Sermons for the Month

The Light We Cast
DATE: January 13th, 2008
SERVICE: Baptism of our Lord
TEXT: Matthew 3:13-17
“To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN

As I was driving on Tuesday evening I was surprised, and glad, to still see Christmas trees lit in people's homes. Good, I'm not the only one who is slow at un-decorating, I thought. I've always thought that after January 6, when we celebrate the Epiphany of Our Lord, there is no theological reason to keep the Christmas tree up. (Unless, like Faith member Norma Setteur, whose home is decorated with a Christmas tree year-round, you want a constant reminder to celebrate the birth of Jesus.) But then I read an article in Christian Century and was surprised to learn that not only was the Epiphany, which recalled the arrival of the Magi, an important celebration in the early church, but two feasts immediately followed that also were considered more significant than Christmas.
These were called the three festivals of light; besides Epiphany there was the remembrance of the Baptism of Jesus and of the wedding feast at Cana. So, perhaps it's appropriate to keep those Christmas light in place well into January after all. These events were, and are, important because they not only demonstrate what God is like, but also what God wants us to be like. (1)
The story of the Epiphany reminds us that God was willing to take on human form, to be a tangible and findable presence in the world, to be imitated, and also worshiped. And we, like the Magi, are to look for him, to seek hope in the right place - in the Bethlehem babe, Jesus - paying attention always to God's leading.
The account of Jesus' baptism shows us that Jesus, in whom God is pleased to dwell, was willing to identify with the sinners he came to save by submitting to a ritual of repentance. In doing so, his position as the beloved Son of God, and his ministry, were publicly affirmed. His baptism points to the miracle of our baptisms; now we identify with Jesus and proclaim that through him we are the loved, forgiven children of God. We are filled with the Holy Spirit, and empowered to take our place in the community of the church.
Jesus transforming the water into wine at the wedding in Cana, which we will not be reading this year, is the third festival of light event. It reminds us of the miraculous power of Jesus, but also hints at his compassion. We are to draw on that power in our lives, trusting that it will be made manifest in surprising ways.
All three festivals do tell us what God is like, and what we are to be like. And, in each one the Good News about Jesus is being made known: the Magi not only stirred things up in Jerusalem, but told the story in the far away land of Persia; those who witnessed Jesus' baptism may have wondered why John the Baptist initially refused to baptize his own cousin. Was this Jesus the one who he said would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire? And, those behind the scenes at the wedding had quite a tale to tell about six stone jars of water that became the finest wine at Jesus' command.
All this is a reminder of one more thing that is to be true of us: we are to proclaim the Good News about Jesus Christ. Encouraging that proclamation in the lives of those who are baptized is the task of the parents - when it's a child - and also the sponsors and the church.
This is made SO clear in the baptism service from the ELW that we will use (used) this morning. Did you notice that the parents commit themselves to a number of things the purpose of which are to teach the child to trust God and create the desire to proclaim Jesus in word and deed, to care for others and for the world God made and to work for justice and peace.
Now, that's no small proposition. So, in the service, both the sponsors and the church community commit themselves to nurturing this new life in the faith. We corporately are responsible for every person who is baptized in this congregation. And, we are expected to not only be disciples, and support other disciples, but to make disciples. How do we do that?
Well, it begins with each of us, individually, striving to maintain an active, living faith. The first thing we must remember is that faith is a gift; it's given to us by the Holy Spirit and I do not personally feel it can be lost. But, it can be ignored or allowed to languish. Maintaining it does take effort on our part, although there are times when God intervenes to stir up our faith in spite of the fact that we've forgotten it's there.
The book that the Church Council has been reading during the past year, Power Surge by Michael W. Foss, offers six basic steps for those who seek to live active lives of faith. They are:

To pray daily

To worship weekly

To read the Bible

To serve at, and beyond, the local congregation

To be in relationships to encourage spiritual growth in others

To give of time, talents and resources

At the church where the author of the book is pastor, members, friends and visitors are given a credit card sized plastic cared to either stick in their wallets, put on their refrigerators, carry in their pockets or use as a bookmark. The front of the card says, "Marks of Discipleship" and "Power Surge" to convey the conviction that it is committed discipleship that releases the power of the Holy Spirit in the church and its ministries. (2) When they give out this card the church is saying, "This is who we are; this is what we do." In the grace of God that church has chosen discipleship.
Now, I realize, as does the author of the book, that these steps seem obvious, and perhaps too simple. Yet, my experience is that they are not that easy to do with commitment and intentionality AND that those who take them seriously are the ones in who, in powerful ways that may not be visible to the ones who are doing it, proclaim Jesus in word and deed.
Remember, though, the purpose of these steps is not to create super Christians or to acquire "points" with God. If we never did a single one of these things we still would be the loved and forgiven children of God. We just would not be living out our baptisms, and doing so makes a difference in our lives and in the world. I like this statement from Pastor Foss, "These are habits of the soul that open us to the wonder and mystery of God's active presence in our lives. They keep us focused; they fix our attention on the things of God." (3)
On this day when we celebrate baptism - one of the three Festivals of Light - it's good for us to reflect on what God is like and what God wants us to be like. If we are to take our place in the community of the church and the world, then the starting point is baptism and the path is discipleship. What can happen from there is beyond our expectations, but that's what happens when light of God breaks into the darkness of the world.
That's the purpose of those Christmas light, you know, to remind us that an epiphany has occurred to transform us. So, if you want to keep those Christmas lights up all year as a reminder of that, it's fine with me!
(1) "Marked for a Purpose" by Kathleen Norris, Christian Century, December 25, 2007, pg. 17.
(2) Power Surge by Michael W. Foss, Chapter 5, pgs. 81-110, Fortress Press: Minneapolis, 2000
(3) Same as above

AMEN