Baptism is not one isolated moment in infancy, but it is the very reality in which we are now living and in which we will die. When Luther was afflicted by sin, he would not cry out, “I was baptized,” but “I am baptized.” Our services begin with “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” only because we are baptized. Baptism creates the church and baptism is the reality in which the church lives. Where there is no baptism there is no church and there are no Christians. Anyone who relies on faith for salvation is relying on something that is weak, something that often stumbles and is filled with doubts. Baptism, on the other hand, is absolutely certain, because it depends on God and not us. We see only water, but it is God who is in the water and who baptizes. Wherever God is, there He is forgiving us.
David. P. Scaer
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