Brothers and sisters in Christ: Through the Sacrament of Baptism we are initiated into Christ’s holy church. We are incorporated into God’s mighty acts of salvation and given new birth through water and the Spirit. All this is God’s gift, offered to us without price. Today we present Henry Banks Kitchens for baptism.
On behalf of the whole church, I ask you: Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world, and repent of your sin?
Parents: We do.
Do you accept the freedom and power God gives you to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves?
Parents: We do.
Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior, put your whole trust in his grace, and promise to serve him as your Lord, in union with the Church which Christ has opened to people of all ages, nations, and races?
Parents: We do.
Will you nurture Henry Banks in Christ’s holy church, that by your teaching and example he may be guided to accept God’s grace for himself, to profess his faith openly, and to lead a Christian life?
Parents: We will.
Do you, as Christ’s body, the church, reaffirm both your rejection of sin and your commitment to Christ?
Congregation: We do.
Will you nurture one another in the Christian faith and life and include Henry Banks now before you, in your care?
Congregation: With God’s help we will proclaim the good news and live according to the example of Christ. We will surround Henry Banks with a community of love and forgiveness, that he may grow in his service to others. We will pray for him that he may be a true disciple who walks in the way that leads to life.
Let us join together in professing the Christian faith as contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty?
Congregation: I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
Do you believe in Jesus Christ?
Congregation: I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
Do you believe in the Holy Spirit?
Congregation: I believe in the Holy Spirit.
The Lord be with you.
Congregation: And also with you.
Let us pray. Eternal God: When nothing existed but chaos, you swept across the dark waters and brought forth light. In the days of Noah you saved those on the ark through water. After the flood you set in the clouds a rainbow. When you saw your people as slaves in Egypt, you led them to freedom through the sea. Their children you brought through the Jordan to the land which you promised.
Congregation: Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Tell of God’s mercy each day.
In the fullness of time you sent Jesus, nurtured in the water of a womb. He was baptized by John and anointed by your Spirit. He called his disciples to share in the baptism of his death and resurrection and to make disciples of all nations.
Congregation: Declare his works to the nations, his glory among all the people.
Pour out your Holy Spirit, to bless this gift of water and the one who receives it, to wash away his sin and clothe him in righteousness throughout his life, that, dying and being raised with Christ, he may share in Christ’s final victory.
Congregation: All praise to you, Eternal Father, through your Son Jesus Christ, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns forever. Amen.
Henry Banks Kitchens, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Congregation: Amen.
The Holy Spirit work within you, that being born through water and the Spirit, you may be a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ.
Congregation: Amen.
Now it is our joy to welcome our new brother in Christ.
Congregation: Through baptism you are incorporated by the Holy Spirit into God’s new creation and made to share in Christ’s royal priesthood. We are all one in Christ Jesus. With joy and thanksgiving we welcome you as a member of the family of Christ.
Members of the household of God, I commend Henry Banks to your love and care. Do all in your power to increase his faith, confirm his hope, and perfect him in love.
Congregation: We give thanks for all that God has already given you and we welcome you in Christian love. As members together with you in the body of Christ and in The United Methodist Church, we renew our covenant faithfully to participate in the ministries of the Church by our prayers, our presence, our gifts, our service, and our witness that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.
The God of all grace, who has called us to eternal glory in Christ, establish you and strengthen you by the power of the Holy Spirit, that you may live in grace and peace.