Baptism of Christ

Reading Isaiah 42.1-9

“Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him
and he will bring justice to the nations.
He will not shout or cry out,
or raise his voice in the streets.
A bruised reed he will not break,
and a smouldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice on earth.
In his law the islands will put their hope.”
This is what God the LORD says –
he who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it,
who gives breath to its people,
and life to those who walk on it:
“I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people
and a light for the Gentiles,
to open eyes that are blind,
to free captives from prison
and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.
“I am the LORD; that is my name!
I will not give my glory to another
or my praise to idols.
See, the former things have taken place,
and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
I announce them to you.”

Gospel Matthew 3.13-17

Alleluia, alleluia.
Christ was revealed in flesh, proclaimed among the nations
and believed in throughout the world.

Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew
All Glory to you, O Lord.

Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptised by you, and do you come to me?”

Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfil all righteousness.” Then John consented.

As soon as Jesus was baptised, 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.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord.
All Praise to you, O Christ.

Sermon

Father’s funeral.
Found it hard to offer encouragement. Counselled against taking risks – could seem negative. Did not often say ‘well done’ but said what could be done better next time.

Sons often have difficult relationship with fathers. Same with daughters and their mothers. Either very close, or constantly at war, especially as teenagers.

Baptism of Christ
When Jesus came to John for baptism, clearly John thought it inappropriate. I need to be baptized by you, yet you come to me? John’s doubts – his baptism is for repentance – how could Son of God need to repent? Jesus responded it is proper for us to do this to fulfil all righteousness.

What was going on here? Baptism signalled start of Jesus’ ministry. Joseph and family return from Egypt to Nazareth. Then nothing about early life, until John the Baptist bursts on scene. He prepares the way and immediately Jesus comes to him and is baptised with water. Jesus is acting in obedience to God. His is a compliant spirit – from the outset, Jesus gives a powerful picture of obedience to God’s call.

Affirmation by God
His action receives God’s approval. Jesus saw Spirit of God – third person in Trinity descending onto him. As if to encourage him – affirm his status – God plainly states This is my Son. With him I am well pleased.

God’s approval is unequivocal. Jesus confirmed as God’s Son at start of journey to cross. He is assured of God’s love – even though his life characterised by suffering, and his baptism experience immediately followed by long and arduous temptation. During those 40 wilderness days, he can think back to what happened with John in Jordan – and strength he gained from that knowledge. So it is with our high points – they can carry us through the dark nights of the soul – the slough of despond.

In whom I am well pleased...
This incident is one of three in Matthew when God directly affirms his faith in Jesus his Son. No words were spoken in Transfiguration, yet Jesus’ face shone like the sun. The other occasion was in chapter 12 when Pharisees plotted to kill him when he healed on Sabbath. Jesus withdrew from that place and Matthews explains his escape was in fulfilment of prophecy by Isaiah. This prophecy is exactly the passage we read from Isaiah 42 just now:
“Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him
and he will bring justice to the nations.

Suffering Servant
Passage from Isaiah part of Suffering Servant oracles. Servant never named. Seen by evangelists as prophecy concerning the Messiah, what is will be like, and what he will do.

According to Isaiah, God will hold the Messiah by his right hand. He calls him by name. He calls him in righteousness. The Messiah will open eyes of blind, set prisoners free, and bring forth justice.

Later on in chapter 53, we read those familiar words: "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth." The Servant of God will indeed experience persecution, but he will endure it in silence.

The Messiah is gentle with those who are weak. He will not break a bruised reed. He will not snuff out a smouldering wick. He will give the underprivileged justice and not falter or be discouraged. He will establish peace and justice.

Personal Faith
Most of what is preached today and much of what we read is about me and you and our personal faith. Our personal relationship with our creator. The ‘me generation’ puts us at the centre of our own universe. We twitter and tweet – and hundreds of people can read our thoughts, as soon as we have them.

Our faith must of course be rooted in a personal relationship with God, but that’s only part of the picture. The Christian faith is heavily steeped in social justice, the pursuit of justice and peace, reconciliation and forgiveness, care and concern for the oppressed, the deprived, and underprivileged. These are what will sing God’s praises, and not just the me-relationship with him.

Remember that those Jesus denied were the ones that did not clothe him when he was naked, and did not visit him when a captive, or give him something to eat when he was hungry. Practical ‘doing things’ not mere faith and prayers.

Message of the Baptism
All these are tied up with the prophecy of Isaiah, the Suffering Servant as he calls him, and the way we interpret the ministry of Jesus and what he seeks to achieve. Justice, not through force, but meekness. Quite the opposite of what it says on the Golden Syrup tin – out of the strong comes forth sweetness.

For me, there is one more important message to be learned. Jesus saw his baptism as symbolic, but the confirmation was not for him alone, and was not just to offer him the comfort of knowing God was with him and his vision of Messiahship was approved.

Likewise, for us, when our own personal faith is challenged, when our relationship with God is dry or weak, we can turn to the more practical aims of working for others, visiting those who are lonely or in hospital, providing practical help for those in need, supporting the weak, promoting justice, fairness and peace. Not only are they laudable aims in themselves, but these practical issues go to the heart of our faith. And in the very doing of them give glory to God.

See, the former things have taken place,
and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
I announce them to you.”