1 Epiphany: The Baptism of Our Lord
January 10, 2021
Genesis 1:1-5; Psalm 29; Acts 19:1-7; Mark 1:4-11
Today is the 1st Sunday after the Epiphany…the day we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate on Christmas Day, each year…On Epiphany day, the glory of God, was revealed in Jesus, when the wise men came face to face with him, and laid their gifts before him, and decided to take a different road home, as they began a new journey…filled with the light of Christ…. Today, we listen to the scriptures that speak about Jesus’ baptism, which invite us to recall and remember our own baptisms…
We begin a new journey on this first Sunday after the Epiphany...A new journey, that begins with baptism…that begins with a renewed commitment….to turn our hearts towards God, once again, towards the unfolding story of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection in the coming year…stories that will invite us to respond, with love, to all that is going on in our lives, not only with our words, but in our lives…
For today, the beginning of that journey, invites us to rest in this good news…we may not feel like we have the capacity to respond to all that is happening in our country right now…and that’s OK…it’s OK to just stop, and rest, and lay down whatever emotions and feelings are in your heart today…grief, anger, weariness…. allow yourself to rest, today, in the presence of God’s love and hands…and begin there…
That is the one of the many gifts of baptism, and our baptismal covenants….
It provides a framework for us to go back to time and time again…to remember that we are called beloved….it provides a lifelong framework which invites us to begin again, with our baptisms…to be reminded that we are baptized into a community of faith, into the family of God, united by the love of Christ…a family who strives to love one another, care for one another, and have compassion for one another….sometimes this means, we just sit and grieve together, share our silence with one another…until we are able to begin again…
Where will the journey lead? The path may be obscure. But promised hope of things unseen will keep our footing sure… (Hymn: O God of gentle strength, WLP #771)
It is my hope and my belief, that as we take time to remember the covenant we made with God and one another, at the time of our baptisms, and on a day such as this, when we will renew our baptismal vows together, this journey will lead us back to the God who is love, the God who gives us life, the God who declares this love for us, in our baptisms, and empowers us once again to respond, with love, to anything that comes our way, with the assurance of this love that dwells within us, and all around us, and equips us, and guides us to follow in the way of love, that Jesus has taught us and revealed to us, throughout his life….
From the NZ Prayer Book, the Liturgy for Baptism begins in this way with God’s call….
God’s Call
The bishop or priest says
(Dear friends in Christ,
God is love, God gives us life.
We love because God first loves us.
In baptism God declares that love;
in Christ God calls us to respond.)
At the conclusion of Bishop Michael’s Curry’s: Word to the church, sent out on Jan 8, he asks us to respond with 2 things at this time…
I'm asking you to make a commitment, a renewed commitment, to live the way of love as Jesus has taught us and to do it by making a commitment to go out and bless somebody. Bless somebody you disagree with. Bless somebody you agree with. But to go out and bless somebody by helping somebody along the way. Go out and bless somebody by listening to their story and their life. To go out and be an instrument of God's peace, an agent of God's love.
And then I would ask you to pray. Pray for this nation but pray with some specificity. Pray that we may have the wisdom and the courage to love.
Where will the journey lead? The path may be obscure. But promised hope of things unseen will keep our footing sure… (Hymn: O God of gentle strength, WLP 771)
Rev Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, AK
Hymn after the sermon: O God of gentle strength…(WLP 771)
(sung by Ali Hosford)
O God of gentle strength, your love embraces me. Within the sureness of your care my heart rests willingly.
Your waters of rebirth have claimed us as your own. As members of one body, we shall never be alone.
And when life’s challenges eclipse our minds with doubt, let holy wisdom spark a flame to drive the darkness out.
Where will the journey lead? The path may be obscure. But promised hope of things unseen will keep our footing sure.