A Letter from Jan Gerrits to the Lutheran Preacher

My much beloved good friend, with this I will bid you farewell, for after this I hope to dispute with, or write against, neither you nor any other man; for Paul says: "Avoid contentions, or profane babblings, and unprofitable disputations; for they will increase to more ungodliness, and their word will eat like a canker." Titus 3, verse 9; Second Timothy 2, verses 16 and 17. Therefore I want to be delivered of you also, and to have my soul rest in peace with God. Farewell always.

See, my good friend, here are the arms and weapons of my faith, and this, in part, briefly shown. Behold, with these, and no others, whether of iron or steel, spear or sword, I will attack the kingdom of antichrist; for spirit must be overcome with spirit, and flesh with carnal weapons. Therefore I say with the apostle: "The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty before God to the pulling down of everything that exalts itself against the truth; for we wrestle not only against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of this world, against spirits of wickedness under heaven." Second Corinthians 10, verses 4 and 5; Ephesians 6, verse 12. Therefore all Christians must put on the armor of God, so that they may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, and also be ready in every respect. So Peter says

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour; resist him, steadfast in the faith." First Peter 5, verses 8 and 9. This is our weapon, with which we are satisfied.

In the first place, a Christian does not know war, but must patiently bear all that comes upon him, for the Lord's sake; for Christ taught His disciples only love for their enemies. Moreover, He forbade them, when they asked Him: "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven, and consume this people?" "No;" He said, "you do not know what manner of spirit you are of." Matthew 9, verses 54 and 55. Be merciful, as your heavenly Father is merciful. When He suffered He did not threaten. First Peter 2, verse 23. These examples we follow with all diligence, according to our feeble ability, commending our souls to the mercy of God, as the faithful Creator. [n890-1] From this you may see or understand what kind of people we are, and what spirit we have.

See, my good friend, with these weapons and arms I will meet you, as a little and unrenowned David, meeting the great Goliath and presumptuous champion who mocked and reviled the army of God, and relied upon his own strength, just as you now trust in your learning, and are proud of the name "Rabbi," and because of the great reputation and renown of your understanding, might and power, you begin to say with Goliath: "Am I a dog, that you come to me with staves? I can and will give your flesh to the fowls of the air to eat." First Samuel 17, verse 43. Thus spoke Goliath, and you no less; for you say that without strength I am deceived and dead. Yes, my friend, I am well aware that I and those like me are always looked upon by you as little and unlearned.

Behold, by your presumptuousness you have brought it so far that I dare boldly step forth with my sling and stone, and say to you, as to Goliath, the champion and defender of the Philistines

"Behold, you have come out to me, relying on your spear and shield; but I come to you out of confidence in God, in the name of the God of Israel, and will give your flesh this day to the fowls of the air to eat, and slay you with your own sword," namely with your own writing or disputation, which serves me to overcome you, not by the spirit of the universities, but by the Word and power of God, and this in Dutch, my mother tongue, to the greater glory of God, and to your shame. And the dumb ass shall cause your madness to be manifest; you, Balaam, have beaten me, poor ass, so long that at last I spoke by the power of God. Numbers 22, verse 28. You, Goliath, have reviled and defied me and the army of Israel so long that I slay you with your own sword, which I would not have done if you had not snapped with such sharp teeth, and flourished your pen so boldly; how could I let this pass. Now, if I receive no thanks for it, as I presume will be the case, you may blame yourself for it, for one cannot be silent and speak the words of God

"O men, men, it would be well for you if, like Gamaliel, you would leave the people of God in peace; for if this work is of men, it will come to nothing, but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it; so take good heed, lest you run against the sword of the Lord, and be found to be fighting even against God. Persecute Jesus of Nazareth no longer, and leave Israel unmolested." Acts 5, verse 34, and so on; chapter 9.

To come now to the purport and beginning of your letter, which you sent me in order to instruct me in all the arguments and intelligence pertaining to the faith, I find that you greet me in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. To this I reply. Since you boast of being a Christian, and regard me as a reprobate and unbeliever, and as laboring under a false opinion, therefore I say that you are wrong to write in this way, for John says, "If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house, nor greet him; for he who greets him is a partaker of his evil deeds." Second John, verses 10 and 11. And Paul says that if any man who is called a brother is nevertheless a fornicator or the like, he, as also an unbeliever, shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Therefore, since they cannot inherit the kingdom of God, we are not to eat bread with them, for the destruction of their flesh, that they may consider from where they have fallen. First Corinthians 5.

In the second place, you call me your brother. Why am I your brother, seeing that we differ in faith? Is it because we are all created by God the Father? I say no to this; for if we were brothers according to the spirit, and according to the doctrine of Christ and the apostles, we would have to be in one faith and practice, and be led by one spirit, which, however, is far from being the case; for the brotherhood must spring out of the heavenly regeneration, through the hearing of the divine Word, from the earthly into the heavenly. This brotherhood is not ascribed to unbelievers, nor does it originate in carnal descent, as Paul clearly indicates, when he says "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers; for what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion has light with darkness? and what concord has Christ with Belial? or what part has he who believes with an infidel? and what agreement has the temple of God with idols?" and so on. Second Corinthians 6, verse 14, and so on. For the brotherhood consists in this: "Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit; to abide in one hope of the calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism." Ephesians 4, verse 3. Mark this: you are satisfied with your baptism, whether administered by the midwife, or by confirmation, and the like; not considering that God would dwell above all, and in us all, through His Word.

Since, then, you are so contrary to me, and I to you, in faith, doctrine, life and spirit, why do you call me brother, I ask you once more? Or, if I am a heretic and a renegade from the truth, why do you not avoid me, after I have been admonished once or twice? for this is commanded by the Scriptures. But alas, you do not obey the divinely inspired Scriptures, but choose them to your own destruction. Second Peter 3, verse 16. In the third place, I find in your deceptive letter of instruction that I am accused and decried only with reference to error and misapprehension regarding baptism, no other articles being mentioned. What shall I say to this? Are all your gods an abomination to you? and is it all over with your false doctrine and church usages? I think not; you are too fond of deceitful gain. But I know your intention well; you think that when you have deprived me of one, you will get the rest as well, according to what you yourself said in Delft. Oh, what a brother you are to me, fine, indeed, in appearance! But my Teacher and Master Christ Jesus has warned me against you, to "be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." Matthew 10, verse 16. Yes, you are such a brother to me as the old, lying prophet who deceived the man of God by his lies; for God had commanded the man of God to prophesy against the altar, and to eat no bread, nor drink water at that place, until he should have returned to his own country. But the seed of the serpent, the old prophet, said: "Eat bread with me, and drink water." The man of God answered: "God has forbidden me this." But the deceiver said: "I am also a prophet of the Lord, as you are, and the Lord spoke to me, that you should eat bread here, and drink water." Then the man of God went in with him, and transgressed the commandment of the Lord; and therefore, in punishment of his disobedience, he was slain by a lion on the way. First Kings 13.

This example is a great terror to my soul; for after deception, and transgression of the Word of the Lord, He sends lions, dragons, and bears, that they may get dominion of my soul, and kill it; for if my faith were feeble and wavering, I would be overcome and certainly be killed, but the anchor of my faith is steadfast.

In the fourth place, I come to your unreasonable or willful stupidity, that you want to maintain your infant baptism by the circumcision of the law, or Israel's sign of the covenant. For Paul says that circumcision (which you understand to be a figure of baptism) is made without hands, in the spirit, for the putting off of the sinful flesh; whose praise is not of men, as was done with the hand on Israel, but of God. Colossians 2, verse 11; Romans 2, verse 29. Now, is your infant baptism in the spirit, without hands, and this for the putting off of the sinful flesh, and for sin which they have not yet committed? For to put off the sinful is this, as Paul says: "Mortify your members which are upon the earth: fornication, adultery, uncleanness, lasciviousness, evil concupiscence;" see whether this can be understood as having reference to your children.

And through your infant baptism you cause us to be called Anabaptists, though we do not baptize, nor are baptized, twice, but once, and this according to the truth, and in accordance with the command and practice of the apostles; and with this we are well satisfied.

In the fifth place, I will tell you our confession and practice, to show you that our baptism originates not in an opinion, but in the command of the most high God. After this, I hope to write against or dispute with neither you nor anyone else, as I said before; for great, presumptuous wisdom I do not have, but an assured heart and a firm faith in my ground. Listen to this brief statement

"Concerning circumcision, I confess that it was a token of Abraham's covenant, to him and to all his seed (Genesis 17, verse 9), and also the entering into Israel, the church of God." The external circumcision of Israel was a figure of the future, inward circumcision of Christ, as may clearly be understood from the spirit of the New Testament, just as Paul says that that is not circumcision which is outward in the flesh; but circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter, or law; whose praise is not of men, but of God. Romans 2, verses 28 and 29. Nor are you those who are circumcised in Christ, with the circumcision made without hands, in the putting off of the sinful flesh. Colossians 2, verse 11. Further, what people are they who are buried with Him through baptism? Listen, I pray you: Are you risen? Through what? Through faith. What faith? What faith have the sponsors, through which God works, as you people understand it? Mark here: no infants, but such as believe and understand. And this you put forth as your strongest argument. O friend, do not willfully kick against the goad, or it will be hard for you to speak against God, and to drive His Word and truth from you so stoutly. For if you claim outward circumcision to be a figure of baptism, well then, who makes you pedobaptists so presumptuous that you baptize infants before the eighth day? [n890-2] And why do you baptize female children? for, under the law, these were not circumcised; from which it would follow that female children are not to be baptized; for truth is consistent.

You are at an end with your figures of baptism; but we have a better explanation concerning the figures of baptism, and Paul and Peter shall help us keep it by their spirit and testimony. Peter says that the entrance through the water into Noah's ark signifies baptism to us. Genesis 7, verse 7; First Peter 3, verses 20 and 21. Whoever dares deny this may also contradict us, who are little and unlearned in their estimation, yet are taught by God. Matthew 11, verse 25.

Our second witness with regard to the figures of baptism is the great apostle Paul, who declared the counsel of God. Acts 20, verse 27. He says that the exodus of the children of Israel from Egypt, their passage through the Red Sea, and that they were baptized under the pillar of cloud, through Moses, was a figure, and for our instruction. Exodus 14, verse 22; First Corinthians 10, verse 1. But we, who are of the substance in the spirit and the New Testament, confess a clear ordinance, doctrine and command of God, and then the rule, practice and the clear examples of the apostles, regarding baptism; this is explanation enough for us.

The command of Christ is: "Go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature; teach them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who does not believe shall be damned." Mark 16, verses 15 and 16; Matthew 28, verses 19 and 20. [Baptism is,] in the first place, a grave of sin, an entering in the church of God, a putting on of Christ, a fleeing from the wrath of God, a washing of regeneration, and the seal of a good conscience or assurance toward God; and he who rejects this rejects the counsel of God. The practice of the apostles was this: "If you believe with all your heart, you may." Romans 6, verse 4; Galatians 3, verse 27; Titus 3, verse 5; First Peter 3, verse 21; Luke 7, verse 30; Acts 8, verse 37.

The following was written by Jan Gerrits, although it is not contained in the first edition.

Thus they were first asked. If you also ask the brothers this, and they say, "Yes, it is well; for the apostles baptized upon faith and not otherwise." For if the eunuch had said: "I cannot believe," Philip would not have baptized him. But he said

"I believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God." Acts 8, verse 37. This is my faith too, and nothing else. Again, when the multitude at Jerusalem heard Peter's exhortation, they were alarmed, and asked: "What shall we do?" Hear the good advice: "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." And those who gladly received the word were baptized. Acts 2, verse 37. Do your infants also do this? Then you are the old foundation; for no one can lay any other foundation than the one that is laid, which is Jesus Christ, His Word and example. The jailer rejoiced with all his house that he had become a believer. Acts 16, verse 34. Are your infants also believers? Then it is well. Peter preached in the house of Cornelius, the centurion of the Italian band, and the Holy Ghost fell on the Gentiles as well as on the Jews. Acts 10, verses 44 and 45. Were there also infants present, on whom the Holy Ghost fell? And this is what I asked you before we parted, when the servant came to spread the table, and you said: "That which is born of the flesh is flesh," and this with reference to infant baptism. I then asked what became of the Spirit, but you gave me no reply. For John says: "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from." John 3, verse 8. Do children feel the Holy Spirit? Nicodemus was a carnal man, and experienced nothing concerning the Spirit of God; so Christ referred him to a child, as we find stated in Matthew 18, verse 3. To be born again through the water from carnality into the Spirit is as Christ Himself says in John 3, verse 5. "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a man is born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." A man, what else does this signify than he who is carnally minded, as the aforesaid Nicodemus; for to be carnally minded is death; it does not mean children, for they do not feel it. But to be spiritual is life and peace, as Paul testifies. And to the Galatians he says: "If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance; against such there is no law." Galatians 5, verse 18. As Peter also says: "Therefore, laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that you may grow by it." First Peter 2, verses 1 and 2. Do this also: lay aside the great conceitedness and presumptuousness of your heart, and build yourself up, a lively stone in the house of God, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. These sacrifices are the works of righteousness, and not human inventions, reason, or ordinances of outward sacrifices. Behold, with this consciousness we go on; or, this assurance is sufficient and valuable enough to us, to forsake property and life for Christ's sake, which is far from being the case with you people. In short, we do not seal the epistle of Christ before it is written; we do not sow before the field is well plowed with the Spirit and Word of God; we do not sail before we have favorable weather and wind; but you would have the child of the mother before it has been carried its proper time. But we can well wait till it has been carried its proper time and is brought forth by the mother. Who can keep from speaking of what everybody sees? And so we recognize baptism in the Scriptures as a command of the Lord, and a certain clear practice of the apostles. Moreover, we also clearly see what cause baptism has, why it is administered, what benefits it brings, to what people it is suited, and what other name it has in the Scriptures. It is, in the first place, a grave of sin, an entering into the church of God, a putting on of Christ, a fleeing from the wrath of God, a washing of regeneration, and the seal of a good conscience toward God. And he who forsakes or rejects this forsakes and rejects the counsel and Word of God.

In the sixth place, as regards this, that I spoke tartly and insolently to you, I answer. Behold, my Lord and Master taught me nothing else, when He says: "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves." Matthew 7, verse 15. Seeing you came to me with so fair an appearance, to slay my soul, as you indeed boasted, why then should I not speak or write the truth? For what do you do but seek to devour or tear me, to entice a poor sheep away from Christ's pasture. No, no! God the chief Shepherd preserve me from this. No one shall pluck them out of His hand, but if one goes out himself, then the case is different. Yet you have been assiduous, and struck your sharp fangs into my soul; and yet you call me brother. Therefore I call you a wolf in sheep's clothing; however, be converted and become a lamb. O friend, what have you come to?

In the seventh place, you strewed sweet roses and down before my feet, and made the bank slippery so that I might glide off, saying: "Do not mind what those who deceived you without the Scriptures will say. Yet see, is this without the Scriptures?" Just as if I had relied upon the fair words of men. No, no; had it depended on fair speeches, you would have laid enough snares for me; your works constantly testify to this. See, my good friend, I think that this is enough for you, namely, my own faith and confession; and I beg you not so to damn and condemn little infants, and this for Adam's transgression, lest you be condemned and damned; since Christ, by His death, has redeemed us from it, as was stated when I was with you; for Paul says: "As by the offense of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men to justification of life." Romans 5, verse 18. John says: "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." John 1, verse 29. [Paul says] to the Galatians: "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law." Galatians 3, verse 13. And to the Ephesians: "That He abolished in His flesh the enmity, on the cross." Moreover, He has promised them His kingdom, when He says: "Let the little children come to me . . . for of such is the kingdom of God. And He received them, blessed them, laid His hands on them, and said: Unless you receive the kingdom of God as a little child, you shall not enter it." Mark 10, verses 14 to 16; Luke 18, verses 16 and 17; Matthew 19, verses 14 and 15. Now when He says, of such, there is no difference, even as Paul says, that both Jews and Gentiles are all under sin. But you separate them, and say that it was spoken only to Jewish children, as though they were Jewish children. I replied that you should prove this to me by the Gospel; but you could not do it, and gave me no answer. For Christ showed His divine miracles on the children of the Gentiles as well as on those of the Jews, as, for instance, on the Gentile woman and the centurion's servant; and He gives this testimony concerning the centurion, that He has not found so great faith in Israel. And enough other such examples.

Finally, I beg you to make the best allowance for my simple writing, for it is rustic work. If I had received better talents from God, I would indeed desire to do better; but as it is, I thank Him for what He does give me. Farewell.

Below there was written: I, Jan Gerritts Ketelaer van Tessel, confess but one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one Spirit, and one Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in us all. I come quickly: hold fast what you have, that no man take your crown. Yes, the Lord Jesus comes. Ephesians 4, verses 4 and 5; Revelation 3, verse 11.