IN NOMINE JESU THE BELOVED SON OF GOD S GOOD PLEASURE Hear again the Word of the Lord chosen for Epiphanytide long ago, as the one who was baptizing in the Jordan River once said: I have need, by You to be baptized, but You have come to me? 1 Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ John, Jesus cousin, he who had leaped in the womb at Mary s greeting of his mother, Elizabeth, through the words of today s theme verse, gives a bold confession of the Faith. That is, he recognizes that Jesus has a baptism to offer that surpasses and supersedes John s baptism. As he does so, John gives Faith s answer to beholding the Lord of the Universe, the Savior given for all humans: I have need, by You to be baptized! That is to say, John, today, for us whom God has gathered here, is a human portrayal of the ancient theological truth: Faith demands Baptism! All who are to be baptized into the Divine Name are to hear God s Word accompany their baptisms. That word declares the Christ whose baptism paved the way for the baptism He continues to give through His followers. In infant to aged adult, when God s Word of salvation from sin, death, and hell is proclaimed to have been won in Christ, the Holy Spirit works faith. That means that all who are baptized do believe in Jesus at the time of their baptism. 2 That baptismal Faith, the Faith of Christ, even in one 1 Matthew 3:14b. 2 Scaer, David P. 1999. Baptism. The Luther Academy: Cresbard, SD. 151.
who cannot speak, calls out in the spirit with John as they behold the Word of God: I have need, by You, to be baptized! Every human conceived has need, following Jesus baptism, to be baptized by Him. His baptism seals all the baptized into election to eternal salvation. That John certainly would have known. As a devout Jewish son of the priestly line, John, son of Zechariah, surely would have heard texts such as this recorded by an Israelite prophet who fell asleep in the Lord centuries before Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee to John: I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from your idols I will cleanse you (Ezekiel 36:26 TLSB). Divine words like that were surely informing John as he stood in the Jordan River with a baptism to offer that was into repentance for the forgiveness of sins. He saw before him the One Whom he would declare to be the Lamb of the God, the One continually taking away the sin of the cosmos (John 1:29b). That confession explains the second part of John s statement to Jesus that day long ago: You have come to me? John had tried to prevent Jesus from being baptized by him because the Spirit had revealed to him that this One was the Savior. From all of that, we may sum up the first biblical teaching for this day: all people have need to be baptized by Jesus. Those who hear of Him, as the Holy Spirit works faith in them, will declare the sentiments of John: I have need to be baptized by You! How then, did Jesus respond to John s request for His baptism and John s desire to prevent Jesus from entering the water? 2
But answering, the Jesus said to him, Allow it now. For thus it remains fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he allowed Him. 3 Jesus met John s objection by pointing him to the Divine need to fulfill prophecy. Not long after His baptism, near the beginning of His public ministry, Jesus would declare: Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 4 Jesus was fully aware of His ministry and mission at the Jordan River that day. That is, that He had come into the cosmos to die in the sins of all sinners, including those of you and me, that our sins might be covered over, and washed away. Today, you have heard Jesus first words recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, translated in part, that He and John were to fulfill all righteousness. That phrase declares that He that day at the River was continuing that which had begun more than thirty years before. In time, the Word of God, revealed Him as the incarnate Christ in Mother Mary s womb. From that time, He began to complete all that was necessary for our rightness with God. That all began with the announcement of an angel to Joseph in a dream. In that proclamation, the Infant in the womb was called Immanuel, which means, God with us. 5 From that combined with today s text, we may begin to understand that in John s permitting Jesus, the sinless God in the flesh, to receive John s baptism into repentance, Jesus was becoming one with sinners. He Who had no sin in Himself, stepped into water into which the sins of all who had come before Him had 3 Matthew 3:15. 4 The Holy Bible : King James Version. 1995. Logos Research Systems, Inc.: Oak Harbor, WA 5 Matthew 1:22-23. 3
been washed. That means that in His Baptism, Jesus did a beautiful reality. That has eternal benefits for all who are baptized and continue to believe in Him. Truly, Jesus and John s words and actions that day transformed John s simple washing with water into the repentance of sins into a washing with water and the Holy Spirit that works the forgiveness of sins! From all of that, we may sum up the second biblical teaching for this day: the Sinless One became sin for you; for me; for the entire world! Did you hear that in the great exchange that took place in that? Jesus began to take the place of every sinner as He was washed with those sin filled waters. He did so for every human from Adam to the last child conceived on the Day when Christ Jesus returns in power and glory with the clouds! What fulness of meaning comes out of the Word that declares that John s baptism of Jesus was necessary to fulfill all righteousness. The wonders revealed in today s text continue, as the Evangelist and Apostle records: Then, having been baptized, Jesus immediately went up from the water; and behold, they were opened [to Him] the heavens and He saw [the] Spirit of God descending like (a) Dove, [and] coming upon Him; 6 Heaven opens to reveal God s purpose. That event places Jesus in the line of Old Testament prophets. Some 600 years before Jesus steps out of the Jordan River, the third of the Latter Prophets (our class from yesterday heard about this, so, you should hear about this too), standing by a river in what is now Iraq, also saw the heavens opened, and beheld God. Following the pattern of that forerunner event, the Word for 6 Matthew 3:16. 4
today reveals the Son, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit being beheld as heaven opened. (In a bit, you will hear about the Father s witness in that baptism). In addition to that Spirit event, the Dove is a symbol of Israel (Hosea 7:11; 11:11). So, we even have today Israel reduced to One, Jesus, in our Gospel text. With that, we may behold the Son of God standing in for all who will be numbered among God s chosen people. From all of that, we may sum up the third biblical teaching for this day: Jesus as Prophet was beheld being anointed by the Holy Spirit, on behalf of God s people. That leads to the question: who saw the heavens opened and the Spirit as a Dove descending? In Matthew s Gospel, the witness was Jesus. In Mark s Gospel (1:10), the witness was Jesus. In Luke s Gospel, the witness was Jesus. Well, that is nice, for Jesus. But as He is the only witness recorded in those three Gospels, His testimony would not stand as valid testimony in an Israelite court of the day. (Although, combined, the three evangelists could bear such witness. But, were any of them there that day? Those Gospel writers do not say they were in this context). So, for this account to hold true according to God s Old Covenant Law, we need another witness. St. John the Apostle and Evangelist gives us another one John the one who performed the washing into repentance for the forgiveness of sins over Jesus (1:29-34). John had been looking for Him, for God Who had sent him to baptize with water had said to him, Upon [the One] whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining 5
upon Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit (1:33b). Of that One, John s testimony still stands: I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God (1:34)! Remember he would have been well acquainted with that which you heard from Isaiah today: Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. 7 If you have doubts about the events in Scripture, specifically today about the events recorded of Jesus baptism, repent! While it is true that you can only doubt that which is real, such doubts, if not corrected by the Word of God, can lead to unbelief. Believe the records that would have stood in any honest Israelite court of the first century A.D. You have the Word of John the Baptizer following that day, and the Word of Jesus concerning that day. You have available to you the testimony of all four Evangelists, words that have stood the test of time. All of them reveal that the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove, and rested upon Jesus. From all of that, we may sum up the fourth biblical teaching for this day: multiple witnesses testify to the truth that Jesus is the One who is anointed by God to baptize with the Holy Spirit. In addition to that this part of the text also shows the fulfillment of prophecy. (This is more of the fulfillment of righteousness about which you heard in the second third of this sermon). The prophet you heard from in today s Old Testament reading had declared earlier in his book: 7 The Holy Bible King James Version. 1995. Logos Research Systems, Inc.: Oak Harbor, WA, Isaiah 42:1 6
And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD (Isaiah 11:2). 8 If the fulfillment of prophecy were not enough to convince you of that which the Spirit s descent meant for Jesus, you have the record of the testimony of God. Hear again of the words of His Voice that echoed from opened heavens: from St. Matthew: Then behold, (a) Voice from the heavens saying, This One remains My Son, the Beloved in Whom I am well pleased. 9 from St. Mark: Then (a) Voice became from the heavens, You are the Son of Me, the Beloved, in you I am well pleased. 10 from St. Luke: Then (a) Voice became: You are the Son of Me the Beloved, I You I am well pleased. 11 I said earlier that you would hear from the heavenly Father. So, you just have, three times! You have now heard the Father s Voice, beheld the word picture of the Son coming up from the water, and listened to the narrative of the Spirit descending upon Him in the form of a dove. From all of that, we may sum up the fifth biblical teaching for this day: in today s testimony we have been given the witness of the Trinity in Unity about Jesus, all of which was revealed at the River Jordan long ago. Those testimonies give you and me, and all whose ears will be opened to the Good News of Jesus the Christ, divine reasons to declare with the Psalmist, that which 8 The Holy Bible : King James Version. 1995. Logos Research Systems, Inc.: Oak Harbor, WA 9 Matthew 3:17. 10 Mark 1:11. 11 Luke 3:21. 7
we recited today: Blessed be the LORD GOD, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things; and blessed be His glorious name forever. 12 As this sermon opened in support of the teaching that, Faith demands Baptism, so now it closes. We have heard all the testimony that teaches that God Himself has honored Baptism by words and deeds such as in this day s texts. God has confirmed Baptism in today s Gospel reading by wonders from heaven. Do you think it was a jest that the heavens opened when Christ allowed Himself to be baptized, that the Holy Spirit descended visibly, and that the divine glory and majesty were manifested everywhere? 13 I don t! The peace which passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus Baptism of our Lord (Lutheran Service Book one-year series) Introit: Psalm 100:1-2a, etc; Isaiah 42:1-7; I Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 3:13-17 January 13, 2019 Pastor Michael A. Morehouse BBA, MDiv, DMin Soli Deo Gloria 12 Gradual. Psalm 72:18-19a. 13 Tappert, et. al. The Book of Concord, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1959. 439. 8