The Baptism of Jesus

¹³ Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴ John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” ¹⁵ But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. ¹⁶ And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. ¹⁷ And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”

Holy Baptism

“Holy Baptism is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into Christ’s Body, the Church” (Book of Common Prayer, p. 298).

In the waters of baptism we are lovingly adopted by God into God’s family, which we call the Church, and given God’s own life to share and reminded that nothing can separate us from God’s love in Christ (from the Episcopal Church website).

I remember hearing this story as a child and wondering (probably out loud, as I was prone to do) why Jesus would need to be baptized by John if he was God.  My lens as a child in the church was that children and sometimes even adults, went to the front (or back) of the church to the baptismal font for a big celebration on Sundays or other holy days.  I knew it was special then, but it wasn’t until I had the honor of standing with my husband as he made the decision to be baptized as an adult in front of our friends and family that I had the full realization of the personal commitment of being baptized by water and the Holy Spirit.  Then, a couple years later, our infant daughter was welcomed as the newest sister in Christ and marked as Christ’s own forever and I nearly lost it that day as the enormity of my responsibility as her parent and fellow Christian to raise her to know and love the Lord, accepting Christ as her savior on her behalf.

Baptism was a relatively new concept started with John.  He brought people to faith and repentance with water, and with the promise of someone greater than him coming to baptize with the Holy Spirit (Mark 1:1-8) John and Jesus grew up close like brothers, but had not spent a lot of time together as adults.  John prophesied in the above lesson from Mark about the good news of Baptism in Christ, so I can only imagine how he felt to be in the position to be commanded to fulfill the will of God by baptizing Jesus himself.  I can hope that John had more faith than I would have had under the same circumstances, “You want me to do what to YOU?  Right here?  Right now?  Are you crazy, Jesus???? I’m just not worthy”).

There are some things happening in my life right now that make me feel a strong pull from God in directions that seem quite unusual, difficult, even a little bizarre.  I don’t feel comfortable as I think about this plan that God may have for me that is not aligned with the plan I have had for myself.  Following Him as he leads me into uncertainty DOES NOT MAKE MUCH SENSE.  John probably felt the same way as he was tasked with the actual Baptism of Jesus.  But fulfilling the plan is exactly what he did…and much more as we go on to read in the Gospel stories of his edgy and unusual life.

The baptism of Jesus was a necessary step in the completion of the Trinity.  And each of us takes that step of joining in the relationship when we are baptized as well.  For some critics of baptism in the very young who technically cannot make the decision on their own, here is my response:  It is my job as a parent who decides to bring a child into the world and our family to ensure the choice of future of success and happiness.  I am tasked with making education a priority, teaching values which support a child growing up to contribute to the world, and demanding that she is NICE in the world and to those she meets.  But my most important job is to provide my child the opportunity for a lifelong relationship with God through Christ and with the power of the Holy Spirit.  That starts with baptism and continues in my expectations for her and the experiences we give her as parents until she goes out into the world in a few short months to make decisions far beyond our control but hopefully withing the realm of her life to date.

Jesus’ baptism fulfills God’s plan, but it also shines a light onto his bottomless forgiveness, love and compassion.  Malcom Gladwell talks about finding his faith in this article, highlighting the so called “weapons of the spirit.” He discusses meeting a family who lost their child in a horrific murder, and their discussion of forgiveness and love – sounding so foreign under those extreme circumstances of love.  Although I pray I never (and you never) have to experience a life changing event like that, the gift of baptism in my love has given me the weapons I need to approach any challenge I may have with love and forgiveness.  I’m not worthy of the gifts I have received, that much is true.  So as the receiver of those gifts, how can I be selfish and not turn around and share them with others who may or may not be deemed “worthy” in my human eyes?

We are living in a world where things happen that bring us great sadness.  Terrible things happen to the most innocent among us and as we rock along in our well-planned life, a detour pops up that leaves us bewildered and confused.  But God has given us all we need to approach these difficult situations with grace and love, giving gifts we didn’t know we could give because it what God calls us to do.  It’s the most surprising thing to see when a yucky situation is met with love and forgiveness; let’s walk our walk with Christ making it less surprising to see and more of what we expect to happen when Christians face life’s challenges.

John baptized Jesus and we are baptized by water and the Holy Spirit to join our brothers and sisters in Christ in fulfilling God’s kingdom work in our lives.  John followed God’s command and we are called to do the same.  Because don’t we all want God to see us and our work and tell the world he is well pleased with us?

Gracious God, thank you for the gift of Baptism by water and the Holy Spirit.  The love and forgiveness you show to us every day is a gift we want to share with those we meet, even when we may deem them unworthy, just as we are.  Teach us how to love one another without judgment and to respond to the challenges of our world in ways that make You well pleased.  We ask all this through your son Jesus Christ.  AMEN.