Through the water uto eternal life

Lord God, Heavenly Father! We ask you, by your grace, to send us the spirit of counsel and understanding, so that we always have your holy will before our eyes, and act according to it. Strengthen us with your spirit, to grow in wisdom and grace, both with you and with men. Hear us through your son Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one true God forever and ever.

Reading

A reading from Joshua 3:5-11 and 17

Joshua 3:5–11 ESV

5 Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” 6 And Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people. 7 The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’ ” 9 And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan.

Joshua 3:17 ESV

17 Now the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.

L: This is the Holy Word

S: Praise be to God.

L: A reading from Hebrews 10:19-24

Hebrews 10:19–24 ESV

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,

L: This is the Holy Word.

S: Praise to you O Lord, for you have the words of eternal life. To whom else shall we go?

Gospel

P: The gospel according to Luke

S: Praise be to God for his joyful message

Luke 3:15–17 ESV

15 As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, 16 John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

Luke 3:21–22 ESV

21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

P: This is the Holy Gospel.

S: Praise be to you O Christ.

Sermon

I

In the first reading, we heard a scene from the history of the nation of Israel, and this event marked the beginning of the so-called conquests. The nation was coming from outside, and into the promised land, to possess it, as God had promised them. Here the people are coming from the east and crossing this river, Jordan, to enter the land.

Not only does this event take place in the exact same place as the Gospel we were reading, but its meaning is also very close. That's why I'm going to tell a little about him first, and then I have to start with the context.

Only forty years earlier, the nation of Israel was still enslaved in Egypt. But the Lord God remembered his promises to the ancestors and freed the people from slavery, and that is of course a story in itself, which we will not go into now. But the day after the first Passover, the people left Egypt and traveled south along the Red Sea. It didn't take long, however, for the Egyptians to change their minds when they saw all their slaves leaving, and pursued them. God then stood between the nation of Israel and the Egyptians, restrained the Egyptian army, and opened, or parted the Red Sea for the nation of Israel, so that they could walk through the sea with dry feet—and into the desert on the Sinai Peninsula.

Many celebrated their newfound freedom, but others no doubt thought: now we have passed from the frying pan and to the fire. This walk through the water—a baptism of sorts for the Israelites—did not bring them into the promised land, but into a desert and very difficult conditions. The nation had to stay there for many years and obviously learn to trust God completely, because what else could they do? Where do you get water and food in the middle of the desert? Maybe it's not a big deal for one or two families, but what about a nation that is at least four times more populous than Icelanders today? Imagine if all Icelanders were going to stay in Ódádahrauni for 40 years. How would that work?

Of course that's the point! God provided for them. Not only did he see to it that they had water and food in the desert, but even that their clothes and tents lasted forty years. And by living off God, they learned trust in God.

So, finally after all that time it was time for the people to come into their own land, this promised land, and begin to take possession of it. The first thing that had to happen then was to conquer the fortified city of Jericho, which lay, and in fact lies to this day, rebuilt, a stone's throw from the northern shore of the Dead Sea.

So the people came to where this city was, and it was easiest to come from the east. And then you first had to cross that river, Jordan, which marks a kind of border. This is neither a large nor a large river, and it would probably have been a small matter to wade across.

But God had another plan, and here he shows the people another sign. It was to be done in such a way that the priests who carried the ark of the covenant—it was a small chest, with a special lid that marked the presence of God—they were to be the first to go out into the river and remain in the middle of it. This demonstrated that God went first. And as soon as they stepped in, the flow of the river above stopped and the river dried up. That is, God himself stood like a wall in the middle of the river and kept the way open for the nation of Israel. This sign was to show and prove to the people of Israel that God was indeed with them and went ahead.

Notice the difference between this sign and the sign at the Red Sea. When the nation passed through the Red Sea, God stood behind the nation and held back the pursuing Egyptians. But at the threshold of the promised land God went before them and kept the way open there. That is why we heard in the scripture reading:

Joshua 3:10 ESV

10 And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites.

II

The story of the baptism of Jesus in the Gospel takes place approximately 1500 years later. In the meantime, as we understand, a lot had happened. But the nation of Israel was still in this place. In the past decades and centuries, Israelites had to fight for their independence, but often lived under the influence of other nations and cultures.

And that matters. There were many people within the nation of Israel who had long been fascinated by Hellenic or Greek culture, and especially the pleasures that followed, and in later decades even more by Roman paganism and culture.

It was only a few decades since Emperor Augustus had greatly expanded the Roman Empire, pushing the borders as far as anyone thought possible. It was like "this far and no further." Therefore, it was no longer a matter of conquering new lands, but only of maintaining the borders. We call it the beginning of the Roman peace (Pax romana), because the time of great wars was at an end, and it was possible to turn to other things within the borders.

But this was only a political peace, and within the Romans there was no peace. Now people had to look for a new purpose, and it was not easy to find. This was a society which, although it worshiped many gods, was in reality totally godless. It was without a final purpose, and saw man as little more than dust in the history of the universe. As a result, it was also not possible to make a universal distinction between right and wrong, and such categories were simply considered different points of view.

To some, this kind of culture sounds like a lot of freedom, but in reality it was a culture of despair. People did anything to distract themselves long enough to not have to feel the futility and despair. Those who could afford it, sought entertainment, amphitheater, theater and orgies. Promiscuity became more and more common, with all the consequences it had—not least regarding relationships between people. Family ties suffered particularly as a result, and marriage gradually became less and less important. Moreover, there was little or no consideration for terminating pregnancies or killing new-born babies—which were, in many ways, the same thing.

Yet it was a culture that many found fascinating. There was a lot of elaborate art, marble and gold, wine and pleasure. This culture welcomed everyone who wanted to be a part of it and offer their allegiance to Rome. As a result, they could drink from the wine of Rome. But the drink was poisoned, and the result was the same despair.

God-fearing Jews in Israel were the only group that offered real opposition, yet these ideas and teachings influenced people. And as mentioned before, there was always a large group of Jews who preferred to assimilate into the culture.

Nevertheless, there was also always at least a small group that longed to see the restoration of true godliness, and the life that God gives. This group liked to live a quiet life, saying their prayers, reading the scriptures together and waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem, as told in the chapter before this Sunday's Gospel. In other words, they were waiting for God to send them His promised Messiah: the Savior.

Isn't it strange how history tends to repeat itself? Obviously not all the same, but there are many things that correspond to our time. The Western world has been relatively peaceful since WWII. Technological progress has been enormous, and all this gives us more and more time to search for the purpose of life. But our culture, just like the Romans, has turned its back on the Creator of heaven and earth, and is reaping many of the same problems. Uselessness and despair on the one hand, and many who surrender to the power of pleasures on the other. Again, the bond and strength of the family weakens as a result.

But just like in the past, there is still a small group today who are waiting for God to intervene in history, so that we will see His justice. And who is ready to live a quiet and peaceful life, reading the scriptures and saying his prayers.

And now it's time for these storylines to meet.

III

There was a man who lived by Jordan, and his name was John. He preached publicly, totally unafraid of the consequences it could have on him. John called people to repentance, and to do what is good and right. To not participate in those aspects of the culture that went against the word of God. This is a message that was as relevant in that time as it is today. And those who listened to John went out into the river and were baptized by John. These were the people who wanted to learn to trust God.

And it is no wonder that some people thought: Could it be that John is the Messiah - the one who will come and save us.

But John says:

Luke 3:16 ESV

16 John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

We can compare this to the two waters in the Old Testament. We can compare John the Baptist, and his baptism, to the walk through the Red Sea. John is like Moses who leads the people through it. But this event is only preparation for the second river. John was supposed to teach the people to trust God and do what is right. But the true savior had not yet arrived; he came after, as John points out.

And today's gospel makes a long story short. For Jesus himself stood among the people, and went up to John to be baptized by him.

We can compare Jesus to the second water, Jordan, which is literally this same river, and this same place. And Jesus, the Lord himself, goes out into the river and sends in the midst of it, and is baptized there. Just as the ark of the covenant went before the people, into the water, 1500 years before. Thus Jesus revealed himself, as the Lord who goes before us, and he does so literally in this sacrament of baptism. We who are baptized into his name, are baptized to follow him into his eternal promised land.

In Conclusion

In conclusion: We need to keep all this in mind. First, that as Christians we are called to holiness and godliness. We are called to turn our backs on what is against God's Word, even if the culture we live in accepts and even worships them. Because when the pleasures are gone, they lead not to good, but either to self-delusion or despair.

We are called to live a quiet and peaceful life in godliness: In love and servie to our neighbouar. We are to read and study the Scriptures. Say our prayers, and more than anything else to live in trust in God. Because he gives our lives a purpose and an eternal goal with him.

And just like the nation of Israel of old, we await the coming of the Savior, the Messiah—or rather, his return. For he has already gone before us and opened the way into eternal righteousness. And the way he keeps open for us, it is especially visible to us in the sacrament of baptism. Jesus went first into the water, and we who are baptized in his name, have followed him there. That path does not cross a small river that flows into the Dead Sea, into the promised land of the Jews at the Mediterranean Sea, but it leads through life and death to the promised land of eternal life.

Glory be to God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, it is and will be for ever and ever. Amen.