Matthew 3:13-17
A New Beginning
This Sunday has been set aside in the Christian year as “The Baptism of Our Lord Sunday”. It is a time that we remember the baptism of our Lord and reflect upon our own baptisms. Now, when it comes to the subject of baptism, we are all aware that Christian denominations are not united in their understanding of how baptism should be administered. Sadly, this has caused divisions between Christian denominations, but such differences have also led to some good humor.
Comedian Jerry Clower once told the story about Marcelle wanting to get married to this little Methodist girl. The only problem was that Uncle Versey wouldn’t give his blessing for the marriage, because he said that she hadn’t been baptized proper. So, they asked if Jerry would go with them to talk to Uncle Versey about it and Jerry agreed.
When they got there, the little Methodist girl sat down on the couch beside Marcelle with her Bible in her hand, scared to death of Uncle Versey. Jerry then asked him, “You see how much in love they are, why won’t you give your blessing upon their marriage?”
Uncle Versey replied, “Because, she ain’t been baptized proper.” In other words, she hadn’t been dunked.
Jerry then said, “Alright. What if we took her out to the pond and we got her to wade out in the water up to her waist? Would that take care of it?”
Uncle Versey replied, “Nope, that wouldn’t be proper either.”
“Well then, what if she waded out until the water came up to her shoulders?” Jerry said.
Again, Uncle Versey replied, “Nope, that wouldn’t do it either.”
“Well, what if she waded out there until nothing but the top of her head was sticking out?” Jerry asked.
Again, Uncle Versey replied, “Nope, that won’t do it either.”
To that, Jerry replied, “I knew it wasn’t nothing but the top of the head that counted anyway.” I love telling that joke to my Baptist friends.
And then, there is the story of the preacher who was writing an advice column, sort of like Dear Abby. One letter said, “Dear Preacher: Do you ever worry about pond scum in the baptismal font? Signed, Wondering.” The pastor decided to have fun with this, and so he wrote this reply: “Dear Wondering, no … I’ll baptize anybody.”
Speaking of pond scum, some of you have seen the motion picture, The Shawshank Redemption. It is the story of an innocent man who is sent to prison for the murder of his wife. Even after evidence emerges that would clear him, the corrupt warden of the prison keeps him incarcerated for his own purposes. Two decades go by. But during this time, he chips away at the rock in his cell with a tiny geologist’s pick. The pick was so small that it was never confiscated. And over those twenty years of continuous picking with this tiny instrument, he creates an escape tunnel. The only problem was that the tunnel led to the main sewage pipe of the prison complex.
On the night of his escape, aided by a loud thunderstorm that masked his movements, he crawled through a sewage pipe that was 500 yards long and filled with raw sewage. Can you imagine? That’s half a mile of sewage. Sort of puts pond scum to shame, doesn’t it. When he finally emerges on the other side, he is standing in an open cesspool. But it is still raining from the thunderstorm. So, for a moment he stands there in that rain falling from heaven, while the water washes away the sludge and the stench and the fatigue. He is free! For the first time in twenty years, he is free! Who can help, but to see in that rain a representation of Christian baptism?
As we begin a New Year, for many of us it is a time for self-examination and resolutions to change for the better. For a number of reasons, many of us need to be set free from our old lives. Some of us are unhappy with our lifestyle. I couldn’t help but to notice how in Wal-Mart and other stores the aisles are now filled with exercise equipment and diet supplements. They recognize that many of our New Year’s resolutions are about losing weight and creating a new you … at least on the outside.
But some of us are unhappy with where we are on the inside and in our faith journey. Some of us have made grievous mistakes along the way and we long to put the past behind us. And for us, the waters of Baptism symbolize the opportunity every child of God has to make a new beginning and to be set free.
In our Scripture lesson, we are
reminded of how Jesus came to the river
I love John’s response here. What would your cousins say about you? What would your brothers or sisters … the people you golf with or work with … how would the people who know you best react, if they knew you were coming for a baptism of repentance? Would they say, “Boy, it’s about time. Better put some bleach in that water!” Unfortunately, most would probably say to themselves, “I wonder what she’s hiding that she needs to repent of?” Would any of them try to keep you out of the water, because they thought you were so sinless that you didn’t need to repent?
Jesus obviously didn’t need to repent in order to make a new beginning, as many of us do. However, the Rite of Baptism did mark a new phase in Jesus’ life. Jesus used the Sacrament of Baptism to prepare for his ministry and to signal a new beginning for his life. No longer would he be building furniture in a carpenter’s shop. Now he would be building a future for all humanity.
So, no matter who we are or where we find ourselves in our faith journey, today’s message is a message of hope. Because, as we read about Jesus’ baptism and remember our own baptisms, we are reminded that new beginnings are possible. Today really is, the first day of the rest of our lives. We can chart out a new direction. We can set new goals for our lives. We can renew our relationship with God and receive the power to be what God has called us to be. The Good News of the Gospel is that a new beginning is possible for us. But what does it take to make new beginning?
Let’s talk about that for a few minutes. First of all, in order to have a new beginning, we must be willing to change. That may sound obvious, but this is the biggest obstacle for most people. When it comes to making needed changes in our lives, we often have good intentions, but we have trouble with the follow through. The truth is, we really do not want to change bad enough. I mean, change is scary and often painful for us. Even when what we’re doing is causing us misery, at least we know what to expect where we are.
Change, even if for the better, is often a difficult thing for us to put into action. Physicists speak of “inertia” … “the tendency of a body at rest to remain at rest, unless acted upon by an outside force.” It has been my experience that most churches suffer from inertia, as do most of us. What is it that counselors say? Most people change only when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change. That’s why most folks don’t change, until they hit, what we call “rock bottom”.
I think of a mother bird coaxing her babies from the nest for the first time. She starts with a simple nudge. If that doesn’t work, she begins to peck at the feet of her tiny chicks. And she continues to peck at their feet, until the pain of holding on to the branch of the tree is more painful than the fear of letting go. She knows that her offspring have been destined to fly. She knows that there is more security in the sky, than on the ground. She knows that there is more freedom in the sky, than in the nest. A whole new world awaits them, if they will only let go and trust her.
I think God must look at us in the same way. We’re often so afraid of change. So slow to accept new possibilities and to embrace new opportunities. It’s true of individuals and it’s true of churches. Most of us are aware of things that need to be changed in our lives. Most of us realize that we are in need of making a new beginning, but, we must first of all, be willing to change, because change can be scary and it requires hard work.
The new beginning for Jesus had to be scary too. He knew that to follow God’s call in his life would mean great sacrifice. But he trusted in God’s providence. And so must we.
In order to make a new beginning, we must be willing to change … to take the risk and trust in God. But we must also be willing to confront issues we’ve avoided in the past. If we are going to make a new beginning, we cannot avoid dealing with issues and problems that have brought us to where we are. This may include personal habits. It may include how we relate to our spouse, our children, or others.
Repentance isn’t just feeling bad about our shortcomings, it is taking a hard look at our situation; our personal attitudes and habits; our relationships; and the direction of our lives … and then, it is taking action to remedy those areas that need improvement. Repentance is more than just saying, “I’m sorry.” It’s turning away from that which is keeping us from being what God is calling us to be and turning toward God’s will.
I ran
across this article from Marianne Williamson and found it interesting. She writes:
“When you ask God into your life,
you think God is going to come into your psychic house, look around, and see
that you just need a new floor or better furniture, and that everything needs
just a little cleaning--and so you go along for the first six months thinking
how nice life is now that God is there. Then you look out the window one day
and you see that there’s a wrecking ball outside. It turns out that God
actually thinks your whole foundation is shot and you’re going to have to start
over from scratch.”
Sometimes that’s how it is for us. Sometimes, the change required in our lives means dealing with the foundation and the core of who we are. Only you and those closest to you know what needs to be changed in your life. The question is, “Are you willing to change?” And then, “Are you willing to face up to issues you’ve ignored in the past?”
Finally, in order to make a true new beginning, we must be willing to live out the meaning of our baptism. This isn’t a self-help seminar today. We are those who have been baptized to a life in Jesus Christ. Once we were no people, but now we are God’s people … saved by God’s grace through faith … redeemed and set apart for his purposes … and empowered by his Spirit. We have been called and set apart to live a life of faithfulness that will glorify God.
So, whatever changes we make in our lives … whatever new beginnings we seek, let it be done for the purpose of helping us to live out “the meaning of our baptism”. Let it be done, so that we become more of the people that God has called us to be. For this is the new beginning that God is offering us and calling us to.
New beginnings … as longed for and needed as they may be, they don’t come easy. Change is difficult and it can be scary. It requires a willingness to change … taking a hard look at our lives, identifying what needs to change, and then doing what is necessary to make the change. It also requires a willingness to confront issues we’ve avoided in the past. And it requires a determination to live as God has called us to live.
But here’s the Good News … we don’t do this on our own. Of course, we have to do our part in seeking to make a new beginning. But, in order for it to last and for it to become a way of life for us, it takes God’s help. And of this, we are assured when we ask Him for it. If we cry out to God, “Lord, there are things in my life that I need to change. And try as hard as I can, I realize that I can’t do this on my own. I need your help.” God promises us that he will be with us to empower us by His Holy Spirit.
Professional speaker, Bob Perks, tells a wonderful true story about a woman shopping at Wal-Mart. The woman’s little girl, about six years old, with beautiful red hair and a freckled face, accompanied her. When they came out of the store to go to their car, it was pouring down rain. The mother and daughter stood with other Wal-Mart shoppers under the awning, waiting for the rain to stop so they could make their way to their cars.
Then a little voice spoke up. It was the little girl. “Mom,” she said, “let’s run through the rain.”
“What?” Mom asked.
“Let’s run through the rain!” She repeated.
“No, honey, we’ll wait until it slows down a bit,” the mom replied.
The child waited about another minute and then repeated: “Mom, come on, let’s run through the rain.”
“But honey, we’ll get soaked if we do that,” Mom said.
“No, we won’t, Mom. That’s not what you said this morning,” the young girl said as she tugged at her mother’s arm.
“This morning? When did I say we could run through the rain and not get wet?”
“Don’t you remember?” said the persistent child. “When you were talking to Daddy about his cancer, you said, ‘If God can get us through this, he can get us through anything!’”
At that moment, everybody under the awning stopped dead silent. You couldn’t hear anything but the rain as they all stood silently. The mother paused and thought for a moment about what she would say. Some would probably have laughed it off or scolded the child for being silly. But this Mother knew that this was an important moment in this little girl’s life.
“Honey, you are absolutely right,” she said. “Come on, let’s run through the rain. If God lets us get wet, well maybe we just needed washing.” They then joined hands and ran together in the rain.
The other shoppers stood watching, as they darted through the cars, smiling and laughing, and getting soaked. But interesting enough, a few of the others who had been waiting for the rain to stop decided to run in the rain also, screaming and laughing like children all the way to their cars. I guess they needed washing, too.
What about you? Do you need washing today? Have you been living up to your baptism? Are you in need of a new beginning?
This week, as I and others from
this church travel to the
In our Scripture for today, we see how Jesus made a new beginning when he was baptized by John in the River Jordan. Of course, there was no cause on his part for repentance, but he used it as a sign for starting his public ministry and he wanted to set an example for us.
You remember how the story ends: “As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up
out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of
God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said,
‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’”
Deep down within each of us, isn’t this what we would like to hear God say about our lives, “This is my son, [this is my daughter] whom I love and with whom I am well pleased.” If so, perhaps we need to ask him to help us make a new beginning today.