On Caroline's Baptism

A week ago, we had Caroline's Baptism. As our church home does not observe this historical sacrament, we made it a smaller affair at our house, mostly inclusive of our family and community group. I wrote and distributed a brief explanation prior to the ceremony, so as to help explain our belief in and reason for honoring the sacrament, since Infant Baptism is unfamiliar to most of our friends and family. I thought I would include it on this site, perhaps with the intent to further explain the historical position of the church on this issue. We'll see if that happens.

I wanted to send this out before Caroline’s Baptism, because I know that many of you did not grow up with the Christian tradition of Infant Baptism and may be unclear as to why Christian parents baptize their children. The purpose of this writing is simply to give you a brief explanation of what we believe so that you better understand the scope and significance of the sacrament and the ceremony you will take part in. If you have any further questions or wonder why we believe scripture leads us as it does, then feel free to follow up with me. I would love to further discuss any of this, as even I did not grow up with an understanding or observance of this holy sacrament but came to it slowly and cautiously (and often with great resistance) through the consistent witness of holy scripture, biblical theology, and the historical Christian church. There are three components to this ceremony to be understanding of:

The actual Baptism of Caroline
Our vows regarding raising Caroline
Your vows of support to us and her


First, we are baptizing Caroline into the visible church of Christ. This we do, first and foremost, out of obedience to God and His scriptural direction for us to do so. God’s Word clearly testifies that God works in covenants through families and always includes the infant seed of his professing people. Furthermore, God commands faithful parents to place the sign and seal of His covenant with His people upon their infant children and then raise them in the knowledge of Him. As Caroline is the daughter of believers, of whom He has called to be His own, we are placing the sign and seal of God’s covenant through Christ upon her as an act of obedience. As such, we include her as a member of the Christ’s visible church with great faith placed in His sovereignty to call her to life everlasting in Him. He is the Potter.

Allow me to clarify and quell two possible misconceptions or perceived extremities, each on the opposite end of the spectrum of Christian tradition. On one end, we want to quiet any thought that Caroline’s baptism is a mere dedication, symbolic yet without ultimate significance. One reason my heart leaps with love for the sacraments is because they are physically present manifestations of that which are eternally divine and infinitely mysterious. They are truly intersections of heaven and earth, of God and man, Creator and creation. Just as we do not hold the Eucharist to be a mere memorial reminder of Christ’s body and blood, but of something of more holy substance, we also hold Baptism to be a very real and sacred means of grace. The sacrament of Baptism is the very sign and seal of God’s covenant with His people through Christ, as declared and commanded by Scripture.

On the other end, we want to make clear that Baptism neither regenerates nor absolves sin. Christ is our propitiation and it is alone through His incarnate work on the cross that we are justified. Furthermore, it is by means of the Holy Spirit within the Father’s timing that we are regenerated, our eyes opened to the truth of His divine and glorious lordship and His work of saving grace. Let me also point out that while God works through covenants, not everyone enjoying covenant relationship is saved. Just as it is well exemplified through the Old Testament with Israel and circumcision, one can bear the sign of the covenant and yet not ever come to truly know the Lord. This distinction is important to recognize and hopefully will bring clarity to why we will still fervently pray for God to reveal Himself to Caroline and call her to salvation in Christ.


Second, Katie and I are entering vows to raise Caroline in Christ. As commanded of every generation within God’s people, we are promising to tell her the stories of God and His people, instructing her in truth. While we indeed teach her though words, our prayer and promise is that we lead her to the truth of her God and Savior through modeling Christ to her. It is the way that we live, interact, and love that we most effectively communicate to Caroline who our God is. It is through our own grace extended, provision attained, and redemption reconciled that we offer her a taste of the fruit of the Spirit. As such, we vow to God and Caroline that we will as best able throw off the weight and trappings of this world to pursue Christ. In this we will bear testimony to Caroline of God’s supreme goodness and will glorify God in proclaiming with our lives the truth of His character to Caroline.


The third, though short in liturgy, needs to be fully explained and our expectation disclosed, for this is your promise to us. Do not allow the casualness of our setting to dilute the holiness and permanence of this event. Understand that this baptism is more than a celebration, though it is that in part. All of you here, if you confess with us today your own vows, will covenant with our family to join us in being a vision of Christ to Caroline. As our closest friends and family, each of you will have the greatest opportunity to shape her perspective of God and man, either for better or worse. As such, we take this part very seriously and hold proper expectation.

May your words and lives echo the story of grace that God has spoken into your heart. Simply love her as Christ has loved you. Be authentic with her. Show her the beauty of Christ and His Church. Whisper to her the glories of Her God. Never fail to support us as we strive to do the same. As Caroline grows and matures and as the Holy Spirit ministers to her, may she always see Christ in you as well as in your relationships with one another and within your communities. For as our Lord said,

“By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
- John 13:35

It is our prayer that God would use your lives with our own to proclaim His grace and love, by which He would draw Caroline to Himself, leading Caroline to salvation in confessing Christ as Lord.

A New Perspective on Praying for Your Enemies?

Today I was reminded of what Dr. John Hannah said when I was in one of his classes a few years back. I am sure we have all (lay or clergy) had similar thoughts...many times over.

If you're ever in the pastorate, you'll someday have guys that just drive you nuts. They do nothing but complain and cause strife, but they won't leave the church either. What you need to do is get on your knees and pray for God to take the S.O.B. home. It's a benefit for them and a benefit for the church. Really, it's a win-win...a truly great thing.

Words of Truth

To preach and not to catechize is to build without foundation.

Thomas Watson, Why Catechize?

Life of Pi.

I recently borrowed from Eddy Life of Pi by Yan Martel. Amazing. Simply one of the best books I have ever read. It has been the most memorable book I've read since The Shack by William P. Young last year, which is an entirely different book altogether, but a narrative that was equally intoxicating to me, despite a comparatively reduced quality of writing. If you haven't read The Shack, do. Just do. Perhaps I'll blog on it one day soon, though most likely it will be later after a second reading. If you haven't read Life of Pi, stop reading this post and go to bed so that you can get up early and get to the bookstore as soon as they open in the morning to buy it. On your way, go ahead and call in sick to work and clear your evening schedule so as to devote proper time and attention to such a literary masterpiece. It is beauty in word. Grace in text. When you think you have reached the end of the journey, you find out that the world was never as you saw it along the way. Everything changes. Meaning expands. You mind is shaken and your heart trembles. It is the type of book that confesses that God loves words and graciously created certain men to write them well. This is not a review, it is an exhortation. Partake in the blessing of wonderful literature.

Is the Church Growing Ashamed of the Cross?

Disclaimer: This might very well be one of those posts that tick people off. Sorry. If you think that might be you, quit reading and just click here

I have become increasingly aware where I feel completely at peace. No, it's not a pub. That's wonderful in its own way, full of community and conversation, but it's not where I feel most at home. More than any other place, I feel a simple assuring calmness in the pew of a church. Preferably an old church, and I do specify a pew.

This realization has progressively come upon me through my time at Incarnation, but I had a mild epiphany Saturday night while at a wedding inside First UMC Dallas. It should go without saying that I indeed affirm that Christ's Church is not a building but His people, His Elect; however, there is something encouraging to my soul about a place of worship that actually reminds me of my Savior. Such is truly wonderful to me. There is something about an old church that provides me grounding in my faith. Within it's sacred walls, I feel shelter and refuge from the foreign world in which I spend most of my time. I adore the quiet stillness while kneeling in a wooden pew with the cross ahead of me. I even like the cross with Christ on it, and yes, I understand the significance of the empty cross of our risen Lord. Still, I take comfort and encouragement in the whisper that we are all to bear our cross, and yet, Christ bore His to completion for our Salvation and ultimate victory.

So many other churches I am in are constructed with the intention to not look like a church at all. For me, this removes any visible separation that I need as a reminder in my life. As Christians, we are sojourners in a foreign land, yet I feel that most who call themselves believers never think about this. When I walk into a church, I hope to be instantly struck with the truth that I belong to a God and a community that are not of this world. It seems the trend now is to simply mirror the very trends of society. Why would we want people to feel like they are in a coffee shop or a county club? There are already too many Starbucks. I desire to be starkly confronted with the reality that I am in a house of devotion to God, a place of safety and grace situated geographically within the metropolis of bankers, attorneys, and coffeehouses. It is the clear distinction between the age of the eternal and He who is truly glorious, and our present age of sin and a fallen world subjected to Satan. (Yeah, he's real.) We should inescapably see and feel this difference and affirm without doubt or confusion in which of these two realms our identity is held.

Think of the irony of the building where the pastor offices and the message he preaches to his congregates. Is this not the very theme on which we are admonishing our parishioners? Are we not called personally to be a vision of Christ to our community of friends, family, and all those whom we come into contact with? Yet, our gathering places, our chapels of worship are themselves a light hidden under a bushel, masquerading as a generic convention center with top quality convenience amenities. Furthermore, many such buildings go to such great lengths as to hide their crosses, the symbol of our faith. I don't just mean outside, either. Inside, a cross couldn't be found. Instead of boldly proclaiming the Gospel with it's wondrous symbol, a clear and visceral confession that our salvation was procured through Christ's propitiating our sin through His death on a cross, we too often look no different than a used Lexus and Mercedes dealership next to a donut shop or business park. So much for boldly proclaiming and bearing the cross of Christ. Talk about overreaction to a likely misperception of iconic tradition. To be fair though, even Peter tried to fit into the crowd and denied knowing Christ to the public around him three times.

This makes me wonder how much we think. I mean, really think and consider what our actions communicate to our community. Even church buildings expose a pile of evidence that testifies authoritatively to our theology. How much does the church believe in her God? There are basically two lines of thought:

1. God is sovereign and saves man. As Paul writes in his letter to Romans (8:29-30), it is God who foreknew, predestined, called, justified, and glorified. God draws men to him. The basic support for this view is Scripture (the Bible), the historical doctrine of the church (majority through the First Great Awakening), and all previous accounts of God's relation to man.

2. Man is sovereign and saves himself...with God's help, of course. Basic support for this is found in the Second Great Awakening, Billy Sunday, Charles Finney, and most Baptist Youth Camps.

So here's where the tires meet the road. Does God save or do we? Let me ask you this way, with some application specifically related to this topic: As Christians, are we commanded to boldly proclaim the Gospel and have faith in God to reveal Himself and save the lost...or, because we don't think God can cross the rubicon of coolness and relevance, do we camouflage Him because He might scare some "seekers" away? Do we really believe the Scriptures when it says that nobody seeks God? Then why do we conform our visibility to pander to the lost that doesn't seek Him outside Him removing their blindness? Do we not believe God will call all whom He predestines, that He is not faithful? If we do believe the Word of God, why do we hide our cross?

Just some thoughts. I'll stop before I enter a full fledged rant.