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."
9In 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."
NRSV
INTRODUCTION:
It's amazing what a little water can do isn't it? A little water can thin out old latex paint. A little water can quench a thirst. A little water coming from a squirt gun in the hands of a child can evoke terror and laughter all at the same time. A little water and a little rice can feed someone for a day. A little water heated, with a tea bag or coffee can make a refreshing drink. A little water and soap can clean up a mess. A little water can change everything in one's life, especially if it's the water of baptism.
This morning we meet Cousin John again. Remember, he kept visiting us during Advent this year. Well, now he's all grown up and he's the first to try his hand at the family business. He's down at the Jordan River baptizing people and trying out the message.
He might be seen as part of the market survey, I guess, to see if the message would fly. To see if the product was actually needed and what consumer response would be. "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand."
Granted, that wasn't the catchiest slogan in the world but apparently it worked. Folks were flocking to the Jordan River to hear weird Cousin John preach. And to be baptized. Of course it might have been the same kind of fascination that the Super Bowl has for some. The game is just a game but boy, they sure like the commercials. They watch it so they'll have something to talk about with all of their friends who watched it, too. Maybe that's why the crowds were coming. But they were coming.
Any way, into this circus like but serious atmosphere comes Jesus. Jesus, CEO, COO, CFO of this Traveling Salvation Show sent on tour by God, comes to his Cousin for baptism. The Son of God, the Perfect One submitted to what Mark calls "a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."
Jesus didn't have any sins to repent of. So why did he come to John. And why was he baptized? Through baptism we are Cleaned, Claimed and Named. And Jesus wanted and needed to be an integral part of that. So, he used a little water to bridge the gap.
I. CLEANED:
A. When we are baptized, we are Cleaned. We're cleaned of the stain of sin, we're set free from sins punishment. Through baptism our sins are washed away and the clean clear water is muddied by our sinfulness.
Can you imagine taking a bath in someone else's bath water. It's a rather disgusting thought, isn't it? Especially in our time when we are obsessed with the idea of "catching something" from someone else. I don't remember doing, but I remember grandma talking about doing just that thing. When water was less plentiful and more precious. Everyone used to bathe in the same tub and same water. Some of you might remember doing that.
Once a week or once a month, whatever schedule your family was on, everyone would bathe in the same tub. When everyone was as clean as they could get, the dirty water was dumped out.
Here comes Jesus, clean and holy, in no need of the waters of baptism. And yet He plunges into the muddied filth filled waters used to wash away our sinfulness. Jesus completely immerses Himself in our sin. Why? So that He can know it, and own it, and make it His own, even though He is sinless. He will cover Himself in the stinking, slimy, sludge of our sin. He literally will take it upon Himself. He will wrap it around His heart and soul like a cloak. And then Hew will take it with Him, where like Him, it will be nailed to the cross.
B. When we accept Christ as Lord and Savior and submit to the waters of baptism, then through Christ's action, through His baptism, death and resurrection, we become clean. We're the ones who should have been buried, dead and dying in our sinfulness and shame, yet it is He who was buried, shrouded in our sin. He took on our corruption, our burden, our sin and our punishment for those sins, so we wouldn't have to bear the burden of any of it. His death is the final cleansing for those who believe.
And just as He rose from the dead, and his garments shone white as snow, we, who have been Cleaned, can rise and shine for him, also. It's amazing what a little water can do, isn't it?
II. CLAIMED:
A. Through baptism we are Cleaned but we're also Claimed.
Last week I told a joke about a guy who listened to a little voice in his head and wound up losing everything in Las Vegas. This week I want to tell you about a guy who heard a big voice in the sky and was given everything, at the Jordan River. There's a big difference in those two voices. Listen to THIS voice. Not that other one. But this one. This is the voice of God.
John baptized Jesus and as soon as Jesus came up out of the water, the Spirit descended like a dove, and a voice from Heaven said, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."
Jesus publicly and proudly claimed Jesus as His Son.
Jesus didn't need to be baptized. It was for us: he didn't need it. He didn't do it for God. God already loved Him to the fullest. God had already created everything for Him and through Him as an expression of that love. So why? His baptism was for us. He wouldn't ask us to do anything He wouldn't or didn't do. It was for us. And through it we have been Claimed. We've been claimed by God as heirs with Christ. And that changes everything.
B. We've been claimed and that means we have to choose. And sometimes choosing is hard.
I don't think I had ever felt so out of place. I'd never felt such pangs of loss, either. It had been about three years since I had seen this group of folks. This was the crowd I hung out with at school. We'd laughed and cried together. In the late hours of early morning, with Dylan, the Doors or Cream playing in the background, we'd solved all the world's problems. We'd griped about parents. We'd partied together. And we'd gone to every major rock concert there was. They were a part of me and who I had become. But at that moment they made me uncomfortable.
Three years is a long time but it wasn't the time. Time seemed to have stood still for them. They were the same. They still had long hair and beads. My hair was considerably shorter, by choice. They still partied hard in all the ways I no longer could or would.
As I reflected I realize it wasn't time. It wasn't them. I was the one who had changed. But it wasn't really me. The day He came into my life I knew I never would, and never COULD be the same.
He's the one who changed me; from the inside out. Filling up those empty places in my life with his love, mercy, grace and forgiveness. As I stood there looking at my old friends, I realized that I was the one who was different, and it was Christ Jesus who made me different. I still loved those friends. I still cherish the memories. But I could no longer be like them or live like them. The water of my baptism and my profession of faith had made me different. It divided us. And as much as it hurt, I had to choose between the ones who made me laugh or the One who Cleaned me, Claimed me and made me whole.
It's amazing what a little water can do. Through baptism we are Cleaned and Claimed and that makes all the difference in the world.
III. NAMED:
A. Through baptism we are Cleaned and Claimed and we are also Named. We are given a new name. We're no longer called sinners. Now we are called sons and daughters of God. Joint heirs with Christ. Through baptism we are buried with Christ and we are raised to new life. The old no longer matters because the old no longer has a hold on us.
Through baptism we are Cleaned and Claimed. The mark of God's claim is the water. The sign of God's claim is presence of the Holy Spirit. Who reminds us that we have been Named and that name is simply Christian. And we're called to live up to the name.
B. When we try to live up to that name, then believe me, we'll find brothers and sisters, other Christians, in the strangest places. I didn't know real Christians could have arms covered with tattoos. Or be as big as a bear. Or wear leathers and ride a Harley. Or speak from behind prison bars. But I met a mighty Christian and heard a life changing Christian witness the first time I went to a Kairos closing at the Michael Unit.
They called him Bear. And in his witness I found out that he walked, not so much where you and I have walked, but definitely where each of those Brothers in White had walked. He had been one of them. He spoke words foreign to most of them; words like hope, love and forgiveness. He also spoke words of truth; words about how hard it would be to live the faith once they left the safety of the Kairos meeting and went back out into the real world of prison.
I felt the arms of Christ around me that day as this bear sized brother in Christ, once dressed in white, now washed white as snow through the blood of the Lamb, held me in a hug of brotherly love. At first those arms, convicted of killing 22 people and stabbing 11 others, felt strange and wrong and foreign. But then I realized that it was not my place to judge one whom Christ had forgiven and whom Christ had so visibly changed.
In essence his name was and is the same as mine. Bear's name had been sinner but just like mine it had been changed to Christian because we both had been Cleaned, Claimed and Named by Christ Jesus our Savior. It's amazing what a little water can do, isn't it?
CONCLUSION:
Back in 1904, a ten-year-old little girl named Virginia Cary Hudson wrote a series of school essays. The essays show us her childish and humorous yet profound understanding of the world around her, especially the religious life in her small Southern town.
These are some her thoughts on the sacraments:
"Sacraments are what you do in Church. What you do at home is something else. Cooking and sewing and running the . . . sweeper and eating and sleeping and praying and scrubbing yourself are not sacraments.
"When you are little and ugly somebody carries you in church on a pillow, and you come out a child of God and an inheritor of the Kingdom of Heaven. They pour water on your head and that's a sacrament." (1)
I really like that! "When you are little and ugly somebody carries you in church on a pillow, and you come out a child of God and an inheritor of the Kingdom of Heaven . . ." (2)
That pretty much says it all, doesn't it? Through the sacrament of baptism we are Cleaned, Claimed and Named by Christ Jesus our Savior and everything changes. It's amazing what a little water can do, isn't it?
This is the Word of the Lord for this day.
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Bibliography
1. Virginia Cary Hudson, O YE JIGS & JULEPS! (New York: Inspirational Press, 1962).
2. Ibid
3.
4.
Other References Consulted
*Dynamic Preaching, Jan/Feb/Mar 2000 Vol XV, No. 1. (Seven Worlds Publishing, Knoxville, TN) p. 70
*Lectionary Preaching Workbook Series VI, Cycle B, (CSS Publishing, Lima, OH, 1999) SermonPrep Version.
*Sermonmall.com
*SermonWriter.com
*Homiletics, Jan/Feb 2000, Volume 12, Number 1. (Communications Resources, Inc., Canton, OH)
*Lectionary Homiletics, Volume XI, Number 2, Jan 2000, (Lectionary Homiletics, Inc. Midlothian, VA)