Sermon Illustrations for Baptism of Our Lord (2024)
Illustration
Genesis 1:1-5
This is the Sunday in which we celebrate the baptism of Jesus. The symbolism of baptism symbolizes much more danger than we normally associate with this ordinance. The waters were a symbol of chaos to ancient people (as they should be to people who choose to drive into flooded roads, with sometimes disastrous results)
In this first chapter of Genesis, the world already exists. Its actual creation from nothing is a matter we find in the Psalms, not in Genesis. What happens in the first few verses of Genesis is that God’s Spirit hovers over the face of the deep, and the earth itself is called “formless and void,” which in the Hebrew refers to the two gods of chaos found among the neighbors of God’s people: Tohu and Bohu. God conquers the ancient gods symbolically, without suggesting there are any such gods. In baptism, we are immersed in water (and I don’t really care how you practice baptism, that’s not the point), and rise up, preserved through God’s Spirit from the chaos of the waters. Jesus is depicted as the Creator and Spirit, facing down the forces of chaos (and this is completed in the stories of the temptation of Jesus), emerging triumphant, as are we in our surrender and rebirth.
Frank R.
* * *
Genesis 1:1-5
I found this little anecdote that was too good not to share. A doctor, an engineer, and a politician were arguing as to which profession was older. "Well," argued the doctor, "without a physician mankind could not have survived, so I am sure that mine is the oldest profession." "No," said the engineer, "before life began there was complete chaos, and it took an engineer to create some semblance of order from this chaos. So engineering is older." "But" chirped the triumphant politician, "who created the chaos?"
I’m not sure of the validity of their discussion, but the “chaos” comment sure did ring a bell. The passage today speaks of God creating everything from nothing. Astronaut John Glenn commented from the space shuttle Discovery, ““To look at the window . . .as I did that first day . . . to look out at this kind of creation and not believe in God is to me impossible.” Psalm 19:1 says it beautifully. “The heavens are telling the glory of God and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.”
Bill T.
* * *
Acts 19:1-7
A 2020 Barna Research poll revealed that over half of Americans (52%) think that the Holy Spirit is not a living entity, but merely of symbol of God’s power, presence, or purity. And if the majority is right, then we need to give more attention like Paul in this lesson to linking Baptism to the Holy Spirit. Baptism gives us a good opportunity to find the living Holy Spirit. Why not just take the common-sense approach to Baptism as just about water used as a symbol? Martin Luther offered some thoughtful reflections as to why we need to connect the Spirit with Baptism:
But the Holy Spirit must enlighten and warm us with his fire so that by faith we may experience and feel these [Christian] truths. Now since all this takes place in the Sacrament of Baptism, we should in justice, not like a cow consider it mere water but the very blood of the Son of God and the very fire of the Holy Spirit... (What Luther Says, p.48)
Elsewhere Luther says that the Baptismal water is like spice cast into water, no longer water, but delicious sugar water (Ibid.)
Ancient African monk Macarius the Egyptian, a great influence on John Wesley, tells us why the Holy Spirit matters, why the Spirit must be living in Christians. He is reported to have said:
Without the armor of the Spirit, he [the Christian] does not advance to the battle line... And so having fought the war and shared in the victory with the help of the Spirit, he receives crowns of victory with great assurance. (Pseudo-Macarius, p.156)
Think of the Spirit as our nurturing (spiritual) mother who was always reassuring us that we could successfully undertake our childhood tasks — become potty-trained, learn to walk, ride that bike, succeed in school. Her voice continues prodding and assuring us now in our adult tasks, no less present in our lives than in childhood. And so, it is with our mother Spirit, given us in Baptism. She never leaves us as we take on our adult tasks with confidence and competence, for it is the Spirit’s nurture and constant encouragement that makes it possible for us to live out our Christian commitments. This is what is meant by identifying the Christian life as a living of one’s Baptism, for it is in Baptism that this nurturing spirit comes to live in you and me.
Mark E.
* * *
Acts 19:1-7
When I write the words, Holy Spirit, what comes to your mind? For me, there is the presence of the Holy Spirit at the baptism of Jesus, there is the Holy Spirit coming upon the apostles in the upper room, and there is my own experience of the Holy Spirit blowing into my life and helping me feel the blessing of God. I don’t feel the Spirit every moment of every day, but I am at least aware of it. What might it be like to know Creator and Christ, but not the Spirit? I would miss the chaos wind of change, the pouring over of hope, peace and joy, the acknowledgement that God is present, as an advocate, in the seen and the unseen partnership between Creator, Christ and Spirit. Although I don’t speak in tongues and I don’t think I prophesy, I am refreshed and renewed by the Holy Spirit. Come, Holy Spirit, Come.
Bonnie B.
* * *
Mark 1:4-11
I saw this story and thought it was too good to pass up. After resigning his pastorate to go lead another church, a pastor was approached by a long-time older member of the congregation. She wept over the pastor’s decision to leave and said, “Things will never be the same.”
The minister tried to console her by saying, “Don’t worry, I’m confident you will get a new pastor who is better than me.”
She continued to sob and replied, “That’s what the last three pastors have said, but they just keep getting worse.”
This story makes me smile. It also sounds a message for humility among the servants of the Lord. Is there any better example of that than John the Baptist? His proclamation describing his work reveals that he knew who he was and what his role was. “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of his sandals. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (vs. 7-8). John prepared the way for the Lord Jesus as a humble servant. Will we emulate his humility as we serve?
Bill T.
* * *
Mark: 1:4-11
Both Mark and Matthew talk about John’s diet as consisting of locusts and wild honey. There’s been a good deal of thought given to the question — what is wild honey? There is no such thing as synthetic honey. It’s all made by bees in the darkness of their hives, out of our sight! Right?
Beekeeping and the development of domesticated bees was known deep into antiquity, but there is some question as to when beekeeping came to the Palestinian region. When the people of God were told they were heading for that land of milk and honey some question whether we’re talking about the dense, healthy substance produced by bees, or if we’re talking about dates, or a form of tree sap known as tree water.
Many historians and students of the period believe John ate something much less sweet than actual honey which, if delicious, is also a particularly rich substances that is usually added as a sweetening ingredient and is not expected to be a major element of someone’s diet, the exclusion of almost everything else.
Locusts, grasshoppers, and other such insects are another matter. We’re talking high in protein, and if most of us (including me) got over our scruples about eating bugs, insect protein could provide a large part of the diet of humanity all over the world.
Fun Fact. Not all honey is sweet. When beehives are trucked out to help pollinate almond groves the honey produced is often bitter and inedible for humans, although the bees themselves have no qualms about it.
Frank R.
* * *
Mark 1:4-11
Martin Luther made a helpful distinction between Jesus’ baptism and our own. He wrote:
When Christ was baptized and when we are baptized, there is, so far as the act itself is concerned, no difference at all... But there is a great difference in the persons. Christ is baptized, not in order to be made righteous — for he is the Son of God and endowed with eternal righteousness so that we be made righteous through him — but as an example, so to speak, for us in order that he may precede us and we may follow his example and be baptized. (Luther’s Works, Vol.3, p.87)
A May 2023 Gallup poll found only 18% are satisfied with the state of our nation. We are clearly yearning for a better future. And yet most of us do little about it, except to complain. What good is Baptism for us? Eminent New Testament scholar Rudolf Bultmann believed that there was a continuity between Christian Baptism and the Baptism of Jesus. They are both eschatological (ways of making the future be realized in the present). He wrote:
That is, baptism in conjunction with repentance was a bath of purification (closely connected with repentance) for the coming reign of God — in other words an initiation rite of the eschatological community. (Theology of the New Testament, Vol.1, p.39)
And for Bultmann, this entails that Baptismlaunches us on a lifestyle that is “free openness to the future... is freedom from anxiety in the fact of nothing... Faith as openness to the future is freedom from the past.” (Jesus Christ and Mythology, pp.77-78)
Living out our Baptisms is a sign which reminds us to break with all our past bad habits and look to the future. And then Christians can embrace the thinking of American patriot Patrick Henry who once claimed, “I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.” Well-known 19th- century American Episcopal Bishop Phillips Brooks concretizes this point even further when he wrote:
Very strange is the quality of our human nature which decrees that unless we feel a future before us we do not live completely in the present.
Mark E.
* * *
Mark 1:4-11
I remember standing on the shores of the River Jordan in Israel. The water was murky and muddy looking, it didn’t seem deep, nor did it seem as vast as I had imagined. What I did remember were these gospel verses from Mark. I remembered thinking about the awe John must have helped as he held his cousin in the water. I remember thinking about the powerful voice from heaven, and wondered if everyone heard it or if it was only for Jesus and John alone. I remember thinking about the cooing of the dove of the Holy Spirit as it rested on Jesus from the heavens torn asunder. I remember holding infants as I performed baptism sacraments for them and, even if only in my mind’s eye, the Holy Spirit resting on them as well. I remember all these things this morning. I hope you do as well.
Bonnie B.
This is the Sunday in which we celebrate the baptism of Jesus. The symbolism of baptism symbolizes much more danger than we normally associate with this ordinance. The waters were a symbol of chaos to ancient people (as they should be to people who choose to drive into flooded roads, with sometimes disastrous results)
In this first chapter of Genesis, the world already exists. Its actual creation from nothing is a matter we find in the Psalms, not in Genesis. What happens in the first few verses of Genesis is that God’s Spirit hovers over the face of the deep, and the earth itself is called “formless and void,” which in the Hebrew refers to the two gods of chaos found among the neighbors of God’s people: Tohu and Bohu. God conquers the ancient gods symbolically, without suggesting there are any such gods. In baptism, we are immersed in water (and I don’t really care how you practice baptism, that’s not the point), and rise up, preserved through God’s Spirit from the chaos of the waters. Jesus is depicted as the Creator and Spirit, facing down the forces of chaos (and this is completed in the stories of the temptation of Jesus), emerging triumphant, as are we in our surrender and rebirth.
Frank R.
* * *
Genesis 1:1-5
I found this little anecdote that was too good not to share. A doctor, an engineer, and a politician were arguing as to which profession was older. "Well," argued the doctor, "without a physician mankind could not have survived, so I am sure that mine is the oldest profession." "No," said the engineer, "before life began there was complete chaos, and it took an engineer to create some semblance of order from this chaos. So engineering is older." "But" chirped the triumphant politician, "who created the chaos?"
I’m not sure of the validity of their discussion, but the “chaos” comment sure did ring a bell. The passage today speaks of God creating everything from nothing. Astronaut John Glenn commented from the space shuttle Discovery, ““To look at the window . . .as I did that first day . . . to look out at this kind of creation and not believe in God is to me impossible.” Psalm 19:1 says it beautifully. “The heavens are telling the glory of God and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.”
Bill T.
* * *
Acts 19:1-7
A 2020 Barna Research poll revealed that over half of Americans (52%) think that the Holy Spirit is not a living entity, but merely of symbol of God’s power, presence, or purity. And if the majority is right, then we need to give more attention like Paul in this lesson to linking Baptism to the Holy Spirit. Baptism gives us a good opportunity to find the living Holy Spirit. Why not just take the common-sense approach to Baptism as just about water used as a symbol? Martin Luther offered some thoughtful reflections as to why we need to connect the Spirit with Baptism:
But the Holy Spirit must enlighten and warm us with his fire so that by faith we may experience and feel these [Christian] truths. Now since all this takes place in the Sacrament of Baptism, we should in justice, not like a cow consider it mere water but the very blood of the Son of God and the very fire of the Holy Spirit... (What Luther Says, p.48)
Elsewhere Luther says that the Baptismal water is like spice cast into water, no longer water, but delicious sugar water (Ibid.)
Ancient African monk Macarius the Egyptian, a great influence on John Wesley, tells us why the Holy Spirit matters, why the Spirit must be living in Christians. He is reported to have said:
Without the armor of the Spirit, he [the Christian] does not advance to the battle line... And so having fought the war and shared in the victory with the help of the Spirit, he receives crowns of victory with great assurance. (Pseudo-Macarius, p.156)
Think of the Spirit as our nurturing (spiritual) mother who was always reassuring us that we could successfully undertake our childhood tasks — become potty-trained, learn to walk, ride that bike, succeed in school. Her voice continues prodding and assuring us now in our adult tasks, no less present in our lives than in childhood. And so, it is with our mother Spirit, given us in Baptism. She never leaves us as we take on our adult tasks with confidence and competence, for it is the Spirit’s nurture and constant encouragement that makes it possible for us to live out our Christian commitments. This is what is meant by identifying the Christian life as a living of one’s Baptism, for it is in Baptism that this nurturing spirit comes to live in you and me.
Mark E.
* * *
Acts 19:1-7
When I write the words, Holy Spirit, what comes to your mind? For me, there is the presence of the Holy Spirit at the baptism of Jesus, there is the Holy Spirit coming upon the apostles in the upper room, and there is my own experience of the Holy Spirit blowing into my life and helping me feel the blessing of God. I don’t feel the Spirit every moment of every day, but I am at least aware of it. What might it be like to know Creator and Christ, but not the Spirit? I would miss the chaos wind of change, the pouring over of hope, peace and joy, the acknowledgement that God is present, as an advocate, in the seen and the unseen partnership between Creator, Christ and Spirit. Although I don’t speak in tongues and I don’t think I prophesy, I am refreshed and renewed by the Holy Spirit. Come, Holy Spirit, Come.
Bonnie B.
* * *
Mark 1:4-11
I saw this story and thought it was too good to pass up. After resigning his pastorate to go lead another church, a pastor was approached by a long-time older member of the congregation. She wept over the pastor’s decision to leave and said, “Things will never be the same.”
The minister tried to console her by saying, “Don’t worry, I’m confident you will get a new pastor who is better than me.”
She continued to sob and replied, “That’s what the last three pastors have said, but they just keep getting worse.”
This story makes me smile. It also sounds a message for humility among the servants of the Lord. Is there any better example of that than John the Baptist? His proclamation describing his work reveals that he knew who he was and what his role was. “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of his sandals. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (vs. 7-8). John prepared the way for the Lord Jesus as a humble servant. Will we emulate his humility as we serve?
Bill T.
* * *
Mark: 1:4-11
Both Mark and Matthew talk about John’s diet as consisting of locusts and wild honey. There’s been a good deal of thought given to the question — what is wild honey? There is no such thing as synthetic honey. It’s all made by bees in the darkness of their hives, out of our sight! Right?
Beekeeping and the development of domesticated bees was known deep into antiquity, but there is some question as to when beekeeping came to the Palestinian region. When the people of God were told they were heading for that land of milk and honey some question whether we’re talking about the dense, healthy substance produced by bees, or if we’re talking about dates, or a form of tree sap known as tree water.
Many historians and students of the period believe John ate something much less sweet than actual honey which, if delicious, is also a particularly rich substances that is usually added as a sweetening ingredient and is not expected to be a major element of someone’s diet, the exclusion of almost everything else.
Locusts, grasshoppers, and other such insects are another matter. We’re talking high in protein, and if most of us (including me) got over our scruples about eating bugs, insect protein could provide a large part of the diet of humanity all over the world.
Fun Fact. Not all honey is sweet. When beehives are trucked out to help pollinate almond groves the honey produced is often bitter and inedible for humans, although the bees themselves have no qualms about it.
Frank R.
* * *
Mark 1:4-11
Martin Luther made a helpful distinction between Jesus’ baptism and our own. He wrote:
When Christ was baptized and when we are baptized, there is, so far as the act itself is concerned, no difference at all... But there is a great difference in the persons. Christ is baptized, not in order to be made righteous — for he is the Son of God and endowed with eternal righteousness so that we be made righteous through him — but as an example, so to speak, for us in order that he may precede us and we may follow his example and be baptized. (Luther’s Works, Vol.3, p.87)
A May 2023 Gallup poll found only 18% are satisfied with the state of our nation. We are clearly yearning for a better future. And yet most of us do little about it, except to complain. What good is Baptism for us? Eminent New Testament scholar Rudolf Bultmann believed that there was a continuity between Christian Baptism and the Baptism of Jesus. They are both eschatological (ways of making the future be realized in the present). He wrote:
That is, baptism in conjunction with repentance was a bath of purification (closely connected with repentance) for the coming reign of God — in other words an initiation rite of the eschatological community. (Theology of the New Testament, Vol.1, p.39)
And for Bultmann, this entails that Baptismlaunches us on a lifestyle that is “free openness to the future... is freedom from anxiety in the fact of nothing... Faith as openness to the future is freedom from the past.” (Jesus Christ and Mythology, pp.77-78)
Living out our Baptisms is a sign which reminds us to break with all our past bad habits and look to the future. And then Christians can embrace the thinking of American patriot Patrick Henry who once claimed, “I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.” Well-known 19th- century American Episcopal Bishop Phillips Brooks concretizes this point even further when he wrote:
Very strange is the quality of our human nature which decrees that unless we feel a future before us we do not live completely in the present.
Mark E.
* * *
Mark 1:4-11
I remember standing on the shores of the River Jordan in Israel. The water was murky and muddy looking, it didn’t seem deep, nor did it seem as vast as I had imagined. What I did remember were these gospel verses from Mark. I remembered thinking about the awe John must have helped as he held his cousin in the water. I remember thinking about the powerful voice from heaven, and wondered if everyone heard it or if it was only for Jesus and John alone. I remember thinking about the cooing of the dove of the Holy Spirit as it rested on Jesus from the heavens torn asunder. I remember holding infants as I performed baptism sacraments for them and, even if only in my mind’s eye, the Holy Spirit resting on them as well. I remember all these things this morning. I hope you do as well.
Bonnie B.
