Jesus. THE ANGLICAN CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER, FRANKLIN MA Luke 3:15-16, 21-22 In baptism we are identified with Jesus and anointed by the Holy Spirit. The First Sunday after the Epiphany The Baptism of Jesus January 13, 2013 The collect for the First Sunday after the Epiphany focuses on the baptism of Father in heaven, who at the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan proclaimed him your beloved Son and anointed him with the Holy Spirit: Grant that all who are baptized into his Name may keep the covenant they have made, and boldly confess him as Lord and Savior This morning I d like to think about the implications of baptism the baptism of Jesus and our baptism as well. The readings speak of two profound and transformational truths. First, God is actively involved in His world and in people s lives to save and to empower all who turn to His Son. Isaiah wrote, Thus says God, the LORD, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it: I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other... Second, as we allow Him into our lives, He transforms us through the power of the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist said of Jesus, He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. In the Gospel reading John responded to people who wondered about his identity. They asked, Is he the Christ the promised Messiah? Is he the servant whom Isaiah wrote about? my servant my chosen, in whom my soul delights [on whom] I have put my Spirit. John said no. I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. Think about the words we just sang. Baptized in water, sealed by the Spirit cleansed by the blood of Christ, our King;
2 heirs of salvation, trusting His promise; faithfully now God s praise we sing. Baptized in water, sealed by the Spirit, marked with the sign of Christ, our King; born of one Father, we are his children; joyfully now God s praise we sing. What do these words mean? Think about them. In baptism Christians affirm that they seek to be part of the answer, not part of the human problem. In baptism: We acknowledge Jesus as our Savior and Lord; We side with the forces of good and reject those of wickedness and evil ( the world, the flesh and the devil ); We pledge our allegiance to Jesus God s Beloved Son and to join in the work of His kingdom; and We re empowered by the Holy Spirit. Although many of us were baptized as infants, the promises made on our behalf are still in force and we have opportunities every day to reaffirm these commitments and to make them a reality in our lives. You might think of baptism as being drafted into the army into the army of Christ for service that lasts a lifetime. We should never betray our relationship with Jesus or disappoint Him, His friends or ourselves. By our baptism, we re privileged to be nourished by His Body and Blood in the Holy Eucharist and to reaffirm our commitment to our Lord, His Church and His mission in the world. If we take baptism seriously, we must conclude that it s a radical act that shouldn t be taken lightly. In His baptism, Jesus was identified; He was anointed by the Holy Spirit and prepared for His mission in the world. In our baptism, we also are identified and anointed by the Spirit. We re baptized into Jesus death
3 and resurrection, born again, made part of His Body and charged to proclaim, by word and deed, the Good News of God in Christ. What do I mean by identified and anointed? First, let s look at Jesus baptism: Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased. Luke is concerned with the identity of Jesus. God revealed Himself and communicated to men, women and children in a new way. The Voice from heaven and the words of John the Baptist identified Jesus as a person radically different from any other person, yet totally identified with all humanity. John said, I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. Why is Jesus baptism important to us? Why does it matter? It s important because it speaks of His identity. You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased. Jesus fulfilled Isaiah s prophecy: Behold 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 Holy Spirit descended like a dove and anointed Jesus and equipped Him for ministry. Later, Peter told Cornelius, a Roman centurion seeking a relationship with the living God, that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. [And] He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. [Acts 10:38 ESV] Jesus baptism identified Him as the Son of the living God and the Servant who, through His life, death and resurrection, came to bring justice and peace to a dark and troubled world, infected by the diseases of sin and death. God said, I am the LORD; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and
4 keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness. [Isaiah 42:6-7 ESV] Jesus acknowledged His ministry when He read from Isaiah in the synagogue in Nazareth. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed And he began to say to them, Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. [Luke 4:18, 21 ESV] As we watch television, browse the web or read the newspaper, we re reminded over and over again that the world continues, in many ways, to be a dark and troubled place. People still sit in darkness and captivity. The poor in spirit and the poor in body still yearn for something better. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Gospel of grace and truth, is still Good News; it s the News that people need to hear because it s the only way for them to enjoy a relationship with God through His Beloved Son. God has spoken; Jesus, the Word of God became flesh; He has come into the world identified and empowered to establish His Kingdom. And as we await its consummation, it s a joy to see it breaking out in unexpected ways in the laughter of a child, an unanticipated call from a friend, an answer to prayer, a physical or emotional healing or an act of love when our situation seems hopeless, and as believers come together to worship. In your baptism, your true identity was established. In Romans, Paul reminds us of our identity: The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. [8:16-17 ESV] Jesus is who God says He is and we are who God says we are. As we receive our baptism in faith, we become sons and daughters of God. When
5 a person is baptized, we proclaim his or her new identity. We receive you into the household of God. Confess the faith of Christ crucified, proclaim his resurrection, and share with us in his eternal priesthood. In baptism you were set apart, consecrated to God, committed to a radically different lifestyle and united with Jesus in His mission in the world. You were given the power to accomplish this because you were anointed by the Holy Spirit and received spiritual gifts to be a bearer of God s truth, grace and mercy in a world that s confused and searching for hope. As a Christian you re called to bear witness to Jesus, the One who is full of grace and truth. Think about what we pray in the parish prayer: Help to boldly share and live out the Gospel in our daily lives with those that are living in darkness and those in need. Are you committed to do that? You may be thinking: Sure, I ve been baptized but I don t sense that kind of power in my life. In fact, my life doesn t seem much different than people who aren t Christians. As human beings all of us need to be encouraged; we need to be reminded of our special status over and over again and to reaffirm our commitment to the mission and ministry of Christ in the world the work we re called to wherever we are and whatever we do. Fortunately we worship a God who is willing to show us time and time again how much we re loved and we need to remind each other that it s only by God s grace and mercy that we ve been adopted as His children and given the Holy Spirit. I give thanks that the Lord does this through our fellowship with other believers, as we pray and as we receive the sacrament of Holy Communion. Perhaps we need to slow down and listen for the assurance that may be missing in our lives. We can begin this morning by taking an opportunity to recognize the spiritual gifts of another person here at Redeemer. There are so many that give of their time, talent and treasure for the work of this parish; take a moment and say
6 thank you to someone for just being here to worship with you this morning. Your presence is an encouragement to someone else. We re all part of God s family, gathered within a community of faith committed to carrying on the work of Jesus despite our weaknesses and imperfections. As we open ourselves more and more to the Holy Spirit, God promises to guide us. My prayer is that He will continue to release the power given to you in baptism and empower you to undertake whatever assignment He has for you. Remember, God is equal opportunity employer. In baptism Jesus was identified and anointed. In your baptism you were identified and anointed, made a member of [Christ s] eternal priesthood and invited to share in His mission in the world. God calls us to live with integrity and wholeness and gives us the Holy Spirit to enable us to do it. Jesus act of being baptized is your assurance of His commitment to partner with you as you seek to share His transforming love with those who do not yet know Him or have forgotten Him. In two weeks on January 27 th we ll gather for our fifth annual parish meeting. I ve served in three parishes since my ordination and I believe this will be the most significant annual meeting in my 18 years of ministry. Redeemer is a community transformed by Jesus Christ; we re called to live out His mission in every aspect of our lives and ministry. In other words, we re called to live out our baptismal vows. As a parish both here in Franklin and in Norwood we re at a crossroad: two paths lie before us. One path may appear the easiest to maintain the status quo. A second path appears more difficult, but I believe it s where we are called. Listen to Isaiah s words: Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them. Our challenge during the next few years is to live out Christ s mission as a body unified in Christ. This will require our unwavering devotion to the Lord, unceasing prayer
7 and attentiveness to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Our goal must be to thrive, not merely survive. This is a time to be bold and to embrace our call to share the Good News of Jesus with fervor and passion and to serve people in our communities. How can we do this together? During the past several months, your vestry has developed A Call to Ministry. This plan comes out of prayer, reflection, discussion and consultation with our Bishop, Bill Murdoch. The presentation and discussion of this plan will be the primary focus of our annual meeting. We prayed in the collect, Grant that all who are baptized into his Name may keep the covenant they have made, and boldly confess [Jesus] as Lord and Savior; who with [the Father] and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting. I urge you to attend the meeting on the 27 th and explore how we, together, can live our lives as followers of the One who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil. How we, as a community transformed by Jesus Christ, can live out His mission in all our ministries. Amen. Father Jack Potter+