Epiphany Sunday, January 13, 2008
By pastor John Jorgenson
Baptism is a symbol of God’s entry into our lives, the start of the relationship God started with each of us. It is the beginning of a lifetime of assurance that we belong to God as a family member. Jesus is our elder brother who has led the way for us to live. This is a world-changing relationship and we are part of that gift to all people. “How might we share that with those around us?” is the issue we face in the world today.
Now a couple years ago, when we all were studying our catechism getting ready for confirmation, we studied the basis for our faith so we could understand what the sermons were all about. I still remember memorizing page after page for Pastor Paul Andreen from First Lutheran Church in Cokato, Minnesota, who was filling in while we waited for a new pastor to be assigned to Mount Hermon Lutheran Church, the little country congregation where we belonged. There were eleven of us and the only thing I remember from confirmation is sitting in an arc in front of the altar and watching Geraldine Anderson who was sitting next to me who had to duck down her head so she would not get hit by the offering plate as Gordon Larson brought it to the Altar. Yeah, oh well that is yesterday now. I also remember going pheasant hunting after Saturday confirmation sessions. I think our talk was more about whether Gus Johnson’s 16 gauge Winchester pump shotgun or Lloyd Larson’s 20 gauge Remington double barrel was better than the 12 gauge Winchester single shot that my uncle Ed Anderson had given me because he did not use it anymore, than what Pastor Andreen talked about. The only thing I remember about Pastor Andreen was his insisting that we pronounce “Pontius Pilate” with an emphasis on the “t” instead of “sh” whatever difference that made. Well, anyway, between our interest in hunting pheasants and proper pronunciation we were all confirmed on that Sunday in June back in 1946.
Then fourteen years later at seminary when I reviewed Luther’s catechism again, getting ready for Synod approval and ordination, I really learned that Baptism is God’s gift to each one of us. It is through baptism that God delivers us from the forces of evil, greed, stupidity, and wrong that we encounter in daily life. It is through baptism that God removes the impact of our own selfish, greedy, selves that sometimes take charge of our lives and can contribute to our death. It is through baptism that God gives us a new meaning for death, the end of our responsibility. It is through baptism that God reinforces our acceptance as members of God’s family with Jesus as our elder brother. Now I see why John the Baptist was so popular because what he was doing was so helpful for all those people who came to him and were baptized in the river Jordan. And to think that Jesus also came to participate in this rite in order to help us to better understand the tremendous value this little rite offers. It is a life-changing event for a variety of reasons.
Baptism then becomes a way of life for each one of us. It is reinforcement for the interest in and commitment we have made to respond to God for all we have been given. As I learned more and more about what baptism is and what it conveys to all people, I found that there is a lot more to living than whether I have a Remington Pump 16 gauge or a Winchester double barrel 12 gauge or whether or not I pronounce some Latin noun properly or watch that my friend does not get hit with an offering plate.
I found that Baptism is part of our weekly celebration of the combination of God’s concern for us and our response to God for that expression of love. Jesus participated for a very good reason. Jesus was baptized in order to demonstrate to us what faith is all about and how much God cares about each of us.
Sometimes I get the feeling that we have gotten sidetracked with all the choices we have to express our basic faith in God. Now I know that God has created all of us as unique persons and has given each of us special abilities and talents to be used to express our appreciation to God for living and to share that with others. This causes me a bit of concern when these differences become divisive for what ever reason. Working with the LCA in New York and meeting a wide variety of people all of whom were concerned about the hungry children in Peru, or Darfur or India or North Philadelphia was a tremendous experience. Meeting in San Juan, in Seattle, in Otford outside London or in Amsterdam or Geneva, made no difference. The languages were different, the food was different, the clothing was different and they drove on the other side of the road, but the common bond that brought us all together was feeding hungry children and making it possible for them to raise chickens, care for lambs, plant crops and tend to fruit trees so they could become self-sufficient was more important than our individual feelings or opinions about God. We were doing what God told us was to be done. We planned on how we could do it together and we did it. I remember one summer we raised some 47 million dollars in the LCA for that cooperative work. And other churches did the same. Sometimes I get the feeling that the issues that divide us are somewhat Satanic in that they distract us from being God’s people busy doing what God has told us is important to be done.
Well, anyway today is the day we celebrate Jesus baptism. This tells me that Jesus did not give a hoot about Remington pump shotguns, Winchester double barrel shotguns, or proper pronunciation of certain words. I suspect that Jesus does not want a young girl hit in the head with an offering plate at confirmation and I am sure Jesus is delighted with what she did with her life in caring for children and suffering people in Spokane, Washington.
As I have said and demonstrated here already, baptism is a very important event. As we celebrate Jesus baptism, we all have opportunity to recall our own event of being baptized and the impact that it has had on our lives. In this action together we celebrate the life of the person being baptized and we commit ourselves to be here to support her or him as members of God’s family. What an awesome experience baptism becomes and what a sense of security it bestows upon all of us.
Finally, when did you last look at your baptism certificate? I can still recall the yellowed page with the date, March 31, 1932 and the signatures of Reverend Emil Swenson, Pastor of Stockholm Lutheran Church, Stockholm, Minnesota, of my godparents Russell and Winnie Loftman and of my parents, Dell and Clarence Jorgenson. That event is the beginning of the life I now enjoy so very much. I suggest you do the same. I suspect Jesus will be right there with you saying, “Yeah, I was there too!”
Amen.