Hearing the Voice in the Wilderness – January 11, 2026, The Baptism of Our Lord

Isaiah 40:1-11, Matthew 3:1-17
January 11, 2026

We start this story today with a voice crying in the wilderness  And I have to wonder, how many people in this story would have been familiar with our reading from Isaiah.  I suspect a lot of them!  Isaiah was a prominent book in their scriptures.  He was one of the major Prophets.  And I’m sure they would have heard these words many times before.  “A voice cries, ‘In the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord.’”

Now, it’s interesting how the Gospel writers, and the Bible translators have rendered those words over the years.  In Isaiah, it says “A voice cries, (quote) ‘In the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord.’”  In other words, “Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness.”  But all the Gospel writers say, “A voice cries in the wilderness, (quote) ‘Prepare the way of the Lord.’”  Do you see the difference?  In Isaiah, it’s, “prepare the way in the wilderness.”  In the Gospels it’s a voice in the wilderness, crying, “prepare.”

It is hard to know which it is, because it is a little ambiguous.  And things like punctuation – commas and quotes – were not in the original texts.  For that matter, the Hebrew didn’t even have vowels!  It was just consonants!  And in many manuscripts, there weren’t even any spaces between the words.  So, when you learned the language, and when you read, you had to learn what the stories said.  You didn’t just read words, like we do!

So the Gospel writers, and later the New Testament Translators, were altering the emphasis a little bit.  They were attempting to solidify this image of John in the minds of their readers.  They had the voice cry in the wilderness – because John was in the wilderness.  And the command was to prepare the way in that wilderness.  So it works!

So, the way Matthew and the others stated it, it connected Isaiah and John – no matter where the commas and the quotes were intended.  And it also connected John to Elijah.  Because that’s part of the imagery here, too!  The scriptures taught that Elijah would come first and herald the coming of the Messiah.  Remember, to this day, they still set a place at their Passover table for Elijah.  And they ceremonially open the door to see if he’s come.

That’s the connection that Matthew was making here.  And he made that connection even more than any of the other Gospel writers!  Because remember, Matthew was writing to a Jewish audience.  He was attempting to prove to them that Jesus was their Messiah, as foretold in their scriptures!  And this whole story speaks of John fulfilling that role, the role of preparing the way.  He was “Elijah, who was to come,”  Jesus himself said that in Matthew chapter 11.  John even looked like Elijah.  Both men were described a rustic looking, and fiery in their speech and message!

So, when the people went out to see John, were they thinking Isaiah?  Were they thinking Elijah.  Were they thinking Messiah?  Maybe so!  At the very least, John was a sensation!  He was a phenomenon!  He was a powerful and charismatic speaker!  They went out to hear him – in droves!  And they responded to his call for repentance and baptism.

But there was more to the story than that.  Because Matthew tells us that many of the Pharisees and Sadducees also came out to hear John.  And they also came to him for baptism.  And we can only imagine why.  Did he really speak to their hearts?  Or was it to go along with the crowds?  Did they want to connect themselves to someone obviously so popular with the people?

For whatever reason, they came to him for baptism.  And that’s when the people heard the fiery words of John!  Because he wasn’t buying it!  Look at these “admonitions” he gave those religious leaders.  And remember, these were men those people had followed and respected all or their lives!  And “admonitions” is a nice way of saying it!  John denounced them!  He excoriated them!  “You brood of vipers,” he called them.  Can you imagine what that was like?  Can you imagine someone denouncing and condemning members of the clergy today?  John was clearly not ingratiating himself with the influential people of his day!  He was just speaking the truth.  He was “telling it like it is!”

So, this story begins with a voice in the wilderness.  It was the voice of John, calling the people to repent, to turn, and to prepare.  And it is a hard voice.  It was an unsettling voice.  It was a voice that spoke the harsh truth.

But the story doesn’t end there.  It ends with another voice in the wilderness.  And this voice does not condemn.  It does not demand.  It names!  It was the voice of God.  And of Jesus, the voice said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased!”  So, before Jesus preaches a sermon, before he heals anybody, before he goes to the cross, God speaks!  And he speaks, not about what Jesus did or will do, but about who he is!

Something important was happening that day – something very important!  And that’s what we celebrate today.  Jesus came to John for baptism.  And John said, “Are you kidding me?  I need to be baptized by you!”  But Jesus assured him that this is the way it should be.  And he was right!  Because something else was about to happen.  The people were about to hear the voice of God, and to witness the descent of the dove.

So, in this story, there were two voices in the wilderness.  The voice of John called out Jesus as the Messiah – the one who was to come.  And the voice of God confirmed it!

That’s why, on this day, we are invited to remember our own baptism – our own times when we were called to turn to God.  And not because we were faithful, but because God is faithful!  In baptism, before we could chose God, God chose us.  Before we could speak, God spoke to us.  And he still speaks today – in wilderness places, in uncertain seasons, in new beginnings.  And he calls us his beloved children, too.

And so, as we celebrate “The Baptism of the Lord,” I invite you now to think of your own baptism.  I invite you to think of that original time of commitment in your life.  Think of those vows you took, or the vows that were taken for you, that were “confirmed” in your Confirmation.

Then – here at the start of a new year – I invite you speak those vows once again, and to re-commit yourselves to your faith in God’s beloved Son.  Please turn to the backs of your bulletins.  And pray with me.

Prayer

Eternal God, your love for us is truly amazing.  And so we remember today the time we first responded to your love with our lives.  As we make that commitment once again, help us to feel your Spirit speaking to us, surrounding us, reminding us of your amazing Grace, and filling us with your eternal Joy.  For we pray in the name of your beloved Son, Amen.

Renewal of Baptismal Vows.