Here is another official statement on the Doctrine of Baptism by the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod. You can read more of these statement at the Church's official website:
www.lcms.org
Click on "What we believe" and then click on "Frequently asked questions".
Baptism saves? (2 pages)
Q: I believe I understand the LCMS position on Baptism although it seems to lead down a troublesome
path. As I understand you can be regenerated through Baptism and also regenerated by believing in
Jesus, without Baptism, and then later baptized. The Lutheran position forces one to come to this
conclusion of two ways to be saved, although both are by faith alone, just two different means. In Acts
10:44ff they believed and as a result were saved, filled with the Holy Spirit and therefore baptized. Eph
1:3 also speaks of salvation by the work of the Holy Spirit. If Baptism also saves, it must not save
adults since an adult would not say I do not believe but I want to be baptized to get the faith to
believe. If indeed the prooftexts of baptismal regeneration do actually refer to salvation, it must only
be for babies since adults would of necessity believe before being baptized. And if they do only speak
of babies who do not have the capacity to believe, why don't these verses say so. My question then is,
what do you see wrong with my reasoning? You do not have to give me the prooftexts since I have
known them and have studied them and have ready many articles and the catechism both from
Lutherans and others.
A: We are pleased to hear that you have thoroughly studied the Scriptures on the topic of Baptism and
other literature dealing with this subject. Perhaps you are very familiar with the Large Catechism's
treatment of Baptism, but we mention it here because Luther's treatise on infant baptism in this section
is extremely useful. Luther goes to the heart of the foundational theological questions at issue over
against errant understandings of Baptism present among those involved in the Anabaptist movement of
his time.
Perhaps we can make a couple of points that seem pertinent to the issue(s) you have raised. First, as you
have implied in your letter, it seems important to note that while Baptism is God's gracious means of
conveying to human beings His saving grace revealed to us in Jesus Christ our Savior, it is not the only
means. On the basis of the Scriptures we teach that the spoken Word of the Gospel (Rom. 1:16-17;
10:17) and the Lord's Supper (Matt. 26; Mark 14; Luke 22; 1 Cor. 11) are also means of grace. It is no less
a miracle of God's grace at work that an adult should believe by hearing the words of the Gospel, than
that an infant should receive through Baptism the Spirit who creates the very faith by which one
receives incorporation into Christ (Romans 6:4 "We were buried therefore with him by [Greek: the
instrumental dia] baptism..."). Adults who hear the spoken Word and believe eagerly seek to be
baptized, not because it is a human rite symbolic of one's commitment or something to that effect, but
because of what God promises in and through Baptism. It must be remembered that the only
theological distinction between the spoken Word of the Gospel and Baptism is that the sacrament
includes a visible element; hence, our Lutheran fathers commonly spoke of Baptism as "visible Gospel."
The Scriptures distinguish Baptism and the spoken Word, but do not separate them; they are both
means of grace. As you also no doubt are fully aware, we teach that it is not the lack of Baptism that
necessarily condemns, but it is the despising of this precious gift that endangers faith, for God Himself
has instituted it and attached His promises to it.
The Scriptures teach, of course, that there is only one Baptism (Eph. 4:5). There is no indication that God
has limited this blessed means of grace to individuals on the basis of age or levels of maturity. Baptism is
God's act, a divine testimony to what "grace alone" really means, whereby He imparts the blessings of
forgiveness, life, and salvation to individuals, children and adults alike. And as our Lutheran fathers have
always taught, Baptism confirms the grace of God upon adults who have already come to faith, and
strengthens them in their faith, even as the Lord's Supper does.
Page 4 of 14
Usage: We urge you to contact an LCMS pastor in your area for more in-depth discussion.
Published by: LCMS Church Information Center
©The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
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www.lcms.org/faqs
Wittenberger's comments: Sometimes I think Baptists and evangelicals infer that "grace" and "salvation" are synonymous, one and the same. This is not correct. A sinner receives justifying grace when as an adult he hears the Gospel preached and believes or when an infant of Christian parents is baptized.
Once we are Christians, we receive sanctifying grace when we hear the Word preached and when we partake of Holy Communion. Thus, Lutherans believe that we receive sanctifying grace in the Lord's Supper, not justifying grace. We are already justified by faith.
Grace means: God's unmerited favor and blessings.
God doesn't stop giving Christians his unmerited favor and blessings once you are a Christian. God continues to give sanctifying grace our entire lives.
Yes, in salvation, we receive God's grace, but God's grace is not limited to salvation.
ur good works are the result of God’s