Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions
Scripture Text: Mark 10:13-16
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Mark 10:13-16
From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession
Concerning Baptism
Since the gospel is taught among us purely and diligently, we have also received by God’s favor this fruit, that in our Churches no Anabaptists have arisen because the people have been fortified by God’s Word against the wicked and seditious sect of these robbers. We condemn quite a number of errors of the Anabaptists, but we also condemn that they dispute that the baptism of little children is profitable. For it is very certain that the promise of salvation pertains also to little children.
Pulling It Together
The divine promises of grace and of the Holy Spirit do not belong to the old alone, as if Jesus, who loved little ones, would have them wait for his promises. Jesus welcomes and freely offers the kingdom to all, regardless of age. See how even infants rejoice in the love of their parents. They smile and coo with such obvious delight that only cold and uncaring parents would deny them their love and attention. God does not ignore our children, denying them his gifts until some age of so-called awareness—as if the omnipotent God is unable to make babies coo and delight in his love. God does not depend upon our awareness but instead, upon his awareness of our need for grace. Thank God that his kingdom belongs to little children.
Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for extending your grace to all. Amen.
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Author
Rev. Mark E. Ryman serves as Pastor for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Salisbury, NC. Previously, Pastor Ryman has served other congregations in North Carolina and Ohio, as well as a call to specialized ministry with Sola Publishing.
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