A Sacrament, not a Sign

Hope Lutheran - Spearfish

A Sacrament, not a Sign

February 21, 2024 • Pastor Mark Schutz • 1 Peter 3:18–22

Signs and symbols. These are artifacts that represent something larger. Take thirteen red and white stripes with fifty-stars on a field of blue. That flag is more than just colored cloth sewn together. It represents something—the history, values, and ideals of the United States of America. That shiny piece of metal on the man-in-blue’s chest is more than decoration. It is a sign, marking that police officer as one who has authority, as well as the duty to protect and serve. Signs and symbols are important because they represent something larger.

There are those who view Baptism as an important sign, a symbolic representation of the way God washes away our sin. They could not be more wrong. Baptism doesn’t represent something. Baptism is something. St. Peter says plainly, “Baptism… saves you” (1 Peter 3:21). Baptism isn’t a sign. Baptism is a sacrament. God has connected his saving work and Word with a common earthly element—water. As we begin our Lenten look at Baptism, let us remember what we are looking at when we see someone come to the font. That is not a sign. It is not symbolic. It is a miracle… a Holy Sacrament.

Reliving Your Baptism Every Day

March 20, 2024 • Pastor Mark Schutz • Romans 6:1–14

You can celebrate the day you were born with cake. Perhaps people will sing, “Happy birthday to you.” Perhaps you will pull out a photo album and stroll down memory lane. You can and should celebrate the day you were born. However, you cannot actually relive the day you were born. (Nor would your mother want you to try!) Yet, we need to relive the day we were reborn in Baptism every day. Not in the sense that we go to church, stand by the font, and have the pastor pour water over our head. That only needed to happen once. But when we repent of our sins, it is like reliving our baptismal day. Our sinful nature, which was buried with Christ in our baptism, is reburied through repentance. In the first of his 95 Reformation theses, Dr. Martin Luther wrote, “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, ‘Repent,’ he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” The entire life! This week we see the joy and the need to relive our baptism every day through repentance.

The Right Tool for This Job

March 13, 2024 • Pastor Mark Schutz • Matthew 28:18–20

Set a beautiful piece of marble before the world’s best sculptor. Nothing comes of it unless he has the right tools. If he tries to fashion something from that rock with bare hands, he is doomed to nothing but frustration, split nails, and bloody fingertips. He needs a hammer and set of chisels. He needs the right tools. If your car is broken down, you cannot fix it with kitchen utensils. If you need heart surgery, pray the surgeon has more than a jigsaw and lock wrench. To do a job well, you don’t just need tools. You need the right tool. Jesus has asked his disciples to make disciples. Think of what that means. He is asking us to call people out of unbelief into the light of Christ. How does one raise the spiritually dead? You need the right tool. And that is what Christ has given us in Baptism. It is the right tool for this job that Christ has given to his Church.

Baptism Is Needed by All

March 6, 2024 • Pastor Mark Schutz • John 3:1–8

Jesus was speaking about Baptism when he said, “No one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” Consider the weight of that phrase, “no one.” It is all-encompassing. The murderer, the abuser, the terrorist—if they hope to enter the kingdom of God, they need the cleansing washing that comes with Baptism. But so does the gossip, the envious, the worrier. That’s what “no one” means. The man who has lived a long life, who has 80-plus years of sin on his record, needs the saving power of Baptism. But so does the newborn infant who is not yet capable of speaking a sinful word. That’s what “no one” means. This is a hard teaching for people to accept. Many cannot understand how a violent criminal can be in the same moral category as a young “innocent” baby. Yet, in God’s eyes, they are, for they both were born of sinful flesh. Therefore, they both need the salvation God provides through Baptism. Today, we see that Baptism is indeed needed by all.