Jesus' Baptism - perhaps a bit too literal!

The first Sunday after the Feast of the Epiphany (January 6th) is when the Church remembers Jesus’ baptism in the River Jordan by John the Baptist.  Our church building seemed to want to get in on the action a bit early – and literally. 
We had a pipe burst in the sacristy very early Monday morning.  Fortunately the South Brunswick Fire Department and Paul Pospeich, our Property Warden, responded quickly and got the water turned off, though there was still 2 to 3 inches of water in the church.  The SBFD - God bless them! - stayed to help clean up much of the water for over an hour.  Paul called our insurance company, who authorized the repairs and clean up.  At this point, all should be well for Sunday services.  If that should change, we will let you know.  In the meantime, we carry on, giving thanks for the wonderful resource of our facilities and being good stewards of them. 
Back to Jesus’ baptism.  The abrupt transition from welcoming the Christ child to bearing witness to the full-grown Jesus’ entry into ministry is bewildering.  Save for the story of the Holy Family’s flight into Egypt in Matthew’s Gospel and a story of Jesus getting left behind at the Temple in Jerusalem as a child in Luke’s Gospel, there is no record of what happened during the first 30 years of Jesus’ life.  It’s not as if that span of time was unimportant, as it formed Jesus into the person he was.  However we cannot impose our modern desire to record and share every moment of our lives onto a humble carpenter from Bethlehem. 
What is important is that he did live.  He survived and thrived, which many children in that era did not.  The events of Jesus’ youth were not insignificant, but in light of his ministry, it is ancillary information, a distraction from the important message that the Kingdom of God has come near. 
Jesus’ choice to leave behind everything he knew and seek out John’s baptism is awe-inspiring.  This is not a serene scene where people ooh and ahh over a baby, but the reality of choosing to live counter to what the world teaches.  This is not about safety and security, but about putting it all on the line and then walking that line in face of criticism and danger.  To be a follower of Christ and take up our mantle among the baptized calls us to reevaluate how much we live into our Baptismal vows – to pray, even when it is inconvenient; to recognize evil in our lives, even when it “doesn’t seem that bad”; to share the Gospel message, even when it feels awkward; to love all persons, even those we don’t like; to seek justice, even when it is an unpopular position. 
In these actions is where the true impact of Jesus’ incarnation is felt, in the human concerns of everyday life.  Like burst pipes, it can get messy, and yet we find people who don’t need to help clean up offer a helping hand.  The church community does that for each other, because it is not easy being a follower of Christ’s, but it is by far a much more extraordinary experience of life.
In Christ,

Rev. Valerie+

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