Baptized in Christ
A Sermon of The Rev. Dr. David A. Killian, Rector
All Saints Parish
Brookline, Massachusetts
January 11, 2004
First Sunday after the Epiphany, The Baptism of our Lord
Text: Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
I
Have you been dazzled by the pictures of Mars, the "red planet" so distant and mysterious, which we have been viewing in the images beamed back to earth? Is there something deep within the human spirit that pushes us beyond ourselves to explore new horizons? When I see the pictures from Mars, I am filled with wonder and awe at the Creator who brought the universe into being and set the planets in their courses. I marvel also at the ingenuity of God's creatures who are bent on pushing back one frontier after another.
Wonder and awe are hallmarks of this liturgical season of Epiphany. What is Epiphany? It is a Greek word that means "manifesting" or "making known." When we think of Epiphany, we think of the three wise men from the East, the Magi, who followed the star to Bethlehem where the Savior was manifest and made known. The Magi are Gentiles and they often are portrayed as African and Asian to show that Christ's love extends to all nations and continents.
This message of God's inclusive love for all nations is emphasized by Peter in the reading we heard from Acts, when Peter says: "God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to God." What a powerful statement of the universal love of God for the entire human race! Whether you are a man or a woman, black or white, Jew or Gentile, rich or poor, homosexual or heterosexual, God loves you and calls you into covenant.
The Jesus movement is founded on this inclusive vision. In his lifetime Jesus never traveled beyond Palestine and he said that he came primarily to the house of Israel. The first Christians were all Jewish and the early church was overwhelmingly Jewish for the first couple of generations. But Jesus gave powerful signals that God's covenant was meant to reach all people. Jesus cured the Roman centurion's son and praised the faith of the Syro-Phoenician woman. His message of inclusivity led Peter and Paul and the early church to admit Gentiles to his covenant. In a few generations the Gentiles became predominant. One of the sad chapters in Christian history is how the inclusive and all-embracing vision of Jesus was corrupted in later centuries and Christians cruelly discriminated against and persecuted the Jewish people. The men's group, which met yesterday, began its study of this sad turn of events. It is important that we remember our origins and the message of epiphany which is: God's covenant is extended to the Gentiles but it is never revoked from the Jews. God's covenant is for all.
II
The story of the wise men is one among many epiphanies recorded in the Gospels. Another is the wedding feast of Cana, which is the Gospel for next Sunday. At Cana, Jesus works his first sign by changing water into wine. Jesus is made manifest as the one who compassionately cares for a couple in distress and shows his power to change people's lives. Another epiphany is the transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain with Elijah and Moses.
Still another epiphany is the baptism of Jesus, the subject of today's Gospel passage. God's love is made manifest as th Holy Spirit descends like a dove, and the voice from heaven proclaims, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."
The early church saw the baptism of Jesus as his manifestation as the servant described in today's reading from Isaiah: "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations." The baptism marks the beginning of Christ's public ministry as the one who brings God's love and justice to the world.
Baptism is what set Jesus on his journey as God's servant and it is what sets us on our journey as followers of Christ. Baptism is the sacrament that gives our identity, it tells us who we are. You are my son, you are my daughter. You are my child, you are an heir of the Kingdom.
III
St. Augustine tells of a father who kissed his child on the chest after the child was baptized because he sensed that his child was a temple of the Holy Spirit. In a few minutes we will baptize Ryan. I am sure that his parents might feel a similar impulse to kiss Ryan because he is an epiphany, a manifestation of God's love in our world.
What keeps us from recognizing the spirit of God in our children? Sometimes, we simply don't take the time to listen and to look at what is right before us -- which was the case of the father and his six-year old daughter Maria at her bedtime. Dad was in the den hard at work at the computer finishing a report due the next day. After a few minutes he realized Maria was standing next to him. "Honey what do you need?" "It's bedtime, Daddy. I came to say good night." Still keeping one eye on the screen, he gave Maria a big hug and a kiss. "Good night, Sweet Pea. Sleep tight. I love you. Now off to bed," Dad said, and returned to his computer screen. A few minutes later he looked up and there was his daughter still standing there. "Honey, I gave you a hug and kiss. What do you want now?" Little Maria said, :"Daddy, you gave me a kiss, but you weren't in it."
If we claim to be among his disciples, then Jesus demands that we be "in it." We cannot be passive about our faith; just calling ourselves Christian does not make us one of Jesus' own. Discipleship demands awareness of God's presence in our lives; discipleship compels us to seek the things of God. Baptism means we take on the faith that becomes part of the very fabric of our lives; we embrace the identity in which God and the things of God become both our life's journey and destination.
Today, when we reaffirm our baptismal covenant, let us be "in it." Let it be a statement of our willingness to become part of the Jesus movement. It is our commission to put Jesus' message of universal love into practice in our lives. Amen.