But now behold how glorious a thing Baptism is, also how sublime a spectacle Christ’s Baptism presented. The heavens opened, the Father’s voice was heard, and the Holy Spirit descended, not as a phantom but in the form and figure of a natural dove. Nor was the Father’s voice an illusion when He pronounced these words from heaven: This is My beloved Son; with Him I am well pleased. These were real, natural, human words. And this dove, in the form of which the Holy Spirit was seen, was real and natural. Nevertheless, it was the Holy Spirit. All this was done in honor and praise of the Sacrament of Holy Baptism; for this is not a human institution but something sublime and holy. Eminent personages are involved in it: the Father, who bestows and who speaks here; the Son, who receives and is baptized; the Holy Spirit, who hovers above and reveals Himself in the form of a dove. And the celestial choir of all the angels is present; these skip and dance for joy over this act. Furthermore, the entire heaven stands ajar. If Baptism were a human act and institution, such scenes would not be enacted here. One must be on one’s guard against the Anabaptists and the schismatic spirits, who speak sneeringly of Baptism and state that it is mere water and of benefit to no one. They gaze at this sacred act as a cow stares at a new door. Martin Luther Luthers Works, AE 22:173, Sermons on the Gospel of St. John, John 1:34
Posted on: Sat, 25 Jan 2014 11:25:44 +0000
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