Water and the Spirit (Baptism of the Lord)

Mark 1:4-11

4 John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 And 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. 6 Now John was clothed with camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 He 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. 8 I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." 9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And 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. 11 And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."

           

            “We have a problem,” he said. There wasn’t much context to his declaration, nor any reason given as to why he was telling me instead of someone familiar, someone in charge. “What kind of problem?” I asked. He pointed towards the roof of the three-story structure and said, “We’re almost out of water.” I remember saying, “Well that’s not good” (an understatement if there ever was one).

            This quick conversation took place this past summer, when seventeen of us travelled to the Christian Light School in Port au Prince, Haiti. There in the small, paved yard of the school was a cistern. That cistern was periodically (and expensively) filled with water from a tanker truck. Then, the water in that cistern would be pumped up three stories to several black, plastic storage tanks that each held about 500 gallons. Some of those tanks were then plumbed throughout the building to be used for washing and waste removal, while the others were plumbed to a shack on the second floor that held all kinds of filtering equipment. Now, the water that was run through that filtering equipment (including a system that treated the water with ozone) would be pumped back up to the third floor into separate tanks, so that gravity could then send it through separate pipes for drinking water. Apparently, the tanks on the roof were getting low.

            As it turned out, the jet pump that provided the tanks on the roof with water from the cistern had malfunctioned. A few adjustments to the pressure switch on the pump, and water was once again flowing from the cistern to the black tanks on the roof, through the filter systems, so we could all have safe, clean water to drink (even if it did occasionally taste like hot plastic).

            I tell you that story because I remember thinking how fortunate we are to have clean drinking water at the turn of a knob on any faucet in our homes, how vital water is to our everyday lives. I remember thinking how something so common, so plentiful, so natural and ordinary, could be so precious, so scarce, so important. As I think about it now, with the baptismal waters still a bit damp on my skin, I am in awe to think that Christ used such an element to inaugurate his ministry, that God chose to begin the ministry of Christ—not among the marbled columns of a palace, not in the gold-gilded halls of a temple, not even under the gem-bedazzled crown of royalty, but—in the shallow, muddy waters of the Jordan. There, in the water, surrounded by people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem, God initiated the great ministry of Christ, the proclamation that God had indeed intervened in history and had come to show us the way, the way that leads through water, through bread and wine, through suffering and death, and on through hope and resurrection.

            Perhaps John the Baptizer thought things would go differently. After all, in verses 7 and 8 he says, "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. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." One gets the notion that John may have expected Jesus to show up and do something completely different, something that would make everyone take notice, something flashy and powerful, but instead we’re told in verse 9: “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.” There are no flashy tricks, no grand speeches nor acts of power: Jesus is baptized by John in water.

Of course, what happens next is a divine confirmation of what has taken place, a sign from God that what has happened there in that water is only the beginning of things to come. “And 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. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’" Through water, the Son of God begins his ministry and the Spirit of God announces it to the world.

There, in the water, God proclaims that Jesus is God’s beloved Son; the Spirit comes upon him. From this point forward, Jesus begins declaring the good news; he begins proclaiming the present kingdom of God. When Christ came out of the water, he stepped onto the path that would lead him to healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, caring for the poor, welcoming the stranger, challenging the powerful, and raising the dead. When Jesus stepped out of the Jordan, he stepped on to the way that leads through rejection, agony, and suffering. We Jesus came out of the water, perhaps he knew what lay before him, and perhaps he knew that at the end of that path were a cross and the pain of death. Maybe that’s why the dove came, why the sky ripped open, and the voice of God spoke of Jesus as God’s beloved Son. Maybe the signs were for Jesus, to comfort and encourage him in the face of what awaited him. One thing seems to be clear: the water of baptism marked the beginning of something powerful for Jesus, the beginning of Christ’s journey towards the cross. That’s what baptism is, the beginning of something powerful.

For whatever reason, however, over the past few generations, baptism has become quite the opposite (especially for Christians who identify as “Evangelicals”). Baptism has become something we use as a tally mark, a signpost in our lives on which we can look back and reassure ourselves that we are actually Christians and we’ll get into heaven when we die. Baptism has really become a sort of “ending,” something we do when we’ve proven that the one to be baptized has jumped through all the hoops and answered all the questions with the right answers. It is as if we’ve said to those who have been baptized, “You’ve been dunked, so now it’s really just a matter of coming to church pretty regularly, giving a little money, and maybe serving on a committee or two.” Baptism has become a mere rite of passage, something one does to prove he or she is willing to be a part of the group, an action that is required in order for one to be able to fully participate in all the perks and benefits of the institution.

Think about it: what do we ask of a person beyond baptism when it comes to church membership? What do we really expect of an individual before we add him or her to the role aside from proof of baptism or the undertaking of the act itself? Even congregations with elaborate “new members” classes place baptism at the end of that process, as a goal to be reached in order to prove that one is now genuinely a Christian and the kind of Christian that is allowed to be an official part of that congregation. It just seems to me that we have made baptism an ending of sorts, but baptism isn’t an ending. Baptism is a beginning of something powerful, a life driven by the ever-present Spirit of God.

Look at it this way: baptism is not just a symbol, a proclamation of something that has changed inside of you; it is a visible, public promise of what God is going to do through you. What if we reflected on our own baptisms that way? What if we looked back to that day we were wet with the waters of baptism as the beginning of something powerful, the beginning of God’s work in our lives? Has much changed? How far have you come since that day? How have you allowed the Spirit of God to dwell in you, to move and work through you in the lives of others? What if we saw baptism as the first, brave step on the way of following Jesus? What if we saw our own baptisms as the first movement in a life redefined by the gospel, a life lived for the kingdom of God? Would it change how we live even now?

For years I’ve heard defensive Baptists say things like, “We baptize because Jesus told us to, not because we believe it saves us:” that’s why so many Baptists refer to baptism (along with the Lord’s Supper) as an “ordinance.” I believe we baptize (and take communion) because Christ did call us to do it, but I also believe that when we follow Jesus through the waters of baptism we are united with him in his baptism AND his life, death, burial, and resurrection. That’s more than just a baptismal formula to speak while standing in the pool—it’s a call to live lives worthy of such a baptism! It is a call to be united with Christ in the very way we live our lives each day, for baptism is not an end in and of itself—it is a beginning of something powerful.

Today, we have witnessed such a beginning, and on days like this, when the baptistry is full, when one has taken the bold step to publicly show his desire to follow Jesus, those of us who have been baptized cannot help but reflect on our own baptisms. We recall what that day was like, the nervousness as we stood in front of so many, the sensation of the water closing in around us or being poured over us, the feeling of emerging from the water as a new person, wet and cool. As you reflect on that day, that beginning, how have you changed? How have you let God use you since that day? Perhaps you’ve witnessed this beginning today and realize that God is calling you to such a beginning, that Christ is calling you to follow him through the waters of baptism and on to a life lived in the power of God’s Spirit, for the good news of God’s kingdom. If you feel Christ calling you to follow him through the water, I encourage you to tell somebody, you can even come and share that with us here during our time of response.

As we all have witnessed the beginning of something powerful, the beginning of God’s work in Brody’s life here today, may we all allow God to use us. May we be used by God to share the love and the message of God’s kingdom with our words and our actions as we live each day following Christ. May those of us who have passed through the waters of baptism see that day as a beginning of something powerful and each day from here on as a day to live for Christ and God’s kingdom. And may those of us who have yet to be baptized with Christ, listen for the voice of God as it speaks to us, as it assures us of God’s love in Christ Jesus, and may you take the first step towards something powerful and a life filled with the love of God. Amen.