Some years ago, there was a movie entitled, “Downhill Racer.” An American skier was competing in a worldwide skiing event. As the drama unfolded, the young man inched his way to the finals of the competition. To everyone’s amazement he, though an underdog, came in first place by a few tenths of a second. He became an instant hero. Crowds gathered around and cheered him, the media interviewed him, and his friends celebrated the victory.
This, however, was not the end of the movie. He returned to his home, to a small farm in the hills of Colorado. When we went up to his dad, an ordinary farmer, he told him what he had accomplished. The dad was not overly impressed, sand asked him “What are you going to do next?” The camera turned to the young man’s face and showed him with a puzzled look on his face. He had never considered his future; he had thought that momentary stardom was all that counted. The dad was seeing his son’s life from a different perspective.
Though the crowds, the media, and his friends gave their enthusiastic approval to the young man, his dad did not. Whose approval really counted?
Today’s gospel reports the time that Jesus humbled himself and allowed himself to be baptized in the Jordan. A rare and shocking thing happened. Though God always spoke through the voices of chosen men, this time he spoke directly. What an important moment this was!
“After all the people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son: with you I am well pleased.’”
Never before had people seen the Holy Spirit; in this case, however, the Holy Spirit took on a bodily form. And never before had the voice of God spoken directly. This was such a crowning moment that God the Father himself stepped up and gave a 10-word speech, perhaps the greatest speech ever given. He spoke about his Son. First, Jesus was his beloved one—he loved his Son; and, secondly, he was well pleased with Jesus. At this moment God offered his resounding approval to Jesus. In doing this he gave his official authorization to the people that Jesus was the One sent by him to save the world.
We notice that Jesus came to the Jordan as just an ordinary Israelite. He took his place in line and went through the ritual like every other person. There was no applause or special attention given to him. He was not seeking the world’s approval. All he cared about was the approval of his heavenly Father and he received it in an unexpected way.
All of us need approval. We are inclined to have this need fulfilled by other people—maybe family members, bosses, pastors, or the community in which we live. If all these people give us a standing ovation, does that mean God agrees with them? No matter how we evaluate our life, God’s rating is the only one that counts.
In the end we will stand alone before him and receive his final evaluation. Let us not be sidetracked by the rating the world gives us. Remember that Jesus, in the end, was “flunked” by the people of his day. As we enter this new year, let us seek how we stand with God. Jesus made it clear in his teachings that all that counts in life is doing the Father’s will. Clearing away the clutter of what the world thinks about us, let’s ask God to reveal to us his truthful opinion about how we’re living our lives. Let’s not wait until the day of our judgment to get God’s perspective on our lives.
