FOUR QUESTIONS - ONE PATH
This week's post for those of you searching (together with me) - and I know I'm drawing on your patience with the length of these posts. BUT. This is IMPORTANT. And important to grasp. This thing about Faith. And what it actually is. And means. Particularly in this time.
I attended an adult baptism yesterday evening in the National Church.
Nothing is stronger than when a human being takes a conscious position - rises up - steps forward and stands clearly in reality - and expresses their unreserved and unforced "YES" to living from and in the Light.
Baptism is a beautiful but brief - and strongly condensed - ritual, where the depth of the words is easily lost, because we never grasp what they actually mean.
And as the ritual progressed, I caught myself sitting there searching for my own translation of the words. Because even for me, who has otherwise looked deeply, the language in church can be so elevated and distant that it can be difficult to fasten it to a living place within myself. And that won't do - because when it's like that, it loses contact with the deepest layers inside that need to be awakened and understand.
And I sat thinking - if I can experience it like that, there are probably many others who do too.
So I went home and began to explain - not just what the questions mean in a church context, but what they mean in everyday life - and how they point into the cosmic reality we are placed within.
Because the four questions are in reality an entire initiation path in sequence - purification, surrender, rebirth and consecration.
Let me attempt to translate both questions and the layers within them.
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FIRST QUESTION -
"Do you renounce the Devil and all his works and all his ways?"
This is the first step. The question sounds old-fashioned, but it is actually extremely concrete.
In everyday language -
What you're being asked is - "Will you live a life in truth? Will you say no to lies, to manipulation, to the temptation to take the easy path, even though you know it's wrong? Will you say no to letting anger, jealousy or greed drive you and be your master?" The renunciation is to recognise - Darkness exists, and it will always try to gain foothold in us. In you. In me. But I will not give that force power. Not inside. Not outside.
On the deeper level -
There lies a recognition for any seeker that Darkness is not only psychological weaknesses. It is a real force in the Universe. A current that always tries to split, deceive, destroy. Pull down and drain the life out of. "To renounce the Devil" is to position yourself in opposition to this current - and consciously choose to swim against it, together with the light's current. Pull the opposite way.
The inner and often hidden meaning -
This is the PURIFICATION. The answer yes to the question is the death of the old human. The part of you that builds its life on lies must die. The renunciation is the cleansing, where you throw off the old clothes, your old manner, everything you believed in that led you astray - and step naked into the light.
SECOND QUESTION -
"Do you believe in God the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth?"
With this question you are confronted with the very foundation of all creation.
In everyday language -
What you're being asked is - "Do you live as if life is sacred? Or as if everything is just random?" When you say yes here, it means you acknowledge that your life is given to you. That your days are a gift, and that everything you surround yourself with - nature, people, the body - is not something you have created yourself. It means you are OBLIGATED to care for it. Treat it and yourself as sacred. Fill it out with the best, highest and clearest you have to give. Do good. Even when it costs. To the honour of the incomprehensible work of creation.
On the deeper level -
You answer YES to the Universe not being empty. But created. That it is carried by a creative force, an eternal will, an Order. Yes to all life springing from this. And when you say yes, you CONNECT yourself to that current, and acknowledge that you are not isolated. You are part of a living universe that breathes through you.
The inner and often hidden meaning -
Here occurs the SURRENDER. You lay down your own (always slightly pathetic and childish) self-elevated 'I' and recognise - I am created. I am part of something greater. I am not the source of truth, but the receiver of truth. This is the BIRTH OF HUMILITY.
THIRD QUESTION -
"Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord…?"
Now we come to the centre.
(But this is simultaneously also where, for many, it begins to itch a bit between the ears and they get off - "...now you're saying something about Jesus... I mean... what is this... I'm not quite with you anymore..") - and therefore it requires a bit more explanation than the previous ones.
In everyday language -
What you're being asked here is - "Will you believe that Love can carry you, even when you fail? That forgiveness is possible? That death is not the last word?". It means you live your life with Hope - NOT naively, but with TRUST that the light is stronger than the darkness. When you fall (and we all do!), it means you don't remain lying down.
On the deeper level -
The Christ-mystery is not only history. Or a story. It is the cosmic truth that 'death is overcome'. Christ represents a force that has already broken the Power of Darkness. When you say YES, you step into that force. You unite with the current of resurrection that flows through the entire universe.
Because the resurrection is not only a historical event where Jesus rose from the grave, but a cosmic or universal force - a reality that is embedded in the very Creation of all things.
You can approach an understanding by seeing -
Nature itself tells that story. Every spring life breaks forth from what seemed dead. The seed that must die in the earth to sprout. The tree that stands bare all winter, but suddenly unfolds green again.
And Human life tells the same story. We experience defeat, loss, dark periods - and yet we can rise, come again, start anew.
The entire universe is carried by this rhythm - death and rebirth, darkness and light, downfall and resurrection.
Carried on a frequency of what we can best describe as Love, which wells with tremendous force through everything - if we let and allow it.
When you "believe in Christ" and confess Him, you connect to this reality. You say YES to the resurrection not only applying to Jesus - but also to you, and ultimately to all creation.
It means you step into a Living Force that is already present in EVERYTHING that exists. You let it work in you, so you yourself can rise every time you fall - and so you can be a witness for others that life is always stronger than death.
The inner and often hidden meaning -
This is the REBIRTH. You die with Christ and rise with him. It means you are no longer bound to your old self. You can rise, again and again, because the resurrection has become a reality in you.
AND FINALLY THE FOURTH QUESTION -
"Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting?"
This last question is about LIFE NOW - and LIFE BEYOND.
In everyday language -
Here you say yes to God still working today. That God is not only in a book or in old stories, but in your own life. It means you are never alone, and that the fellowship around you is sacred. It means you will let forgiveness be stronger than revenge. Also the forgiveness of yourself, which for some of us is the most difficult of all. That you will live with the Hope of Eternal Life - and therefore and thereby WITHOUT FEAR.
On the deeper level -
The Holy Spirit is the living breath that flows through everything (I'll return to this in another post). It is God "who dwells in you and in the world". When you say yes, you open yourself to this current, so it can work through you. You become an instrument for the force that drives the universe towards RECONCILIATION and WHOLENESS.
The inner and often hidden meaning -
This is the CONSECRATION. Here you yourself become A TEMPLE FOR GOD'S SPIRIT. You carry the light forward, not only as something you have received, but as something you yourself give onward. It is to step into - for lack of a better word - a cosmic brotherhood, where all life is bound together in LOVE.
So.
Four questions. Four yeses.
But in reality one and the same choice -
Will you live in Darkness or in Light?
To say yes in baptism is not just some personal piety you can display on a certificate tied to membership in some field in a municipal spreadsheet, so you have to pay a bit more in Tax.
It is to set yourself in motion in the great current that carries the entire universe.
It is to connect your own life to the creative force that has created heaven, earth, the universe and everything that is. It is to rise in Christ's victory over death. It is to become a temple for the Spirit, so God can work through you.
And what does that mean?
It means you live with responsibility. That you say no to lies, yes to truth, yes to life, yes to love. That you don't just drift along, but stand as a witness that truth exists, and that light prevails.
This is why Christianity is not just a religion among others.
It is the very gateway to living truly - as human, in fellowship and in society.
Because when a human being says yes to the four questions, they say yes to becoming a bearer of the force that holds all cosmos together.
Truth. Love. Freedom. Life.
❤️🔥🪽
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Postscript -
When you say yes to the four questions in baptism, you are in reality saying yes to LIVING IN TRUTH.
And truth always stands in opposition to lies.
"To renounce the Devil" doesn't only mean saying no to abstract evil - or some cartoon creature with trident and tail - but to rise against the lies of our own time.
And what does that lie look like today?
When media and power-holders shape narratives that bend truth, so people no longer dare trust their own eyes.
When children are indoctrinated to doubt their own sex, and it's presented as love, even though it splits and wounds.
When we're told everything is relative, and that nothing exists that is true for everyone - so no one dares stand firm anymore.
When consumption, entertainment and busyness are sold as happiness, even though we can feel it draining our soul.
When people are reduced to numbers, diagnoses or consumers - instead of being seen as living souls, created in God's image.
The four yeses mean you must rise in resistance against these lies. Not with hatred - but with light. Not with violence - but with TRUTH.
That is the obligation and responsibility that lies in baptism.
It is to stand firm and say -
I believe in life. I believe in love. I believe in truth. And I will not bend to lies, no matter how normalised they become.
To live baptised means to carry this responsibility - to be a human who in their own life shows that truth exists, and that it sets free.
So. Do it. In trust. If you are baptised.
