This sermon is from the Rev. Charles G. Dennison sermon archive, part of the “Christians & Their Vows” series, and was preached at Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Sewickley, PA, during a worship service on Sunday, February 4, 1990.
About this sermon
God himself is an oath-making God, which means our whole reality is oath-bound from the start, a pattern traced back to the striking covenant ritual of Genesis 15. This applies directly to the Presbyterian understanding of baptism and the oaths taken there.
Sermon transcript
Much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one Jesus Christ. So then, as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the one the many will be made righteous. And the law came in that the transgression might increase, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more. That as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And then turning to Ephesians, chapter 6, verses 1 through 4.
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with a promise, that it may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth. And fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. We have been speaking about oaths and vows. And we have been endeavoring to establish the seriousness of the matter. For in this time, oaths and vows are no longer taken seriously at all.
This is true for the church as it is for the world. This is true for Christians as it is for non-Christians. We have pointed out the oath-bound character of life. Whether you are a believer or an unbeliever, you cannot escape it. Reality, life, and existence are bound by oath from beginning to end, not only personally but also cosmically. The world is sustained by oath. The elements hold together by the vow and promise of God. The world is preserved from dissolution by the vow and oath of God.
The whole of reality is bound by oath because it owes its existence to the oath-making, vow-taking God, the true God. We will discuss the seriousness of our oaths and vows and how they reflect the character of life itself. We have spoken about the seriousness with which we are to take our vows and to uphold them. We have also seen in Scripture the seriousness with which God Himself upholds His vows.
God places His life on the line when He makes a vow. To break His word would mean His own existence would cease. In fact, to break His word would subject Him to self-annihilation. When we consider this in light of the oaths and vows God has made throughout the history of redemption, we begin to understand how deeply committed He is to His redemptive purpose. By saving His people through oath, vow, promise, and covenant, God has placed His life on the line. And just as it is impossible for God to cease to exist, so it is impossible for His promises to fail.
There are ceremonies in the Old Testament when God makes a covenant. We spoke of one from Genesis 15, a passage that is indeed unusual. In that chapter, we are told of a vision. We are told about the vision that Abram had of God, in which God makes a promise to him.
It is a deep sleep that comes over Abram. In that deep sleep, Abram sees a smoking furnace and a bright torch passing between the parts of the sacrifices that Abram has been commanded to lay out on the ground. The meaning of this is this: the torch represents God Himself, a symbol of God passing through the divided pieces. What is God saying by passing through the separated parts of the animals? He is saying, if I fail to keep my promise to you, may it be done to me as it has been done to these animals. I seal my promise and my oath with my life. This is how God takes it seriously. How do you take it seriously? Do your oaths become careless or thoughtless? Are they things you do without seriousness or commitment?
In God’s economy, oaths and vows are matters of life and death. Now we have committed ourselves to examine the various oaths and vows that mark our lives from beginning to end. We are considering, first of all, baptism. Thus far, we have spoken of it in general terms, and we have discussed it in light of the experience of the children of Israel as they passed through the Red Sea—a baptism indeed. You hear something of that experience in Psalm 77, which we have read this morning, and I reflected upon that psalm in our morning prayer. So we have spoken of and considered baptism in general terms, but now we become specific. Presbyterians believe in two forms of baptism: believer’s baptism, or adult baptism, and also child baptism, or infant baptism.
Now the purpose of this message is to consider the vows, not the arguments, regarding the Presbyterian practice of baptizing infants. We set aside that matter to focus on the issue of the vows. These vows must be understood with absolute seriousness, with complete seriousness. As Presbyterians understand it, the baptism of infants or young children is more than a dedication service. It is certainly more than a ceremony. It is more than a pleasant event that we hope will help our children begin their lives in a positive way. It is also more than a blessing that may benefit them later, when they remember the significance of the event that took place, honoring them even before they were aware of it.
The oaths and vows related to baptism, particularly the baptism of children, are directed specifically to the parents of the child. I personally prefer the form of the oath used by the Orthodox Presbyterian Church in connection with child baptism. It is concise and focused. Only two questions are asked of the parents, but each question carries significant weight.
The first question functions as a confession of faith—a brief statement of belief. What people are being asked to do in response to this question is to make a public and open acknowledgment of their faith in certain matters. I regret that we do not have the older version of the Trinity in the pews this morning. The reason is that the older versions include, in the back, the forms used in the services and in the sacraments.
And you could very easily have turned to these questions and read along with me. The first question goes like this, and as I read it, see how many doctrines you can identify in it. Do you acknowledge that although our children are conceived and born in sin and therefore are subject to condemnation, they are holy in Christ and, as members of his church, ought to be baptized? How many did you identify? Well, there are quite a few contained within that question.
This vow, this response made before God and before his people, also places before the congregation and this couple presenting the child a great number of the doctrines that the Church holds dear. In their assent, these parents are reaffirming their commitment to these doctrines with full seriousness. Yet it is interesting to note that it is specifically these doctrines that the modern Church finds most difficult to accept, even as each generation after generation subscribes to a promise and a vow such as this. These doctrines are increasingly challenging for the church. What are these doctrines?
First of all, there is the doctrine of original sin. We are acknowledging, we who bring our children, not that our children are innocent, but that our children are subject to sin and thus to condemnation. We are making a public acknowledgment of the reality of original sin. What is original sin?
It is the sin that comes to us through the lineage of our father Adam. That is why I read to you this morning from Romans 5. It is impossible to miss the point when reading through that passage. We are bound, as part of humanity, to our father Adam, and the sin for which he is guilty is a sin that passes on from generation to generation, leaving us subject to and corrupted by it.
Does not David, many years, even millennia, after Adam had passed from the scene, confess in the 51st Psalm, “In sin my mother conceived me. I was brought forth in iniquity. I was not brought forth into this world as one who is innocent. But coming forth into this world, even though I was of the tribe of Judah, even though I was of the nation of Israel, I too am corrupt, I too am affected by the sin of Adam”?
This lays before us the magnitude, the enormity of the problem of sin. How easily we slip into a form of romanticism. Children are by their very nature innocent and pure. The church in its purest form has always uniformly stood against such ideas. Original sin. The enormity of sin and the condemnation of sin, the just punishment that comes because of it.
Is a child subject to condemnation? Can you bring yourself to say it? That yet family after family, parent after parent, can publicly declare this before a congregation of God’s people, even before the child has been seen? Are they perjuring themselves? Or do they truly believe that children are subject to condemnation? Have we in our time subtly embraced the doctrine of universal infant salvation? Is that what we now believe? By the thought of a child going to hell being completely repugnant to us in our sensitivities, I plead with you, do not be hasty in your judgments. We are only the adults who were destroyed in the days of Noah. Now John Huston is not a prophet. But John Huston is a very perceptive individual, nonetheless. And he made a movie a number of years ago entitled The Bible.
If you have a chance to see it, do not miss that opportunity. It covers the first 22 chapters of Genesis. You may recall a scene in that movie. Abram is traveling with his son Isaac to a place where he is to sacrifice Isaac. He has been commanded to do this by God. This is entirely fictional, and I recognize that, but it does convey the point clearly. As they travel toward the region of the Raya, they pass through the area where the city of Sodom once stood. There is nothing left there except ashes, and yes, there are a few skeletal remains.
Isaac asks his father many questions. Did God do this? The God you worship and serve, Father Abraham, did this? Yes. Isaac looks down and sees the skull of a child, and he says, But Father, what about the children who were killed? Then Abraham raises his staff and strikes the skull. From the eye of death, the child is saved.
John Huston portrays this scene more clearly than many who preach in pulpits today. No, we do not believe in the doctrine of universal infant salvation. That is why the question remains, and it addresses the issue of this particular child in relation to these specific parents as they are presented before the church. This child is considered holy. What does that mean? Does it mean that this child is innocent and without blame? That this child is free from the effects of sin and corruption? Not at all.
The word “holiness” in this passage means being set apart from 1 Corinthians 7:14—nothing less than separated unto God. The child is separated unto God. And because the child is separated unto God, there is a vital connection between this child and Christ Himself. We therefore acknowledge that, because of this unique relationship between the child and God in Christ, there is also a unique relationship between this child and the Church.
By and large, the doctrine of church membership has been sacrificed in our time. That doctrine, however, has been a consistent teaching of the church from generation to generation. Church membership does not begin with adolescence. Church membership does not begin when you decide it is a good idea.
Because you were born within the covenant, you are placed within the church and are subject to its authority. This is why the church’s authority has the right to discipline you, even if you are a child. All of this is clearly set forth in the first question of the vows made in connection with infant baptism. These include original sin, the depravity of humanity, the seriousness of sin, the righteousness of judgment, the holiness and separateness of a child born within the covenant, the relationship of that child to Christ, and because of that, the relationship of that child to the Church. In the Church, that child has the right to the sign and seal of the covenant. We are re-acknowledging these truths.
There is a second question here, which comes in the form of a promise. The first question was a confession of faith made by the parents on behalf of their child and their intentions. For this morning, it is sufficient to focus on the acknowledgment and the confession of faith.
I ask you: realizing that an oath or vow, from a biblical perspective, means placing your life on the line in regard to what you say, can you fully affirm the doctrines expressed in this acknowledgment and profession of faith as you present your child for baptism? If you cannot, you have committed perjury. If you are making a public oath or vow and placing your life on the line, your life will be required for breaking that vow. If you do not mean it, do not say it.
If you do not believe it, do not say it. I trust that you do, and that God blesses you now, as your thoughts and your heart are made even more conformable to the will of our God and Father through Jesus Christ, our Savior, who alone is our hope and our salvation.
Let us pray. Oh Lord, remind us again of the richness we find in the vows we take, the richness of the doctrine to which we subscribe. How wonderful it is in the end when it is laid out before us. For not only in this rite of baptism are we compelled to acknowledge the sinfulness of humanity and even the depravity of our children, but we are also compelled to acknowledge the supply you have made, the gift you have granted to a depraved humanity in Jesus Christ, your Son.
So that we may move from condemnation to justification and life. We may move from death to glory. And we return to our Savior. This we hold dear, Lord. By the root of Christ’s death and resurrection, we are in fact moved from death itself to the regions of glory and everlasting light. We pray these things in Christ’s name. Amen.
The sermon text provided above is derived from the sermon audio recording making use of generative tools. It has not been manually edited. While transcription tools have a high degree of accuracy, the output may include generative textual, punctuation, and/or formatting errors.