The Parting of the Water: Remembering Our Baptism

Today is a day we mark another milestone on our journey. We have been to Bethlehem with Mary and Joseph. We have been to Bethlehem with the shepherds. We have been to Bethlehem with the magi. While all the pageantry and celebration cheers our hearts—and who does not love the presents—the only reason all this is important is what happens as Jesus grows in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and humankind. Today we celebrate Jesus’ baptism as reported in the Gospel according to Mark. Let’s read together from Mark 1:4-11.

John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of

repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” Mark 1:4-11

Let’s look at the story again together. First, we need to understand where the event takes place. Mark describes the event as taking place in the wilderness. For Mark, events taking place in the wilderness are meant to echo back to other times when people confronted God’s presence in the wilderness.

For example, think back to the Exodus. The Israelites were with God in the wilderness. In the wilderness, they were confronted with who they were and who God is. They were confronted with their faults and failures. They had to make the choice to listen to God instead of to their fears. They had to make the choice to turn from everything chasing them and walk through the water of deliverance. They had to repent and, in a way, be baptized. So at the beginning of Jesus ministry, we hear the echo of the Exodus. If we look further back, we find another wilderness and more water.

In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. Genesis 1:1-5

You can’t get much wilder than a formless void. Yet, even here there is the water. It was not until the third day that the waters were parted, but we still have the water and the light on the first day. So I suppose you will tell me I am stretching it a bit that Jesus is called the Light of the World and that Mark is reminding us that the story of Jesus life and the beginning of Jesus’ ministry ties back through the Exodus to the dawn of creation. Water was there at Jesus baptism. Water was there at the Exodus. Water was there at the dawn of creation.

On this first Sunday after Epiphany, when we remember the Lord’s baptism, we also take time to remember our own baptisms. To understand what it means to remember our baptism, using our United Methodist lens, we need to look at our history.  If you want to read a more complete discussion, I can email you the official overview or you can search for “by water and the spirit G-B-O-D” using your favorite search engine. You will find the 28-page discussion from the General Conference. Let me give you some highlights.

As United Methodists, we believe that baptism is a sacrament and a means of grace. In baptism, God touches our lives in real and tangible ways. God is present in our baptism. If fact, we believe that God is the principle actor in the drama played out at our baptism. Let me explain by comparison. I grew up in the America Baptist tradition, which is different from the Southern Baptist tradition which is different from the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches tradition. As a Baptist, I grew up with the understanding that at some point in my life, I would reach the “age of accountability” and decide for myself to be baptized and join the church. Like many churches, we had classes about the faith and our history along about 6^th grade. The understanding was that on completion of the class, we would be baptized and join the church, almost like a graduation ceremony. Keep in mind; this was our tradition and culture, not necessarily our theology. Like most of the kids in the class, I walked forward one day and went under the water a few weeks later taking my turn with other classmates.

Fast forward about three years. As a “much more mature” high school student, I came to my true Damascus road at summer camp. Now, I did not have a vision of Jesus on the actual road like Paul, and I was not blinded for several days. I did finally understand though that being a follower of Jesus was more than joining the “Happy Jesus Club.”

Being a disciple of Jesus meant having a changed life, meant touching other’s lives, meant bringing joy to God’s heart and glory to God’s name. Given my believer-centered theology of baptism, I decided that the first time had been for show. I was not a true believer. I was just a poser. As a poser, I had not been baptized as a believer. After all, I grew up learning about believer’s baptism not poser’s baptism. Along with another camper, I was baptized, again, later in the week at camp. Why wait to correct such a great error?

Looking back with the advantage of our Wesleyan lens, I can see my first misunderstanding. I thought I was the principle actor at my baptism. I thought that if my heart was not right, I needed to do it again. With that theology in mind, I can see people deciding at multiple points in their lives that they had slipped from the path and needed to rejoin the path of grace through the door of baptism. To finally understand God as the principle actor at my baptism, and at the baptism of countless millions over the centuries, liberates us from the false notion that we need to be good enough for God, that we need to “get it right” for God to include us in the family.

I remember a discussion with a United Methodist pastor in Tyler, TX as I was beginning my journey into the United Methodist fold. I was holding out for my historical tradition when I said “I understand what you are saying –even though I didn’t—but I still see baptism by immersion as a more profound, meaningful experience.” He gently responded, “If the amount of water makes a difference, then that is ‘works’ not ‘Faith.’” End of discussion.

The amount of water does not make a difference. The number of times under the water does not make a difference. God’s grace makes the difference. Remember the scene from the 1995 Pixar movie Toy Story when Buzz is showing off his “Andy” marking on his foot. Andy marked Buzz and Woody and most of his other toys to say to the world, “These are mine.” We do not hear the words out loud at our baptisms as they did at Jesus’, but the words are still spoken in our hearts, “This is my child. I put my name on this child of mine.”

There is another misunderstanding about baptism in parts of the Church today as in Wesley’s day. Baptism is a powerful symbol. Baptism is a sacramental means of grace. Baptism is not a requirement for salvation or for getting into heaven. Baptism is not the key to the door of heaven. To quote “By Water and the Spirit,”

Within the Methodist tradition, baptism has long been a subject of much concern, even controversy. John Wesley retained the sacramental theology which he received from his Anglican heritage. He taught that in baptism a child was cleansed of the guilt of original sin, initiated into the covenant with God, admitted into the Church, made an heir of the divine kingdom, and spiritually born anew. He said that while baptism was neither essential to nor sufficient for salvation, it was the “ordinary means” that God designated for applying the benefits of the work of Christ in human lives. (emphasis added)

Baptism, like every other means of grace, is intended to help us experience God’s grace, God’s presence, and God’s love. Unique among the means of grace, baptism is experienced once in our lives. When God’s writes the divine name on us, it truly is in permanent ink unlike the Sharpie Andy used on Woody and Buzz. God’s name does not rub off. And don’t forget that when God said “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” it was before Jesus had done anything! Baptism does not save us. Baptism gives us an anchor in the storm. “By the Water and the Spirit” goes on to state:

Baptism for Wesley, therefore, was a part of the lifelong process of salvation. He saw spiritual rebirth as a twofold experience in the normal process of Christian development -- to be received through baptism in infancy and through commitment to Christ later in life. Salvation included both God’s initiating activity of grace and a willing human response. (emphasis added)

We humans love stories. We tell stories to each other. We tell stories to remind us who we are. We tell stories to remember our journeys. We tell stories of the times we failed to remember that even in failure we were not alone and had others beside us. We tell stories of our victories to remember that even in victory we learned we were not alone and had others beside us. Our stories give us courage. When we retell the story of creation, we remember the Spirit of God hovering over the waters. When we retell the story of the Exodus, we remember how God parted the water and provided a way. When we retell the story of Jesus baptism, we remember how the waters parted and we heard God’s voice.

When we remember, we find courage. When we remember, we find strength. When we remember, we take our place in the Body of Christ to bring hope to the world. This next thought is a stretch, but not too far. Toward the end of Toy Story, Buzz and Woody were beyond hope. Woody was trapped by a milk crate. Buzz was trapped by his fear. The story would have ended there except for the fact that Buzz remembered who he was. He remembered whose he was. The fact of Andy’s name on his foot gave Buzz the strength and renewed spirit to go on.

So how about you? I have no idea where you are today. I have no idea if your life is going great, if you are under a milk crate, or if you are strapped to a rocket. I hope never find yourself in such a dire condition, but you will have days just like we all do when you wonder. Who would love a person like me? What can I do about the mess I made of that last encounter with FITB? Where will I find the strength to get up off the floor, again, and move forward? How can I go forward from the last failure? When will I ever learn to be the friend I need to be? Why would the God of the whole universe even care about my day? I do know that you will find strength, hope, and courage when you remember your baptism, remember that God’s name is on you in permanent ink, and accept your place in the family of God, in the name of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Krum First United Methodist Church: January 11, 2015. (C) Rev, David H. Taylor