THE BAPTISM OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST

 THE BAPTISM OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST

Just as Bishop Donald J Hying would say in his homily: “We Christians reflect upon and celebrate the baptism of Jesus in significant ways: liturgically, at the conclusion of the Christmas season; devotionally, as the First Luminous Mystery of the Rosary; and theologically, as the scriptural prism for the meaning of Christian baptism”.

THE MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF THE BAPTISM OF JOHN THE BAPTIST

Though today the word baptism generally evokes thoughts of identifying with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, baptism did not begin with Christians. For years before Christ, the Jews had used baptism in ritual cleansing ceremonies of Gentile proselytes. John the Baptist took baptism and applied it to the Jews themselves—it wasn’t just the Gentiles who needed cleansing. Many believed John’s message and were baptized by him (Matthew 3:5-6). The baptisms John performed had a specific purpose.

In Matthew 3:11, John the Baptist mentions the purpose of his baptisms: “I baptize you with water for repentance.” Paul affirms this in Acts 19:4: “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” John’s baptism had to do with repentance—it was a symbolic representation of changing one’s mind and going a new direction. “Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River” (Matthew). Being baptized by John demonstrated a recognition of one’s sin, a desire for spiritual cleansing, and a commitment to follow God’s law in anticipation of the Messiah’s arrival. There were some, like the Pharisees, who came to the Jordan to observe John’s ministry but who had no desire to step into the water themselves. John rebuked them sternly: “When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance’” (Matthew 3:7-8). Even the religious leaders needed to repent of their sin, although they saw no need of it.

THE IMPORTANCE OF JESUS' BAPTISM (WHY WAS HE BAPTIZED)?

John the Baptist provided a baptism that served as a sign of repentance, but Jesus was without sin (Hebrews 4:15). So why did John baptize Jesus? At first, even John the Baptist sought to dismiss Jesus' request for baptism. He said, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" (Matthew 3:14). John recognized Jesus was the spotless Lamb of God (John 1:29) who did not need to be baptized to show His repentance. He then consented after Jesus replied, "Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness" (Matthew 3:15).

Several factors explain why the perfect Son of God chose to be baptized. 

First, Jesus sought to make a clear connection with John the Baptist. John was the "voice of one crying in the wilderness" (Matthew 3:3; Isaiah 40:3) who served as the Elijah who was to come. As the one to announce the Messiah, it was fitting for him to dedicate Jesus for His public ministry. 

Second, Jesus' baptism connected the humanity of Jesus with the rest of humanity. Though He was without sin, He took on the form of a man and identified with human experiences. This even included His experience of being baptized, a practice He would later command of all His followers (Matthew 28:18-20). 

Third, Jesus' baptism provided an example He expected other believers to follow. In Matthew 28:18-20, we read, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Jesus began His public ministry with baptism; He ended His public ministry with a command for His followers to baptize others. 

Fourth, the baptism of Jesus provided the first explicit mention in the New Testament involving all three members of the Triune God. Matthew 3:16-17 says, "And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, 'This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.'" Jesus, the Spirit, and the voice of God the Father all appear at one time, revealing the uniqueness of each Person of the Trinity while affirming their essential unity.

In summary, the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist included enormous theological significance. It affirmed Jesus as the Messiah whom John spoke of, revealed the humanity of Jesus, provided an example for others, and displayed a beautiful picture of the Triune God among the earliest followers of Jesus.

We can move further to identify the importance of Jesus’ baptism as:

Jesus’ Identity

This mark of divine blessing is accompanied by the voice of the Father in heaven who proclaims, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Mt 3:17). This mysterious utterance reveals Jesus as the Son of God, the One sent from the Father to accomplish the salvation of the human race. Already at the beginning of His ministry, Jesus’ fundamental identity is situated in this Trinitarian relationship. In the early Church, the visit of the Magi, the baptism of the Lord and the miracle at Cana together constituted the meaning of Epiphany, for each of these three events reveals, manifests and unveils who Jesus is. In our own case, in baptism, we receive a new identity in baptism as adopted children of the Father. The fruit of Christ’s victory over the power of sin and death is the divine invitation for us to share in the very life of the Trinity. Jesus Christ — namely, the Son — freely shares His very nature with us through the transforming waters of baptism. 

Identification with Sinners

In his book “Jesus of Nazareth,” Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI insightfully offers another facet of the baptism of the Lord. He sees Jesus’ baptism as an expression of His fundamental submission to the will of the Father and His complete identification with sinners. By submersion in the waters of the Jordan, Jesus is publicly seen as one in need of repentance and forgiveness himself, although He has no need of it in actuality. Jesus is already embracing the enormous weight of humanity’s sinfulness, just as He will do again in a definitive and final way on the cross — labeled then as a criminal and blasphemer. The mysterious events at the Jordan River already foreshadow the saving acts of Christ’s death and resurrection.

Divine Condescension

In this downward descent, this complete identification with sinners, we grasp the radical humility of Jesus. He is the One who empties himself, not clinging to His equality with God but becoming a slave for the sake of our salvation. God could have saved us in any manner that He chose, but He seems to embrace the most difficult and arduous way — the path of Incarnation and accompaniment. Christianity is the only world religion that believes the omnipotent and mysterious God humbled himself to become one of His own creatures, embracing the fullness of our humanity in order to redeem us from inside our own nature and condition. 

Clarity of Mission

 In Christian baptism, we become adopted children of the Father, members of the Church, the Body of Christ, and temples of the Holy Spirit. Baptism washes away our original sin and claims us for the kingdom of God. Through this saving sacrament, God fills us with sanctifying grace, with the fullness of the Trinitarian life. To understand the meaning and implications of our baptism is to fundamentally grasp our identity, vocation and mission as disciples of the Lord Jesus and members of the household of God.

SPIRITUAL EFFECTS AND BENEFITS OF OUR CHRISTIAN BAPTISM

As we talk of Jesus’ baptism, we talk of our own baptism. Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, and it has powerful and long-lasting effects. It changes the spiritual character of a person forever, and the mark of transformation is so permanent that it is indelible; it can never be erased. What follows is a concise list of nine of the most important effects and benefits of the sacrament of baptism as noted by Father Michael Van Sloun.

The gateway sacrament

Baptism is the first of the sacraments. It is the beginning and the foundation of the Christian life of faith, and it provides access to the other sacraments.

Sacramental grace

The grace of baptism is a rebirth in Christ, opens a channel of blessing from God to the believer, grants a share of God’s divine life, delivers spiritual energy and power, provides nourishment and enables growth in virtue and holiness.

The gift of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit comes to a person through baptism. The Holy Spirit is the ongoing indwelling presence of God, which makes the person a temple of the Holy Spirit and assures the constant companionship of God for the entire duration of the journey of life. The Holy Spirit offers inspiration, enlightenment and guidance, as well as the courage, strength and motivation to live according to God’s ways.

A child of God

Baptism makes a person an adopted son or daughter of God. Baptism consecrates a person to God. God owns the baptized person, and the person belongs to God. With this realization there is an ever-growing deep longing to know, love, obey and serve God.

Church membership

Baptism grants admission into the body of Christ, the Church, the army of light, a spiritual family in which the other members become one’s brothers and sisters in Christ. It establishes a bond of fellowship with the community of believers and full partnership with the communion of saints of the living. The pilgrimage to God is not to be walked alone, but with the help and companionship of other disciples.

Spiritual status

The baptized person is elevated as priest, prophet and king: a person who prays alone and worships with the Church, praying both for one’s self and on behalf of others; lives a good and holy life and calls others to greater holiness; and enjoys royal status before God, and who honors God as supreme, submits to God’s authority and obeys God’s law and will.

Forgiveness

Baptism is a spiritual cleansing. All sins, both original sin and personal sin, are washed away and forgiven, and purified. The person is in the state of grace. Liberation from sin gives the freedom and fosters the desire to conform one’s life to Jesus and his gospel.

Apostolic zeal 

Baptism makes a person a laborer in Christ’s vineyard and a minister of the Church, one who proclaims the gospel to others in deed and word; gives strong and bold witness; assists in liturgical roles; teaches and shares the faith; serves one’s neighbors, particularly the poor and disadvantaged; is a good steward of time, talent and treasure; seeks, speaks and defends the truth; works for justice and peace; and upholds the common good.

Salvation 

Baptism clothes a person with immortality, gives a person a share in the redemption that Christ won on the Cross, and makes salvation, eternal life and everlasting glory with God in heaven possible. It unites a person to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. St. Paul explained that those who are baptized in Christ are baptized into his death (Rom 6:3), and that, “If we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection” (Rom 6:5).

THE LESSON FOR TODAY

John prepared the way for Christ by calling people to acknowledge their sin and their need for salvation. His baptism was a purification ceremony meant to ready the peoples’ hearts to receive their Savior. Jesus was baptized by John, not because He needed to repent, but in order to obey the new command God laid upon His people through the Baptist (Matthew 3:13-17). Unlike Jesus, we are not without sin, and so our baptism is one of repentance. Repentance is to be a daily activity (1 John 1:8-9); thus, it behooves us again today to turn from sin and seek the Lord’s face. Spend time praying for an unrepentant friend or family member that he may turn to Jesus.

© Rev Fr Utazi Prince Marie Benignus 

November 1 2020