Baptism, according to Scripture, is not a mere ceremony or church rite, but a true means of grace (aqua divino mandato comprehensa et Verbo Dei obsignata), by which God offers and conveys to men the merits which Christ secured for the world by His vicarious satisfaction, Acts 2, 38. Luther in his Catechism therefore says: "Baptism works forgiveness of sins, delivers from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare." (Mark 16, 15. 16.) Very aptly our dogmaticians have called Baptism "a means of justification" (medium iustificationis sive remission is peccatorum), which belongs into the Gospel, not into the Law. That is to say, Baptism does not save as a work which we perform unto God (not as the fulfilment of an obligation), but rather as a work of God in which He deals with and blesses us. "There is here no work done by us, but a treasure which He gives us." Luther, Triglot, p. 741.
Baptism bestows nothing else than what also the Gospel offers and imparts; it works forgiveness of sins, Acts 2, 38, washes away sin, Acts 22, 16, sanctifies and cleanses, Eph. 5, 26, regenerates and saves, Titus 3, 5; 1 Pet. 3, 21, etc. Moreover, what the Holy Spirit does through the Gospel, working and strengthening faith, Rom. 1, 16; 1 Cor. 2, 4, He does also through Baptism, 1 Pet. 1, 23; Titus 3, 5. In fact, Baptism confers all divine spiritual blessings just because it is water connected with the Gospel promises of grace and salvation. As these divine promises are efficacious whenever they are heard or read, so they are efficacious also when they are applied in Baptism. "By the Word such power is imparted to Baptism that it is a laver of regeneration." Luther, Triglot, p. 739.
The distinctive difference between Baptism and the Gospel in general is this, that God's individual offer of grace in Holy Baptism through its application by water to the individual person becomes the visible Word (Verbum visibile). The Apology Art. XIII (VII), 6 rightly remarks: "Just as the Word enters the ear in order to strike our heart, so the rite itself strikes the eye in order to move the heart. The effect of the Word and of the rite is the same, as it has been well said by Augustine that a Sacrament is a visible word, because the rite is received by the eyes and is, as it were, a picture of the Word, signifying the same thing as the Word. Therefore the effect is the same."
The truth just stated must be maintained against both Romanists and Calvinists. The papists indeed teach that through Baptism grace is bestowed upon the baptized (gratia infusa), but they err in claiming that this occurs ex opere operato, that is, without faith on the part of the person who is baptized. Against this error the Apology testifies XIII (VII), 18 ff.: "This is absolutely a Jewish opinion, to hold that we are justified by a ceremony, without a good disposition of the heart, i. e., without faith. . . . We teach that in the use of the Sacraments faith ought to be added, which should believe these promises and receive the promised things there offered in the Sacrament. The promise is useless unless it is received by faith."
The Council of Trent (Sess. VII, Can. 8) expressly anathematizes the Scriptural doctrine (Rom. 4, 11) that divine grace offered in the Sacraments is received only by faith. The Church of Antichrist therefore makes it impossible for its followers to obtain grace, since Holy Scripture teaches that faith is the only effectual means by which forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation can be secured, Mark 16, 15. 16; Rom. 4, 20-25. Its doctrine of Baptism is designed not to confer grace, but to deprive the sinner of grace; not to comfort him, but to impress upon him the monstrum incertitudinis gratiae.
The Church of Rome pretends to be the true defender of Christian Baptism, but in reality it despises and invalidates it. According to Roman Catholic doctrine, Baptism completely destroys original sin, so that the remaining evil lust in the flesh (concupiscentia vel fomes) is no longer sin, a doctrine which is entirely opposed to Scripture, Rom. 7, 17-20. But to this error Romanism adds another, namely, that those who through mortal sins have fallen from grace may return to it, not indeed by faith in the baptismal promises, but by means of the "second board," namely, through penance, or the performance of contritio cordis, confessio oris, satisfactio operis. The Roman Catholic doctrine of Baptism is therefore designed from beginning to end to support the papistic doctrine of salvation by works.
In agreement with the Romanists are all Romanizing Protestants who claim that Baptism indeed works regeneration, but without actually kindling faith. They thus regard baptismal grace as conferred without a receiving means on the part of man, whereas Scripture teaches very clearly that there can be no regeneration without faith in the forgiveness of sins secured by Christ, John 1, 12. 13; 3, 5. 14. 15; 1 John 5, 1, and offered and conveyed to men by the means of grace. The Lutheran Church, on the other hand, teaches correctly that Baptism is a means of regeneration for the reason that it offers and conveys forgiveness of sins and works and strengthens faith through its gracious Gospel offer. All (Romanists and Romanizing Protestants) who deny that Baptism is primo loco a means of justification by faith in the proffered grace intermingle Law and Gospel by making Baptism a means of sanctification, not by faith, but by works.
The Scriptural doctrine concerning the efficacy (efficacia., virtus) of Baptism is rejected in toto by the Reformed. According to the Zwinglian view, Baptism is not a means (vehiculum), but only a symbol of forgiveness and regeneration (factae gratiae signum), the Holy Ghost working regeneration in man by immediate operation. ("Efficacious grace acts immediately.") "Non affert gratiam baptismus." (Zwingli, Fidei Ratio, Niemeyer, p. 25.)
Water, according to the Calvinistic doctrine, simply cannot do such great things. (Boehl: "Das Wasser kann solche hoke Dinge nicht tun." Dogmatik, p. 560.) This Luther admits to be true when he writes: "It is not the water indeed that does them." But then follows his classic explanation: "It is not the water indeed that does them, but the word of God the conferring means which is in and with the water, and faith the receiving means, which trusts such word of God in the water. For without the word of God the water is simple water and no Baptism. But with the word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a gracious water of life and a washing of regeneration in the Holy Ghost, as St. Paul says, Titus, chapter third."
According to Luther, Baptism therefore "works forgiveness of sins, delivers from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believes this," just because the words and promises of God in Baptism so declare or because Baptism is not simple water only, but water comprehended in God's command and connected with God's word (promise).
Luther thus makes the efficacy of Baptism depend entirely on the Gospel promises which are connected with the water, Matt. 28, 19; Mark 16, 15. 16; Acts 2, 38; for on these promises the faith of the baptized rests. "Faith must have something upon which it stands and rests." Luther, Triglot, p. 739.
Zwingli's denial of the efficacy of Baptism was the result of his refusal to believe the promises which God has joined to the Sacrament. While Luther said that he would with joy and thanksgiving pick up a blade of straw if God had connected with this act such promises as are given in Baptism St. L., XVI, 2296, Zwingli persistently repeated his rationalistic argument that "water cannot do such great things" and that he "never read in Scripture that the Sacraments offer and distribute grace" (Fidei Ratio, Niemeyer, pp. 24. 25), though he certainly knew such clear passages as Acts 2, 38; 22, 16; Eph. 5, 26; Titus 3, 5; etc. Luther was a true theologian, loyal to Scripture (Bckrifttheolog), while Zwingli, just like his followers (Boehl, etc.), argued away the efficacy of Baptism on rationalistic grounds.
As the Reformed deny that Baptism is a means of regeneration (initiationis et regenerationis sacramentum), so they also deny that it is a means by which a person is joined to the spiritual body of Christ, namely, the Church, 1 Cor. 12, 13, and by which the sanctification of the regenerate, namely, the crucifying of the old man and the raising up of the new man, is effected, Rom. 6, 1-11. According to the Reformed view these things are only symbolized by Baptism. Zwinglianism (Calvinism), as said before, is therefore a denial of the efficacy of Baptism in toto. Every blessing which Scripture ascribes to this Sacrament is consistently denied on the strength of the rationalistic axiom : "Water cannot do such great things; it is the Spirit who must accomplish them."
From the rationalistic viewpoint this rejection of the efficacy of Baptism by the Reformed is quite intelligible. As Calvinism acknowledges no means of grace whatever in the Scriptural sense ("Efficacious grace acts immediately"; "Nothing intervenes between the volition of the Spirit and the regeneration of the soul"), so it also rejects the special means of grace known as the Sacrament of Baptism.
Baptism is a medium remissionis peccatorum et regeneratianis also in the case of adults who have already been regenerated through the Gospel. Our dogmaticians declare that such "adults receive an increase of those gifts by Baptism" (Gerhard), since they are confirmed and kept in their faith through the baptismal confirmation of the Gospel-promise. Baptism, like the Gospel itself, the seed of regeneration, 1 Pet. 1, 23, engenders faith not only at conversion, but continuously, Rom. 10, 17.
All other blessings of Holy Baptism, such as sanctification, or the continued renewing begun in Baptism, Titus 3, 5, the crucifying of the old man, the revival of the new man, Rom. 6, 3-6, etc., result from the justification and regeneration which it works. So also the implanting into the body of Christ, which is effected by Baptism, 1 Cor. 12, 13, is the necessary concomitant of its imparting of faith and the working of forgiveness of sins. Luther writes: "Therefore, if you live in repentance, you walk in Baptism, which not only signifies such a new life, but also produces, begins, and exercises it. For therein are given grace, the Spirit, and the power to suppress the old man, so that the new man may come forth and become strong." Large Catechism, De Baptismo, 75. It is Baptism therefore that enables us to keep our baptismal vow.
In connection with Baptism, Lutheran dogmaticians have discussed also the question whether a materia coelestis (a heavenly element) may be said to exist in this Sacrament, just as in the Lord's Supper the materia coelestis is the body and blood of Christ. While some (Gerhard, Calov, Quenstedt) affirmed the question ("The materia coelestis in Baptism is the word of God, the Holy Spirit, Christ's blood, the Holy Trinity," etc.), others (Baier, etc.) suggested that it is better not to speak of a materia coelestis in Baptism, especially since the Holy Ghost, the word, the Holy Trinity, etc., may be called a materia coelestis not in a strict (stricte loquendo) but only in a wider sense (Hollaz). The point is well taken; for in Baptism there is, properly speaking, no celestial element that corresponds to the body and blood of our Lord in the Holy Supper.
Between the word and the water in Baptism there exists so intimate a union that we must not distinguish between a baptismus internus et externus. "There is but one Baptism and one washing." (Saxon Visitation Articles; Triglot, p. 1153.) Cp. also We reject the false and erroneous doctrine of the Calvinists "that Baptism is an outward washing of water, whereby an inner washing ablution from sins is only signified." Triglot, p. 1155.