"Jesus' baptism is not about repentance. It is about his identity being publicly, ritually re-rooted into God."
Holy Textures, Understanding the Bible in its own time and in ours, Luke 3:15-17, 21-22, David Ewart, 2010.
"I don't think that Luke tells us about Jesus' baptism just to inform us about what happened to Jesus. He relates this story also to indicate something about our baptisms, our need to be in prayer, our anointing with the Spirit, and our subsequent battles with evil and ministry in the world."
Exegetical Notes by Brian Stoffregen at CrossMarks Christian Resources.
General Resources for Sunday's Lessons
Prayer
From Prayers for Sunday and Seasons, Year C, Peter J. Scagnelli, LTP, 1992.
Some Thoughts on Luke 3:15-22
Oremus Online NRSV Gospel Text
Resources for Sunday's Gospel
We began our lesson with the Advent theme of expectation. The people were filled with expectation. This expectation and hope for the Messiah are pricked with the emergence of the prophet and Baptist -John.
In Luke's Gospel John clearly points forward to the coming of Jesus and the baptism of fire promised and fulfilled in Luke's second book Acts. (Notice in our Epistle reading the people have been baptized yes, but not with the spirit.) We cannot get away from the Gospels work at defining Jesus' ministry over and against John's. We may guess that both had followers and that the question may very well have remained alive well after John's death and Jesus' resurrection. We might also remember here that Luke's Gospel tells us that John the Baptist will send two of his disciples to inquire of Jesus, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" (Luke 7. This, of course, correlates with Paul's later proclamation that indeed he is the promised one in the Book of Acts in the synagogue in Antioch. Acts 13:25) It is quite the switch from Mark's Gospel where John the Baptist makes the proclamation and from John's Gospel where-in the people ask the question of John the Baptist. So a key thing that is being offered in this passage is the revelation of Jesus Christ as God's chosen one.
The themes of power and might are also present. They are apocalyptic themes and again highlight the transformative power of Jesus and the transformative power of baptism in the Holy Spirit. This is a transforming fire. Fire of course is prominent throughout the Old Testament proclaiming the presence of God and returns again in the fire of Pentecost in Luke's telling.
Leaning on Isaiah 21:10, 41:16, and Jeremiah 4:11, 15:7, 51:2, John the Baptist reminds those gathered around him that God is sending this great and powerful prophet with a winnowing fork to clear the threshing floor and to gather the wheat, burning the chaff in an unquenchable fire. This always reminds me of how John the Baptist's message is a corporate one. He is not the one deciding who is wheat and who is chaff. Rather, he is reminding the nation and all the people that this is God's work and each will be judged and that the whole nation shall be judged. There is mutuality in this judgment and a reminder of whose judgment it is that is often lost in our modern-day discussions on matters of the church. In our day we enjoy sitting in the judgment seat.
Now, something interesting happens here in the text. Herod imprisons John. Some scholars argue that Luke's text does not say that Jesus was baptized by John. I find this a difficult proposition. It is true that this particular Gospel says Jesus was baptized sequentially after John's imprisonment. But is certainly not clear and in the different texts that I have looked at I am more apt to read that simply Luke has removed John from the baptismal event to highlight the actions between the Father and the Son, rather than to imply that John did not baptize Jesus it is more about God action. This should be true for us as well; it would be good to remember as sacramentalists we do the actions - God does the work. It is an interesting thought and may simply have been a literary way of ensuring that Jesus' baptism is a Spirit baptism depending upon no one else. I categorize this as things in the bible that make you go, "Hmmmmm?"
What is important though, and highlighted by Luke, is that the baptism has happened. It is over. And, Jesus is praying. This seems integral to an understanding of Lukan spirituality. It is only when Jesus is praying that the Holy Spirit descended upon him in the bodily form of a dove, and God's voice speaks. Heavens are opened in prayer, and you can hear God's voice in prayer.
The image of the opening of the heavens is an image of a new time. This is a new moment in Luke's Gospel, a new moment in the life of the people of Israel, a new moment in judgment, a new moment in the unraveling and gathering of "all the people" including the gentiles (as we will see in Acts). So this is a new moment, enabled by baptism, but triggered by prayer and the descending of the Holy Spirit.
You can read more about the imagery and details of the words used by Luke here: http://montreal.anglican.org/comments/archive/cpr01l.shtml
The last thing that stands out for me in the Gospel reading this week is the "Beloved" proclamation in verse 22. Beloved is an act and not a feeling, it is a charge if you will to Jesus as Son and servant to take the power given to him and to begin to use it to restore creation and transform the people of God.
So I have been thinking and praying about this text and I am wondering about myself and for us. As we, you and I, look forward into the year, as we look forward into our lives we must be ready to do the work God has given us to do? We are baptized. Are we praying and are we receiving the Holy Spirit given to us in the grace of that prayer conversation with Jesus and with God? We have been expecting; now we are ready. Will we take up our charge as Jesus did, to restore creation and transform the world even as we are being transformed? And, most of all are we ready to do this in partnership with all of our brothers and sisters and most of all with Jesus?
Some Thoughts on Acts 8:14-17
Resources for Sunday's Gospel
In Luke's Gospel John clearly points forward to the coming of Jesus and the baptism of fire promised and fulfilled in Luke's second book Acts. (Notice in our Epistle reading the people have been baptized yes, but not with the spirit.) We cannot get away from the Gospels work at defining Jesus' ministry over and against John's. We may guess that both had followers and that the question may very well have remained alive well after John's death and Jesus' resurrection. We might also remember here that Luke's Gospel tells us that John the Baptist will send two of his disciples to inquire of Jesus, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" (Luke 7. This, of course, correlates with Paul's later proclamation that indeed he is the promised one in the Book of Acts in the synagogue in Antioch. Acts 13:25) It is quite the switch from Mark's Gospel where John the Baptist makes the proclamation and from John's Gospel where-in the people ask the question of John the Baptist. So a key thing that is being offered in this passage is the revelation of Jesus Christ as God's chosen one.
The themes of power and might are also present. They are apocalyptic themes and again highlight the transformative power of Jesus and the transformative power of baptism in the Holy Spirit. This is a transforming fire. Fire of course is prominent throughout the Old Testament proclaiming the presence of God and returns again in the fire of Pentecost in Luke's telling.
Leaning on Isaiah 21:10, 41:16, and Jeremiah 4:11, 15:7, 51:2, John the Baptist reminds those gathered around him that God is sending this great and powerful prophet with a winnowing fork to clear the threshing floor and to gather the wheat, burning the chaff in an unquenchable fire. This always reminds me of how John the Baptist's message is a corporate one. He is not the one deciding who is wheat and who is chaff. Rather, he is reminding the nation and all the people that this is God's work and each will be judged and that the whole nation shall be judged. There is mutuality in this judgment and a reminder of whose judgment it is that is often lost in our modern-day discussions on matters of the church. In our day we enjoy sitting in the judgment seat.
Now, something interesting happens here in the text. Herod imprisons John. Some scholars argue that Luke's text does not say that Jesus was baptized by John. I find this a difficult proposition. It is true that this particular Gospel says Jesus was baptized sequentially after John's imprisonment. But is certainly not clear and in the different texts that I have looked at I am more apt to read that simply Luke has removed John from the baptismal event to highlight the actions between the Father and the Son, rather than to imply that John did not baptize Jesus it is more about God action. This should be true for us as well; it would be good to remember as sacramentalists we do the actions - God does the work. It is an interesting thought and may simply have been a literary way of ensuring that Jesus' baptism is a Spirit baptism depending upon no one else. I categorize this as things in the bible that make you go, "Hmmmmm?"
What is important though, and highlighted by Luke, is that the baptism has happened. It is over. And, Jesus is praying. This seems integral to an understanding of Lukan spirituality. It is only when Jesus is praying that the Holy Spirit descended upon him in the bodily form of a dove, and God's voice speaks. Heavens are opened in prayer, and you can hear God's voice in prayer.
The image of the opening of the heavens is an image of a new time. This is a new moment in Luke's Gospel, a new moment in the life of the people of Israel, a new moment in judgment, a new moment in the unraveling and gathering of "all the people" including the gentiles (as we will see in Acts). So this is a new moment, enabled by baptism, but triggered by prayer and the descending of the Holy Spirit.
You can read more about the imagery and details of the words used by Luke here: http://montreal.anglican.org/comments/archive/cpr01l.shtml
The last thing that stands out for me in the Gospel reading this week is the "Beloved" proclamation in verse 22. Beloved is an act and not a feeling, it is a charge if you will to Jesus as Son and servant to take the power given to him and to begin to use it to restore creation and transform the people of God.
So I have been thinking and praying about this text and I am wondering about myself and for us. As we, you and I, look forward into the year, as we look forward into our lives we must be ready to do the work God has given us to do? We are baptized. Are we praying and are we receiving the Holy Spirit given to us in the grace of that prayer conversation with Jesus and with God? We have been expecting; now we are ready. Will we take up our charge as Jesus did, to restore creation and transform the world even as we are being transformed? And, most of all are we ready to do this in partnership with all of our brothers and sisters and most of all with Jesus?
Some Thoughts on Acts 8:14-17
In some way, our own tradition has moved away from this as an essential role and part of the work of baptism. We have moved more clearly towards a protestant understanding where the apostles are not necessary for the laying on of hands in order for the newly baptized to fully be received into the church. It is worth a pause then on this Sunday to give a nod to our Episcopal tradition of Confirmation - which is this very symbol of giving the Holy Spirit. The bishop, as one of the apostles, comes to the community (not unlike Peter and John) because people have chosen to follow the Lord and have even been baptized in the name of Jesus. But full incorporation historically has included the giving of the Holy Spirit to the people of God by one of the apostles in the great line of apostles.
Here is a picture of my own lineage of apostolic succession. It is the family tree of my ministry. For those that are confirmed it is in some way their family tree. And, it illustrates the very real physical and spiritual connection the baptized and confirmed of our day have to those in Samaria and the first followers of Jesus.
All of this being said what is clear that the Holy Spirit is what inspires the church and it is essential in the work of baptism. The language of baptism centers around forgiveness of sin, living the new life of grace, sustenance for the pilgrim journey, inquiring and discerning heart, and courage to will and to persevere. The language of confirmation in our tradition, or the laying on of hands in apostolic succession, is about God's blessing of the Holy Spirit, the giving of wisdom (knowledge and obedience), especially to God's word, and most of all service to God. We are in the laying on of hands and the Holy Spirit bound to service, and through the power of the Holy Spirit, we work to fulfill the service that is set before us by God.
Some Thoughts on Isaiah 43:1-7
"The good news of the salvation oracle in Isaiah 43 is that God directly addresses this experience of exile."
1 Epiphany, Year C: Isaiah 43:1-7, Biblische Ausbildung, Dr. Stephen L. Cook, Virginia Theological Seminary. Part 2."Believers in every generation have seen in fire and flood all that is larger than ourselves, all that consumes not only hope but life and limb as well. Yet Scripture, including Isaiah 43:1-7, transforms these elements from threats into sources of healing through adversity."
Commentary, Isaiah 43:1-7 (Baptism of our Lord), Patricia Tull, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2013.
Commentary, Isaiah 43:1-7 (Baptism of our Lord), Patricia Tull, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2013.
"Can you imagine that Jesus heard the echo of these words on the day of his baptism? What other passages might he have been remembering then?
"Passing On The Faith," the Rev. Dr. Janet H. Hunt, Dancing with the Word, 2013.
"Passing On The Faith," the Rev. Dr. Janet H. Hunt, Dancing with the Word, 2013.
Let me first consider the passage in its original context, then I will consider how the teaching might fit within the overarching Christian vision within scripture.
The passage is about God's desire that the people not fear their present and future lives. God has heard their cries and assures them that despite their diaspora - God will gather the people in.
The people of Israel see God as savior. God is God alone. God is the creator and also the redeemer of Israel out of bondage. The people are to understand, to hear, and to see, that even the creatures will give glory to God for changing desolation into life.
The passage reminds the people that they are the ones who brought upon themselves their captivity by forgetting to care for the country and countrymen.
The passage includes some language of religious violence. In other words, it suggests that God punishes those who worship idols. I believe we might say today that when the people worship idols, they change the nature of their faith. They forget the widow and the poor. They forget the newcomer/immigrant, and they forget their neighbors.
In Jonathan Sack's 1992 Crisis and Covenant, he writes, “An early rabbinic commentary put the point audaciously: ‘You are My witnesses, says the Lord, and I am God'” (Isaiah 43:12) (28) Regardless of the manner in which this deliverance happens, there is a key mission here that the people are meant to be witnesses of God's action in the world. The people are witnesses of God's acts of redemption.
In a commentary by Dr. Mendel Hirsch on the Haftarot - our verses from Isaiah. Dr. Hirsch offers that human beings are able to be witnesses, act upon the witness, and live in righteousness. In this new way of living are to be found freedom and hope. The people are witnesses because they proclaim God's hand at work through the historical relationship in creation.
As Christians, we read the text as offering a vision of the Christ and his deliverance as the Messiah. Moreover, that while our sin and wayward ways are forgiven by God through Christ Jesus. This places Christ's work within the long arc of God's forgiving nature. We know from other texts, and from Christ's own proclamation that God is a forgiving, grace-filled, and merciful God and that there is no religious violence. God in Christ puts to end any idea of a religion of exchange. God has been doing so since the beginning of creation. We are the witness of this "forgiving" history. And, we are invited to remember and to act as a people forgiven by God - to act with righteousness. This means that we act as God acts. We act to all people as they are kin, and we do so with blessings and peace.
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