and glory of those who are saved; for the shame and punishment of those
who are lost.

Lesson 14
ON BAPTISM

152 Q. What is Baptism?
A. Baptism is a Sacrament which cleanses us from Original Sin, makes us
Christians, children of God, and heirs of Heaven.

"Christians," that is, members of the Church of Christ. "Children of
God," that is, adopted children. All men are children of God by their
creation, but Christians are children of God, not merely by creation,
but also by grace and union with Our Lord. "Heirs of Heaven." An heir is
one who inherits property, money, or goods at the death of another.
These things are left by a will or given by the laws of the State, when
the person dies without making a will. A will is a written statement in
which a person declares what he wishes to have done, at his death, with
whatever he possesses--the charitable objects or the persons to whom he
wishes to leave his goods. This will is called also the last testament.
It is signed by witnesses, and after the death of the testator is
committed to the care of a person--called the executor--whose business
it is to see that all stated in the will or testament is carried out.
There is an officer in the State to take these things in hand and settle
them according to law, when the amount left is large, and there is a
dispute about it. You can understand better now why we call the Bible
the Old and the New Testament. When Our Lord died we were left an
inheritance and spiritual property. The inheritance was Heaven, which we
had lost through the sin of Adam and regained by the death of Our Lord.
The spiritual property was God's grace, which He merited for us. The Old
Testament contains the promise of what Our Lord would leave us at His
death, and the New Testament shows that He kept His promise and did
leave what He said. The Old Testament was written before He died, and
the New Testament after His death. The witnesses of these testaments
were the patriarchs, prophets, Apostles, and evangelists, who heard God
making the promises through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. The
Church is the executor of Christ's will, and it is its business to see
that all men receive what Christ left them, namely, God's grace and
Heaven. It must also see that they are not cheated out of it by their
enemies--the devil, the world, and the flesh.

153 Q. Are actual sins ever remitted by Baptism?
A. Actual sins and all the punishment due to them are remitte