Isaiah 42:1-9, Psalm 29, Acts 10:34-43, Matthew 3:13-17
January 13, 2008
Rev. Patricia L. Liberty
After the Water
<Sing>
Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to Him belong, I am weak but He is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me. Yes, Jesus loves me the Bible tells me so.
Most of us have been singing that song for so long we have forgotten where we learned it and from whom we learned it. This is one of the most widely known and recognized Christian songs in the world.
The words were written in 1860 by Anna Warner, the music was added in 1862. The song was instantly popular and was translated into more than 85 languages.
We can tumble those words out from memory and not think all that much about it. Well today, I want you to think all that much about it, and tomorrow and the day after and the day after that. Because as 20th century theologian Reinhold Niebuhr once commented they sum up the central message of the Christian faith. And one of the central symbols of that message is baptism.
And today as we remember Jesus’ baptism by John we are going explore some of what we believe about this ancient and tender ritual.
Every time a child comes to the waters of baptism, every time we witness parents make vows on their children’s behalf, every time we pledge our support and presence to a family so that they may grow together in the grace of being a family in God’s sense of the word, we connect to not only to the moment in history that is Jesus’ baptism, but to all the moments in history where people have accepted their place as partners in God’s ongoing design and desire for the world.
Baptism is the gift of radical inclusion. As the hymn we sang this morning boldly states, “We are not our own God claims us…” In the act of Baptism divisions are erased and we are all one community in Christ, making the same promises, accepting the same responsibilities, joining in the everlasting covenant.
After that it gets a little complicated. There are many different understandings of baptism. How many here come to this place via another faith community in another tradition?
If you were Roman Catholic the theology of baptism claims that the sacrament is what saves a child from original sin. Historically, this was the source of the urgency to have a child baptized as soon as possible.
In the Baptist Churches I served for a time early in ministry, baptism happened when one was “of decision making age.” As people came to be baptized they were asked, “Do you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and do you promise to be his faithful disciple all the days of your life?” Baptism was the symbol of an inner faith commitment and of personal repentance.
Here in the United Church of Christ, we acknowledge: “Baptism is the sacrament through which we are united to Jesus Christ and given part in Christ’s ministry of reconciliation. Baptism is the sign and symbol of inclusion in Christ’s church. Baptism is one of two sacraments we observe, the other being the Lord’s Supper.
These two rituals are as old as our faith, central symbols of our Christian tradition. Each time we witness a baptism we touch the ancient symbol of water as a connection to renewal and grounding in mission.
So, there are many different understandings of what we’re doing in the act of baptism. Most of us have cobbled our beliefs together out of a several different places. Today I want to focus on two things that are central to our beliefs about baptism in the United Church of Christ.
Most simply put, “Baptism is the place where God calls us beloved.” Whatever else may be true in our lives, whatever we have done or failed to do, wherever we are in our own journey of discipleship, that moment of baptism however long ago, is THE symbol of God’s truth that we are beloved.
In this simple ritual we are united to Jesus Christ and given part in Christ’s ministry of reconciliation, as our baptismal liturgy says.
It is what is echoed in the reading from Acts as Peter recognizes that God shows no partiality. Nothing God makes is unclean, it is all blessed, all beloved. Baptism celebrates that truth. It is the great equalizer of community. In the waters of baptism we are claimed by God for God’s purposes and we all have equal share. Our welcome into God’s embrace is God’s doing. We do not have to earn it, there is nothing we can do that will void it. It does not expire. In the act of baptism we are claimed as God’s beloved.
And here’s part two. We are claimed for God’s purposes. Baptism is also a call to radical righteousness. It isn’t just us about us and God and our own personal piety or the state of or our own soul all on our own.
Brad Braxton writes, “Jesus submits (to John’s baptism)….to ‘fulfill all righteousness’. And he is careful to point out that this is not just about personal piety or the state of one’s soul or conscience before God.
Righteousness also signifies God’s saving action in the world. One might even translate the Greek word for righteousness justice. According to Thomas Long, righteousness encapsulates God’s passionate commitment to set right the things that are wrong.
Thus Jesus’ submission to John’s baptism is no simple act of personal piety. On the contrary, Jesus discerns that John’s baptism and fiery preaching constitute a revolutionary declaration about a new world order where God will set right all that the establishment (in Jerusalem and Rome) has put awry. By submitting to John’s baptism Jesus declares, "I am ready for the revolution!"
One evening the New Testament professor from Princeton Seminary visited a high school youth group. After the professor finished speaking about the significance of Christ's baptism as
a revelation of God's presence in Jesus, the high schooler said without looking up, "That ain't what it means." Glad that the student had been listening enough to disagree, the professor asked,
"What do you think it means?" "The story says that the heavens were opened, right?" "Right." "The heavens were opened and the Spirit of God came down, right?" "That's right."
The boy finally looked up and leaned forward, saying, "It means that God is on the loose in the world. And it is dangerous." (Daniel D.Chambers)
And what Jesus did in his ministry was dangerous…to the status quo. What Jesus did was consistent with a new way of being in the world.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for what is righteous," who live with a desire to do the will of God. He also said, "Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness," who suffer because they do what God wants them to. Living as God intends us to live is more important than life itself. Jesus said, "Seek first God's kingdom and his righteousness," and "the righteous shall enter eternal life," and "the righteous will shine like the sun in God’s new realm. There is a life to live, a path to walk. Jesus was baptized to show us the way of God's new righteousness.
And yet, it is a different kind of righteousness, because it means more than merely sticking to the rules and doing the right thing. True righteousness has to do with making ourselves available to God. We are righteous when we give up any vain attempts to win God's approval; in baptism, God has already embraced us in the love of Christ, and said, "You are my beloved daughter. You are my beloved son." That’s the bottom line, what remains to be seen is what we do with it. We aren’t trying to earn anything, we are simply taking our place in the ministry.
Baptism is a moment….and it takes a life time to live it out. Barbara Brown Taylor notes, Baptism may be the clearest moment when God's claim on human life is announced. But it takes time to see if we're going to live as if we belong to God. We cannot know each challenge or demand in advance. We can only live one day after another as faithfully as we're able, trusting that God is even more faithful than we are. We act as if we are God's beloved sons and daughters. And we grow into the promises of God, and keep growing up until we can claim those promises for ourselves. That's what it means to be righteous. That's what it means to be baptized.
Baptism signifies our initiation in the life long and life giving rhythm of radical inclusion and radical righteousness.
Or, more simply put. Jesus loves me, this I know for the waters of baptism tell me so.