The First Sunday after the Epiphany -- Isaiah 42: 1 – 9; Psalm 89: 20 – 29; Acts 10: 34 – 38; Matthew 3: 13 – 17
A sermon by The Rev. Gene Tucker, given at Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, IL; Sunday, January 13th, 2008
Ever notice how news casts often begin these days? “We have breaking news from (reporter), who is covering a ‘breaking story’ out of (location).” After the camera focus on the on-site reporter, extensive coverage is given to whatever event is being highlighted…Only after a good length of time is the “regular” newscast begun, often with a transition sentence that goes something like this: “And now, for the rest of the stories we are covering for you tonight.”
Newscasts these days are a far cry from the format of days gone by…Remember Walter Cronkite (on CBS), or Huntley-Brinkley (on NBC)[1]? They usually didn’t begin with “breaking news”, even if something major was going on somewhere in the world. And some of the stories they brought us are stories that are still shaping our lives today….I remember the day Neil Armstrong landed on the moon (July 20, 1969) – I was in the Army, doing Basic Training at Ft. Dix, New Jersey, and we got the whole day off to sit in front of the television and watch those famous first footsteps…there was no crawling in the mud or marching that day. And we continue to live today with the impact of being people who live in the Space Age. The effects of those well known events continue to shape our lives today, and we remember them, marking their importance by their link to events in our own lives. We can often remember exactly where we were, and what we were doing, when we heard the news of a life-altering event.
Today’s newscasts try to grab our attention with the line, “Breaking News”, as if what’s about to be covered is life-shaping, life-altering information. Often, it’s not that at all, but it’s presented that way. Essentially, our media are trying to get our attention in a busy and hectic world, I think, with such tactics.
What if we were to cover today’s Gospel reading, Matthew’s account of Jesus’ baptism, like a news cast? After all, Jesus’ baptism really is “Breaking News”, for it continues to shape our lives today. (Our purposes might be to cast fresh light on an old, but familiar story, to garner our attention to this event in a busy and hectic world, to get us to ponder the ongoing effects of this event in Our Lord’s life that continue to shape our lives today. It might go something like this:
Announcer: “Live from the Trinity Church newsroom, this is ‘You-are-there-News’ from the Trinity Church newsroom…”
Anchor: “Good morning. We have ‘breaking news’ out of the Jordan Valley today…..and it’s a new development in a story we’ve been covering for awhile now. We go live to our reporter, on the scene with the crowds who have gathered around this enigmatic and strange character called ‘John the Baptist’…..”
Reporter: “Thank you. We’re here live on the banks of the Jordan River, not far from the city of Jericho, where a desert preacher who’s been nicknamed ‘John the Baptist’ has been baptizing people here in the river. His message is clear: “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is near.” Now in response, people from Jerusalem and the surrounding area of Judea have made their way out to this desolate place, and many have gone into the waters, often loudly confessing past sins and wrongdoings. After their confession, John dips them under the water, and they emerge again. But today, we have a new development….quite a stir among the crowds occurred as a very charismatic individual named Jesus came to be baptized….You can see him, standing in the water with John right now. But, instead of confessing some wrongdoing or past transgression, he and John have been engaged in a conversation that seems to indicate a difference of opinion. Let’s see if we can’t get our long-range microphone to pick up some of their conversation….(Sound comes in)….(John) “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”[2] (Jesus) “It is well that we do this, in order to fulfill all righteousness.”[3] Now we’re not sure at this point what it is exactly that Jesus means by “fulfilling all righteousness”, but we’ll be standing by to see how Jesus’ actions confirm the exact meaning of his words.”
Well, it can be a good change-of-pace to look at old, old stories from the Bible in a slightly different light (like portraying them as a newscast). Such presentations help us to remember that the people we meet in the pages of Holy Scripture are real people, with real issues, real concerns, real spiritual hunger….Spiritual hunger was one of the reasons why so many people came to undergo John’s baptism: they were stuck in their sins, yet expecting that God would soon do something new….It was this “new thing” in Jesus Christ that John pointed forward to, preparing the way for the Lord.
Jesus’ baptism is like a news story, “breaking news” that alters our lives forever. A major event that continues to have life in our lives years afterward, its effects linger, and will linger, until the end of time.
So, we would do well to reflect on some of the aspects of Jesus’ baptism as Matthew records them, noting along the way the ongoing importance of this event in our lives:
A boundary crossing: Notice that Jesus’ baptism involves water (I know, that much seems obvious: baptisms involve water)….Just as John’s baptism was a once-for-all-time event (unlike the ritual purity baths that Judaism’s purity laws required, which were repeatable), so Jesus’ baptism is a once-for-all-time event. It marks a boundary in Jesus’ life: His time of preparation, of being a baby born in a manger[4], of being a child on the run for his life in Egypt[5], of living with Mary and Joseph in Nazareth[6], are over.
Now Jesus’ public ministry begins, with a passing through water.
We should stop there for a moment….In the consciousness of God’s
Chosen People, crossing – or passing through – water is significant….Remember that Noah passed over the flood waters in the ark that God designed and told him to build? Remember the crossing of the Red Sea when God’s people passed through the waters on dry ground? Remember the crossing of the Jordan River as Joshua led the Israelites into the Promised Land? Each event created a boundary, and each event meant salvation – a new life – to those who were delivered from the power of death.
So, Jesus’ baptism – His passing through the waters - marks the beginning of a “new thing” that God is doing, saving His people through the teaching and work of Jesus Christ.
Drawing attention: Jesus has been drawing people’s attentions since His birth in Bethlehem….At first, it was the shepherds who came to see Him in the manger, led by the heavenly hosts.[7] Then, the Magi from the East came to find him, and offered gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.[8] As a result of the visit of the Magi, King Herod the Great also focused his attention on Jesus, forcing Jesus to flee to Egypt.[9]
And now, with the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, more and more people will focus their attention on Jesus as a result of His healings and His teachings.
The servant nature of Jesus’ presence: Let’s go back to the exchange between John and Jesus…..Notice that John is aware (at least) that there’s something very different about Jesus. For he says, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
But Jesus’ response is to cast the baptism in the light of God’s larger purposes, setting aside any personal prerogative or status: “It is well that we do this, in order to fulfill all righteousness.” God’s larger purposes are clearly in Jesus’ sight.
And this focus, on God’s larger and greater purposes, is a pattern that we will see again and again in Jesus’ earthly ministry, culminating in His prayer in the Garden of Gethesemane on Maundy Thursday night, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me, but nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”[10]
God is fully present in a new way from this time onward: Notice that we encounter the three Persons of the Trinity[11] for the first time with clarity at Jesus’ baptism….As Jesus was coming up out of the water, the Spirit of God descended on Him like a dove, and a voice was heard from heaven, saying “This is my Son, whom I love, with him I am well pleased.”[12]
For another instance of the appearance of all three Persons of the Trinity in Matthew’s Gospel account, we turn to the final three verses of his writing:[13] “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the ages.”
Matthew’s understanding is that Jesus is present with us, “wherever two or three are gathered”.[14] Jesus is with us, in Matthew’s theology, until the “very end of the ages”….Matthew does not narrate Jesus’ resurrection at all. Jesus continues to be present with us, wherever disciples, believers in Christ, are to be found.
So, in closing, might the news of Jesus’ baptism cause us to:
- Reflect on the times in our lives when we heard that “breaking news” in fresh ways?
- Recall that, in our own baptisms, we are “buried with Christ” in a once-for-all-time event that creates a boundary for us between our old selves and our new selves in Christ?
- Remember the times when we’ve been especially aware of Jesus’ ongoing presence with us (such as: during worship – i.e., “when two or three are gathered”, or during the Holy Communion, when Our Lord is present with us in the Sacrament)
to see anew the implications of His life for our lives.
AMEN.
[1] Their theme music was the second movement of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony – class stuff way back then, indeed!
[2] Matthew 3: 14
[3] Verse 15
[4] Matthew 1: 18 - 25
[5] Matthew 2: 13 - 18
[6] Matthew 2: 19 - 23
[7] Luke 2: 8 - 20
[8] Matthew 2: 1 – 12 (read last week)
[9] Matthew 2: 13 - 18
[10] Matthew 26: 39
[11] To be sure, the understanding of God’s people as to the fullness and meaning of the Trinity was in its very early stages at the time of the baptism, and in Matthew’s early church. My point here is simply to point out that we have present in today’s text what the Church would later identify as the three Persons of the Trinity present at Jesus’ baptism: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
[12] Matthew 3: 17
[13] Matthew 28: 18 - 20
[14] Matthew 18: 20
