Emily Owen

Baptism and Beginnings

Genesis 1:1-5 and Mark 1:4-11

Our second reading for today comes from the gospel according to Mark and begins with the activity of John the Baptist. John was a prophet who preached in the Judean wilderness. He called people to repentance and he baptized those who responded to his call. It seems as though the gospel writer wants to make sure the reader knows who Jesus is from the very beginning. For this reason, the gospel writer begins with the baptism of Jesus and of God’s declaration of Jesus’ identity as God’s Son, the beloved.

Hear now a reading from the first chapter of the gospel according to Mark, beginning with the fourth verse. Listen now for the word of the Lord.

Mark 1:4-11

John the baptizer appeared^* in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. ⁶Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. ⁷He proclaimed, ‘The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. ⁸I have baptized you with^* water; but he will baptize you with^* the Holy Spirit.’

The Baptism of Jesus

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. ¹¹And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved;^* with you I am well pleased.’

Hearing the words, “remember your baptism” confused me for a long time, mostly because it is impossible for me to remember my baptism. I was an infant when I was baptized, so I do not remember the physical feeling of water on my head. I don’t know exactly who was present in worship that day or what hymns were sung. In fact, I was told I slept through almost all of the service and that I didn’t seem to mind water running across my face and head as I slept. So I am not able to recall the exact events of my baptism. I have been told many stories. I have looked at pictures and held the baptismal gown that I wore. But… what does it mean to remember your baptism when you don’t really remember your baptism?

Pat/Alice read for us the first words of Genesis: In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. God created light and saw that it was good.

Then we heard our gospel for today and it told of Jesus being baptized by John in the waters of the Jordan River and following his baptism, the heavens are torn apart and the Spirit descends like a dove and God says, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

I can’t help but notice some parallels in these two scripture readings. Both contain God and more specifically, God in action… God as creator and God as Father. They also contain the Spirit of God… the Holy Spirit either as a wind or as a dove, hovering and present. And finally, there is something new happening: creation of light or declaration of identity and both are declared to be good by God.

There is one final, but very important connection in both of these scripture readings – one that conjures up images, symbols and meanings that run deep. We find in our readings for today, a theme of water. Water is life. Our bodies are made up of mostly water…even blood is mostly water. Even the surface of the Earth is mostly water…we depend on water to live. Even before birth, we lived in water in our mother’s womb and now we use water every day to nourish and to cleanse us. Too much water or staying under water too long can cause death. Water can create spaces for community – any visit to one of our local lakes proves this to be true. All of theses meanings – life, death, nourishment, sustenance, cleansing and community are parts of the meaning of baptism. And so today, we take a closer look at God’s gift of baptism, both Jesus’ baptism and our own.

But why today? Why is that we celebrate the baptism of Jesus today? What is the connection between Christmas, Epiphany and Baptism? It seems like he was just born and here we are with a grown Jesus coming up out of the water of the Jordan. So why now? Why is that we celebrate the baptism of Jesus today?

Less than three weeks ago, we celebrated the birth of Jesus. We recognized that in his birth, Jesus descended to earth; he came among us by becoming once of us – human, born of a virgin in a stable in Bethlehem. Then, this past Tuesday marked Epiphany when we recognize that the incarnational “coming down” of the Savior is manifested to the whole world. It is interesting to think that at Christmas and Epiphany we rejoice in Jesus’ “cross-shaped” coming, consisting of both his descending to live among us and the spreading of the good news and his mission to the world. We celebrated during Christmas God’s presence among us, the birth of Emmanuel, God with us. And on Epiphany we shared the excitement of the magi as they followed the star to find the new baby, and then set out to spread the good news of his birth. We share in their excitement as we too are called to be witnesses to Jesus’ birth and life.

But our scripture reading from the gospel of Mark skips the baby, there is no mention of Mary and Joseph, no stable, no magi, no star. Mark begins with the baptism of Jesus by John in the Jordan.

And so today, as we begin a new year, we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord on this Lord’s Day, the Sunday following Epiphany. And we do this, because the appearance of Jesus to the world is closely connected to his baptism and the beginning of his ministry. It is the Baptism of the Lord that provides a link between Christ’s epiphany and our witness to Jesus Christ. Christ is born, Christ is seen and Christ is revealed as God’s son, the beloved. And his ministry begins.

But today, we not only celebrate the baptism of Jesus, but we celebrate God’s gift of baptism… including our own baptism, which joins us to Christ and to his church; for all of the baptized are called to share in the ministry of Jesus Christ. This is true whether we remember the actual event of our baptism or not.

Martin Luther, a leader in the Christian reformation once said these words about baptism… “Therefore baptism remains forever. Even though someone falls from it and sins, we always have access to it … Repentance therefore, is nothing else than a return and approach to baptism, to resume and practice what has earlier been but abandoned…Thus we see what a great and excellent thing baptism is, it makes us God’s own, overcomes and takes away sin and daily strengthens the new person, and always endures and remains until we pass out of this life into eternal glory. Therefore let all Christians regard their baptism as the daily garment that they are to wear all the time.”

What would the world look like if we wore baptism as our daily garment, all the time?

Baptism is the sign and symbol of inclusion in God’s grace and covenant with the Church. As an identifying mark, Baptism signifies the faithfulness of God, the washing away of sin, rebirth, putting on the fresh garment of Christ, being sealed by God’s Spirit, adoption into the covenant family of the Church and resurrection and illumination in Christ.

Baptism is our beginning, but it is a constant beginning…one that we can return to at anytime. It takes us back to the deep waters of the formless void in creation. It reminds us of the Flood and of the Exodus from Egypt. Thus, the water of baptism links us to the goodness of God’s creation and to the grace of God’s covenants with Noah and Israel. In his ministry, Jesus offered the gift of living water and we learned that baptism is the sign and seal of God’s grace and covenant in Christ.

So what does it mean to remember your baptism?

To remember our baptism is to remember God’s faithfulness to us, it is remembering that no matter what, we can always return to the font and remember that when we confess our sins, we are met by a God of grace who forgives and washes us clean, making us new creations. Remembering our baptism is recognizing that we have been sealed by God’s spirit…. forever. It is putting on the fresh garment of Christ everyday and all the time.

I might not remember the exact events of the day that I was baptized, but what I do remember, are the people in my life who lived into the promises made at my baptism. I remember the people who sought me out on Sundays – people who learned my name and took time to get to know me– to give me hugs and tell me they were glad to see me. I remember the many Sunday school teachers who told Bible stories in new and exciting ways. I remember my youth sponsors who gave freely of their time and energy. I remember my parents and my family and the ways that there was more to faith than simply going to church on Sunday. I remember that I part of the covenant family of the Church.

So today, we remember God’s gift of baptism. We remember Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River by John. And we remember our own baptism – perhaps not the details of the event, but the meaning that holds true today. Baptism is our beginning, but it is a constant beginning…one that we can return to at anytime. For this, we give thanks.

In the name of the creator, redeemer and sustainer….Amen.