First Wednesday after the Epiphany, Baptism of Our Lord

GOAL — That hearers rejoice to know that, just as God loves and is pleased with His Son, Jesus; therefore, He loves and is pleased with us who are baptized into Christ.

MALADY — We sometimes see baptism as nothing more than a tradition, or now that we are baptized we think we are able live any way we wish.

MEANS—Connected to Christ in baptism we are forgiven and sin no longer has authority over us.

What is the meaning of Christ's baptism? The Law of Moses did not require baptism. It was not just a pious custom. According to Matthew, Christ was baptized “to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt. 3:15). Mark, however, omits these words of Christ and focuses simply on what occurred at His baptism. What Mark is emphasizing in connection with Christ’s baptism may be expressed as follows: CHRIST’S BAPTISM MEANS THAT GOD IS WELL PLEASED WITH US

At His baptism Christ began

His Work of Saving Us.

He didn’t need to save Himself, for He was sinless.

He had no need to confess His sins as did those who were baptized by John (Mark 1:5).

John admitted that he wasn’t worthy even to untie Christ’s sandals (Mark 1:7), and that he needed to be baptized by Christ (Matt. 3:14).

Christ began saving us by taking our sins and the sins of the whole world on Himself.

The payment for these sins fell due in Gethsemane and on Calvary.

As the Lamb of God, Christ offered Himself as the sacrifice for sin.

Because Christ at His baptism began His saving work, which He also completed, God is now well pleased with us.

God Accepted Christ’s Saving Work.

He showed His acceptance by letting the heavens open (Mark1:10).

Formerly, heaven was closed to us because of sin.

Because of what Christ did, we now have an open heaven, free access to God.

God showed He accepted Christ’s work by anointing Him with the Holy Spirit and with power to carry out His work (Mark 1:10; Acts 10:38).

Because Christ received the Spirit, He confers the Spirit on us.

Our baptism is now an effective means of regeneration by the Spirit.

God showed He accepted Christ’s work by calling Christ His “beloved Son” (Mark 1:11).

In Christ we are God's beloved children.

After our baptism, we too are led into the wilderness of temptation. Yet God will not forsake His children but will support us with His angels (Mark 1:12-13).

Because God at Christ’s baptism accepted His saving work, He is well pleased with us.

His Saving Work Gives New Life

Romans 6:8–11 NASB 2020

8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all time; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 So you too, consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Because we are God’s beloved children, we, too, need to see the other baptized as God’s children, seeing them as our brothers and sisters.

Which means, as God has forgiven our sin for Christ’s sake, we, too, must forgive the errors done by other baptized Christians.

In other words, we have no right to hold something over someone’s head if Christ took it to the cross with the other sins of the world.

As God’s beloved children, new life is not just in heaven, but new life now.

Death no longer has mastery over us. Because we died!

Forgiven, set free from the power of sin, the baptized believer is holy, as Christ is holy.

The power of sin is dead and buried — by the Word of God.

God declared it so, which means it is.

Christ’s baptism is important not only for Himself but for us. Because Jesus was baptized for our salvation, we are baptized into salvation in His name.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.