Homily Baptism C: What does baptism mean, for Jesus and for us?

Homily for Baptism of the Lord Year C 2019 

Isaiah 40:1-5,9-11; Titus 2:11-14;3:2-7; Luke 3:15-16,21-22

Introduction 

Finally today we come to the end of the Christmas Season.  Gentlemen, you have no more excuse not to take down the Christmas decorations.  Throughout this season the Church has gradually revealed the Son of God to the world.  But this has been done in a way quite different from a fashionable trend in recent years, called "gender reveal"; this is when parents who are expecting a child tell friends the sex of the child in quite spectacular and dramatic ways. 

The revelation of Jesus to the world, though less dramatic, has been gradual, intentional and meaningful. 

• On Christmas Day we heard the angels reveal the baby Jesus in the manger to the shepherds of Jerusalem. 
• On the feast of the Holy Family Jesus the Son of God was also revealed as a normal child, growing in wisdom and stature, and causing his parents, Mary and Joseph no little anxiety by remaining behind at the temple. 
• On New Year’s Day we celebrated the Solemnity of Mary, the Blessed Mother of God, the simple Jewish woman whose body was the channel for bringing God’s Son into the world. 
• Last Sunday on Epiphany, we returned to the baby Jesus, who was being revealed now, not to the Jewish shepherds as at Christmas, but to the Gentile wise men from the East, essentially to the whole world. 
• Finally today, we close this chapter of the Christmas story, with the baptism not of the baby Jesus, but of the adult Jesus, who is about to start his ministry, an occasion at which John reveals him as the Messiah. 

• 
  

Scripture and Theology 

And so for today's reflection, let us examine two things: what the baptism of Jesus by John adds to the Christmas story and what our baptism means for us. 

We know that the baptism that John was administering was meant for sinners, those who needed an external sign that they had repented inwardly and were getting ready for the coming of the Messiah.  But Jesus had no sin; and he was the Messiah.  So why did he undergo this baptism? 

In the Christmas story we have so far seen the humility of Jesus, born of lowly parents, born in a stable.  This theme of humility and solidarity continues even in his baptism.  By undergoing this baptism, Jesus humbled himself, identifying himself with sinners, who needed the baptism.  And later on in his ministry, he will continue to do the same thing, identifying himself with tax-collectors, prostitutes and sinners. 

Moreover, as Paul tells us about Jesus in the letter to the Philippians: “Though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.  Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross" (Phil. 2:6-8).  The humility Jesus expressed and experienced in his baptism was only the beginning.  His humility would show itself most profoundly in dying on the cross. 

Now some see this humility as a sign of weakness, which somehow makes Jesus less than he should be.  But they are wrong.  For it is at this very moment that God the Father reveals the man Jesus, to be his Son and the Saviour of the world.  We heard that the Spirit came down on him like a dove, and the Voice of the Father said: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”  This is God’s way of commissioning Jesus, God’s way of endorsing the work of teaching and healing that Jesus is about to start.  And when Jesus would humble himself again on the Cross, in perhaps the most humiliating way, the Father likewise would reward that humility again with raising his Son from the dead. 

Christian Life 

Having seen what the Baptism of Jesus tells us about him, today is as good an occasion as any other, for us to reflect what baptism means for us.  Every year in my course on baptism, I ask my students a question on the pop-quiz: "What is the date of your baptism?"  And so, I ask you the same question: "Do you know the date of your baptism?" 

The reason I ask that question is not to suggest that you have another party like you do for your birthday or anniversary; you have enough parties as it is, but that you think about what happened to do you on that day.  My friends the day of your baptism, in its simplicity, despite its lack of drama, was the first day of your new life for eternity.  Whether it was done by full immersion in water or by the pouring of water on our heads, whether you were an infant or an adult, that moment made you a child of God in Jesus Christ and set you on the path to heaven.  Baptism did this in both a negative way and a positive way. 

As you know, the chief symbol of baptism is washing with water, like we do every day, washing our faces, brushing our teeth, showering, and flushing the toilet.  It is no wonder then that God wanted chose this very sign of water, as the external sign that would indicate very profound interior cleansing.  The Church has never stopped carrying out this ritual sign of washing people with water externally as a real sign that God has taken away their sins. 

But our baptism does not simply clean the surface; it is more than just taking a shower; it the root of our human brokenness, which is called original sin.  Our condition before baptism is like that of a baby born of a mother who is a drug addict; this baby needs some serious detoxing that goes beyond the surface.  Baptism too is that much needed therapy that goes to the root of our sinful nature and takes it away.  That is why becoming a Christian is not just about becoming a nice person, which, anybody reasonable person can do; baptism is all about receiving God's supernatural help to cleanse our very broken nature. 

If cleansing is the negative effect of baptism, new life as children of God is its positive effect.  Remember when Nicodemus came to Jesus at night?  Jesus told him that no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born from above, without being born again, without being born of the water and Spirit (Jn. 3).  That is why as the priest is baptising with water, he says: “Michael or Susan, I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”, the very three persons involved in the baptism of Jesus, who now claim the person and welcome him or her into their divine life.  If before baptism Susan and Michael were little pagans, after baptism Susan and Michael are children of God, an adopted daughter and son of God, a sister and brother to the Lord Jesus. 

Jesus did not need to undergo this baptism, since he had no sin, and since he is already begotten Son of God.  But because of the sin of Adam and Eve, we need baptism, his supernatural help.  We are alike an old house that needs painting.  But before we add on the new shiny coat of paint, we must strip and sand paper away the old mouldy and dirty paint.  Baptism strips and sand-papers away sin, which is the obstacle to entering heaven; the same baptism gives us a new coat of paint, which is the new life in Christ. 

Conclusion 

And so, why do we need to remember the date of our baptism?  If the Church remembers the baptism of Jesus who did not need baptism, all the more reason you and I need to remember our baptism, so as to recommit ourselves to what it means for us. 

At our baptism, we made promises or promises were made on our behalf, to reject Satan and all his ways, to believe in God and in his Church.  We also were given a white garment to keep stainless and a light to keep burning.  When we come to the end of our earthly journey, having kept our garment clean and our light lit, may God the Father say to us those words he said to Jesus at his baptism: “You are my beloved Son/Daughter; with you I am well pleased.”