Dear COA Family,
Recently, I met a young woman who shared with me that she did not
see the need to be baptised even though she’d been a Christian from
young. Faith was something personal to her and she did not see the
need to seek affirmation from anyone nor to prove anything to anyone.
She did not see the need to perform any Christian “ritual”.
I tried to explain to her that baptism is very important because it not
only signifies spiritual rebirth but brings about God’s action which He
promises in Scripture. So it is not simply a “ritual” but an act of faith
that is instrumental for us to receive God’s blessings. Also, Jesus
demonstrated its importance by undergoing baptism at the hands of
John the Baptist.
Yet as I thought about what she shared, I realised that one important
function of baptism is exactly what she tried to avoid – the need for a
Christian “ritual”!
You see, anyone can claim that they are a Christian, yet no one else
will know for sure. How can anyone show decisively to the world that
they are a Christian? Does that person claim that they are a Christian
because they believe the truths of the Bible, or follow the example of
Christ’s love and compassion, or adopt the practices of the church?
Words are cheap. Therefore, the basic marker for a genuine believer is
baptism as a rejection of the old way of life to embrace the life of Christ.
This “ritual” has been adopted by the church since the time of the
apostles till now to demonstrate authentic Christianity. In our churches,
baptism qualifies you to receive the Holy Communion, together with
other privileges associated with being a member. With baptism, everyone
knows that you now identify with Christ.
This need for a “ritual” was brought home to me all the more this week
when I read a sad post by someone in her social media feed. She lamented
that her partner, whom she had lived with for the past seven years, had
cheated on her on a work trip. She felt hurt and betrayed by his actions.
A valid question by many to her would probably be why she wasn’t married
to that man in the first place. Without the “ritual” of marriage, there was no
firm commitment by both parties in the sight of the wider society to stay
loyal to each other. As a result, her living arrangements were not considered
a valid and permanent pledge of faithfulness – only an act of convenience
for both parties.
In our Christian faith, God has instituted rituals for our benefit and protection.
Such rituals or physical acts include baptism (Acts 2:38), participating in the
Holy Communion (Luke 22:19) and gathering together for corporate worship
(Hebrews 10:25). We are not to neglect any one of these rituals. They are
important because our faith is ultimately not just personal in nature, but also
expressed and lived out in a community.
God bless,
Revd Ian