Note: Audio is not available for this sermon.
Our text is from Romans 6:1-11, our Epistle reading for today.
St. Paul asks a question: “Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?” (v 1). His answer is emphatic: “By no means.” The Greek word is μὴ γένοιτο which literally means, “May it never be.” May it never be that we willfully continue in sin so that grace may abound. You have been redeemed with the blood of Christ. You have been baptized into His death and resurrection. Therefore, never think that you are free to continue in sin so that God’s grace may abound.
How would you answer someone who says, “I like to sin and God likes to forgive. So, I can go on sinning, and God will go on forgiving.” Hopefully, you would warn him that this kind of thinking abuses God’s grace. It abuses the Gospel. Such a person is not living a repentant life. He is not sorry for his sin. Instead, he delights in sin thinking that God will always forgive him. He imagines that because forgiveness is free, sin is harmless. But this person misunderstands repentance, the Gospel, and what the baptized life looks like.
To rightly understand Baptism, we must first understand ourselves.
The Scriptures do not describe us as spiritually weak. They describe us as spiritually dead. St. Paul writes in Ephesians 2, “You were dead in the trespasses and sins which you once walked” (v 1). We are born under Adam’s curse. We inherit a sinful nature that is hostile to God. We are enslaved to sin and unable to free ourselves.
The world tells us that we are basically good, but Scripture tells us that we are by nature sinful and unclean. Left to ourselves, we cannot be free from God’s wrath. We cannot overcome death. No amount of good works can rescue us from sin. If we are to be saved, God Himself must act.
And that is exactly what He has done. The eternal Son of God became flesh in order to save us. Jesus did not come merely to give us an example. He came to take our place. He came to bear our sin and to die our death so that we might live.
St. Paul says, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?” (v 3). Notice carefully what Paul says. He does not say that Baptism symbolizes Christ’s death. He says that we that we have been baptized “into” Christ’s death. He says that Baptism joins us to Christ’s death.
On the cross, Jesus died for the sin of the whole world. He died for our selfishness, our lustful thoughts, our angry words, and our failure to love Him above all things and our neighbor as ourselves. He bore the wrath of God in our place.
Christ died on the cross. Your old self was crucified with Him. Your death happened when you were baptized. Christ was buried in a tomb, and your sins were buried with Him.
But Baptism is not only about dying. It is also about living. St Paul continues, “Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (v 4). Christ did not remain in the grave. Death could not hold Him in the tomb. On the third day, Jesus rose from the dead. Sin, death, and the devil are defeated. As St Paul says, “We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over Him” (v 9).
Because Christ lives, you also shall live. In Baptism, you were not only joined to Christ’s death; you were also joined to His resurrection. Christ’s death is your death and Christ’s resurrection is your resurrection. The blessings of the cross and open tomb were given to you in Baptism.
Holy Baptism is therefore not merely a religious ceremony or a rite of passage. It is not merely a public testimony of our faith. It is God’s gracious work for you and for your salvation. In Baptism, God united you to Christ’s death and resurrection. He forgave your sins. He gave you the Holy Spirit. He adopted you as His own child. He made you an heir of everlasting life.
The power of Baptism is not found in the water itself. Nor is it found in the pastor who administers it. The power of Baptism is found entirely in Jesus Christ; His suffering, death, and resurrection. God’s Word joined to water delivers to you everything Christ won for you.
I was baptized when I was 29 days old. My parents, Don and Lena Woelmer, carried me to the baptismal font. It took place on November 20th in a small rural church called East Ida Immanuel Lutheran Church in Monroe, Michigan. I don’t remember that day. I look at pictures. Yet November 20th remains the most important day of my life because there God placed His holy name upon me. I was baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. There He forgave my sins. There He united me to Christ.
Do you know the date of your baptism? If not, look it up. Find your baptismal certificate. Celebrate it every year. For on that day your heavenly Father claimed you as His own.
I remember visiting a member at her home. As soon as I walked in the door she said, “Pastor, come here and look at this.” She showed me her baptismal certificate hanging on the wall. She was very proud of what God did for her in her baptism. She also had a cross hanging next to it.
Our baptism was not merely a thing of the past. But most importantly, it is a present reality. We should not simply say, “I was baptized.” Rather, we confess, “I am baptized.” Saying, “I am baptized” is like saying “I am alive.” Baptism remains God’s promise to you.
Baptism gives you your identity. Who are you? You are baptized. You are a child of God. You are redeemed with the blood of Christ. You are clothed with His righteousness. You are loved by God. You are forgiven. You are no longer a slave of sin. You are no longer under God’s condemnation. You are set free. You are justified by God’s grace through faith in Christ.
Baptism also gives you a new citizenship. You no longer belong to the kingdom of darkness. You belong to God’s kingdom; a kingdom of light. You are a lamb within His pasture. You are a member of His Church, a citizen of heaven.
This is your identity. It defines who you are and to whom you belong. It also determines how you live and what you do. You are thankful for the cross and open tomb. You are thankful for the forgiveness of sins. Therefore, you do not willfully continue in sin. You repent of your sin and you abound in God’s grace and mercy in Christ.
Does all of this mean that we no longer struggle with sin? Certainly not. Our sinful flesh still clings to us. Every day we are tempted with pride, anger, lust, greed and impatience. Our sinful flesh still exists, and we battle against it daily.
That is why our life is one of continual repentance. Martin Luther explains this is the Small Catechism, “The Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.” Every time we confess our sins, we return to our Baptism drowning the Old Adam. Every time we receive forgiveness, we return to our Baptism. We confess our sin and we receive God’s forgiveness and the new man arises once again.
Why did God unite us to Christ’s death and resurrection in our Baptism? St Paul says “that we might walk in newness of life” (v 4). What does “walking in the newness of life” look like? It means that we no longer walk as slaves of sin. Christ is now our Master. We belong to Him.
Therefore, our lives are now changed for the better. We willingly do good. Just as an apple tree naturally bears apples, so also we willingly bear good works loving the neighbor. The new man in us delights in God’s commandments. We desire to fear, love, and trust in God above all things. We desire to honor His holy Name. We gladly hear His Word. We honor parents and other authorities. We defend life. We support marriage and family. We protect our neighbor’s possessions. We guard his reputation. We are content with what God has given us. We joyfully reflect God’s love and mercy toward others. We gladly serve the neighbor. These works do not earn heaven. They are simply the fruit of faith. They are a fruit of our baptized life.
Perhaps nowhere does Baptism bring greater comfort than at the hour of death. Over the years I have stood beside many who were dying. I have reminded them that they are baptized into Christ; that Christ’s victory is their victory. His resurrection is their resurrection. The grave is only a temporary resting place. Just as Christ called you by name at your baptism, so also, on the Last Day, He will call you by name and you will rise with a glorified body.
Dearly beloved, do not underestimate what God did in your Baptism. There He forgave every sin. He clothed you with Christ’s righteousness. He united you forever to Christ’s death and resurrection. He declared you to be His beloved child.
Therefore, when temptations come, remember your Baptism. When Satan accuses you, remind him that you are baptized. When you fear death, remember your baptism. For you have died with Christ and you have been raised with Christ. You belong to Him. And because Christ lives, you also shall live forever. Thanks be to God. Amen.
