Pastor Tom Johnson, January 10, 2016
As I was preparing my sermon the other day, I was sitting in a room with vending machines. Customers came, looked through the window, and considered which of all the chips, chocolate bars, and candy they desired most. They gave their offering into the coin slot, bill receiver, or swiped their credit card. On the keypad, they selected their snack or refreshment. And the fulfillment of their promise landed with a thud which could be retrieved through the flap door. It struck me how much this is like human religion. In times of drought people prayed to the god of rain, in times of infertility the goddess of fertility, in times of storm to the god of thunder, and in the times of war to the god of power. The teaching of the church can even erode to the point of portraying God like a vending machine. In the Middle Ages, heaven was described like a treasure chest. The key to opening this promise of blessing might be to give something to God, an offering to the church, pray a certain prayer, or do a good deed. It is easy for any of us to think about God in this way. Maybe if I prayed more, God would be more pleased with me. Maybe if I gave more of my time…maybe if I shared my faith more at work and with my friends…then God would open up that treasure chest, open the door to heaven, and give me good gifts.But God’s ways are not our ways. Like us, John is struck by his own unworthiness. “I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals,” he says. We feel unworthy and guilt because we have not done enough. We feel unacceptable to God because we have been unloving to our neighbor and not trusted in God above all things. We feel unworthy and shame because of who we are. We may feel like we are tainted goods. We might think we will never meet the excessive expectations of a holy, righteous, and perfect God. We may believe that he will always find fault no matter how hard we try, how much we pray, and how much we give. John’s unworthiness was not intended to beat himself up but point to the One who is truly worthy. John’s unworthiness was not intended to diminish his own baptism but to highlight the power and promise of the Baptism that was to come.
Coming out of the time of Christmas, we have it fresh in our minds that God has already given us the greatest gift he could give—his Son—himself—the eternal Word who became flesh and was born in Bethlehem in a manger. But unlike a vending machine, we do not need to entice, persuade, or purchase God’s attention. When God gives gifts, he gives them for free. He chooses what to give, he pays the price, and he determines the times of delivery. God gives his only begotten Son. Jesus pays the price—not with gold and silver—but by his precious blood on the Cross of Calvary. The times of delivery is at his birth and—even more in its fullness—at the time of his Baptism.
“Now when all the people were baptized,” our Gospel reading says, “and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” In Jesus’ Baptism we see the already clean and spotless Lamb, Jesus washed with water. We hear the prayer of Jesus and God’s people. Heaven is opened to unleash the power and the grace of God. The Holy Spirit shows up and dances in the air down to Jesus like a dove. The voice of God the Father endorses his Son. Jesus’ Baptism is less like a vending machine and more like the winning number for a 1.3 Billion dollar jackpot. God gives us his winning number for free.
On Thursday, I had an appointment with Louisa for her Baptism today. Although she is only a few months old, she sat on the couch ready to be catechized and examined to determine if she is worthy to be baptized. No, she, her parents, and I talked about the flood of blessings poured out through Baptism; and, as it turns out, that Louisa will be baptized on Baptism of Our Lord. Louisa will share the same day as Jesus’ baptism! How awesome is that! And it gets even better. We all share in Jesus’ baptism. We are all baptized into Christ. He washes us with water and clothes us in his perfect righteousness. He renews and adopts us by the Holy Spirit. And he refines us throughout our days like a refiner’s fire. The heavens opened to announce the beginning of Christ’s earthly ministry. The heavens opened for the flood of God’s love into his creation. The heavens opened wide to make way for a greater current of God’s amazing grace.
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