Luke 3:15-22 (The Baptism of Our Lord)
St. John, Galveston 1/12/25
Rev. Alan Taylor

+ In Nomine Jesu +

Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

During the season of Epiphany, which began this past Monday, on January 6, the Sunday readings remind us of the various powerful ways that the Light, that is, Jesus, has come into the world. Epiphany began with the visit of the Magi, who followed a mysterious star to the place of Jesus’ birth. It will end with the account of Jesus’ transfiguration, that miraculous event where Jesus was seen in His heavenly glory atop a mountain by Peter, James and John.

Today’s reading, from Luke 3, presents us with no less of a significant and miraculous event, in the Baptism of Jesus. The importance of the event is testified to by the fact that all four of the Gospel writers include an account of it, even though, each of them offers slight differences in terms of what they emphasize.

Since Epiphany always gets started with the account of Jesus’ baptism, it stands to reason that pastors, such as myself, have preached on this passage, perhaps more than any other passage in the Bible. That said, I find that I’ve never been able to preach a sermon on Jesus’ baptism without incorporating a detail of the event that is given to us only by Matthew. You may recall that, when Jesus asked John to baptize Him, John was quite troubled by His request. Knowing that baptism was for the forgiveness of sins, John said to Jesus, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” It was in response to John’s objection, that Jesus said, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” We’ll come back to those words of Jesus in just a moment.

Perhaps though as you consider Jesus’ baptism, you find yourself wondering the same thing that John wondered. in the same quandary as John. We each recognize our own need to be baptized. But why did Jesus need to be baptized? Again, baptism is for the forgiveness of sins. It is a regenerative gift of God, whereby He takes what is old and He makes it new. Indeed, in baptism, God literally raises us from death and gives us new life in Him. Jesus though was without sin. He was and is the Light of the world, in whom there is no death, no disharmony, or disunity with God. So, why did Jesus need to be baptized and why does His baptism hold such a significant place in the four Gospels?

“Let it be so now (He said), for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Righteousness, the ability to stand before God without sin, without spot or blemish, in pure holiness, is what Jesus gave us, isn’t it?  
Well, that righteousness that you have in Christ, came not just from His cross, but from His baptism too. In fact, Jesus’ baptism and the cross are two sides of the same coin, and yet, what happens in each of them is starkly different.

Jesus’ public ministry began with the Spirit descending and the voice of the Father testifying. It ended with the Spirit departing and the voice of the Father falling silent. His work began with him standing in solidarity with sinners, shoulder to shoulder with prostitutes, tax collectors, and all manner of society’s outcasts and rejects. It ended with him hanging between two thieves on a cross, a cross most commonly reserved for criminals. His work began with water. It ended with blood and water flowing from his pierced side. In this morning’s reading, the heavens were opened to Jesus; on Calvary, heaven was closed to Him, but it was opened to every sinner who believes that Jesus has taken away the sin of the world, people like you and me.
 
When Jesus was baptized, He took your place – which is to say, He took on your sin, your guilt, your punishment, and your death. When you were baptized, you took Jesus’ place – which is to say, you were baptized into his perfect life, his death, and his resurrection. As St. Paul later said of baptism, “we were buried (he says) with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” And, then again, Paul says, “when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing (baptism!) of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:4-7)
 
And, even though Jesus’ baptism by John is not the same as our baptism, it sets the stage and lays the foundation for it. The sinless Son of God walked into that dirty Jordan River and He purified it so that you might be purified from all sin. What happened to Jesus in his baptism is also what happened to you in your baptism. Heaven was opened to Him just as it was opened to you; the Holy Spirit descended on Him, just as the Holy Spirit descended on you – not, of course, in the form of a dove – but through the Word of God. And, perhaps most importantly, as the Father declared his love for His Son in His baptism, so He declared His love for you in yours. Make no mistake, at your baptism, the Father declared of you what He declared of His Son.“You are my son [or daughter], He says, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
 
This is really the foundation of the Gospel and of our faith in Christ, isn’t it? God doesn’t count you worthy of His grace because of improvements that you’ve made in your life, or because you have begun to overcome certain sins that once plagued you. Rather, He counts you worthy of His grace because His Son stood in your place, even as you now stand in His place.
 
“The sun (says Luther) is not dimmed and darkened by shining on so many people or by providing the entire world with it’s light and splendor. It retains its light intact. I suppose (he says) that a hundred thousand candles can be ignited from one light, and still this light will not lose any of its brilliance. Thus, Christ, our Lord, to whom we must flee and of whom we must ask all, is an interminable well, the chief source of all grace, truth, righteousness, wisdom, and life, without limit, measure or end. Even if the whole world were to draw from this fountain enough grace and truth to transform all people into angels, still it would not lose as much as a drop.” (Luther)
 
He continues, “whoever wishes to enjoy Christ’s grace — and no one is excluded — let him come and receive it from Him. Do not let reliance on your own piety, on your compliance with the Law of Moses, or on your many good works keep you from coming to Him. Your deeds do not stand the test. No matter how they may gleam and glitter. Go to Him on whom God the Father has set His seal. He is the rich and inexhaustible Fountain and Fullness from which all patriarchs and prophets, in brief, all the saints, also drew, always have drawn and taken, and still do. All of us without exception, no matter how holy we may be, come empty and fill our little casks from His well and His fullness.”
 
It’s true, Jesus’ baptism and His cross are two sides of the same coin. In this morning’s reading, at the Jordan, Jesus took upon Himself the sins for which He would later die on the cross in order to fulfill all righteousness. As the Scriptures say elsewhere, “God made Him who knew no sin, to be sin, that you might be the righteousness of God in Him.” In that moment of Jesus’ baptism, the heavens were opened to Jesus; on Calvary, heaven was closed to Him, but it was opened to every sinner who believes that Jesus has taken away the sin of the world, people just like you and me.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen.

+ Soli Deo Gloria +