The Sacraments: Forgiveness that You Can See and Touch!

By the Dr. Charles A. Gieschen

One question that is often asked of pastors when we stress the importance of the Word of God as a "means of grace"--namely, a way whereby God offers and imparts His forgiveness--is this: "Why, then, do we have and need the sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper?" To put it more bluntly, since we are forgiven early in worship when we receive the Gospel given in the Words of Absolution as the pastor says "I forgive you all of your sins," then why stick around for the rest of the Divine Service, including the Lord's Supper?

Why do we have the forgiveness won by Jesus offered to us in the visible and tangible "means" of Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper as well as through the spoken and written Word of God? The answer is, in a word, grace. Our God knows the weakness of sinful human beings, so His gracious mercy leads Him to offer the benefits of Christ's life, death, and resurrection to us in multiple ways: both through the Word of the Gospel as well as through the visible Word of the two sacraments. As in the time before Christ's coming when the people of Israel were visibly and tangibly reminded of their sin and received God's forgiveness through a sacrificial system, God continues to use visible and tangible means to remind us of our death to sin and to impart to us forgiveness, life, and salvation. Do any of us understand how God can accomplish this? No. Because it is beyond human comprehension that God can give so much through His Word united with physical elements that we can see and touch (i.e., water, bread, and wine), the Bible calls these visible sacraments "the mysteries of God" (1 Cor. 4:1). Even though we cannot comprehend how God can accomplish such great things through the sacraments, there are differences between Holy Baptism and the Lord Supper that help us to understand God's grace in instituting them for the benefit of His Church.

God offers Holy Baptism as a sacrament that converts. God knows that all people are born dead in their sinful condition and are unable to come to Him: Jesus says, "Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin" (John 8:34). Since Jesus teaches that we all are in need of a "birth from above" (John 3:3), God accomplishes this birth for us through "water and the Spirit" (John 3:5). As the Apostle Paul writes: "He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior" (Titus 3:5-6). Holy Baptism wonderfully testifies to God's grace for all people because it brings even little children who cannot even understand the spoken word all the benefits of Christ's death and resurrection (Acts 2:38-39; Rom. 6:3-5).

God offers the Lord's Supper as a sacrament that sustains. Unlike the one time action of Holy Baptism, our Lord Jesus commanded us to celebrate the Lord's Supper with regularity: "This is My Body . . . This cup is the new testament in My blood which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. Do this . . . in remembrance of Me." In this sacrament we see and taste the forgiveness won on the cross since we receive Christ's true body and blood with the bread and wine (1 Cor. 10:16). Because we continue to sin and have a life-long struggle against our sinful nature, this sacrament provides the continued "real presence" of Christ that sustains our life in Him. The Lord's Supper offers us the benefits of His atoning death until He comes again (1 Cor. 11:26).

Because of His grace, God has given His church the sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper. This "visible Word" offers the Gospel in forms that both convert sinners and sustain them in Christ. As you encounter doubts about God's forgiveness and love, God's Word directs you not only to hear the Gospel, but also to see it in your Baptism and regular communion with Christ at His table. These sacraments assure you are a forgiven child of God and heir of eternal life since they join you with Christ and impart His forgiveness in ways that you can see and touch!

The Rev. Dr. Charles A. Gieschen is Professor of Exegetical Theology at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana.