4 Minute Devotions: A Gift of God's Kindness

Infant baptism is a beautiful way of encountering God’s holiness in church. Babies not only have a right to life, they also have a right to be sanctified.

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Romans 2:4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?

One of the greatest gifts that God gives to Presbyterian pastors is the joy of baptizing a child. I absolutely love cradling babies in my arms, sprinkling them with water, and declaring them to be in God’s Kingdom. It’s a beautiful ceremony and a wonderful blessing to the baby.

I have been privileged to have baptized hundreds of babies. When I was a parish minister in Scotland, I baptized many babies whose parents had hardly any connection to the church. My attitude was, and still is, that the baby is completely innocent and should welcomed by the community of faith, no matter who their parents are or what they are like. Once that wee innocent baby is baptized, no one can ever take that blessing from him or her. It’s with them throughout their lives and I firmly believe some good, at a later stage, will come from the baptism.

It’s the work of the Holy Spirit that seals the baptism. Nothing I do or say makes the ceremony sacred. The outward signs of water and word are religiously performed; the Holy Spirit is invoked to bless the water and the child – only when that happens, outwardly and inwardly does a true baptism take place. Heaven and earth meet when the innocence of the child encounters the holiness of God. It’s a wonderful moment and a sanctified time.

The riches of God’s kindness are bestowed upon the baby and parents. It is not a time of judgment, but a memorable moment of God’s love. It’s a modern equivalent of Christ saying, “Let the little ones come to me.”

I wish that more babies in our community were baptized and that the grace of God was bestowed upon them in this remarkable and miraculous way. These precious little ones not only have the right to life, they also have the right to be sanctified. I will do my utmost to baptize as many as I possibly can before I am called to glory.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for the sacrament of baptism and for the many babies and children who receive this blessing in our churches. Help us to reach out to other families in our community and offer them this precious gift. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Erin Church devotions: Nov 1 - Every Christian is a Saint Today

Acts 26:17, 18 I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'

Today is All Saints’ Day in the Christian Calendar. We don’t usually celebrate it as Presbyterians, but Roman Catholics are required to go to mass today, for this is what’s called a Feast of Obligation. To them, it’s one of the holiest days in the year. There are more than 365 saints in the Roman Catholic Church, so a special day was set aside to commemorate and celebrate all the saints who ever lived on earth. It’s a day to give thanks to God for the past witnesses of church leaders and holy people. It’s also a day to make special prayers to your favorite saint from the past, in the hope that he or she will intercede on your behalf.

But Presbyterians don’t celebrate this day because we don’t believe in the veneration of saints. Instead, we believe in the sanctifying (making of saints) of the people of God through the conversion of our souls and the forgiveness of our sins. That's the process that the apostle Paul is expressing here. He’s talking about the saintliness of ordinary people through the extraordinary holiness of Jesus Christ.

Therefore, for Presbyterians to celebrate All Saints Day, we should remember the people who have made a positive impact in our lives with regard to the faith that we carry in our hearts and minds. We should give thanks for the Sunday school teachers and pulpit preachers who have helped us to become Christians. We should honor those who work hard for our local congregations in our ministry and mission programs. We should remember those who work in foreign lands bringing the Gospel to millions of people throughout the earth. And we should also remember our own service to the Lord in our congregations and communities.

So let this day be sanctified in all of our hearts. Let it be an occasion to be grateful for the saints in each of our lives who bring us closer to the Lord. And let’s also look for positive opportunities to be Christ’s sanctified servants to all whom we meet and encounter today.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for this special day and for all the saints who are working for Your Kingdom here on earth. Thank You for their focus and faith, their devotion and dedication, their example and encouragement. Bless and sanctify all of us, so that we may faithfully and effectively carry on Your ministry and mission to our community and world. In your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.