8 January 2012
The celebration of Christ’s baptism is always a special way to begin the year. This year the readings give a number of possibilities, but perhaps the most exciting is the way Christ steps not just into human flesh, but completely into the human predicament. As he is baptised along with crowds of people seeking forgiveness and change, Jesus makes a clear statement that God is not separate from humanity, but is in complete and committed solidarity with us. This is both Good News and a challenge for us to be similarly committed to one another.
May our worship this week lead us closer to God and to one another!
READINGS:
Genesis 1:1-5: On the first day of creation the earth is formless and God’s Spirit hovers over the waters. Then God speaks and begins to create the universe.
Psalm 29: A psalm of praise for God’s voice which is strong and majestic and which thunders over mighty waters, where God is enthroned.
Acts 19:1-7: Paul finds a group of believers in Ephesus who have been baptised with John’s baptism, but not with that of Christ. He explains that John’s points to the One who came after him, and they are baptised in the name of Jesus.
Mark 1:4-11: John the Baptiser baptises people in the Jordan River, calling them to repent. He preaches that One is coming after him who will baptise in the Holy Spirit.
REFLECTIONS ON THEME:
The first Sunday after the Epiphany is always rich with symbolism and possibilities. This year the themes of water, creation and, of course, God’s Spirit all come together. In the creation account, we see God creating through the word and the Spirit who hovers over the waters. In the Psalm God is celebrated as awesome and mighty, enthroned over the waters with a thunderous voice. In Ephesians, the act of baptism in Christ’s name is seen to be a saving and empowering act, which brings the Ephesian believers into a new relationship with Christ beyond what they had experience through John’s baptism. Finally, in a wonderfully brief but powerful narrative, Mark describes Jesus being baptised, and receiving both God’s Spirit and God’s affirmation. There is so much here that it could easily become confusing to preach on the readings this week – there is the Trinitarian nature of both Christ’s baptism, and the creation account. There is the difference between John’s baptism and that of Jesus. It may be best, though, to allow the season of Epiphany to dictate the theme, in which case, God’s glory as revealed through Christ’s baptism would be a good focal point. What is significant here, is that God’s glory is primarily seen not in grand shows of supernatural miracle-working, or displays of grandeur and blinding light. Rather, in Mark’s Gospel, it seems, only Jesus sees the dove and hears the voice. For all others, God’s glory is revealed in a very human moment, where the One to whom John has been pointing stands with all humanity and receives the same baptism we do. In this way God’s glory is seen in Christ’s humanity, and Christ’s solidarity with the human race which is so loved by God. But, as the readings indicate, this coming of Christ is a creative act – an empowerment of Christ for his saving mission, but also a moment in which humanity is redefined, both because God has become human, but also because human beings are invited to experience God’s presence and to become one with God – as described in the experience of the Ephesians.
CONNECTING WITH LIFE:
GLOBAL APPLICATION: If there is anything our world needs, it’s to recognise God’s solidarity with us, to discern God’s glory in humanity – especially the poorest and most vulnerable – and to know the empowerment of God’s creative Spirit to address our challenges. At the start of a new year, the sense of possibility is a gift, but we face an uncertain year with many difficulties still requiring resolution. Despair and a sense of abandonment by God can easily derail our attempts to bring God’s grace and justice into people’s lives. We can take heart, however, from the knowledge of God’s presence with us in Christ, and from the inspiration, strength and creativity that we receive from God’s Spirit. With this in mind, the celebration of Christ’s baptism gives us an opportunity to renew our commitment to serve our world with hope, to call our leaders to justice and to increasing our efforts to serve and uplift the poor, the marginalised and the voiceless. In Christ’s solidarity with humanity, we find an example which calls us to solidarity with the suffering. The challenge is for us to be involved practically as well as financially or philosophically, in the work for justice, peace and equity. Perhaps this week is a good time to make a new commitment to some organisation or movement which is bringing positive change, and to commit to participate in advocacy work of some kind. But, perhaps it is also a time to build (or increase) specific actions into the lives of our communities that can get us involved in practical and creative ways with bringing change. One thing is sure, though. This week starts the year with a clear message that we cannot ignore justice issues in our following of Christ. We cannot avoid God’s gracious and compassionate concern for the least, and we cannot avoid the call to be participants in God’s creative, saving work in our world.
LOCAL APPLICATION: Too many church communities are simply meeting places for individuals who have little connection with each other. Baptism has become, for many, an individual experience with little connection to community or shared life. However, as Jesus demonstrates, baptism begins with Christ’s willingness to step into relationship and solidarity with us, and calls us into creative community with one another. The empowerment of God’s Spirit, then, is not just for the individual, but for the community, and for us to be creative in serving one another, and serving our neighbours. Baptism is always a mark of our belonging in God’s domain, and an empowerment for bringing God’s saving, restorative work into the lives of others. So, even as we celebrate Christ’s baptism, and the glory of God that is revealed through it, this week, may we also seek to celebrate one another, and learn to see God’s glory in each other, even as we stand together to serve those around us. Commitment to one another, and commitment to the wider community in which we, as church, operate are the marks of a Christ-following church, and are the calls which the Lectionary offers us this week.
RESOURCES FOR WORSHIP:
Prayers:
God’s Ability
Partnering with God
Growing Together
God Speaks
The Voice
Hymn Suggestions:
O Love How Deep
All Creatures Of Our God And King
Breathe On Me Breath Of God
Baptized In Water
On Jordan’s Bank The Baptist’s Cry
Deep Calls To Deep
Here I Am To Worship (Link to YouTube video)
Mighty To Save (Link to YouTube video)
We Give Glory
All Who Are Thirsty (Link to YouTube video)
Liturgy:
A Liturgy for the Sacrament
Video Suggestions:
Baptism Of Our Lord
Together We Can
Image Suggestions:
Forest Pool
River Rapids
Waterfall
I am curious about your understanding of baptism in the reading from Acts. Was Paul an anabaptist? I can think of no other Bible accounts of John’s disciples being baptized again. It also ties baptism by water in the name of Jesus to one’s receiving the Holy Spirit. Further, it’s clear from the Gospel account of Jesus’ baptism that God, i.e. the Holy Spirit was at work through John’s baptism. So why was this second baptism necessary? What does this story say about the practice of infant baptism?
Blessing for the New Year,
David
After some study and quiet time, I am lead to speak of baptism as representative of one’s change in worldview aided by the Holy Spirit. While I won’t discuss the text in indepth detail, I have come to some interesting conclusions about this text. This was not a baptism of water at all, i.e. Paul did not baptis them in water again as if to say that John’s baptism had no effect or that God was not present in John’s baptism. I suspected this and consulted with a more educated pastor than myself in Greek. He supported my view of the text and in fact made the point that the greek does not even say that Paul “laid his hand on them.” My friend said this:
“It speaks of a help, a might, or an agency which Paul imparted. It also reads as if it’s the “spirit that is holy” who is speaking in tongues and prophesying (and not the folks who were baptized). To me, then, it seems as if the main point the Greek is trying to convey is that Paul somehow “opened the door” for the Spirit to arrive, thus “completing” the baptism they’d received–not challenging it or changing it.”
Jason W. Jones, MDiv.
Paul’s opening of the door that my friend spoke of is what the Spirit had led me to focus on–the opening of a door or a change in one’s worldview. By the way, here’s the way I re-interpreted Acts 19:5-6:
“On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, when Paul had laid his hands on them. The Holy Spirit came upon them, and through them spoke in tongues and prophesied.”
Hope you are well, I’ve missed your discussion this week.
Peace Be With You,
Dave
My apologies for my silence, David. I’m actually on leave at the moment, and have been away, so have been unable to respond to your comments. I’m back at work on Wednesday. This is almost certainly too late for you, but here are some brief thoughts in response to your comments:
1. It seems pretty clear to me from vs. 5 of the Acts reading that the people were baptised “again” in water (although, my Greek is not good enough to argue with your scholar friend, so I wouldn’t make an issue of it). Certainly, in all of my study of this text over the years, the idea that Paul felt that John’s baptism was distinct from Christian baptism has always been there – and also the belief that the believers were baptised “again”.
2. If by “anabaptist” you mean did Paul believe in “re-baptism”, I would say no. John’s baptism, according to Paul’s explanation, was a baptism of repentance and forgiveness. This is an element of Christian baptism, but is not the primary meaning of being baptised “into” Christ – which is why Paul indicates that John’s baptism was simply a sign to what would come later. Also, in terms of your infant baptism question, infants could never experience John’s baptism, since they cannot repent. They can be baptised into Christ, however, which is why there is a significant difference in these baptisms. So, for Paul, this would not have been a “re-baptism”, but a first Christian baptism for these Ephesian believers.
3. I would be uncomfortable to think of baptism as simply a change of worldview, since this is too cognitive, and again, would exclude infants. Rather, for me, baptism is a change of “position”. It is a sign of being welcomed & included in the body of Christ. This requires nothing of us, but affirms the work that God does in Christ – which again distinguishes it from John’s baptism which was based on human response, rather than primarily on God’s unearned grace.
I could say more, but I’m afraid I’m not really in a position at the moment to do any more background work. I hope in some small way these comments may be helpful, though.
Thanks for your comments. Blessings on your services this week. I look forward to interacting again in the weeks to come.
Grace
John