Verburg Baptism

Order:

Baptism Template

(0) Homily and Charge

HOMILY

Charge:

Beloved in Christ Jesus, we give thanks to God for these children that He has given you, and for your expressed desire for them to know the Lord and to follow Him all their days. I charge you to continue steadfastly walking after Christ and raising your children in the fear and admonition of the Lord, humbly relying upon the grace of God in the diligent use of the means of grace—especially the Word of God, the sacraments, and prayer.

(1) The Institution of the Sacrament

In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus instituted baptism. It reads:

And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to keep all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

(2) The Meaning and Nature of the Sacrament

The Lord Jesus Christ instituted baptism as a covenant sign and seal for his church. He uses it not only for the solemn admission of the person who is baptized into the visible church, but also to depict and to confirm his ingrafting of that person into himself and his including that person in the covenant of grace.

The Lord uses baptism to portray to us that we and our children are conceived and born in sin and need to be cleansed. It is important to understand that, for parents to present their children for baptism, it is their act of faith in the promises of God, as YAHWEH has given the promise not only to them, but to their children, too.

In our baptism, the Lord puts his name on us, claims us as his own, and summons us to assume the obligations of the covenant. He calls us to believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior, to renounce the devil, the world, and the flesh, and to walk humbly with our God in devotion to His commandments.

(3) Exhortation to the Members of the Congregation to Improve Their Baptism

As we approach the holy sacrament, I want to encourage all here to remember and consider your own baptism. God has consecrated you and called you out from the world, into His household of faith, and as you rejoice in and consider what is happening here today, make sure that your walk with God is what it ought to be. If it isn’t, taste and see that YAHWEH is good and repent of your sin--Jesus Christ is your advocate before the Father and you are called to abandon your sin and walk in the newness of life that you have in Christ.

(4) The Ground of Baptizing Infants - OMITTED BECAUSE THIS WAS COVERED IN HOMILY

(5) The Covenant Commitment of the Parents

We now turn our attention to the parents. David and Sarah,

(a) Do you acknowledge that although our children are conceived and born in sin and therefore are subject to condemnation, they are holy in Christ by virtue of the covenant of grace, and as children of the covenant are to be baptized?

(b) Do you swear, by the grace of God, to teach diligently to [Theo, Bea, and Timothy] the principles of our holy Christian faith, revealed in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments and summarized in the Confession of Faith and Catechisms of this Church?

(c) Do you swear to pray regularly with and for [Theo, Bea, and Timothy], and to set an example of piety and godliness before (them)?

(d) Do you swear to endeavor, by all the means that God has appointed, to bring [Theo, Bea, and Timothy] up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, encouraging (them) to appropriate for (themselves) the blessings and fulfill the obligations of the covenant?

(6) The Baptism(s)

We will now observe the holy sacrament.

[Theodore Thomas Verburg], I baptize you into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

[Beatrice June Verburg], I baptize you into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

[Theodore Thomas Verburg], I baptize you into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

(7) Prayer Over the Baptized

(8) Song as the parents make their way to their seats