Readings for the Day:
Sermon:
What is the most important service in the church?
It’s the very thing we celebrate in our service today. It is Baptism. That is
because it is at the core of our life. And we see why in our Gospel reading this
morning.
John the Baptist was doing something very specific in Baptizing people. As we heard in the Advent Season he was preparing a way. Preparing the way of the Lord. And he did so through the Baptism of repentance.
What does repentance mean to you? What does the word make you think of?
Repentance means to reorient. It means to turn around. John the Baptist wasn’t baptizing people so that they would feel bad about themselves. He wasn’t trying to preach hellfire and damnation. John realized the truth about people. About the world. That we had lost our way. That we had turned our backs on God. That we had ceased from following Him.
So repentance isn’t about guilt. It’s about invitation. It’s about saying “Don’t you see what you’re doing to yourself by not following God? You’re hurting yourself. Turn away from the ways of the world. Turn back. Turn back to be with God.”
When Jesus comes along, though, it is bit different. He’s not someone who needs to turn back to God. Quite the opposite. He is the way which John has been helping to prepare us for. He is God incarnate as Man. And that incarnation is the very reason for this season of Epiphany.
The incarnation also happens to be the reason why Jesus is getting baptized. Because He doesn’t need to be. He doesn’t need to turn back because He is the path we are turning back too.
But while Jesus is fully God, He is also fully man. And as such, He lives in solidarity with us. Just as we need to be Baptized in turning back to God, Jesus is there with us, being Baptized with us. He’s there, dwelling with us. Even amidst the worst parts of us. Even in the parts of humanity that reject Him.
And the miraculous part of Jesus is that just when we see His true humanity, we also see His true divinity. Because in this moment when we see the beginning of all righteousness being fulfilled that the Holy Spirit descends and we hear the voice of God say “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” In this very moment, we see all of God in all three persons of the Trinity.
John the Baptist was doing something very specific in Baptizing people. As we heard in the Advent Season he was preparing a way. Preparing the way of the Lord. And he did so through the Baptism of repentance.
What does repentance mean to you? What does the word make you think of?
Repentance means to reorient. It means to turn around. John the Baptist wasn’t baptizing people so that they would feel bad about themselves. He wasn’t trying to preach hellfire and damnation. John realized the truth about people. About the world. That we had lost our way. That we had turned our backs on God. That we had ceased from following Him.
So repentance isn’t about guilt. It’s about invitation. It’s about saying “Don’t you see what you’re doing to yourself by not following God? You’re hurting yourself. Turn away from the ways of the world. Turn back. Turn back to be with God.”
When Jesus comes along, though, it is bit different. He’s not someone who needs to turn back to God. Quite the opposite. He is the way which John has been helping to prepare us for. He is God incarnate as Man. And that incarnation is the very reason for this season of Epiphany.
The incarnation also happens to be the reason why Jesus is getting baptized. Because He doesn’t need to be. He doesn’t need to turn back because He is the path we are turning back too.
But while Jesus is fully God, He is also fully man. And as such, He lives in solidarity with us. Just as we need to be Baptized in turning back to God, Jesus is there with us, being Baptized with us. He’s there, dwelling with us. Even amidst the worst parts of us. Even in the parts of humanity that reject Him.
And the miraculous part of Jesus is that just when we see His true humanity, we also see His true divinity. Because in this moment when we see the beginning of all righteousness being fulfilled that the Holy Spirit descends and we hear the voice of God say “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” In this very moment, we see all of God in all three persons of the Trinity.
Jesus Christ. Fully God. Fully Man. God in His fullness dwelling with us.
Dwelling with us as one of us.
And so Jesus is baptized with us to show us His full humanity as well as His divinity. But that is not the only reason.
Because the Baptism that comes from Jesus isn’t just one of repentance, like John’s. It goes much farther than that. It allows us to be one with Jesus. It allows us to be members of the family of God with Jesus. It allows us to not just turn back to God, but to walk towards Him.
For that reason, Baptism in the church is about membership. By it, we are made full members of the church. We become one with Christ through it. Through Baptism, we become part of Christ’s body.
But it doesn’t stop there. Just as Jesus did God’s will and walked among us, so we too are called to go out into the world to do God’s will as well. To make the message of Good News of the grace we receive from our Lord Jesus Christ known to the world by both word and action. Because we make Christ known not just by what we say, but by what we do. Because it is in what we do that we show others that Jesus Christ is still alive and dwells in us all.
And in this life, we are still walking forward, because as St. Paul says in Philippians chapter 3, we are not yet perfect. God is still working in us and through us.
And that is why we are gathered here today. To remember. To continue the work begun in our Baptism. Just as we repented of our sins and turned to Jesus Christ in Baptism, so we ask forgiveness of our sins and receive God’s grace in the Eucharist. Just as we turn back to God in Baptism, we continue to take that step forward back to God with St. Paul and all the saints in the Eucharist.
In both services, we have the opportunity to come closer to our Lord and Savior. However it is that we experience His continued presence with us.
And so Jesus is baptized with us to show us His full humanity as well as His divinity. But that is not the only reason.
Because the Baptism that comes from Jesus isn’t just one of repentance, like John’s. It goes much farther than that. It allows us to be one with Jesus. It allows us to be members of the family of God with Jesus. It allows us to not just turn back to God, but to walk towards Him.
For that reason, Baptism in the church is about membership. By it, we are made full members of the church. We become one with Christ through it. Through Baptism, we become part of Christ’s body.
But it doesn’t stop there. Just as Jesus did God’s will and walked among us, so we too are called to go out into the world to do God’s will as well. To make the message of Good News of the grace we receive from our Lord Jesus Christ known to the world by both word and action. Because we make Christ known not just by what we say, but by what we do. Because it is in what we do that we show others that Jesus Christ is still alive and dwells in us all.
And in this life, we are still walking forward, because as St. Paul says in Philippians chapter 3, we are not yet perfect. God is still working in us and through us.
And that is why we are gathered here today. To remember. To continue the work begun in our Baptism. Just as we repented of our sins and turned to Jesus Christ in Baptism, so we ask forgiveness of our sins and receive God’s grace in the Eucharist. Just as we turn back to God in Baptism, we continue to take that step forward back to God with St. Paul and all the saints in the Eucharist.
In both services, we have the opportunity to come closer to our Lord and Savior. However it is that we experience His continued presence with us.
Baptism is, in part, about turning back to God. Repenting. But in being Baptized Himself, Jesus shows us even more fully what it is about. By showing not just His fully divinity, but also His full humanity, Jesus shows that He is in solidarity with us.
Baptism helps join us to Him. In addition to repentance, Baptism is also about membership. It’s about being one with Christ Jesus, and thus with each other.
Baptism is a new start for us. It’s the chance for us to walk with Jesus as we make our way back to God. As we become more fully His. And so we continue to act out our Baptism every time we move closer to Jesus in the Eucharist.
We aren’t made perfect yet. As Paul says, we are still striving forward with Jesus Christ in our journey. So as you leave here today, remember what you promised in your Baptismal Covenant, which we will shortly renew together. Remember what it truly means for us to walk with Jesus in our lives. And know that no matter what happens, we will be back here next Sunday to bring ourselves closer to Jesus through the Eucharist once again. To become more fully His.