The Beginning of the Journey – January 14, 2024, The Baptism of Our Lord

Psalm 27:1-14, Matthew 3:1-17
January 14, 2024

Today we celebrate “The Baptism of Our Lord.”  And unlike Epiphany, or even Christmas for that matter, this celebration does fall on a Sunday!  As you probably know, I’d prefer that all liturgical celebrations take place on Sundays!

As we think about the Baptism of Our Lord, I’m asking that each of us remember our own baptisms.  Or, if you were too young at the time to remember – as I was – remember the vows that were taken on your behalf and “confirmed” at the time of your confirmation.  That’s the whole idea of confirmation.  It’s about “confirming” those baptismal vows

As you think about that today.  I want to remind you of something that’s very important about baptism.  That is, Baptism is not a one-time thing.  I say that, because I’m afraid too many people see it that way.  For too many parents, baptism is something you do for a child when they’re born – like giving them their immunizations.  They see it as being all about that thing called “original sin.”  They see it as a kind of “ticket to heaven” for the child.  You know, “In case something happens.”  Or, at the very least, they see baptism as a reason to have a big party!

One of the big problems with that is that too often that’s the only time some children – and sometimes even the parents – are seen in a church.  And don’t get me wrong in this!  Baptism is a wonderful thing!  Over the years, I’ve been privileged to be part of baptisms for many people!  And it is a privilege!  It’s a true honor to be part of such important events in people’s lives, just like it’s an honor to be part of a wedding, or even a funeral.

But the real problem is that, too often, people don’t understand that one important thing about baptism.  That it’s not something you do once, and that’s it.  The most important thing about Baptism is that it is “The Beginning of the Journey!”  That’s what I’m calling this message.  Because that’s what baptism is.  It’s not a “one-shot deal.”  It’s the start of something.  It’s the beginning of the journey we call faith!  Either as an infant, or as an adult, Baptism is the start of a lifetime of Christian nurture and growth.

So today we’re celebrating the Baptism of our Lord.  And at the very least, we can think of that as a connection with him, can’t we?  “You’ve been baptized?  So was Jesus!”  And by the way, as we look at this story, let me point out that this is an event that’s mentioned in all four Gospels!  And as I’ve always said, if something is a “Four Gospel Story,” we need to see it as having extra significance.  So this a very important story!

Today, we’re looking at Matthew’s account.  And I wanted to do so because Matthew chose to add a detail to this story that the others didn’t.  He’s the one who tells us about John’s protest.  And that’s the part we’re all thinking about, isn’t it?  John said to Jesus, “You come to me for baptism?  I should be baptized by you!”  Don’t we all think that?  Why was it that Jesus was being baptized?  People have debated that question for years!

Think about John.  In a certain sense he was right.  Part of baptism for him was what we call the “remission of sins.”  And that’s some truth to that.  There is a cleansing element to this sacrament.  We are cleansed by the blood of Christ.  But not because it acts like a “cleaning agent,” but because it has paid the price of our sinfulness – once and for all.  Think about it.  You don’t get baptized “every once in a while” to cleanse all the sins you’ve committed since the last time.  That’s not how this works.  This is symbolic of the once and for all payment for our sins by Jesus on the Cross.  And we make that act – that atonement – part of our lives through this sacrament.

Think about this.  If baptism was only about the “remission of sins,” John would be right.  Jesus didn’t need baptism.  Yes, I’m going to say that.  Jesus didn’t “need” baptism!  I believe he was “without sin!”  But as I said, people have debated this point for centuries.  “If Jesus was without sin, why did he need to be baptized?”  Maybe you’ve heard that question.  The problem is, that the “cleansing of sin” is not all that baptism is about.  If it was it would be a one-time thing.  And maybe that’s why people see it that way.

And the way, if baptism was only about the remission of sins, that opens up other questions.  For instance, what if a person were to make a decision to follow Jesus, but something happened to them before they could be baptized?  Would God hold that against them?  I think not!  And that speaks to people’s understanding that we need to baptize an infant – for the same reason.  “What if something happens?”  But think about the thief on the cross.  He didn’t get baptized, but Jesus told him, “today you will be with me in paradise.”

I think we need to be careful not to oversimplify baptism or to make it too “formulaic” in that way.  What we need to remember is this.  And this is how it touches our lives every day.  Baptism is “The beginning of the journey.”  That’s what John was saying in his ministry.  He used baptism in the sense of a  repentance, a turning away from a sinful life, and starting a new life.  And all that was in preparation for the Messiah that was soon to come.  Which is another reason he thought Jesus should have been baptizing him!

I think the answer to that centuries old debate about whether or not Jesus “needed to be baptized,” can be found in the words of Jesus himself.  His answer to the protest from John was to say this.  “Let it be so for now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”  In this baptism, they were fulfilling “righteousness.”  They were fulfilling the plan of God.  I believe that meant that Jesus saw this is the beginning of his journey!  And of course, all of the Gospel writers would agree!  They all saw Jesus’ baptism as the beginning of his ministry.

And if we don’t quite get that message from Jesus’ own words, how about we take it from God’s own words!!  When Jesus came up out of the water, there was this “theophany” – this “appearance of God.”  We’ve talked about that before.  God appeared!  And when he spoke, he announced to all who were there, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!”  That is a powerful public announcement, given by God himself, that this was the official start of Jesus’ earthly ministry.

So, as I said, I want us to think about our own baptisms today, and I want us to see them as the same thing!  “The Beginning of the Journey.”  What we remember, what we revisit today, what we do a little later in restating our baptismal vows, are all about the journey of our lives of faith.  And our Baptisms were the beginning of that journey.

I think it’s been nice to remember and to restate those vows each year.  As we’ve said, it’s the beginning of a year.  So this is a milestone.  This is a time we remember other things of our lives.  We remember our renewed pledges.  We remember friendships.  We remember other obligations of our lives.  We acknowledge the passing of the years.  Is it not appropriate and meaningful to remember our commitment to our Lord, and to restate those vows of commitment?  Is it not appropriate and meaningful to remember the beginning of our Journey?  And does that not gives us the confidence to continue?

As we do that, it’s nice also to think about the journey.  Who have you met along the way?  Who walked with you?  Who helped guide you on that journey?  What were the milestones?  What were the highlights on that road?  What were the low points?  And who and what helped you during those low times, and brought you back to the road of faith?

Those are all good things to think about.  And I encourage you to do so.  And now this morning we think about the place where it all started.  As we remember the vows of our Baptism.

Prayer

Eternal God, we think of the passing of the years, and we remember our journey of faith.  Help us this new year to grow in our love for you and to be better disciples of Jesus Christ.  Help us to seek his guidance, to follow him more closely, and to shine his light more brightly.  Help us to love the world you so loved when you sent him to us.  For we pray in his name, Amen.

Baptism Vows

Friends, Jesus Christ has chosen you, and in baptism, has joined you to himself.  He has called you into the Church which is his body.  Now in this time and place, I ask you to confess his name, recommit your lives to him, and go out and serve him as his faithful disciples.  Please acknowledge him once again by answering these questions:

Who is your Lord and Savior?
Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior.

Do you trust in him?
I do.

Do you intend to continue to be his disciples, to obey his word, and to show his love?
I do.

Will you be faithful members of this congregation, giving of yourselves in every way, and will you seek the fellowship of the Church wherever you may be.
I will.

You are disciples of Jesus Christ.  He has called you.  Live in his love, and serve him.

            The Waters of Baptism and Prayer.