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| In the waters of Baptism we recognize our belatedness, but God's saving work isn't finished there. |
©2024 The Rev. Seth Olson
Holy God, let my words be your words and when my words are not your words, let your people be wise enough to know the same. Amen.
It doesn’t always happen. A parent of a newborn child asking clergy to visit them in the hospital. So, when I have the chance to offer prayers of thanksgiving for the birth of a child, I am elated. Sometimes in those labor and delivery rooms the commotion stops long enough for me to invite the parents to wade into deeper waters. “Would you like your child to be baptized?” I might ask.
On a few such occasions, I have had parents quickly tell me that they want their child baptized as soon as possible. This is usually followed up by the phrase, “In case something happens.” When a parent utters these words, I wonder sometimes aloud, “What do you think is happening in Holy Baptism?”
I wonder that with all of you now, “What do you think is happening in Holy Baptism?” Let that question marinate a minute.
Today is the First Sunday in Lent. Now, it’s not the First Sunday of Lent. What’s the distinction? Well, even though we have put away the liturgical A-word for a time, Sundays are always feast days, always! They are the Day of Resurrection. Every Sunday a mini-Easter and Easter is simply a really big Sunday. On this First Sunday in Lent, we discover one of the major purposes of this entire season—we witness one of the big goals of this time when we prepare ourselves for the Paschal Feast of Easter. What is that goal?
Holy Baptism! Along with preparing ourselves for Our Lord’s Passion and Resurrection, this Season of Lent has traditionally been a time when we in the Church ready those who are to be baptized most fittingly at the Easter Vigil. In the Early Days of the Church those who followed the Way of Christ were often persecuted. So, preparations for Holy Baptism were rigorous to ensure that someone was not spying on early Christians (meaning: little Christs) to infiltrate and harm or even kill them. Often this Catechism—instruction in the Faith—took three years!
That is not my hope at Holy Apostles. However, I do believe it takes years and years, decades and decades, even an entire lifetime to grow into the full stature of Christ. This good work though is begun in what our readings focus on today—Holy Baptism.
So, let’s wonder with our lessons this day that question I asked a moment ago, “What do you think is happening in Holy Baptism?” or more simply, “What does happen in Holy Baptism?”
In Mark, Jesus underwent the Baptism of John. He was baptized in the River Jordan. There something mystical and marvelous occurred. A voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved.” Is there an echo in here? We heard these same words last week uttered by an overwhelming cloud during the Transfiguration. Today though, God’s voice bellows from heaven while the Holy Spirit descends like a dove on Jesus.
This was Jesus’ Baptism. In The Book of Common Prayer though, we attest that there is One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism. So, here it is! This is Holy Baptism. Every other Baptism throughout all time is taking part in this one—each new baptism is not a cheap imitation—it’s the same one. And, though we do not say it explicitly in our Baptism service, just as Jesus heard these words from heaven, you hear these words: You are my beloved. God also added, “With you I am well pleased,” which we did not hear in the Transfiguration. In your Holy Baptism, God is well pleased too.
So, this Holy Baptism—this one Holy Baptism—is a moment when we discover our true identity, in Christ we are God’s beloved. This is not as nervous new parents often think, eternal fire insurance simply offered to prevent us from dying and going to hell. This interpretation of Holy Baptism has caused much harm. God does not intend to utilize scare tactics to intimidate or coerce us into loving God. Holy awe of God, being overwhelmed by Our Creator are likely outcomes of growing ever closer to the Almighty One—still for too long some of our siblings in the Church have utilized a fear of hell into scaring people into their pews.
God loves us—God sees us through the lens of Christ, as beloved. Still, Holy Baptism is deathly serious, but not because of what often is attested by turn or burn preachers with bullhorns screeching on the street corner. Our First Lesson from Genesis and our Second Lesson from Peter’s Letter provide us with deeper understanding.
Holy Baptism is like the flood. It is like the flood in that we are overwhelmed by it. Not only this, but our old way of being is no more. In Holy Baptism, we undergo death—we die to self—and we are made a new creation in Christ. Baptism then is not simply a cleansing of your sins, it’s not like washing your hands to remove dirt. No, it’s not simply that your iniquities are sprinkled with holy water, it’s that you are not the same person before and after baptism—like creation before and after the flood.
What happens then in Holy Baptism is transformation, rebirth, and taking part in the Resurrection of Christ! If we say that it is simply to avoid sin or avoid hell, we are making this rite too small. In this sacrament, we are made new, we are in Christ seen as the beloved, and we are recognized as our true selves—children of God. Anything less than this does not express the power and abundance of God’s grace.
When talking about grace though, I am frequently reminded of Frederick Bonhoeffer’s notion of cheap grace. He attests the grace we receive, for example in Holy Baptism, the grace we receive here from God is 100% free. However, this grace will cost us.
We see this immediately in today’s Gospel. Jesus—once baptized and identified as the beloved—is driven out into the wilderness. Did you notice who drove him there? It was the Holy Spirit! What? From within the Divine Community of the Trinity, Jesus was guided into the wilderness and faced temptation. Immediately this overwhelming grace that Jesus received cost him something. He persisted as he rested in his beloved identity—a grace from God.
Grace, that is the surprising gift of God’s favor, unearned and undeserved, led Jesus into self-emptying love. Notice it’s not the other way round—God the Father did not wait for Jesus to win his belovedness after avoiding temptation from Satan. Jesus was beloved, then this grace invited him into self-giving love. We most clearly see this sacrificial love at the Cross of Calvary, but it’s here in the wilderness too.
Jesus gave away comfort. He gave away convenience. He faced temptation. He slummed it with the beasts. Not because he wanted a fun camping experience or a divine merit badge. This was a way of resting in the belovedness of God and recognizing that in this truth he could face overwhelming challenges.
This is what happens in Holy Baptism. We recognize and celebrate our true nature, as God’s beloveds. If you have not been baptized, I invite you to come talk with me. If you are interested in Confirmation—that is confirming what happened in Holy Baptism—a mature commitment to Christ, come talk with me. If you want to reaffirm your Baptismal Vows or be received from another denomination, come talk with me.
In Christ, all of us are seen as God’s Beloveds, and in these rites of initiation and renewal, we recognize and celebrate as the Church what God already sees in us. You do not need to be baptized so as to avoid eternal death, but in Holy Baptism you do die. You die to your old self, you are made a new creation in Christ, you accept your place as God’s beloved, and you receive the abundant grace of God. This grace is free, but will cost you. May we rest in the truth of our belovedness through Christ, may we receive this grace, and may we be ready to give of ourselves to help others know that they too are beloved.
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