Epistle to Brother Oliverius On The Sacrament of Holy Baptism

Cyrus, an unworthy bondservant kept in the covenant of God; to Brother Oliverius my fellow athlete of the vigilant brethren, faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. God has sealed us in his covenant through the salvation of the Gospel, which spurs faith and redeems us from the grasp of our inherited iniquity that results in death. I am not like Peter or Paul in that my words are not illuminated by the grace of the Holy Spirit, but I am writing to define the doctrine of Holy Baptism in clear terms, and why I believe that it holds true to the deposit of faith given to the Holy Apostles. As written by the Apostle Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:15 “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” From this the basis of the doctrine will be drawn first from the Holy Scriptures themselves, and secondarily from the testimony of the tradition passed down from the Apostolic Fathers, Holy Martyrs, Reformers, in addition to the human reason that is given through being image-bearers of God. Necessarily this letter will be of a polemic nature, as many strange doctrines have obscured the traditional practice of the church catholic.

The action of the Trinity is integral to salvation, “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15). The Holy Spirit draws the whole church to God through the Gospel, wherefore we confess Jesus Christ as our Lord whose work of forgiveness of sins is thus, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5, see also Romans 6:23, John 3:16). Through the spirit of adoption which is the Holy Spirit, we have faith in the Holy Gospel, and are adopted as sons of the Father.

From the action of the Trinity it is seen that God moves in a relational manner, and works in defined ordinary ways to effect His adoption. It follows then that it is in the character of God to will the means by which faith in the Gospel (which is the forgiveness of sins) is given, as even though God is omnipotent and can work directly in humans, the grace of the Holy Spirit is effected ordinarily through the hearing of the Holy Scriptures. The two great doctrines by which the Holy Scriptures are to be understood consist of Law (Old Testament) and Gospel (New Testament), in which the Law testifies against our own sin and declares the wrath of God, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12) and “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” (Romans 3:20), while the Gospel shows us the mercy and grace by which we are saved. The Law as well as the Gospel itself has the very power of God in its words, for it is written about the Gospel, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16) and “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” (John 6:63). Thereby one can see that the Holy Spirit acts through the preaching of the Law to produce contrition, and then effects through the words of the Gospel life and salvation, using specially the means of the Holy Scriptures instead of personal divine revelation or prophecies.

All Scripture points toward the incarnation of God in the flesh, Jesus Christ, and his atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world on the cross. Seeing that God Himself works in power through His Word made flesh, and does not spurn the condescension to His good creation, it is within God’s character to work through matter as part of His redemption of creation. Foreshadowed in the old covenant by God’s gracious provision of physical reminders of His covenant promises through the circumcision into God’s people (Genesis 17), the tassels of tekhelet to remember the Law (Numbers 15:38-40), and the blood of the covenant with the feast of the elders in God’s presence (Exodus 24:8-11), are the Holy Mysteries of the new covenant, called sacraments when translated into Latin, which originally comes from the Greek word mystery that in the Scriptures describe the saving truths of faith (see 1 Corinthians 4:1, Ephesians 5:32, 1 Timothy 4:16), but later in history describes divine rites instituted by the God-man Christ. A sacrament is a sacred act instituted by the command of Christ in which His Word’s promise is joined to a visible element by which He offers and bestows verily the forgiveness of sins obtained for us by His suffering, death, and resurrection. For there is indeed a forensic justification of sins fulfilled from the prophecy in Christ: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:5-6), which God has decided to ordinarily make real in believers through the sacraments. Does this mean that one must partake of the sacrament to be saved? The thief on the cross (see Luke 23:39-42) was not baptised, but our Lord remembered him unto salvation, which shows the mercy of the Lord in extraordinary circumstances in what is called the baptism of desire; most other instances of salvation in the Scriptures are accompanied with baptism of water. The principle of abundance shown through the sacraments is such that God provides grace through Word and Sacrament as an overflow of his abundant love and not as another set of condemning laws; while the old covenant only circumcised male infants and male converts, the new covenant baptises all believers male and female, infants and adults, while the table of the Mosaic blood covenant was restricted to the elders of Israel, the table is now open to all, and while the forgiveness of sins was restricted to the sign of ritual sacrifice, it is now freely available once and for all who believe in the Gospel. Can the new covenant be less gracious than the old in removing those who were already accepted? Praise be to God who has given us every spiritual gift in the heavens in Christ (Ephesians 1:3)! 

Drawing from this abundance, while the old covenant signs were seals of God’s covenant and a shadow of the things to come, the new covenant sacraments, namely Holy Communion, Holy Baptism, and Holy Absolution, are specially attached with God’s promises of grace by the Living Word. The sacraments are the means by which the Office of the Keys given to the Church are to be administered, as they are attached to God’s will not simply being a memorial limited by human intellectual powers of remembrance, but God’s Word actually doing what it says and delivering what it promises. For the Lord says this about the church to the Holy Apostles, “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:19) and “And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.” (John 20:22-23). 

Pertaining to Holy Baptism, the remitting of sins is connected to the washing of water (Greek: loutron also found in Titus 3:5 referring to the washing of regeneration and in church writings referring to baptism) by the word as it is written of the church in, “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,” (Ephesians 5:25-26) What is the cleansing by water and the word? Certainly if the metaphorical sense was preferred the qualifier “of water” would be unnecessary. After the crowds were driven to contrition by the Law preached in the sermon of the Apostle Peter, it is written, “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for (Greek: eis; for the purpose of) the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” (Acts 2:38-39). From this a plain reading of the word baptism (Greek: baptizō; washing, ceremonial ablution) indicates that the disciple and rock of the church, Peter, remits sins through the washing of water according to the promise. For the function of the word repent (to think differently or afterwards, i.e. reconsider (morally, feel compunction)) is joined with baptism using the common conjunction not denoting a temporal order but an equivalence, remaining in the centre of Peter’s sermons of contrition: “And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.” (Acts 2:40-41). Peter’s word was of condemnation unto contrition, and then the Gospel hope of forgiveness of sins attached to baptism.

Be warned not to fall into error, as the atonement for the forgiveness of sins happened once for all the world, as it is written that forgiveness of sins was a single event while you are yet in the flesh in Colossians 2:13, “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses.” In the sacraments there is no repeat of sacrifice or continual atonement, but the application of the grace obtained through the one sacrifice for all time through faith (see Hebrews 10:12). “Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.” (Hebrews 10:18). If anyone spurns the working of God through the ordinary element of water, may the Word of God correct them about His character, as it is written in 1 Corinthians 1:28 “And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:”, and foreshadowed in 2 Kings 5:1-14 where God heals Naaman not by instant miracle but through water, and the healing of the blind man by mud and washing by Jesus Christ in John 9:1-12. 

Compare the new promise of Holy Baptism with the old covenant promise of “And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.” (Genesis 17:19). The foreshadowing of baptism is circumcision as it is written, “In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein (Greek: en; a primary preposition denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by implication) instrumentality (medially or constructively)) also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation (Greek: energeia; ‘efficiency ("energy"):—operation, strong, (effectual) working.’) of God, who hath raised him from the dead.” (Colossians 2:11-12). While circumcision had no energeia associated with it, baptism is the effective sacrament of the abundant grace instituted by the Word in the new covenant as well as the mark of the family of God as foreshadowed in the old covenant. Baptism cannot be considered in this passage without the function of regeneration, for if it is a mere continuation of circumcision and mark of covenant membership or just a public profession of faith, how can it be the instrument of putting off the body of the sins of the flesh? Therefore, it follows that the faith of the operation of God refers to the faith through which the divinely promised benefit of the sacraments are received. As it is written, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)” (Ephesians 2:4-5) and “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Thus both grace and faith are not human works, for saving faith itself is a work of God which is planted by drawing of the Gospel by grace; if this is not so why does our Lord say in Mark 16:16-17: “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” It is important to note that our Lord does not place the qualifier of not being baptised upon the damned as it is not a requirement of salvation, but places it upon the saved as it is the ordinary means by which salvation is applied. Baptism is from God, as the Lord Jesus instituted baptism in his final command. Therefore let it not be said that the regeneration through Holy Baptism is the work of the pastor administering the sacrament or the work of the intellectual capability of the one baptised to profess their beliefs publically. Jesus foreshadowed this new covenant baptism in the Theophany at the Jordan using the baptism of Saint John the Forerunner (see Matthew 3:13-17), in which the action of the Trinity rightfully was revealed in glory for the Holy Spirit to descend upon the God-man Christ to empower Him, and that being no work of John but revealed through the words of God which sanctified the waters and fulfilled all righteousness. Let not the prototype be confused for the sacrament of God, as it is written, “I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.” (Mark 1:8). Given the continued existence of water baptism in the new covenant, the Forerunner is not saying that water baptism will cease, but baptism will become a means of grace by which the Holy Spirit works. In all aspects, the waters of baptism, the profession of the believer, and the words of promise uttered through the pastor give glory to God alone for His gifts. From the prototype and from the new covenant promise, the effectiveness of Holy Baptism rests in the Word of God attached to it: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:” (Matthew 28:19). It is not the water that saves but the Word of God through it, therefore immersion or sprinkling of water does not matter, as the Greek word baptizō does not mean full immersion but a rather ordinary washing with water as it is used in Mark 7:4, “And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables.” Surely the Pharisees, legalistic as they were, would not fully immerse tables in a bath of water! That is not to say that full immersion is not a powerful image of the death of the old Adam, but with practical considerations in churches without the capacity for it the baptism by sprinkling is valid, as all baptism in the trinitarian formula fulfills the promise. Therefore there is “One Lord, one faith, one baptism,” (Ephesians 4:5), not contingent on one’s own imperfect sincerity in professing faith, but on the unfailing faithfulness of God’s promise. Listen not to strange doctrines of rebaptism based on feelings of unworthiness at the first baptism, or to those that say there are many works of grace unto salvation and thus rend the Holy Spirit from the baptism of water to make two baptisms, for the Word of God and the faith of the Apostolic Church testifies against them. 

The Apostle Peter writes clearly of baptism as the means of grace for salvation, for the washing of water only puts away the filth of the flesh, but the Spirit putting the old Adam to death and quickening us saves along with the water: “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.” (1 Peter 3:21)

The King James translation renders the Greek eperōtēma as answer, but other translations go with the other possible interpretation which is inquiry or appeal. It is indeed in harmony with the context with the latter interpretation, as a good conscience toward God can only come through regeneration. Noah’s ark prefigured the flooding wrath of the old Law, by which all were condemned, which is now redeemed into the flood of grace through Holy Baptism, which lifts us up to new life as Noah and his family were lifted up by the waters. For it is the Apostle Paul who writes, “Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:3-4), and it is our Lord who says “…Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” (John 3:5).

  Some will say that one can receive the Holy Spirit apart from baptism and cite such passages as Acts 8:12-17:  “But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done. Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.”

The post-Pentecost faith of the people of Samaria, was effected by the Holy Spirit, for the regeneration spoken of in John 3:5 goes hand-in-hand with faith, as our Lord has said, “...Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3) and the Holy Apostle: “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 5:4-5). Therefore, the believers in Samaria after having been saved by the Gospel through the Holy Spirit in baptism, were not receiving the Holy Spirit unto regeneration, but the gifts of authority by the laying on of hands of the Apostles, in order to work miracles for God’s kingdom as this passage focuses as a whole on miracles and not the mechanism of saving faith. This passage is an instance of the Apostles granting the special gift to work miracles by the Holy Spirit as there was no canon of New Testament Scriptures at the time; the authority of apostolic teaching had to be transferred through the early church rite of Chrismation which is the laying of hands of the apostles to anoint with the Holy Spirit the authority to preach the Gospel.

Another case pointed to is that of the Apostles themselves, who received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. This is another case of the ordination of the authority of the Apostles, anointed to work miracles with authority. For the Apostles themselves were ordained by Christ himself before His ascension: “Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:” (John 20:21-22). Even though the Apostles believed in Jesus as Christ which indicates regeneration of the Holy Spirit, Jesus still told them to wait until Pentecost as the Holy Spirit would not come as the helper until He was glorified in heaven as it is written in Acts 1:4-5, “And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.” Let no one equate the water baptism of the Forerunner with the water baptism of the new covenant, for in Acts 19:2-6 it is written: 

“He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.”

The disciples themselves were assuredly baptised in water before Pentecost, assuming from our Lord’s command to them to do it to others and the lack of mention of their own baptism in Acts 2; the case of the Apostles is exceptional however, for the baptism of water and the Spirit could not truly be fulfilled until Jesus Christ ascended, therefore the power promised in baptism could only be truly fulfilled at Pentecost where the Holy Spirit begins the full ministry of the new covenant.

Some will say that salvation cannot be lost, therefore baptism does not save as many who are baptised fall away. The warnings of Holy Scripture are clear: “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” (Hebrews 6:4-6), as well as the warning of our Lord: “Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.” (Matthew 12:31-32). For although the Lord foreknows the elect in Him, the corrupt will of man has the choice to continually reject the Holy Spirit’s provision of drawing in repentance towards God and faith in the forgiveness of sins, instead rejecting salvation forever. To such ones the parable of Luke 8:13 applies: “They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.”. If however, one persists in the help of the Holy Spirit to keep faith in the forgiveness of sins and salvation through Jesus Christ, God is faithful to continue the work of repentance and sanctification in us to the end (see Philippians 1:6). Truly the sacraments give objective proof that Christ is for us, and our assurance of salvation need not be concerned with introspection for signs of a believer which will eventually result in despair of our lack of repentance, but with the assurance of the forgiveness of sins that is not our own work in the promises of God attached to the visible elements.

How then is faith to be understood? The Reformers considered two facets that can be applied to the word: fides directa (real faith in Christ; gift of God: grace, faith etc. whole package drawing of the father in John 6:44) versus fides reflecta (intellectual faith). How wretched would we be if our fallible human intellect was the measure of faith? Would the lack of ability to perfectly articulate the faith or an arbitrary age of accountability prevent someone from being baptised? Is it found in the Holy Scriptures that the regeneration of Holy Baptism requires first the work of a satisfactory profession of faith? As a testimony against this, the preponderance of infant faith in the Scriptures outnumbers the exceptional case of the thief on the cross, for in Psalm 22:9-10 it is written, “But thou art he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts. I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother's belly.” The Psalms were sung as the liturgy of the whole nation of Israel, so it is no special case of the author that in infancy faith in God is sung of. The final verdict is Christ, who said “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.” (Matthew 18:10-11) and in the parallel: “And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.” (Luke 18:15-17). If one should say that it is unnatural that infants can believe, I say that faith which is the gift of God is supernatural. Who would deny the working of the Holy Spirit in Saint John the Forerunner, for it is written of him, “And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb.” (Luke 1:14-15) and “And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:” (Luke 1:39-41). The Holy Spirit has all power to regenerate anyone unto faith in God. Why would God make the Forerunner an exception when he is but a shadow of the abundance of the new covenant. How much more will God open the gifts of the Holy Spirit to all believers who are greater than John because of the full revelation of God? Therefore the sacrament of Holy Baptism can be administered effectually to those unable to articulate their faith such as infants and the mentally ill of Christian parents to whom the promise is given. Even if the fides reflecta of such individuals is not manifest, the fides directa even if the size of a mustard seed is surely counted for them. For our Lord along with David in the Psalms did not find it incredible that infants and toddlers could praise Him: “And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children (Greek pais; children, same word used in Herod’s slaying of the children two and under in Matthew 2:16) crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David; they were sore displeased, And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?”(Matthew 21:15-16)

What else is known of faith, than that the Word is effective for faith through the Holy Spirit illuminating Law and Gospel. And of the effect of knowing that Word it is written regarding the Hieromartyr Timothy, “And that from a child (Greek brephos; an infant (properly, unborn) literally or figuratively:—babe, (young) child, infant.) thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” (2 Timothy 3:15). Wherever the Word is present in the household, it creates and sustains faith, therefore the households are baptised because the Word will continually create faith among all those living there, for it is written, “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.” (1 Corinthians 7:14). From this we can understand the account of the baptisms of the households of Cornelius (Acts 10), Lydia (Acts 16), The Philippian Jailor (Acts 16), Crispus (Acts 18) and Stephanas (1 Corinthians 1)​. Even infants in the womb can hear and perceive language according to modern linguistic and medical science, so it stands to reason that the Word of God has the power to effect belief in the godly household who prays and worships around the infant. Therefore the baptism of the entire household is a practical acknowledgement of the power of God’s Word as well as the headship of the parents in the household. For God does not spurn baptism of conversion: “I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.” (Luke 18:15-17), but also rests His favour through His promises unto the household of the believer. Let us trust in the Word which adopts us without discrimination into Christ through baptism: “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-28). 

Now that I have written at length about the Scriptural basis for the sacrament of Holy Baptism, I wish to demonstrate that the promise of our Lord is true in Matthew 16:18: “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” For it is the practice of some to disavow the entire history of the Apostolic Church and interpret the Scriptures according to their own passions, peddling such incredulous stories which consist of in essence the notion that the gates of hell prevailed against the Church for two thousand years until their interpretation of Scriptures (devoid of the tradition handed down from the Apostolic Fathers who passed down the whole Gospel with the authority of miracles until led by the Holy Spirit to enumerate the canon of the New Testament) surfaced from the small unbroken lineage of true believers from the time of the Holy Apostles. To demonstrate that the sacramental Holy Baptism for all was practiced since the early church, it is useful to entreat the wisdom of the disciples of the Holy Apostles, who are much wiser than I. Saint Irenaeus who was ordained by Polycarp, the disciple of John the Apostle writes: "He [Jesus] came to save all through himself; all, I say, who through him are reborn in God: infants, and children, and youths, and old men. Therefore he passed through every age, becoming an infant for infants, sanctifying infants; a child for children, sanctifying those who are of that age . . . [so that] he might be the perfect teacher in all things, perfect not only in respect to the setting forth of truth, perfect also in respect to relative age" (Against Heresies 2:22:4 [A.D. 189]). Hieromartyr Hippolytus writes: "Baptize first the children, and if they can speak for themselves let them do so. Otherwise, let their parents or other relatives speak for them" (The Apostolic Tradition 21:16 [A.D. 215]). The controversial Origen testifies to the practice of the church: "Every soul that is born into flesh is soiled by the filth of wickedness and sin. . . . In the Church, baptism is given for the remission of sins, and, according to the usage of the Church, baptism is given even to infants. If there were nothing in infants which required the remission of sins and nothing in them pertinent to forgiveness, the grace of baptism would seem superfluous" (Homilies on Leviticus 8:3 [A.D. 248]). Origen also confesses: "The Church received from the apostles the tradition of giving baptism even to infants. The apostles, to whom were committed the secrets of the divine sacraments, knew there are in everyone innate strains of [original] sin, which must be washed away through water and the Spirit" (Commentaries on Romans 5:9 [A.D. 248]). The canon of the New Testament was defined by the ecumenical council of bishops, and from these ecumenical councils also came the doctrine of the Trinity and the definition of the Nicene Creed which faithfully confesses the truths of Scripture: “In one holy catholic and apostolic Church; we acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.” Aside from the Apostolic Age, let it not be said that the Reformers denied the efficacy of the sacraments, for both Martin Luther and John Calvin agreed on the sacramental nature of grace given through baptism and communion. Look no further than the Book of Concord and the Westminster Catechism for the sacramental beliefs of the churches started by these two giants in the faith.

Lastly, the consideration of infants who perish too soon is addressed by the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. For if one holds that baptism is merely a sign of the grace of election as the Calvinists do, how can their practice of infant baptism provide any comfort if the infant cannot exhibit the fruits of the Spirit that is the proof of salvation in their tradition? Or if one does not believe in any sacraments, how can one know that their infant is part of the elect? By the grace of Holy Baptism infants are regenerated unto faith, and that provides a great comfort to their Christian parents. That is not to say that unbaptised infants are damned, because God is a merciful God we trust in His goodness by faith, though the Scriptures are silent. It is written in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” The old Adam of our fallen nature is drowned in the waters of Baptism, which instills new desire towards God by the Spirit, however the old Adam will only be finally drowned upon our death, so we are to struggle against every old impulse of the flesh (see Galatians 5:17) until the final victory on the Last Day. God has graciously provided the sacraments for assurance outside of ourselves, let us run the race and be proven worthy of the crown of glory by Christ Jesus. May the Father of all mercies comfort you Brother Oliverius. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever and unto the ages of ages, Amen.

Post Scriptum

The prophecy of Ezekiel 36:22-38 below, thus fulfilled in Baptism:

22 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, thus saith the Lord God; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.

23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.

24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.

25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.

26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.

29 I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you.

30 And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.

31 Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.

32 Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord God, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.

33 Thus saith the Lord God; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded.

34 And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by.

35 And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited.

36 Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the Lord build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the Lord have spoken it, and I will do it.

37 Thus saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock.

38 As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the Lord.