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Mel Williams
THE GIFTS OF BAPTISM
Isa. 43:1-7; Luke 3:15-17, 21-22
A sermon by Mel Williams
January 10, 2010 (Baptism)
Today we celebrate baptism. But this is not only the baptism of River Price. This is a baptism that gives us all the opportunity not only to support River, but to remember our own baptism and claim the gifts that baptism brings.
On a surface level, we can say that baptism is a ritual of initiation. It marks a person’s admission to the Christian life and to membership in the church. Today River Price is saying, “I want to be a Christian. I want to be a member of this church.” As baptized people, we could all write on some official form: I am a Christian and a member of Watts Street Baptist Church. But after claiming the name “Christian” and deciding to be a member of the body of Christ, the church, what are the personal, internal gifts of baptism?
Baptism tells us who we are and who we are called to be. We bring children into the world with high hopes that they not only will be like us, but that they will somehow move beyond us, become more compassionate, more “Christian.” There is a story about an incident following a service of baptism. On the way home after the baptismal service, a young boy, Johnny, was crying in the back seat of the car all the way home. Three times his dad asked him what he was crying about. Finally, he answered, “The preacher said he wanted us to be brought up in a Christian home, but I want to stay with you guys.”
Each year when we meet with candidates for baptism, I tell them the story of Martin Luther, one of the great leaders of the Protestant Reformation. Luther was known for his vigorous life of courage and defiance. At any point in his life when he faced difficulty and discouragement, Luther would say, “I am baptized. I am baptized. I am baptized.”
Why would he say that? I can imagine that when some of us face a major challenge or difficulty, we might say, “Why is this happening to me? This is too difficult for me. I’m losing my way. Life is not fair.” Now, Luther, at some desperate moment, might have said similar things; but he would be quick to add: “I am baptized.”
Why did he say that? I think he was saying “This is my identity; this is who I am. I am a baptized person. I’m a child of God. I’m God’s person. I’m loved and forgiven. I’m called to follow Jesus.”
I think Luther must have read and even memorized Isaiah 43:1-7. As I’ve pondered this passage, I see it as a statement about the internal gifts that baptism bestows on each of us. What are those gifts? First, baptism offers us trust. “Fear not; do not be afraid.” That is, baptism confers on us the gift of trust in God’s faithfulness. Walter Brueggemann is an Old Testament scholar who came to Duke to preach last year. At a gathering I asked Brueggemann how he would describe the character of God. He spoke one word: “fidelity.” God is faithful. God is continually faithful, being there for us. When we rely on God’s faithfulness, we find that our fear starts losing its grip; it begins to slip away.
That doesn’t mean that we live always on a mountain of confidence; but it does mean that whatever danger or discouragement we face, we can rely on God to give us what we need when we need it. Therefore, trust. When any of us is in the hospital, you will likely hear me say to you: “Your job is to trust. Our job is to pray.”
If we face a health crisis, or a fractured family relationship or a job crisis, we may fret and chafe and worry. “What do I do now?” I suggest that what we do is to name the fear, and then put that fear on an imaginary boat, and let it float away. That boat named “fear” may try to float back to your doorstep; but you simply turn it and let it float away again. We trust that in the middle of our struggle, a way will be provided. Fear not! We trust, as the old preacher said, “that God will prop us up on our leaning sides.” The essence of faith is trust that what we need will be provided.
Through the prophet Isaiah, God gives us some appropriate words for our baptism: “Fear not because I have redeemed you. I have delivered you from every peril; I have liberated you from your oppressors.” God is saying “I have done this for you.” In other words, grace has already been given to us. As Paul Tillich said, our job is to “accept the fact that I am accepted.” Accept the fact that God loves you and frees you from every enemy. Not only that: God says, “I have called you by name, you are mine.”
I believe that these words help us understand the gift of baptism. These words from Isaiah 43 could easily be a baptismal affirmation, a baptismal formula.
Baptism is a ritual. In itself, the ritual doesn’t save us; but it recognizes that God has already acted in our lives, and God is naming us and claiming us. We don’t belong, in any ultimate sense, to any nation or to any political ideology. We belong to God. Our country, our school, our job doesn’t tell us who we are. God tells us who we are. God gives us our identity at baptism.
When I got baptized, I recall saying then: I will spend the rest of my life trying to understand my baptism. And that has been my experience. We all spend the rest of our lives leaning into our baptism, living out our baptism.
Our model is Jesus. He too chose to be baptized. He shows us the way. I usually ask each candidate for baptism, “Why do we get baptized?” There are various answers to that question; but the first one is, “We get baptized because Jesus was baptized.”
Where Jesus leads, we follow. Jesus’ baptism gave him a clear identity. Luke’s account has the Voice saying to Jesus, “You are my son, my beloved; with you I am well pleased.” These words sound very similar to God’s words in Isaiah: “I have redeemed you. I have called you by name. You are mine.” My beloved.
What happened to Jesus after his baptism? He began his ministry. He started out on his mission of teaching, healing, reconciling, and speaking truth to power. Jesus did this ministry in community with his disciples. He didn’t go out as a lone ranger; he walked in company with his companions. Likewise, when we are baptized, we join the community. Each one of us does our ministry as part of the support system of the church. We are the extension of Jesus and his first disciples.
Baptism marked the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Likewise, each one of us begins our ministry at baptism. Each of us becomes a minister at baptism. That’s where we get the motto “Every member a minister.” Every baptized person is a minister. In earlier years when some of our fundamentalist friends were saying that women could not be ordained as ministers, others of us were saying, “Well, if you’re not going to ordain them, you shouldn’t baptize them.” It’s a contradiction to say that you’re baptized but not a minister. By definition, a baptized person is sent out to continue the ministry of Jesus.
And when we hit some struggle, some hardship—as we will, we too can say with Martin Luther, “I am baptized, I am baptized.”
Today we want to make sure that River Price hears, loud and clear, that we in this congregation support him, pray for him, and give thanks for his life as he makes this new beginning—as a Christian, as a minister, and member of this congregation.
Today we also remember our baptism. We give thanks that God has redeemed us and called us by name. We give thanks that God says to River Price and to each of us: You are beloved; with you I am well pleased.” Now, when the water is still fresh on your face and in your memory, get out of here, follow Jesus, and find the people who need the healing and hope that only you can give.
So may it be. Amen.
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