The Day God’s Beloved Son Got Baptized—Lectionary Reflection for Baptism of Jesus Sunday (Luke 3:15-17, 21-22)

Luke 3:15-17, 21-22 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

¹⁵ As the people were filled with expectation and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, ¹⁶ John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water, but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

²¹ Now when all the people were baptized and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, ²² and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

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         The season of Epiphany begins on Baptism of Jesus Sunday (Epiphany 1C). On this day we are invited to both remember Jesus’ baptism, which was attended by a divine embrace, as well as our own baptisms. Since baptism serves as a marker in one’s spiritual journey, remembering our baptisms can be quite helpful. Of course, some of us have more than one baptism to remember (though in my case the first took place in infancy, while the second took place during my high school years). The season of Epiphany follows Christmas by emphasizing the manifestation of God’s presence on earth through Jesus. The season begins with Jesus’ baptism, at which time God makes a claim on Jesus, declaring Jesus to be the Beloved, and ends with Transfiguration Sunday, where once again a divine voice speaks, claiming Jesus to be God’s beloved Son (Luke 9:28-36).

                Each of the four gospels connects John and Jesus at the Jordan, though the Gospel of John does not explicitly record Jesus’ baptism. The point of these stories is that Jesus’ public ministry begins there at the Jordan. In essence, his baptism and either the testimony of John or of God serve as a service of ordination. Our reading for this particular year (Year C in the Revised Common Lectionary) comes from Luke 3. Our reading begins with questions concerning John’s ministry. The people who came to the Jordan were filled with expectation, wanting to know whether John was the Messiah. John answers them by telling the crowd that he baptized with water but someone more powerful was coming who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire, downplaying his own importance relative to the one coming after him.

                While John seems to steer away from claiming messianic status, does that mean he couldn’t be some kind of messianic figure? In answering the question, we first need to remember that the term Messiah/Christ speaks of one who is anointed. There were, in ancient Judaism, two roles that involved anointing—monarchs and high priests. During the first century, no one currently in power could legitimately claim either role, at least according to most Jews. Thus, the reason for messianic expectations. So, with Jesus’s messianic claim being rooted in his Davidic ancestry, could John’s messianic claim be rooted in being of the priestly line (his father is said to be a priest)? On this see James McGrath’s Christmaker(pp. 98ff). It is worth noting here that Luke has a motive for downplaying John’s role in relation to that of Jesus. For Luke, John is the forerunner to Jesus. It’s likely there is more to the story, which is what James McGrath suggests in his provocative works on John the Baptist.  

                Since the focus of the day is on Jesus’ baptism and with it the beginning of his public ministry, John’s word concerning the stronger one who will follow helps introduce Jesus’ ministry. When John speaks of the one who is coming who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire, he has in mind divine judgment. Note that the one who comes after John comes with his “winnowing fork in his hand,” so that he can clear the threshing floor. That is, this person will separate the wheat from the chaff and then throw the chaff into the unquenchable fire. While judgment is noted, it is important that the focus be on the wheat, not the chaff, for it is the wheat that is to be saved! While passages like this have been used to describe the separation of believer and unbeliever or saved and unsaved, might we instead think in terms of our own lives as we stand before God? Might there be chaff that needs to be burned away, so that the wheat that is our lives can be redeemed?

                With this set up, we move to Jesus’ own baptism. We skip over verses 18-20, which detail John’s arrest after challenging Herod Antipas over Herod taking his brother’s wife as his wife. Apparently, Herod didn’t think John’s provocations were good news! But that’s not what we’re here for. We have a baptism to attend to.

                 In verse 21, Luke writes that after everyone, including Jesus, had been baptized, Jesus began to pray. As he did so, the heavens opened. Before we turn to what happens next, let’s take stock of the situation at hand. According to Luke’s account, Jesus gets baptized but no mention is made of John. It’s as if Jesus was just part of the crowd who stood in line to get baptized, just as in the baptismal scene in O Brother, Where Art Thou, perhaps with Jesus joining in singing “Down to the River to Pray.”  Since Luke has already informed us of John’s arrest, could Jesus have been baptized by someone else? Luke doesn’t tell us, so perhaps this is his way of separating Jesus from John. As Fred Craddock points out, “Luke is clearly not interested primarily in the baptism itself. He mentions the baptism in a dependent clause in which Jesus is part of a crowd who have been baptized” [Luke: Interpretation, p. 50]. There is, of course, the uncomfortable question about why Jesus was baptized since John’s baptism was for repentance and forgiveness of sins. It is a question that Luke doesn’t address. Instead, Luke focuses on what happens next.

                In verse 22, while Jesus was praying after his baptism, the heavens opened up (an apocalyptic image) and the Holy Spirit descended upon him like a dove. After the Spirit came upon Jesus, a voice from heaven spoke to him: “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”  The coming of the Spirit in the form of a dove would lead to the Spirit being envisioned in that form, as seen in numerous pictures/paintings. The voice from heaven here, as in the Transfiguration passages, connects Jesus with God. For Trinitarians, we have the Godhead present in its fullness. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The question that has been raised by this story is whether this is a reference to Jesus’ eternal identity or an act of adoption. Theologians will debate that question in the coming centuries. The message delivered to Jesus here is that he is God’s beloved Son, with whom God is well pleased. While it is understandable that this conclusion could be drawn, it is much easier to do so using Mark’s version. Luke, however, already has given hints that there is something unique about Jesus (think of his words to his parents while in the Temple before this event). Thus, as Craddock writes: “The coming of the Holy Spirit does not make Jesus the Son of God; Luke has told us who Jesus is from the time of the Annunciation. The Holy Spirit comes to empower Jesus for the ministry. He will soon be led by the Spirit into the desert (4:1), and then he will return ‘in the power of the Spirit into Galilee’ (4:14)” [Luke, p. 52].

                With this divine affirmation, Jesus is ready to begin his ministry. Luke offers his version of the genealogy of Jesus immediately following our reading. Luke’s genealogy, unlike that of Matthew, traces Jesus’ lineage to Adam, who is called the “son of God” (Luke 3:38). In making that connection between Jesus and Adam, Luke is connecting Jesus to God’s purpose for creation. From there the Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness where he faces a series of temptations (Luke 4:1-13).

                The reading for this day invites us to consider John’s message about the one who would follow him. According to John, this person, whose shoes he is not worthy to tie, and thus stronger than him, would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. The reference to baptizing with fire is connected to this person’s role as judge. Having made this response to the question of whether he is the Messiah, we leave John to focus on Jesus who had come to the place where John was (or had been baptizing), like others Jesus was baptized. This baptism is accompanied by an anointing with the Spirit along with a divine embrace (all of which have apocalyptic elements). Thus, Jesus’ ministry begins at the point that he is told to whom he belongs. We observe this day not only in reference to Jesus’ baptism and God’s claim on his life but also in relation to our own baptisms and what they mean. While different traditions have different practices, whether infant or believer’s baptism, there is a common thread, and that thread involves the role baptism plays in defining our relationship with God and God’s people. Even as God claims Jesus as God’s beloved Son, in our Baptisms God makes a claim on our lives, letting us know, as Isaiah informed the people of Israel, that we are God’s children. Yes, we are precious in God’s sight and loved by God (Is. 43:4).

                I bring to a close this reflection with the opening verse of Ruth Duck’s baptismal hymn: “Wash, O God, Your Sons and Daughters.” Just a note about Ruth Duck, she recently died, leaving behind a tremendous legacy—including serving as a presenter at my former congregation:

Wash, O God, your sons and daughters, 

newborn creatures of your womb.

Number them among your people, 

raised like Christ from death and tomb.

Weave them garments bright and sparkling; 

compass them with love and light.

Fill, anoint them; send your Spirit, 

holy dove and hearts delight.