We are in Epiphany, the season when we ponder the exact nature of that baby born in Bethlehem. It’s a wonderful season, coming as it does in the winter-time as the short days gradually begin to lighten. And in much the same way, our readings reveal a little more about the Lord Jesus.
Last week it was the Magi, travelling afar in search of a new-born King and discovering God, not in a palace, but in a humble home.
And while only Matthew tells of those wise men, all four gospels deal with Christ’s baptism, the first significant event in his adult life. The church’s calendar of readings this year follows Matthew, so we look at his account.
We have already heard of John the Baptist’s preparing the way (in Advent), and learnt how the people flocked to the Jordan ready and willing for a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins – yet here is Jesus himself, coming from Galilee to the Jordan, to be baptised by John, one who testifies on his behalf.
We can imagine the astonishment on John’s face – here he is preparing the people for the coming of the Messiah, and suddenly there is Jesus queuing up with everyone else.
I need to be baptised by you, says John, and do you come to me?
Yet Jesus has the answer: let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfil all righteousness.
In other words, this is God’s will and therefore it must be done.
We are told that, as Jesus rises from the water, the voice of God thunders from heaven this is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. What marks out Christ’s baptism from those John baptised before is the presence of the Holy Spirit, descending like a dove, and for a moment we have our first snapshot of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the Trinity - revealed as the heavens open.
Jesus is now ready to begin his earthly ministry, a ministry which is to reconcile God and his people for ever.
We are blessed to share in this moment as we ourselves are baptised by water and the spirit in the name of the Trinity.
Here is the hallmark for our own baptism. It is a once-and-for-all sacrament, a visible means of God’s grace.
Whatever age we are, we become a Christian the moment we emerge from those baptismal waters.
baptism at St Stephen’s
It may take several years to discern just exactly what that means and how we are going to live out our vocation as followers of Christ, but whether it’s a response from parents - a willingness to help bring their child to faith - or a special moment at the end of a long period of preparation, the outcome is the same. Our Christian ministry begins at this point, just as Our Lord’s did.
Baptism is the first step in the way of Christ – hence traditionally fonts were placed symbolically at the door of the church.
Jesus began his ministry affirmed and equipped by the Father through the Holy Spirit, and we who are baptised in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are affirmed and equipped in the same way. We are all beloved children of the same heavenly Father.
Epiphany, the manifestation of the Christ, is a time of new beginnings and new insights; the Messiah may have been long-expected, but no-one quite foresaw him being born as a humble baby in Bethlehem; no-one imagined those mystic visitors from the East, let alone a man turning up at the Jordan to wait his turn to be baptised by John.
No-one expected the Messiah to come as an itinerant preacher, walking among his people, not wielding a sword of power and might but preaching peace to those who were near and those who were far off; no-one expected the Son of God to associate with tax-collectors and sinners, beggars and prostitutes, but Christ came preaching forgiveness; no-one expected the anointed one to touch lepers or to raise up the blind and the lame, and yet Christ came to heal.
No-one expected Christ’s ministry to be quite what it is – yet it is the model for our own ministry.
In Baptism, we are called to be Christ-like in our response to God’s loving-purposes. Jesus grew up to be compassionate, generous, kind-hearted, loving and forgiving. It is those Christ-like qualities which we nurture in ourselves and in others.
At the end of the Baptism service, we are sent out with a lighted candle, a powerful sign of God’s love, the light of love which enlightens all people.
Sermon from Rev Juliet Straw at St Stephens, 12th January 2020.
