Collect
Eternal Father, who at the baptism of Jesus revealed him to be your Son, anointing him with the Holy Spirit: grant to us, who are born again by water and the Spirit, that we may be faithful to our calling as your adopted children; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
or
Heavenly Father, at the Jordan you revealed Jesus as your Son: may we recognize him as our Lord and know ourselves to be your beloved children; through Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Post Communion
Lord of all time and eternity, you opened the heavens and revealed yourself as Father in the baptism of Jesus your beloved Son: by the power of your Spirit complete the heavenly work of our rebirth through the waters of the new creation; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Readings
Old Testament
Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
He will not grow faint or be crushed
until he has established justice in the earth;
and the coastlands wait for his teaching.
Thus says God, the Lord,
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it
and spirit to those who walk in it:
I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,
to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness.
I am the Lord, that is my name;
my glory I give to no other,
nor my praise to idols.
See, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth,
I tell you of them.
Isaiah 42.1–9
Psalm
1 Ascribe to the Lord, you powers of heaven, ♦
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
2 Ascribe to the Lord the honour due to his name; ♦
worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
3 The voice of the Lord is upon the waters;
the God of glory thunders; ♦
the Lord is upon the mighty waters.
4 The voice of the Lord is mighty in operation; ♦
the voice of the Lord is a glorious voice.
5 The voice of the Lord breaks the cedar trees; ♦
the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon;
6 He makes Lebanon skip like a calf ♦
and Sirion like a young wild ox.
7 The voice of the Lord splits the flash of lightning; the voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; ♦
the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
8 The voice of the Lord makes the oak trees writhe and strips the forests bare; ♦
in his temple all cry, ‘Glory!’
9 The Lord sits enthroned above the water flood; ♦
the Lord sits enthroned as king for evermore.
10 The Lord shall give strength to his people; ♦
the Lord shall give his people the blessing of peace.
Psalm
Epistle
Then Peter began to speak to them: ‘I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ – he is Lord of all. That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.’
Acts 10.34–43
Gospel
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness.’ Then he consented. And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’
Matthew 3.13–17
Sermon on The Baptism of Christ
And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’
Does this ever happen at any of our baptisms? A doting mother may say something of the sort, perhaps a proud father in his cups might break down to say these words in that moment of grand emotion, when the child is acknowledged before the family and close friends. “Our beloved Child” is proclaimed at that “private” baptism as part of their joy in their child named publicly within that cloud of witnesses (however small or large).
But do we hear – or have we ever tried to hear – God’s voice at a baptism? Have we switched off everything modern and contemporary in order to hear that ancient calling of God in the silence of worship?
My question is not just rhetorical – I am asking because it does interrogate each of us as we sit here celebrating Jesus’ Baptism. Have we really heard that voice which expressed such pleasure in one brought to baptism? Are we like John who asked for the baptism Jesus would give, if only he would. How many of us would understand Jesus’ words – “it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness.”
What righteousness do we accomplish here and now? In reliving the Baptism of Jesus, do I find myself on the bank of the Jordan to listen to John and await that voice? After all, I am rather reluctant to say that I have ever been able to do what is right. If I were able, I would drop everything and go to the troubled spots of the world to give aid and succour to suffering humanity. Instead, I am a gardener keeping lawns tidy for other people in this green and pleasant land. Am I fulfilling any righteousness, apart from my duty for my wife and my customers? This is quite depressing for me, especially as the present war in the Ukraine carries on.
Do you feel the same? Don’t you wish to somehow do what is good not only for yourself, but for others? Do ordinary jobs really satisfy your thirst for justice and righteousness? How can we satisfy this drive for attaining the moral high ground wherever in the world we find ourselves?
These are the questions that come to mind when I think of Jesus saying to John, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness.” If I fulfill the law, will it have any effect? Will others join me and also assault those plains of Abraham where the mindless masses gather to hide in anonymity? Many say, “Why bother? That won’t change anything.” Is it any wonder that no one tries to do the right thing? Only the expedient – what will cause no comment – is to be done. However, is that really what we want to do? Is one’s life only expedient? Does that really make us proud?
I think at the back of our minds we hear the prophet’s words, “I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.” That impels us to the future. I want to be that servant of the Lord, to hear that voice and embody everything Isaiah says about that extraordinary person whom the Lord has singled out.
Normally, we say Isaiah is predicting Jesus, but I would like to read this passage as speaking about each one of us, for we all are possible servants of God – if only we hold fast to the true course we wish to ply.
He will faithfully bring forth justice.
He will not grow faint or be crushed until he has established justice in the earth;
Don’t we hope for this in our lives? Don’t we want that strength of resolve to establish justice in the earth? Don’t we want to keep up our strength in this work we do for others – the work we do in the name of God?
Thus says God, the Lord,
who gives breath to the people upon it
and spirit to those who walk in it:
If God gives us life, why don’t we do justly in our lives? Why do we act badly? We should be striding forth in God’s spirit, not mincing about in wickedness. The Lord has created us for the joy of the his service.
I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
Such a call should always be echoing in our ears, don’t you think? Such a call should be at the front of our minds, especially as we have been taken up in those caring hands. We should pass every thought through this prism of God’s spirit of justice, shouldn’t we? But it seems humanity fails in this fundamental moral imperative. We need only consider what assaults us daily on the news and in the fiction we read for pleasure.
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,
to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness.
I am the Lord, that is my name;
my glory I give to no other,
nor my praise to idols.
The servant figure becomes the focus here – you and I become the focus for the world, because we are a sign of the covenant God has agreed. God jealously guards the honour and glory offered up to him. The covenant sealed in you and me enshrines the love we have for each other – between me and you, God and us, but especially between us all. If we don’t forget that we are a sign of the covenant for ourselves and others, then there would be few chances for anyone to do evil.
I think this passage from Isaiah speaks to us like that voice which declares us beloved children of God. How can we behave badly if we pass everything through that prism of God’s righteousness? Doesn’t everything change in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye especially when we see through that lens of rectitude.
However, there is always the risk of forgetfulness, isn’t there? Like those servants awaiting the return of their boss, don’t we have to be aware of what we are enjoined to do? However, we can also forget in a moment, in a twinkling, can’t we? How quickly we don’t remember!
In our wakefulness is an awareness that justice is just about to be meted out to all of creation. Let us stay awake, ready to witness to the right all the days of our lives. When we “fulfil all righteousness”, I imagine it is at that moment we might hear that ancient voice saying, “This is my beloved child, in whom I am well pleased.”
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