Christmas V - Baptism

dwvm55

Oct 7

3 min read

Christmas V – The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7; Psalm 29; Acts 10:34-38; Matthew 3:13-17

“I should be baptized by you, and yet you come to me.”

Unlike the Sacrament of Baptism into the Death and Resurrection of Jesus we experienced,

John trying to prevent Jesus from his baptism of repentance? Why?

And John will not be the first to try and dissuade Jesus from his mission.

When Jesus predicts that he will be killed, Peter becomes an obstacle.

“Never, Rabbi! This will never happen to you.” [Mark 9:31-33]

In the garden of Gethsemani, as Jesus is arrested,

one of the disciples, will draw their sword and attack the servant of the high priest.

A violent response of impotent power. [Matthew 26:51; John 18:10-11]

Why do the disciples try to save the saviour?

Why does no one seem to understand the mission of Jesus?

Why are we so often stumbling blocks for Jesus?

I recall an event 855 years ago.

It is the evening of 29 December 1170.

The monks at Christchurch, Canterbury have barred the Cathedral doors.

They want to protect Archbishop Thomas Becket from the murderous knights of Henry II.

They too did not understand the mission.

In the words of the poet T.S. Eliot, Thomas replies to their stumbling efforts:

“I am not in danger: only near to death.

I have had a tremor of bliss, a wink of heaven, a whisper,

And I would no longer be denied…”

“Unbar the doors!”

[T.S. Eliot, Murder in the Cathedral]

Does anyone understand the mission of Jesus,

the overwhelming and embracing love of God for us?

There is one unexpected person who does understand.

It is the guilty man who is crucified alongside Jesus.

“He has not done anything wrong. Jesus, remember me…”

And before he can finish, Jesus responds,

“Today you will be with me in paradise.” [Luke 23:40-43]

The guilty man sees in the innocent man a reflection of himself – saved!

He sees “a tremor of bliss, a wink of heaven, a whisper…”

In his Letter to the Corinthians, Paul puts it this way,

“For our sake God made the Christ who was without sin to be sin,

so that by this means we might become the very holiness of God.” [2 Corinthians 5:21]

This sin is then nailed by God to the cross, exhausting evil and sin of its power. [Colossians 2:14-15]

The reason why Jesus approaches John for his baptism is to identity with sinners.

And to be so identified that he becomes sin which is nailed to the cross.

Today the action that completes the Christmas Feast

is the action that begins the Paschal Mystery – the Death and Resurrection - of Jesus.

To save us Jesus must be identified with us.

The Saviour does not need to be saved.

The Saviour has come to save.

To save the wounded. The lost. The arrogant. The self-righteous. The adulterous.

To save you and me.

Suffering. Hatred. Violence. Death.

If I were God, I would not have chosen this as the way of salvation.

I don’t understand it but I dare to believe it.

This is why John and Peter try to protect Jesus;

why the disciple draws his sword;

why we trust power more than God.

This is why the cross confounds the powerful. The mighty. The strong.

It was heard this week in the words of administration aide, Stephen Miller,

“We live in a world, in the real world, that is governed by strength, that is governed by force,

that is governed by power. These are the iron laws of the world since the beginning of time.”

Iron laws crush people. They crushed Jesus.

The iron laws of “might makes right” are today crushing people throughout the world.

This week, Pope Leo forcefully and bluntly stated,

“War is back in vogue, and a zeal for war is spreading.”

But Christians profess another law since the beginning of time.

God saves us, not by strength, or force or power.

God saves in vulnerability.

First as an infant. Ultimately, as an innocent man nailed to a cross.

The peace the angels sang about to shepherds and us “is no longer sought as a gift and a desirable good in itself, instead, peace is sought through weapons as a condition for asserting one’s own dominion.” [Pope Leo, 9 December 2026, Address to ambassadors credited to the Holy See.]

Our teacher today?

A guilty man who was crucified alongside Jesus.

He teaches us that to understand the mission of Jesus and accept the salvation of God,

we must acknowledge our sinfulness.

“Have you no fear of God. We have been justly condemned.

We are paying the price for what we have done.”

In other words. I am guilty. I am a sinner.

Only then can a person pray: “Remember me…”

Only then can a person humbly accept the wonderous gift of Christmas, salvation.

11 January 2026

“I should be baptized by you, and yet you come to me.”

Unlike the Sacrament of Baptism into the Death and Resurrection of Jesus we experienced,

John trying to prevent Jesus from his baptism of repentance? Why?

And John will not be the first to try and dissuade Jesus from his mission.

When Jesus predicts that he will be killed, Peter becomes an obstacle.

“Never, Rabbi! This will never happen to you.” [Mark 9:31-33]

In the garden of Gethsemani, as Jesus is arrested,

one of the disciples, will draw their sword and attack the servant of the high priest.

A violent response of impotent power. [Matthew 26:51; John 18:10-11]

Why do the disciples try to save the saviour?

Why does no one seem to understand the mission of Jesus?

Why are we so often stumbling blocks for Jesus?

I recall an event 855 years ago.

It is the evening of 29 December 1170.

The monks at Christchurch, Canterbury have barred the Cathedral doors.

They want to protect Archbishop Thomas Becket from the murderous knights of Henry II.

They too did not understand the mission.

In the words of the poet T.S. Eliot, Thomas replies to their stumbling efforts:

“I am not in danger: only near to death.

I have had a tremor of bliss, a wink of heaven, a whisper,

And I would no longer be denied…”

“Unbar the doors!”

[T.S. Eliot, Murder in the Cathedral]

Does anyone understand the mission of Jesus,

the overwhelming and embracing love of God for us?

There is one unexpected person who does understand.

It is the guilty man who is crucified alongside Jesus.

“He has not done anything wrong. Jesus, remember me…”

And before he can finish, Jesus responds,

“Today you will be with me in paradise.” [Luke 23:40-43]

The guilty man sees in the innocent man a reflection of himself – saved!

He sees “a tremor of bliss, a wink of heaven, a whisper…”

In his Letter to the Corinthians, Paul puts it this way,

“For our sake God made the Christ who was without sin to be sin,

so that by this means we might become the very holiness of God.” [2 Corinthians 5:21]

This sin is then nailed by God to the cross, exhausting evil and sin of its power. [Colossians 2:14-15]

The reason why Jesus approaches John for his baptism is to identity with sinners.

And to be so identified that he becomes sin which is nailed to the cross.

Today the action that completes the Christmas Feast

is the action that begins the Paschal Mystery – the Death and Resurrection - of Jesus.

To save us Jesus must be identified with us.

The Saviour does not need to be saved.

The Saviour has come to save.

To save the wounded. The lost. The arrogant. The self-righteous. The adulterous.

To save you and me.

Suffering. Hatred. Violence. Death.

If I were God, I would not have chosen this as the way of salvation.

I don’t understand it but I dare to believe it.

This is why John and Peter try to protect Jesus;

why the disciple draws his sword;

why we trust power more than God.

This is why the cross confounds the powerful. The mighty. The strong.

It was heard this week in the words of administration aide, Stephen Miller,

“We live in a world, in the real world, that is governed by strength, that is governed by force,

that is governed by power. These are the iron laws of the world since the beginning of time.”

Iron laws crush people. They crushed Jesus.

The iron laws of “might makes right” are today crushing people throughout the world.

This week, Pope Leo forcefully and bluntly stated,

“War is back in vogue, and a zeal for war is spreading.”

But Christians profess another law since the beginning of time.

God saves us, not by strength, or force or power.

God saves in vulnerability.

First as an infant. Ultimately, as an innocent man nailed to a cross.

The peace the angels sang about to shepherds and us “is no longer sought as a gift and a desirable good in itself, instead, peace is sought through weapons as a condition for asserting one’s own dominion.” [Pope Leo, 9 December 2026, Address to ambassadors credited to the Holy See.]

Our teacher today?

A guilty man who was crucified alongside Jesus.

He teaches us that to understand the mission of Jesus and accept the salvation of God,

we must acknowledge our sinfulness.

“Have you no fear of God. We have been justly condemned.

We are paying the price for what we have done.”

In other words. I am guilty. I am a sinner.

Only then can a person pray: “Remember me…”

Only then can a person humbly accept the wonderous gift of Christmas, salvation.

11 January 2026

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