Understanding Your Baptism
Sermon text for February 10, 2008:
Matthew 4:1-11
The day that she renewed her baptismal vows before the whole congregation was one of the happiest moments of her life. Like so many who grew up in the church, she was baptized as an infant. Her parents were faithful to their vows and brought her up to know Jesus.
When her eighth grade class was confirmed, the preacher said something about all of them taking on the vows which their parents had made for them when they were baptized, and that seemed important at the time. But this was different.
Now she was an adult, with grown-up experiences with the living God. Now she knew from a grown-up point of view that she wanted to be a follower of Jesus. In fact she wanted to be re-baptized, as a sign of her new relationship with the Lord. Of course her pastor explained that in the Presbyterian Church one baptism was sufficient and while she could not be re-baptized it was possible for her to re-affirm her baptismal vows in front of the whole congregation.
She was nervous as she stood in front of the congregation that day and was almost in tears as the pastor touched her forehead with oil and said, “You are a child of God, and I charge you to remember your baptism.” A jolt of electricity ran down her spine and she felt giddy and light-headed. This day truly marked a new direction in her life.
But in the days and weeks ahead she discovered that her transformation was not nearly as complete as she thought it was. In fact, in the firsts few days following her public renewal of vows, several things got out of hand. She found herself using an idea that was developed by a co-worker and presenting it to her boss as if it were her own. A little voice from somewhere deep inside said, “Since you are a child of God you’ve got to get ahead to show others how important it is to be a believer.” And she almost believed the voice. But another voice asked, “What would Jesus do?”
Another time she found herself in a compromising position with friends. They wanted to get together and smoke a few joints after work – just to relax. She wanted very much to be liked and accepted by others. The Tempter’s voice said, “Even Christians can be regular people.” But another voice asked, “What do you think Jesus would do?”
One day while she was driving, the traffic was especially bad and the slower the traffic went the more angry she became. Soon she was laying on the horn and waving at the other drivers with one finger. “Even Christians can get angry” said the now familiar voice. “What would Jesus do?” asked the other.
By now she was thoroughly confused. She noticed that temptations seemed especially bad since she had publicly confessed her faith and renewed her baptismal vows. “How can this be?” she wondered. Why was it that just at the moment she felt the most dedicated, she was having the most difficulty behaving like a Christian?
Some scholars believe that the story of the temptations of Jesus is really a commentary on the story of his baptism. Do you remember what happened to Jesus? He came up out of the water and saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and resting on him. And he heard a voice from heaven saying, “This is my son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” This had to have been one of the most moving moments in Jesus’ life. If he ever had any doubts about who he was, they were removed when God said, “This is my beloved son.” But evidently there was a problem. Jesus knew about his special relationship with God, but he didn’t know what to do about it. The big question was, what now?
The Bible says that “Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. It was then that the temptations began to come. Jesus was baptized and now he had to figure out how to live as the baptized Son of God.
“Turn these stones into bread,” said the Tempter. “People do not live by bread alone”, said the voice of faith.
Jesus saw himself on the highest pinnacle of the Temple. “Jump” said the tempters voice, “You will be alright”. But the voice of faith said, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”
Jesus saw all of the kingdoms of the world. “Bow down to me” said the Tempters voice, “and I will give you all of these”. “You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve only him” said the voice of faith.
Usually, people decide how we are going to live in the world by trying out different ways of being. Some of us imagine being different while others of us actually act out. Our lives become a drama, starring us. That is what adolescence is all about. We try on different things to decide if they fit. It is a process so essential that the Holy Spirit actually led Jesus to the place where he could be tempted and try out different ways of being the Messiah.
Lent is a time of testing, of trying out different things. It is a time to ponder how a deeper relationship with God will make a difference. Like Jesus, it is not uncommon for us to have the most difficult time of testing in the days and weeks after our deepest religious experiences.
New feelings, ideas, and understandings need to be tested, until we become more secure in who God is calling us to be. So even if you are completely secure in your faith, allow yourself to be tested during this season of discovery. Imagine your life apart from God. Allow the Holy Spirit to take you into the wilderness, so that when you emerge you will be like Jesus and ready to take on the world.
Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock
Matthew 4:1-11
The day that she renewed her baptismal vows before the whole congregation was one of the happiest moments of her life. Like so many who grew up in the church, she was baptized as an infant. Her parents were faithful to their vows and brought her up to know Jesus.
When her eighth grade class was confirmed, the preacher said something about all of them taking on the vows which their parents had made for them when they were baptized, and that seemed important at the time. But this was different.
Now she was an adult, with grown-up experiences with the living God. Now she knew from a grown-up point of view that she wanted to be a follower of Jesus. In fact she wanted to be re-baptized, as a sign of her new relationship with the Lord. Of course her pastor explained that in the Presbyterian Church one baptism was sufficient and while she could not be re-baptized it was possible for her to re-affirm her baptismal vows in front of the whole congregation.
She was nervous as she stood in front of the congregation that day and was almost in tears as the pastor touched her forehead with oil and said, “You are a child of God, and I charge you to remember your baptism.” A jolt of electricity ran down her spine and she felt giddy and light-headed. This day truly marked a new direction in her life.
But in the days and weeks ahead she discovered that her transformation was not nearly as complete as she thought it was. In fact, in the firsts few days following her public renewal of vows, several things got out of hand. She found herself using an idea that was developed by a co-worker and presenting it to her boss as if it were her own. A little voice from somewhere deep inside said, “Since you are a child of God you’ve got to get ahead to show others how important it is to be a believer.” And she almost believed the voice. But another voice asked, “What would Jesus do?”
Another time she found herself in a compromising position with friends. They wanted to get together and smoke a few joints after work – just to relax. She wanted very much to be liked and accepted by others. The Tempter’s voice said, “Even Christians can be regular people.” But another voice asked, “What do you think Jesus would do?”
One day while she was driving, the traffic was especially bad and the slower the traffic went the more angry she became. Soon she was laying on the horn and waving at the other drivers with one finger. “Even Christians can get angry” said the now familiar voice. “What would Jesus do?” asked the other.
By now she was thoroughly confused. She noticed that temptations seemed especially bad since she had publicly confessed her faith and renewed her baptismal vows. “How can this be?” she wondered. Why was it that just at the moment she felt the most dedicated, she was having the most difficulty behaving like a Christian?
Some scholars believe that the story of the temptations of Jesus is really a commentary on the story of his baptism. Do you remember what happened to Jesus? He came up out of the water and saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and resting on him. And he heard a voice from heaven saying, “This is my son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” This had to have been one of the most moving moments in Jesus’ life. If he ever had any doubts about who he was, they were removed when God said, “This is my beloved son.” But evidently there was a problem. Jesus knew about his special relationship with God, but he didn’t know what to do about it. The big question was, what now?
The Bible says that “Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. It was then that the temptations began to come. Jesus was baptized and now he had to figure out how to live as the baptized Son of God.
“Turn these stones into bread,” said the Tempter. “People do not live by bread alone”, said the voice of faith.
Jesus saw himself on the highest pinnacle of the Temple. “Jump” said the tempters voice, “You will be alright”. But the voice of faith said, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”
Jesus saw all of the kingdoms of the world. “Bow down to me” said the Tempters voice, “and I will give you all of these”. “You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve only him” said the voice of faith.
Usually, people decide how we are going to live in the world by trying out different ways of being. Some of us imagine being different while others of us actually act out. Our lives become a drama, starring us. That is what adolescence is all about. We try on different things to decide if they fit. It is a process so essential that the Holy Spirit actually led Jesus to the place where he could be tempted and try out different ways of being the Messiah.
Lent is a time of testing, of trying out different things. It is a time to ponder how a deeper relationship with God will make a difference. Like Jesus, it is not uncommon for us to have the most difficult time of testing in the days and weeks after our deepest religious experiences.
New feelings, ideas, and understandings need to be tested, until we become more secure in who God is calling us to be. So even if you are completely secure in your faith, allow yourself to be tested during this season of discovery. Imagine your life apart from God. Allow the Holy Spirit to take you into the wilderness, so that when you emerge you will be like Jesus and ready to take on the world.
Copyright © 2008 by Dwight R. Blackstock
posted by Dwight Blackstock | 6:43 AM
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