The Baptism of Our Lord 2023

Text: Mark 1:9-11 “9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.””

By now, you’re probably familiar with the TV show The Voice. Even if you haven’t seen it, most people have an idea about the basic concept. It’s the reality TV show that is, they say, all about The Voice. It’s a singing competition. They’re looking for the next great singing stars. But the twist is that, when the singers first audition, the judges can not see them. The judges are turned around toward the audience while the singers perform. The judges judge not on what the singer looks like, but solely on the voice. You might not like the way he or she looks; you might not like his or her style; but if the judge likes the voice, he or she turns around and announces, “I want you!” Then the judge becomes that contestant’s coach. It’s all about the voice.

Let’s apply the premise of that TV show to John for a moment. Let’s think of him in those terms. Set aside his appearance, his style—rough leather, locusts, wild honey. Ignore that for the moment. Just consider the voice (1:3). In fact, that’s how he would want to be known, isn’t it? He is “The voice in the wilderness preparing us for the Mighty One (vv 4–8).”

And the voice is a bit strange. If we were to sit down and brainstorm the sort of preaching that would draw a crowd, that would really bring people running here to hear it, I doubt that we would come up with John the Baptizer. His voice calls people to repentance. He declares to the crowds a painful reality: You are all sinners! You’re not righteous, you’re self-righteous. All you care about is the outside, about looking like you’re a good person.

You do make yourself look like a good person. You go to the temple, you offer the sacrifices, you say the right things. But, inside, you are full of “29 …all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. [You] are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. [You] are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 [For some of you, you] know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, [but you] not only do them[, you] give approval to those who practice them” (Romans 1:29–32, ESV). Repent. For without that repentance, you will all perish (Lk 13:3, 5).

If we focus only on the voice of John the Baptizer, the irony is that it did not allow the people who came to hear him to play “The Voice” with God—it doesn’t allow them or you and I to play that game with God.

What do I mean by that? What do I mean by “playing ‘The Voice’ with God”? Well, it would be nice, wouldn’t it, if God were up here in front of you when you confess your sins, but turned away from you. Turned away so that He can’t see you. It would be much more comfortable if all He went on were your voices. If He judged your repentance on what you say instead of your actions, let alone what is in your heart.

Because you can sound perfectly sincere. You know the right words to say. You know what He wants to hear. You dutifully say, “I, a poor, miserable sinner, confess unto you all my sins and iniquities with which I have ever offended you and justly deserved your temporal and eternal punishment....”

But is that really what you feel? Is that what your actions show— that you have offended God by what you’ve done? If that were true, wouldn’t you feel a deep need to turn away from that sin? Wouldn’t you feel a deep need to make amends to the people you’ve hurt? Wouldn’t you make some effort to keep that sin far from you and try to avoid falling into it ever again?

I still remember, years ago now, the former governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford, at a press conference after he was caught sneaking off to South America to have an affair. There he was, talking about his sorrow for what he had done, talking about being forgiven by God for his infidelity while standing behind him is the woman he left his wife for. It’s hard to judge his heart, but I don’t think I’m being unreasonable by saying that he is not acting like a person who feels that what he’s done is offensive to God.

Repent. Are you righteous or self-righteous? You come to church, you give offerings, you say the right words— you say, “I, a poor, miserable sinner confess unto you all my sins and iniquities…,” But what is inside your heart as you say those words? Is it “29 …all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. [Are you] full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. [Are you] are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 [You] know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things [haven’t just offended God, but genuinely, justly] deserve to die, [yet you] not only do them[, you] give approval to those who practice them” (Romans 1:29–32, ESV). Repent. Not just with your word. With your heart and with your mind. For without that repentance, you will all perish (Lk 13:3, 5).

The voice of John the Baptizer didn’t allow them to play “The Voice” with God. It doesn’t allow you and I to play that game with God, either.

And that is a blessed thing. The crowds, they did hear the voice! They came out to John; they did repent; they were baptized as a symbol of their desire to wash away their sins and start over with a new birth of sorts. John’s baptism was a sign of the genuine sorrow over sin that they felt in their hearts.

Most important, they heard the voice declare the Mighty One was coming—the One who would not just baptize them with water, but with the Holy Spirit—the One who brings true righteousness.

John’s voice destroys any self-righteousness that they or you may try to claim. But he also points you to the place where true righteousness is found. His baptizing actually served two purposes. It was a sign of repentance for those who came out and heard him. And it was also the sign by which the savior would be known. The One on whom the spirit would descend would be the savior, the messiah that John was sent to prepare the way for. He would be righteous inside and out. He would not need to be baptized as a sign of repentance. He had no unrighteousness to confess—“[no] evil, covetousness, [or] malice [could be found in Him]. [No] envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. 32 [Even as He loved those who were despised by others because their sins were quite public and obvious, He gave no] approval to those who practice them” (Romans 1:29–32).

But He was baptized none the less. “10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased”” (Mark 1:10-11).

You know, there’s a detail there that I hadn’t noticed before now. We usually take that as simply the Father expressing His love for His Son. That’s true. But that’s not all of it. Jesus is His beloved Son because He had come to suffer and die for you.

From the moment He stepped into that water, He had begun to put himself in your place. Yes, he did come to John to be baptized like all the sinners—so that he would be the sinner in your stead. Jesus’ Baptism was His first step to the cross for your sins.

Even though He had lived the perfect life, not just in His words, but in every thought and deed, even though He was perfectly righteous, inside and out, He, the Eternal Word of God, stood silent when He was accused at His trial. Because He could not defend Himself. He had chosen to be guilty in your place. As He took those final steps to the cross, He was now the gossip, 30 the slanderer, the hater of God, the insolent, the haughty, the boastful, the inventor of evil, the disobedient, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless (Rom. 1:30-31). He had taken all of it—all the sins that you’ve confessed; all the sins that you thought were hidden; all the sins you, yourself, have forgotten—He had taken them all upon Himself at His baptism and, in that moment, was going to the cross to suffer and die for them. John proclaimed that he was not even worthy to untie Jesus shoes. Well, Jesus has stooped to untie from you the burden of your sin and the burden of the shadow of death binding Himself to you and, with Him, eternal life and the joys of paradise.

And that fact allows you to rejoice in the voice that spoke to Him that day. That same voice spoke to you. The baptism that Jesus instituted is founded upon His own baptism. Jesus’ Baptism sanctified all water to be powerful when the voice of the pastor speaks God’s Word. Jesus was baptized so that, when you entered the waters of Baptism, you would find Him there; so that He could join Himself to you through those waters; so that you were buried with Him, through baptism, into death, and raised with Him to new life (Rom. 6); so that you have received the forgiveness He earned by his death; so that you have received His righteousness, the holiness of Jesus’ life; so that the voice speaking from heaven at Jesus’ baptism has now spoken to you, as well: “You are my beloved son, beloved daughter. With you I am well pleased.”

His baptism allows you to rejoice as you hear The Voice of God the Father speaking through my voice, as your called and ordained pastor. I forgive you for your covetousness. I forgive you for your malice. I forgive you for your envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. I forgive you for your gossip, slander, hatred of God, insolence, boastfulness, disobedience, foolishness, faithlessness, heartlessness, ruthlessness. I forgive you for not only doing them, but giving approval to those who practice them. In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

You know, sometimes I’m asked why we baptize by sprinkling just a little bit of water onto the person’s head rather than by immersing the person in the water. We do it that way because there are other churches who falsely insist that, unless you’re baptized by immersion, it doesn’t count. Unless you’re put under the water and brought up again, you’re not really baptized. But is that really where the power of baptism lies— in the water; in how much water you use; in how it’s applied? No. The power of baptism is not in the water— nor is it in any profession of faith that you make. The power of baptism lies in God’s word attached to the water and His promise that as many of you as have been baptized have put on Christ. You have been buried with Him into His death and raised again with Him to new life.

The power is not in how much water you use. At the same time, going under the water and coming up out of it again is a much better picture of what God did to you in your baptism. Unlike John’s baptism, the baptism that Jesus instituted does not just symbolize your desire for a new start, it give you the new birth of water and the Spirit. You are able to live in the daily promise of your baptism, cleansed and made new, starting from the inside out. God has created within you a clean heart so that that new heart can overflow with praise for what God has done and with love for those around you. Speaking peace. And not just in your words, but living holy lives so that every thought and action are filled with grace. Learning to be offended, yourself, at the sin that the devil constantly tries to entice you into. Seeking out accountability to others to guard against falling so easily into the devil’s snares. And learning, in the power of what God did to you in baptism, to live in that new, holy life.

Unlike The Voice with those blind auditions, God sees you for who you are. Yet he is pleased with each one of you because when He looks upon anyone who has been baptized in His name, He sees Jesus. He sees His beloved child. You have heard the voice of John calling you to repentance. Now, then, with great joy, you rejoice to hear The Voice.