Word of Salvation – Vol.24 No.03 – October 1977
Faithfulness In Covenant Baptism
Sermon by Rev. H. W. Pennings on Genesis 17:14
Scripture Reading: Genesis 17:1-21, Acts 2:1-13, 29-40
Congregation, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
The setting of Genesis Chapter 17 is the beginning of the history of the covenant of grace. Genesis Chapters 1 to 11 deal with WORLD history. But from Genesis Chapter 12 onwards, the Bible does not deal with world history for a long time. It deals with COVENANT history, or, as some call it, the HISTORY OF SALVATION.
For at the beginning of Genesis 12 we read that God told Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and I will make of you a great nation and I will bless you and make your name great and by you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
Two children are born to Abram and Sarai in their old age Isaac and Ishmael. We mention Isaac first because we are dealing with covenant history. For the boys and girls will quickly tell us that Ishmael was born first and that he wasn’t Sarai’s son. Yes, Ishmael is born first. Abram was 86 years old then. But the history we are dealing with takes place 13 years later. What we are told here occurred about a year before Isaac was born. God had made a covenant with Abram, and, because Isaac was soon to be born, God decided to repeat this covenant. God also decided that it was the appropriate occasion to give a SIGN of His covenant promises.
We may call the day on which this sign was first given the true birthday of the Christian Church. It was NOT the birthday of the human race. Nor was it the first occasion on which God had found a family to be righteous – Noah was righteous. It was the birthday of the CHURCH. On this birthday God gave the first sign of belonging to the church. It was the sign or SACRAMENT, for a Sacrament is a HOLY SIGN it was the sign of circumcision. By this sign, God set some people apart from the rest of the world’s population to belong to Him.
God’s PROMISE to these circumcised people is related in verse 7: “And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.”
Later on another sacrament would be given on another great and momentous occasion. That was the PASSOVER FEAST which was given at the time when God’s church became a nation.
That we are aware of the historical setting of Genesis 17 is extremely important. Equally important is a good knowledge of the historical setting of the feast of Pentecost. For, whereas Genesis 17 describes the birthday of the WHOLE CHRISTIAN CHURCH the church to which we, too, belong Acts 2 describes the birthday of what we call the NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH. If you read Genesis 17 you should also read Acts 2. Neither of these birthday chapters must be read by itself. This is indicated very clearly. Let us repeat Genesis 17:7,
“And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout your generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.”
And in the light of Genesis 17:7, we read Acts 2:38 and 39;
“And Peter said to them, repent, and be baptised, everyone of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins: and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
Now comes the verse which so clearly is based on Genesis 17…
“For the promise is to you and to your children and all that are afar off, everyone of whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.”
A little further on in Acts 2 we read that 3000 people were given covenant baptism. A few verses further we have described, but briefly, how these 3000 people celebrated the second covenant sign of the Lord’s Supper.
The New Testament feast of Pentecost stands at the end of one era of church history and at the beginning of another era. A sacrifice had just been made. Jesus had died on the cross. Because of the shedding of Jesus’ blood for sin, there would be no more shedding of blood or sacrifice in the church. The sacrament of circumcision could be displaced, and was, by the bloodless sacrament of baptism. Both were covenant rites signifying the washing away of sin. The sacrament of the Passover was displaced too. Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper in its place.
Some people have claimed that there is really no relationship between circumcision and baptism. For they say that circumcision was not very spiritual, whereas baptism is. Yet every Jewish covenant member who was justified by faith, as Abraham was, knew that circumcision, which was a sacrament at which blood was shed, could only have meaning if it was accepted by faith. Circumcision of the flesh was a sign of the circumcision OF THE HEART. We read about that in Deuteronomy 30: 6,
“And the Lord will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.”
When God gave his covenant partners the sacrament of circumcision, He meant the people to love Him with heart and soul and strength, which is the same spiritual requirement which we have today in order to be disciples of Jesus Christ,
It is in this light that we look more closely and exactly at the words of our text. The CENTRAL word is that word COVENANT. Because of the covenant, Abram becomes ABRAHAM, Sarai becomes SARAH and later on Simon becomes PETER and Saul becomes PAUL. Because the covenant is from everlasting to everlasting, God sent Jesus into the world to die for the sins of all faithful covenant people. For Jesus says about His sacrifice on the cross, “This is My blood of the covenant.” It is because of the covenant that Jesus says to Nicodemus who came to Him by night, “You must be born again”. Jesus is amazed that Nicodemus could claim to be a teacher of Israel and not understand this spiritual requirement which had always been there. Outside of this covenant there are no covenant sacraments, and outside of faith in Jesus Christ, Who came to fulfil the covenant, there is no salvation. God’s covenant is central in this text and it is central in Christian discipleship, also today. That is why God told Abraham on the birthday of the Christian church, “Every male among you shall be circumcised.” He said further,”
“You shall keep My covenant… He that is eight days old shall be circumcised; every male throughout your generations. So shall My covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant.”
Should it be the case, however, that the church is disobedient about this – should it be the case some REFUSE this sign and seal of God’s covenant promises – then the covenant is broken.
And that is the second central word in this text the word BROKEN. It tells us in simple language that those who disregard God’s commandment about circumcision have broken God’s covenant. Then they might be Jewish, children of Abraham by natural descent, but they are not true and spiritual children of Abraham. They have no promise from God at all. Not only are they automatically cut off from the church, but they are also to be cut off from the nation. They cannot live with Abraham anymore. Later on they cannot belong to the twelve tribes. It is a huge privilege to be covenant partners of God. No one deserves it as a natural right. And it is also a commandment.
Can we apply this to baptism? Yes, of course. Baptism cannot be disregarded. It is commanded. Those who refuse to be baptised into the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of their sins do not belong to the covenant. For baptism is, as was circumcision, a spiritual sign of the cleansing work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Without baptism, a person cannot belong to the church. For it is a sign of church membership which God gives and which He also requires. Those who are covenant-breakers, also today, belong on the outside.
But what about that neighbour of ours who belongs to the Salvation Army? Millions of people have never been baptised and have never shared in the second covenant sign of the Lord’s Supper. Can we honestly call these apparently faithful disciples of Jesus, covenant breakers?
Yes, we must. For they are not faithful.
Are they then Christians?
We cannot answer that.
We must leave it to God to decide that question.
But there is a more urgent question to be asked. What about those millions of people who do not believe that INFANTS should receive covenant baptism? Does this mean that those children, who cannot do anything for themselves as yet, are also covenant breakers? Does this further mean that they do not belong to the church and have no promises from God?
“ANY UNCIRCUMCISED MALE – HE – HAS BROKEN MY COVENANT” our text says.
Children of covenant members were to be circumcised on the eighth day. A nine-day old infant not circumcised was a covenant breaker. And it follows, of course, that his parents were also covenant breakers. The UNSPIRITUALITY of the parents in DISREGARDING THE COMMANDMENT of God led to the UNSPIRITUALITY OF THEIR CHILDREN. Both parents and children have no blessing and no promise from God anymore.
For the sake of their believing parents, God promises to the children who are too young to have personal faith that they are children of promise holy children, according to 1Corinthians 7: 14. And for the sake of the UNBELIEF of parents, God WITHHOLDS these blessings from their children. Disobedience is unspirituality. Everyone suffers. The whole family. For uncircumcision of the flesh is the result of uncircumcision of the heart.
It is clear that children who are not baptised into the covenant are covenant breakers. The teaching that only adults should be baptised is a most serious departure from the teaching of God from eternity. The consequences can be disastrous. Yet also in this instance we cannot automatically conclude that these children, lacking the sign of the covenant and therefore being covenant breakers, are unholy children because of the disobedience and false thinking of their parents. We have to leave the matter to rest with God. We must do this because the Bible does not teach that covenant baptism always leads to salvation. We do this also because the teaching of God’s prophet Ezekiel is that ONLY THE SOUL THAT SINS SHALL DIE!
Children are not punished with eternal death just because their parents have sinned, writes Ezekiel in Chapter 18. Nor are children eternally secure just because they have been baptised. Covenant breakers can repent. We, too, are covenant breakers! We, too, should daily bow the knee before God to beg for His mercy and grace. The soul that repents shall live. The soul that sins shall die. That is God’s way.
Nevertheless, we should never conclude that the covenant baptism of children is unimportant. Our text speaks clearly. And the promises which accompany baptism are too precious to lose.
But there is also another way of being covenant breakers. It is when parents bring their children to receive baptism BUT DO NOT DO IT BELIEVINGLY ! And this is far, far worse, both for the parents and their children! For parents promise when their children are baptised that they will do everything within their power to lead these children to personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Many parents neglect this. Both by their teaching and their example they lead their children to destruction.
Parents, was the baptism of your children CHRISTIAN BAPTISM?
Or was it simply an outward form of obedience?
Is your home also the acknowledged home of the Saviour Who died and rose again and Who calls upon you daily to instruct your children in order to lead them to Christ? DID YOU NOT KNOW THAT THIS IS GOD’S WAY? Jesus asked Nicodemus who tried to become a Christian through the back door.
The sin of being a covenant breaker in that parents do not present their children to receive the sign of the covenant can possibly be forgiven. It is a terrible sin, but not the unforgivable sin. Yet the sin of receiving covenant baptism without taking its responsibilities seriously that, congregation, is often utterly disastrous.
Therefore, baptise your children, Christian parents!
You can and you must!
Those who lead the church astray by teaching that baptism can only follow faith are not taking seriously the unchangeable nature, both of God’s grace and God’s covenant. We cannot tolerate such teaching in the true church.
But for the sake also of your children, follow this up as you ought by nurturing your children daily. For the sin of rejecting Jesus Christ can never be forgiven your children. Nor can it be forgiven you.
You are called to faithfulness – in baptism – in your responsibility as covenant parents – in all things. For without this faithfulness is the covenant broken? Yes, in every instance.
AMEN.