Re-Created by baptism

John 3:1-15 Small Catechism: Baptism, Question 3

Alleluia! Christ is Risen! Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!

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

Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus is a systemitician’s delight! There are so many biblical themes here, so many interconnections in the theological matrices that can be analyzed and discussed and integrated that it’s enough to to get an excited giggle from your favorite systematics professor. Just look at it! The unity of the Trinity, the distinction of the persons of the Godhead, justification as the Son of Man is lifted up on the cross, baptism, pneumatology, the transcendence of God, cosmology and creation, election - so many wonderful doctrinal topics! There’s even typology included for the exegetes! What a great text! Thankfully, today this text is paired with this catechism portion on Baptism, so the focus becomes clear: God works in baptism, not merely by water, but by the powerful Word of God in and with the water.

As the Lord spoke to Nicodemus, it’s hard to ignore the overtones about God’s creative Word at the creation of the heavens and the earth. Not only does the Gospel of John begin by evoking creation, with “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” When the work of creation was finished after the creation of man in God’s image, the Lord declared that creation was very good. The Spirit had hovered over the water, and then the Lord finished creation.

You know how the story continues. The Lord commanded Adam and Eve not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in Eden, yet they did. Creation fell, and the image of God in humanity was lost. That original sin passed down from Adam renders sinners outside God’s image. Later, you can see how this is confessed in Apology Article II and in the Formula of Concord Article I.

But Nicodemus wasn’t asking Jesus about original sin and the image of God. He wasn’t even asking about Divine power in creation. He simply confessed that no one could do the works that Jesus was doing if that one hadn’t been sent by God. But that wasn’t the whole truth, and Jesus taught Nicodemus more about what it means to be born again. These words aren’t just for Nicodemus, but for all Christians. Jesus, the Word who was with God and was God at creation, continues His work. Not only is everything that was made made through Him, but He continues doing His creative work. The powerful Word of God in and with the water in baptism works for you.

In the beginning, the Spirit hover over the waters. The earth was without form and void, and God spoke and made the very good creation. Because of sin, the chaotic formlessness and void continues. In the baptismal rite, we confess this without using the phrase “tohu v’bohu” but saying, “The Word of God also teaches that we are all conceived and born sinful and are under the power of the devil until Christ claims us as His own. We would be lost forever unless delivered from sin, death, and everlasting condemnation.” Formless, void, sinful, and lost except for the grace of God. Without God’s powerful, creative Word, sinners are tohu v’bohu.

Nicodemus didn’t ask about that, but Jesus taught him anyway that it was necessary for sinners to be recreated by the work of God and be born again by water and the Spirit. Nicodemus probably didn’t write in his notebook “That’s Genesis 1:2 all over again!” and circle it and draw 3 stars next to it like you might do in a lecture - yet Jesus teaches Nicodemus and you that He, the creative Word from the beginning, does His work of recreation. You are born again through the washing of renewal and rebirth by the Holy Spirit.

You might be tempted to think that you are formless and void. At the end of the semester, you might be tired and worn out and sensitive to criticism. As you look at your to-do list, you might think, “There’s no way I can do all this, let alone do it well! I’m a failure as a seminarian - and this is the way I’m supposed to serve God!” Some of you might be studying your call documents and vicarage assignments just as hard as your systematics homework, and think, “These poor people have called me to serve among them, but I have no idea what I’m doing! This is going to be chaos!” Similarly, you might think, “A pastor and servant in the church is to be above reproach, but all I can see is my own sinfulness. Do I have any business being here?” Perhaps Nicodemus could relate to those feelings when Jesus said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?” But Jesus had more to say. Jesus traced His cross on your forehead and your heart to mark you, even chaotic, sinful you, as one redeemed by Christ, the crucified. He baptized you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. He washed and regenerated you. Now, you are a new creation. Now, you are very good. Now, by the grace of God, you have the image of God because He has re-created you as His own dear saint, covered by His blood. No water did this. Christ the Lord has done this, and that matters because He is the One who is risen from the dead for you, and you have life in His name.

Alleluia! Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!