nature happens but the reality is much deeper than that. Nature happens because God is the essence of nature. What if we human beings began to live our lives in the same way? When Jesus called himself the Son of the Father and said He is one with the Father, He is giving clear primacy to relationship. Who you are is who you are in the Father, as he would put it. That is your meaning and your identity. Jesus says to his Father, “I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me” (John 17:22-23).”

What I am suggesting to your today is that God IS. Because God is, we are supposed to be simply in the image of God. How do we do that, we share the love of God throughout our being, we love one another with all that we are, we stop living our lives excluding and become inclusive, we stop behaving in ways that exhibit hate and anger and start being love. I know that what I am asking of each of us in hard. We are human beings made not only in the image of God but given free will in the likeness of God and all too often we want to be God. But what we were born to do is to be in the image and likeness of God so that other people can see God in us, just the same as we see God within nature around us. Not that it is a secondary view of who we are but that who we are is in fact the essence of God, breathing, living and sharing love with our world, our neighbors and ourselves.

Jesus wants us to know this and shared as much throughout His teachings. It is only the arrival of institutional church that changed it. As preachers and Priests and leaders of the church we want God to be something we can define, something we teach, something that others have to come to us to learn. Oops there it is. With the arrival of the church came the arrival of human ego and the need to place God secondary. None of this is the teaching of Jesus. True discipleship is defined as loving God with all that we are, holding nothing back and then allowing that love to permeate every fiber of who we are. I know what I am asking today is difficult at times. If it were easy then Jesus would have not needed disciples to become apostles to become a church. But what Jesus intended has evolved into the hypocrisy we call church, where we are defining God as this superior being who is either justice or benevolence or something else. But in fact Jesus wanted us to know that God IS. That we are to be one with God in everything, every aspect of our lives, and every aspect of our actions. That our relationship with God is nothing less than opening ourselves to God and surrending ourselves to that essence.

I want to challenge us this morning to pray and reflect on our relationship with God. Can we surrender our comfortable and grown natures to a new nature? Can we become the church God intended through the disciples where we love God with all our heart, all our mind, all our souls and love our neighbors in that way? Can we? Will we?

Today I invite all those who are visiting our church for the second, third or the one hundredth time to enter into a relationship with us. If you would simply agree to come and be a part of our family officially this morning, I invite you to come forward right now and for our Lay Leaders and Sunday school leaders to come forward with them. I would like to pray with you and to invite you into a short class and then into our family. Would you come? I am going to ask the Musicians to continue playing at the conclusion of the hymn if there are those who have come forward and we are still praying with them. I am also going to invite those of you who may want to recommit your life to the life of love that I am talking about this morning. Come, love one another and be a part of God’s Kingdom. 

I'm a Christian - Chapter 7

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Chapter 7

Bible History and Structure, Creeds and Liturgy

Bible History and Structure

The best starting place in dealing with the Bible is to start with the structure of the Bible and discuss the history of each section at that time. But to begin, we believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, that it illuminates the relationship between God and humanity, that it is the Only source for questions related to Salvation and the Primary source for understanding God at work in the world. The Bible we often refer to as the Protestant Bible is a collection of books written at different times, by different writers and translated in many languages. There are 66 books of the Bible divided into the Old Testament (39 Books) and the New Testament (27 Books). The Old Testament is divided into 5 groupings or divisions.

• The Books of the Law
• The Books of History
• The Books of Poetry
• The Major Prophets
• The Minor Prophets

We understand that originally the Hebrew people divided the Old Testament into three sections.

• The Books of Law, Torah or Pentateuch is considered to have been written by Moses or have been accumulated at or shortly after the time of Moses. These books chronicle the creation story, the flood story and the Exodus Story of the Hebrew people out of Egypt. They include the Mt. Sinai experience where God brought the guidelines for living that encompasses the Ten Commandments. The first five books of the Bible are included in this group, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
• The Prophets originally included 21 books of the Old Testament. They included Joshua Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings. Then there were the so-called Latter Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the 12 Minor Prophets (Hosea-Malachi).

·         The Writings were considered by the Hebrew people as books that were written by men who were inspired of God but were not prophets. We do not know who collected these books or when some of them were written. This group includes the 5 books of Poetry (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon) as well as these remaining 8 books: Ruth, Esther, Lamentations, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and 1 & 2 Chronicles.

The Hebrew Bible which became our current Old Testament came into reality somewhere around 300 years before Christ when the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek. It included additional books that did not find their way into the Protestant Bible but are part of the Catholic Bible. These books are known as the Septuagint. These books appeared around the time that the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek and included works that were known at that time. They include Tobit, Judith, 1 & 2 Maccabees, Wisdom, Sirach, and Baruch as well as additions to the Books of Esther and Daniel. These books are often referred to as the Apocrypha. They are not part of the Protestant Bible because Protestant biblical Scholars argued that they were not part of the original Hebrew Bible.

When the Bible was translated into Greek, it was divided into the groupings of present day. These groupings were by literary style more than chronological order or Hebrew definition.

• The first five books, the Books of Law have been left intact.
• They are followed by the Books of History which explains the history of the nation of Israel. They include Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah.
• The next grouping is called the Books of Poetry; include the Books of Ester, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon. They are sometimes called Wisdom writings as well.
• Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, and Daniel have become known as the Major Prophets. They lived between 2700 and 2500 years ago and include prophecies concerning the nation of Israel including prophecies of Christ.
• The final grouping of the current Bible Old Testament include all of the Minor Prophets which include Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. The term minor prophets comes from the length of these books, not the status of the prophet.

We come now to the discussion of the New Testament. The New Testament is divided into three groupings.

• The Gospels which include the Books, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. We believe them to be written after the death of Christ, most likely some 30 - 40 years after his death. The Apostles believed that Christ was coming again in their lifetime, but as they began to die off realized that he might not. So they began to write down the teachings, events in his life and his sayings so that they would survive.
• The Writings or Epistles include Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude. They were written by followers of Jesus. They often were sent to other people to help explain Christianity. Sometimes they were written to counter heresy, or wrongful interpretations of the teachings of Jesus.
• The final grouping is one single Book, The Revelation of John. This book is thought to have been written around 70 AD or 70 years after Jesus died. It contains a future vision of Jesus and the world.

How it came to be

The early Christians continued to hold to the OT as their divinely-given Scripture, but they soon came to realize the need to value 1^st century apostolic writings as well. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Peter and the others preached on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). This process of inspiration continued in their preaching and in their writing. It is assumed that all NT books were written before the end of the 1^st century. Paul wrote letters to several churches and asked that they be read publicly when the Christians assembled (I Thessalonians 5:27; Colossians 4:16). Early historical accounts clarify that apostolic writings were read on a regular basis in the Christian assemblies.

In Paul's letter to the Colossians, he commands that they exchange letters with the church of the Laodiceans (4:16). It appears that early Christians soon began to circulate many of the apostolic writings. It is in this way, most likely, that various books of the NT began to be gathered into collections. Peter, in 2 Peter 3:16, indicates already a collection of Paul's letters (notice that Peter calls them "scriptures" and places them alongside that of the OT).

In the 2^nd century, following the death of all the apostles the writings of the apostles became more valuable. The desire to exchange and collect such writings increased. The gospel accounts appear to be quickly accepted by the Christian community. Paul's letters were commonly accepted. There was yet, however, no mention of a canon of the NT; there were only casual collections of writings that were being passed around.

Soon, however, spurious or pseudonymous letters came into circulation among the churches (letters falsely bearing apostolic names and/or claiming apostolic authority). Furthermore, false teachers arose claiming knowledge handed down by tradition. All this led to the beginning of the canon as Christians realized the need to determine what writings were genuine and what writings were not. By the end of the 2^nd century, the idea of a NT canon was clearly understood. The extent of that canon, however, was yet to be determined.

It is important to understand the criteria used by early scholars to determine the canonicity of any book. The true (and obvious) test of canonicity is/was inspiration. If a book was clearly inspired of God, then certainly it was accepted as part of the NT canon. The question then remains: how was inspiration to be demonstrated?

According to history, several books were universally accepted by every church without any doubt or hesitation. These were the 4 gospels, Acts, the 13 letters of Paul, 1 Peter and 1 John (20 books). Several years would pass, however, before the acceptance of the complete canon of 27 books as we have today.

In the 3^rd century, Origen, a well-known scholar of that time, gave a list of generally accepted books. He acknowledged the four gospels, Acts, the 13 letters of Paul, 1 Peter, 1 John, and Revelation. He mentioned Jude, wavered in regard to James, 2 Peter, and 2 and 3 John, and he evidently hesitated concerning Hebrews because, as he said, "God alone knows who wrote it."

In the early part of the 4th century, Eusibius expressed the general Christian thought of his time. He accepted Hebrews as authentic and indicated that James, Jude, 2 Peter and 2 John were beginning to find recognition. Finally, it was in 367 that a man named Athanasius first gave a list of canonical books identical with our 27 today. Scholars since that time have generally remained in agreement that the 27 books we have in our NT are all inspired of God and are the only available such writings.

Creeds and Liturgy

Methodist worship services are varied and are structured by the congregation, the Pastor and tradition. Some of the liturgies that you may hear are included below. Though they may be in different places in the worship, some or all of them are typically included. Many of them are included in other denominations and have been used throughout the centuries. I have included only a few here but the Methodist Hymnal is a great place to experience them.

• The Gloria Patri is often used in worship as a doxology. The current form appeared around 1971 but the original form was in use around the fourth century. It is an acknowledgement of our Trinitarian Belief, Father, Son and Holy Ghost while also including the promise of eternal life. “Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Amen.” (Methodist Hyman, #70)
• The Hymn Praise God, often called the Doxology, is often sung after the offering has been taken as a way of lifting up the offering to the Lord. It is praise that all things come from God, that all of us must praise him and again we see the understanding of Trinity in the God we worship, Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Ghost). It was written in 1674 by Thomas Ken. “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow: praise him all creatures here below; praise him above ye heavenly host; praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.” (Methodist Hymnal #95)

• Affirmations of Faith. There are ten affirmations of faith in the United Methodist Hymnal. One of them is the social principles of the United Methodist Church which comes from the Book of Discipline modified by General Conference. This is similar to our Bill of Rights in the constitution, outlining how we are to be responsible Christians. The remainder are modifications of the Apostles Creed due to cultural and language differences throughout the globe. The non-American affirmations are a reminder of how we are connected to the world.
• Included among the Affirmations of Faith is the Nicene Creed. This creed in its present form comes from the two Councils of Nicaea which gathered in 325 AD and 381 AD. It is important to note that this creed established for the Christian world the concept of the Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, begotten, not made, making all equal of one being and yet separate.

• The Apostles’ Creed and all of the Affirmations of Faith are designed to remind us of what we believe. They are our doctrine for how we understand God and who we understand our roles and responsibilities in the world around us. The Apostles’ Creed is significantly different than many of our liturgies because of its history. It is believed that the original Apostles wrote these words on or shortly after the day of Pentecost, the day when they were filled with the Holy Spirit. It was used both as an outward expression of their understanding of God and also as a sign one to another, to identify Christians. Rufinus accounts for the creed in AD 400 and says that it comes from an earlier time. So unlike many of our liturgies, hymns and doctrines, this one piece of our worship carries itself back to the very beginning of our Christian movement. It is important to note that changes have been made and so I have included three iterations for you to see.
• What we believe to be the original form (from around AD200) “Believing in one God Almighty, maker of the world, and his son, Jesus Christ, born of the Virgin Mary, crucified under Pontius Pilate, on the third day brought to life from the dead, received in heaven, sitting now at the right hand of the Father, will come to judge the living and the dead through resurrection of the flesh.”, or
• “I believe in one God, maker of the world, the Word, called his Son, Jesus Christ, by the Spirit and power of God the Father made flesh in Mary’s womb, and born of her fastened to a cross. He rose the third day, was caught up into heaven, set at the right hand of the Father, sent the vicarious power of His Holy Spirit, to govern believers, will come with glory to take the good into life eternal and condemn the wicked to perpetual fire, through restoration of the flesh”
• The Roman Creed (in place by AD 600) “I believe in God the Father Almighty; And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was born of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary; Crucified under Pontius Pilate and buried; The third day He rose again from the dead, He ascended into heaven, Sitteth at the right hand of the Father, Whence He shall come to judge the loving and the dead, And in the Holy Ghost, The Holy Church, The forgiveness of sins; The resurrection of the body’
• Our current form (in place AD 700) (Methodist Hymnal #881)          “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ, his only Son our Lord: who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried;* he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic ** church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen”
• Traditional use included “he descended into hell” in place of “dead and buried”
• ** catholic here is the universal church or carries back to the original “Holy Church”

Questions:

1.    How has the formation of the Bible changed or affirmed your feelings about its authenticity?

2.    How might translations over the centuries changed the meaning of the Bible?

3.    Is one translation better than others?

4.    Does this make a difference to the Bible being the inspired Word of God?

5.    How do Creeds enhance Worship?

6.    Does the history and meaning of the creeds change the way you now feel about them and why?

I'm a Christian - Chapter 6

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Chapter 6 Tenents of Methodism:

 Organization, Original Sin, Free Will, Quadrilateral, and Holiness

When it comes to our understanding of Methodism, there are several things that set us apart from the rest of the Protestant Denominations. Now saying this, we cannot assume that other denominations feel entirely different than we do about some things, but suffice it to say that we feel very strongly about these areas. Some of them have already been covered. For example we feel that that only through the Grace of God can we receive forgiveness and salvation. This is the foundation of what we believe as Christians and United Methodist. And we believe that God’s grace comes to us though the power of the Holy Spirit, began in the creation of the world and redeems us through the power of the cross and resurrection. Among other Protestants you will find little argument. But there is disagreement in some of the other areas of our faith journey. We will discuss infant baptism a little later so save that discussion for then.

Original Sin

What of “original sin”? What is it and why is it so important to our understanding of the need for redemption and forgiveness? Original sin originated in the Garden of Eden some would say. Some others might say that it began before the creation of the world when Lucifer and his followers rejected God as Supreme and then it found its way into the Garden through the temptation of Adam and Eve. The “when” is really not as important as the “what” question here. What is then, “original sin?” It is that part of our nature that constantly fights with obeying the Will of God. We see it played out in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve are told not to eat from a certain tree. And even though they may plead ignorance or blame it on the serpent, the truth is they knew what the rule was when they broke it. We also have been given rules to obey from the beginning of our lives. The Ten Commandments that Jesus simplified to two, Obey God with all your heart, mind and soul and Love your neighbor. And yet we intentionally break them every day. We break them when we decide we don’t want to love God with all that we are and turn away from God. We break them when we walk by those who are in need without offering assistance. We break them when we talk about one another in ways that are not nurturing or loving. And because this nature is so ingrained in us, it is impossible for us to ever change it completely. 

Free Will

But we do come to our senses, if not completely at least in a way that asks God for forgiveness. We do this when we accept Jesus into our hearts and we do then begin to change. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we begin to transform into the image of Christ here on earth. But some fail! Now there are those in other denominations that suggest that once we accept Christ into our hearts, that’s it! No more concern about salvation or where we will be when we die. First and foremost, let me say that I am not God. And only God can decide who ultimately gets in and who does not. But what the scriptures tell us is that when we accept the offer God has made through Christ, we also can subsequently reject that offer. As Methodists, we call that “free will.” In other words, we have the right to choose the offer in the first place and then we have the same right to reject it at some point later on. Now simply being sinful and then asking for forgiveness is not in the same arena as what I am talking about. This should lead you to great discussion with other Methodists and other denominations.

Personal Holiness and Social Holiness

Now we come to “Holiness.” As United Methodists we proclaim to be on paths to perfection. In our daily lives this plays out in daily and constant prayer, daily bible reading, devotion and following the ordnances of God in Holy Communion, remembering our Baptism, Sunday worship and study. Wesley and the early group of Oxford Methodical’ s would say that when we strive to do these as a part of our lives that we are working or personal holiness. And personal holiness is a necessary aspect of being a Christian. If we study the writings of Paul, Peter, James and John in the Epistles and writings, we clearly see that being a Christian goes far beyond simply saying “I Do” at the altar of God. It means that we become intentional followers of Christ. As we study the scriptures of Old and New Testament, we discover that following God meant more than just believing in God. It meant devoting our lives to God.

When it comes to devoting our lives to personal holiness, Wesley would then tell us that when we see injustice in the world in any aspect or form, that we feel compelled to do something about it. So for Methodists around the world, holiness also means “social holiness”. We will study our Social Creeds a little later but let us for a moment explore what this means. James tells us in 2:17 that faith without works is dead. In other words, if we say we have faith and yet have no visible fruit of that faith, then to all who come to know us, we are not Christians. That is a profound statement that many will argue with. Early Methodist championed great social causes in the past. What this all means is that as United Methodist, we are expected to reach out to the poor, work at eliminating social injustice like bigotry, racial division and programs that hold people in oppressive situations. We traditionally have been responsible for bringing health care to areas surrounding our churches, taking food to the hungry and sheltering the homeless. As a church, the question we must ask ourselves is, “We are United Methodist. Are the fruits of our faith evident to those outside our church?”

Quadrilateral

The next area is about how we view the Bible. Some of our brothers and sisters would tell us that we must read the Bible as the spoken word of God, written down for us in its literal interpretation. The term that is used most often is Biblical inerrancy. This term means that there are no errors in the Bible. It is the doctrinal position that the Bible is accurate and totally free of error, that "Scripture in the original manuscripts does not affirm anything that is contrary to fact." Some equate inerrancy and infallibility; others do not. Another often used adjective to characterize the Bible is "infallible". Dictionary definitions insist that this is a stronger term than "inerrant." "'Inerrant' means there are no errors; 'infallible' means there can be no errors." So when you hear someone talk about inerrancy or infallibility you know what they mean by that. But is it true? With the exception of certain fundamentalist denominations, most protestant theologians would tell you that we believe the Bible to be the inspired word of God. But we also accept that humans wrote, copied and re-wrote sections of the Bible. In addition, language changes have forced us to translate the bible in today’s language. In fact the best translations are those that go back to the original Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek in today’s language. In Methodist circles we have found a middle way to explain life’s issues that may not be explicitly defined in the Bible. We call this process, “the Quadrilateral.”

Our understanding of the theological position of the church regarding Scripture, tradition, experience and reason is that it is the means for how we live our lives in obedience to God. We believe that Scripture, as defined by our Book of Discipline, “…is the primary, revealing the Word of God “so far as it is necessary for our salvation.”[i] We believe that Scripture is the primary authority for our lives. Scripture is the holy inspiration of God from which we form the foundation of our true Christian faith and practice.

We often approach Scripture through the lens of the tradition. These include the traditions passed down from the church of the first century, the Anglican Church and continuing into our present Methodist reality. These traditions are found in our doctrines, our hymns and our liturgies. Each time we use the Apostle’s Creed in worship I take the opportunity to teach the congregation the rich heritage of the creed that comes to us across two thousand years of church history. A creed that was used as an early password by the early follower’s of Christ and an affirmation of what we as the church believe. Through these traditions and our sacraments we experience the means of grace of God.

We also may look at Scripture through the lens of our experience. Through our own experience and the collective experience of the Body of Christ, we witness the power and will of God working through the Holy Spirit in our own lives and those of our congregations. Runyon says, “For Wesley “experience” is not feeling alone but the combination of feeling plus interpretation.”[ii] And Wesley says that the interpretation is our experiencing the fruits of the Spirit as understood through the Scriptures.

Finally, we look at Scripture through the lens of reason. Early church leaders dealt with the issue of Scripture and how to deal with issues that appeared to be ambiguous or otherwise unclear. Out of these discussions, arguments and challenges, our doctrinal foundation was set by these Anglican Leaders and Theologians. Bishop Jewel wrote, ‘that tradition is the safeguard against “private interpretation” and “misuse” of the scripture.”[iii] Bishop Hooker dealt with the question, “Was Scripture authoritative and normative for establishing doctrine and all things necessary for salvation, or did scripture carry absolute authority beyond theological grounds to include judicial, political, and economical, etc? In the end he suggested that “…God hath omitted anything needful unto his purpose, and left his intent to be accomplished by our devising.””[iv] Therefore Hooker adds a new point, reason to the mix. What is the source of authority? His answer is law and to Hooker, law is reason, founded in the inherent governing of the universe.

So we come to this point looking for an authoritative answer as to how we solve issues of relevant, challenging questions when the Bible itself or its traditional interpretation does not seem to resolve the issue. Sometimes the Bible may seem to be ambiguous concerning events or circumstances on ethical, science or moral questions that we encounter in our modern world. Obviously we look first to Scripture for the answer. But what happens when Scripture, open to interpretation seems to leave the answer unclear? We look then to the traditions of the church and how the church has dealt with these issues when the church has been consistent in that dealing. We look to the historical creeds, worship liturgies, and doctrines to give us a lens to reflect on the Word of God. Through our own experience and the collective experience of the Body of Christ, we witness the power of God and the will of God through the Holy Spirit in our own lives and the lives of the community of believers. At the end of the day, when we struggle with issues of our modern world including those that modern science (such as cloning) have created for us to deal with, we use reason to illuminate the truth of the Bible to determine our view. Does the use of modern technology follow the truth of the biblical story in regards to how humanity is supposed to interact in love with one another? Is modern technology used for good or evil? Do we allow culture to rule the day or acknowledge the supremacy of scripture to rule? All of these are legitimate questions in an ever changing world. And through the “Quadrilateral”, with Scripture as the primary source of understanding, we have been given the tools to live our lives in obedience to God and to discern the will of God in all things. 

Organization

            In order to fully understand the organization of the United Methodist church we need to look at American history. The American Revolution shaped this country and defined our government. While the country was defining how it was going to govern itself, the Methodist movement was becoming a church. So it is simply a matter of understanding the timeline of our church to understand how we are organized. We are a conferencing people and that carries itself back to John Wesley who believed that through conferencing we could share our experiences, see the work of the Holy Spirit and see the fruits of our faith. So when the church began, we formed around this concept of conferencing. Our governing body is the “Conference.” Every four years delegates from across the world gather at “The General Conference” to define the rules by which as a congregation we are going to live by. The document that is published is called, “The Book of Discipline.” In it every four years the General Conference updates by-laws, how we function, how clergy are determined, etc. The United Methodist Church is divided into “Annual Conferences”. “Annual Conferences” are determined by geographic demographics much like congressional districts are defined. “Annual Conferences” determine the business of their specific District. The Virginia Annual Conference defines budgets and local organizations and sets appointments within the conference. At the local church level, each year we have a “Charge Conference.” The “Charge Conference” sets the business of the local church including budgets, salaries and committees. The role of the Local Church Council is to run the day to day operations of the church in accordance with the “Charge Conference.” All local Boards, Agencies and committees are subjects of the “Charge Conference.” This may come as a shock to some who believe differently. Conferencing follows the American tradition of delegates who set the rules for everyone else, such as our Congress and House of Representatives.

            Our leadership also follows the traditions of American government. Our Executive Branch is represented by the Bishop, Cabinet and Appointed Clergy. A Bishop is elected for life and has day to day operational control of the Annual Conference. Bishop’s have limited authority in that they appoint Clergy but cannot dictate to Clergy how to define local worship. The Cabinet is appointed by the Bishop to assist in areas that the Annual Conference and General Conference define. Local Pastors are appointed by the Bishop and Cabinet in accordance with the rules in the Book of Discipline. The Pastor who is the Administrative Head of the Local church is responsible for day to day operation, worship, vision, and spiritual direction.

            In our denomination we also have a Judicial Branch. Each four years a Judicial Council is established by the General Conference. The Judicial Council rules on issues of law. Methodist law is simply ruling on the language and intent of the rules and regulations in the Book of Discipline.

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[i] Smith, Judith, 2008, page 77

[ii] Runyon, Theodore, 1998, page 152

[iii] Gunter, W. Stephen, 1997, page 30

[iv] Gunter, 1997, page 35

Chapter Six Questions

1.      How do you understand the concept of original sin in your own life? When and where do you sin?

2.      How does the concept of “Free Will” differ from “Once saved always saved?”

3.      Do you agree with this concept?

4.      One of the basic foundations of being United Methodist is Personal Holiness. How is this lived out in life?

5.      Can we truly be holy if we only have Personal Holiness? How did Jesus and his followers live out social holiness?

6.      Does the Quadrilateral fit your understanding of how to use the Bible in your daily life? What is the difference between saying that the Bible is God’s inspired word as opposed to saying it is inerrant or infallible?

7.      How does the organization of the UMC make it fair and just?

8.      What might be some ways in which you would change or modify the organization of the church?

John Wesley and the Quadrilateral

            John Wesley was always struggling with the question, “How do we come to know God and how do we know that our experience of God is legitimate?”  By developing multiple ways of examining the truth, Wesley opened us up to discover God in new and surprising ways. We must never forget this. Often when we come to specific issues in life, scripture alone is ambiguous or taken in the context of why it was written does not apply to our need. Or when we read scripture we often ask ourselves what is a correct interpretation and what is the result of the interpreters influence. This is where John Wesley said that the first and most important leg of the quadrilateral. Some historians would say that Wesley would be amused that his name has been linked to the quadrilateral even though at times he argued for sola Scriptura—Scripture alone. But scripture alone leaves out the influence of the Holy Spirit in our lives and would immediately discount that God continues to work in the world.

It might be helpful to see how the Quadrilateral works in a specific instance. The War in Iraq is on all our minds right now. What insights does the Quadrilateral bring to this issue?

            If we examine the war from the point of view of Scripture, we get a mixed message. We have passages of Scripture that tell us to be peacemakers and to turn the other cheek Mt. 5). But we also have passages that tell us the job of those in authority is to execute wrath on those who do wrong and it is our job as Christians to be loyal subjects of those in authority Romans 13). We also have many Old Testament passages which seem to imply that God not only wants a nation to go to war against another but that God will be right there with them helping them out in the battles. I would say a careful study of scripture does show a progression in the understanding of what God wants from a response of unlimited retaliation to one of limited retaliation to one of limited love to one of unlimited love. Jesus showed this unlimited love by refusing to lead an army against the hated Roman Empire but by instead showing a new way to live—the way of non-violent unlimited love. However, good Christians differ on which parts of Scripture should be given the most weight. Looked at as a whole, scripture is somewhat ambiguous on the issue of war.

            So we go to Tradition. Church scholars down through history have developed differing ideas about war but one of the most important is the “just war” theory. Some today would say that you cannot have a preemptive strike and have a “just war.” Others would argue that a response to September 11 is not a preemptive strike. Still Tradition encourages us to look at the history of how wars have developed and the ethical understandings behind this history.

            We then come to Experience. Anyone who has experienced war first-hand is immediately changed by that event. They know that war can be horrible and that no one truly wins a war, there are always losses on all sides. The fact that many in the United States have never experienced a war close-up, may help to explain why so many in our country are more enthusiastic about waging a war.

            Finally we bring Reason to bear on this concern. Smart people on both sides of this issue can come up with reasons why they think this war is wise or not. Personally I believe this war breaks down at every criteria of Wesley’s Quadrilateral, but that it crumbles the most from Reason. I believe we have lost the respect and confidence of much of the rest of the world because they can’t see how this war “makes sense.” This war raises so many questions, Is Iraq really that great a threat to the U.S.? Will getting rid of the current regime, really get rid of the problem? Will our actions bring greater stability to the region or greater chaos? Will our actions lessen the possibilities of terrorist’s acts against us at home and abroad or will they increase them?

            Now even bringing all these criteria to bear on a problem like the War in Iraq does not mean that everybody will end up seeing this from the same perspective. United Methodist will still see an issue like this from different points of view. And I hope we can respect one another as we disagree. The same is true with almost any current social issue. But at least we are given some tools to evaluate these issues more thoroughly and thoughtfully than we might otherwise do.

Another example: In Normandy during World War Two, there were two GIs who took their dead comrade to be buried in a cemetery. They went to the cemetery and asked the Roman Catholic priest for permission to bury him inside the walls of the cemetery, and the priest, of course, said, "Well, the rule is that you've got to be Roman Catholic; you've got to be a member of the parish. I just can't allow it. I wish I could, but I just can't allow it."

            And they begged him. They said, "It would mean so much to us to bury our friend inside the fence." "I'm so sorry," the priest said. "I just can't allow it, but bury him outside the fence, just anywhere outside the fence. Just bury him wherever you like." The two GIs reluctantly dug the grave, said a prayer and buried their comrade. The next day they came back to put the grave marker in the ground.

They walked up the side of the fence, and looked for where the grave had been dug, but there was no grave there! And they walked all up and down the fence, and they couldn't find where they'd dug the grave! They knew they'd dug it. They walked all around the cemetery, all around that fence, and they couldn't find it!

They went in to see the priest and they said, "Father, forgive us. We were the ones who came yesterday." and the priest said, "Oh, yes. I remember." They said, "Forgive us for bothering you, but we asked for permission to bury our comrade inside the fence, and you said 'Bury him outside,' and we did, but we can't find the grave. Are we lost? Where is the grave we dug? Do you know what might have happened to it?"

And the priest said, "Oh, yes. I know what happened. I was so upset about your visit yesterday that I spent half the night worrying about what I said to you. And I spent the other half of the night moving the fence (from a sermons by Thomas K. Tewell entitled “Coloring Outside the Lines”)."

             So what you believe is important, but when it comes to scripture and how the Bible speaks to you may well be focused on your own traditions, experience and reason. For a person who comes from a Fundamentalism background who may take certain biblical passages as literal who encounters a liberal Christian who also comes with certain traditions, experience and reasons, these two may not be able to find a common ground. John Wesley would argue then that both have lost the essence of our Christian heritage and that is what the quadrilateral gives to us, common ground in order that we may reestablish God as the central focus in our relationship.

Baptism as God intended

Sermon given at Sydenstricker UMC 1/8/17

Click here for audio

Scripture Reading:

^NRS  John 3:1 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. ² He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God." ³ Jesus answered him, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above." ⁴ Nicodemus said to him, "How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother's womb and be born?" ⁵ Jesus answered, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. ⁶ What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷ Do not be astonished that I said to you, 'You must be born from above.' ⁸ The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." ⁹ Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?" ¹⁰ Jesus answered him, "Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?

Good morning and welcome to Baptism Sunday. It is the Sunday when we celebrate the baptism of Jesus in the Christian year. We do this to remember that Jesus went down to the Jordan where John the Baptizer was in order to be baptized. So why did he go? And what does baptism mean? These are the questions that we will try to uncover this morning. No other subject in Christian history has caused more discussion and disagreement than baptism. So often we hear that we are different than other denominations and that those differences are deep and impossible to allow us to come together. Some of them relate to the Sabbath and some relate to the color of the carpet or dimming of lights, but only one differentiates us more than any other. It is the subject of Baptism. Have I been baptized if I have been sprinkled or do I need to be poured over or dunked or do I even need baptism at all.

So what is baptism? As United Methodists, we believe that baptism is a sacrament. In other words, God is the principle player at work in the baptism. That means that as human beings, we simply show up and let God do what God is going to do. Through God’s grace we are incorporated into the Body of Christ through baptism. We are initiated into the Christian church universal and we are commissioned into ministry. And in baptism, the taint of original sin is washed clean from us. Whether that person receives this initiation at a young age or at the age of maturity, it is the gift of God and the work of the Holy Spirit rather than a means of human choice. It is a communal act whereby we the Body of Christ agree to covenant with that individual for life. In the Methodist church we do not baptize individuals individually. We baptize in the community where we covenant together for life. Through the act of baptism we see prevenient grace in action and an exodus from the bondage of original sin. John Wesley wrote that baptism is the act of God who cleanses us of original sin through his divine grace. That our human condition is such that we cannot ourselves be cleansed through our own initiative and it was necessary for God to sacrifice for us in order that we can be cleansed. It is the incorporation into the body of Christ through his church, the universal Christian church in the world. That makes all the baptized of the world our sisters and brothers. In order to receive the blessing of God and enter into heaven, one needs to proclaim their belief in Jesus and begin the transformation process we call Justifying and Sanctifying Grace. This is not the same as baptism. More on that later!

Baptism comes to us from a rich heritage in the Hebrew faith. Baptism comes from the Greek “to cleanse” and is derived from the Hebrew cleansing liturgies that have existed since Moses. When one sins, one must be cleansed of that sin. In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Old Testament writings, the cleansing or purification process included water or oil. Levites were anointed with oil after having been cleansed with water before entering into the holy of holies. Hebrew's from the time of Moses have cleansed themselves with water to cleanse the taint of sin from them after sacrificing to God. From the earliest days of our knowledge, we have been required by God to sacrifice for our sins and then be cleansed. In the old Testament times we find this reference to anointing in Exodus, the 29^th chapter from the NRSV: “²⁸ These things shall be a perpetual ordinance for Aaron and his sons from the Israelites, for this is an offering; and it shall be an offering by the Israelites from their sacrifice of offerings of well-being, their offering to the LORD.  ²⁹ The sacred vestments of Aaron shall be passed on to his sons after him; they shall be anointed in them and ordained in them.” We know that when God chose to set aside those whom would serve the people in God’s name, they were anointed. And it might surprise you to know that we are all called to serve. Anointing typically would have been by the sharing of liturgy that included a covenant relationship and the placing, pouring or sprinkling of oil and/ or water over that person. This anointing symbolized as an outward sign of the inward act of the Holy Spirit on this person.

As time continued in the history of the Hebrew people, anointing of all of the chosen people in one form or another took place. Often this would have occurred at the circumcision ceremony for young men and at or about the same time for young women, within the first few years of their birth. And then at the age of maturity they would come to the temple for Bar Mitzvah, or the coming of age, when children are considered to be adults and the covenant relationship with God truly begins. As part of the cleansing rituals before entering into a temple Hebrew people would come and wash themselves. Often this would be in pools located just outside the temple in which they would wash themselves, sometimes immersing themselves in order to be cleansed and purified.

When it comes to baptism, there are two questions that are asked more than any other. “Do I need to be baptized?” And the other is, “I was baptized when I was an infant and so do I need to be immersed to be saved?” The first question is interesting. The answer really depends on where you are in your spiritual journey. Have you given your life to Christ, professing your faith in him as Lord and Savior? If the answer is yes I have, then the answer to the baptism question is that you probably do not need to be baptized. But with a caveat! Even Jesus was baptized as an obedience of faith. Did he need to be baptized? Probably not in the sense that he had committed no sin but some scholars would suggest that being born human meant that he too was born with the taint of original sin. And in that he could be tempted just as we are. In fact we believe Jesus to be fully human, experiencing the sorrows and joys we do, but also the temptations that we experience. John the Baptizer comes onto the scene and most scholars would point to Mark’s belief that he is the “voice in the wilderness” that comes to proclaim the coming of the Messiah. Early drawings of John the Baptist show him standing in the waters of the Jordan River, baptizing those who had come to receive forgiveness as they repented of their sins. Into this picture comes Jesus. Many will ask why Jesus would need to be baptized. The answer may lie in our understanding of obedience more than necessity. That we believe Jesus to be pure of sin goes without saying. So Jesus, out of a sense of obedience to the will of God, comes to be baptized. And in that sets the example for you and me to be baptized. Do you need to be baptized if you have Jesus in your heart, have committed your life to him and are being transformed by the Holy Spirit? Probably not, but to follow Jesus lead is not a bad way to go. 

The second question has divided denominations. It focuses more on an understanding of baptism than on the method even though it is the method of baptism that is at issue. When we look back at the cleansing rituals of the early Hebrew people, they were done a variety of ways, including self-immersion prior to entering into the Temple. But we also know from historical evidence that a shell was used to pour water over the heads of those being Baptized (see By the Water and the Spirit by Gayle Felton). Felton tells us, “Sprinkling expresses both the imagery of cleansing (Ezekiel 36:25-27) and of setting apart for service of God (Exodus 29:21)”[i] We also see evidence in Acts that baptism was for the whole family. Our understanding of infant baptism comes from this scriptural reference and infant baptism was practiced in early Christian circles. In Baptism remember that we believe that God is at work. And because baptism is an act of God, not an act of humans, the method and the age are not relevant to the practice. In fact, it was not until the 1600’s with the Anabaptist that the method of baptism became a dividing issue. So whether you were baptized as an infant, a young adult or an adult and whether you were baptized by immersion, sprinkling or pouring, God did not make a mistake in your baptism and it does not need to be redone a certain way. The second part of the question relates to salvation. Baptism does not provide our salvation. Our profession of faith, whether at the time of baptism or at the time of confirmation in the Methodist church, proclaims for the world that we have accepted Jesus in our life. It is that moment that we accept the gift that God is offering to us and it is only through that grace that we inherit the gift of eternal life. But it is not a single event in our lifetime, but the event begins a lifetime of faith. As United Methodist people we believe at that moment we are justified and we continue to transform through the power of the Holy Spirit towards perfection.

Today we have the opportunity to remember our baptism. What God has done does not need to be redone. Baptism is God’s grace, an outward sign of an inward spiritual change. And so today you may come forward and dip your hands in the water, place water on your forehead of simply remember that God’s grace has prevailed in your life. I asked earlier if you knew that you only had a short time till you stood before Jesus if that would change how you are leading your life. Today is a day of new beginnings, new commitments and renewal of your life.

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[i] Felton, Gayle, 2006, By Water and the Spirit, page 20