It was a dark night in October, 1990. Through most of the night I wrestled with the darkness—darkness in me, darkness and trouble in my family, darkness all over the world as I experienced it. It was the low point of the low point of my life.
Yet, when dawn finally came, it was a glorious morning. True, death had come for garden flowers and the last of the vegetables, for the ground was covered by heavy frost. But the sky was bright with a red-orange-yellow-lavender light that turned everything glorious. With the breath of that life-giving dawn, hope re-entered my soul.
More than likely most readers today have had at least one night of deep darkness—maybe months or even years of it. I invite you to remember what that was like as you approach today’s Scriptures of the Baptism of the Lord.
John the Baptist
The world of Jewish life and culture suffered from much darkness as John the Baptist began his proclamation of “Make straight the ways of the Lord.” Yet, John’s presence and call elicited much hope. Jesus was most likely baptized at Bethany-beyond-the-Jordon, a place close to Jericho and where the Jordan emptied into the Dead Sea.
In reading this week, I discovered several fascinating facts about this place. It was where people believed the prophet Elijah parted the waters to cross the Jordan just before he rode his chariot of fire into the heavens, leaving his cloak with its power to the next prophet, Elisha. (2 Kings 2:8) Later prophecy predicted that Elijah would return before the Messiah came. (Malachi 4:5) Many then and now see John the Baptist as the returned Elijah. Jericho, close to the Dead Sea, represented all that was evil and sinful in Jewish life of that day. It was where Jesus, three years later, began his walk of ascent that ended in Jerusalem on the cross.
What was Jesus doing at the Jordan, some 70 miles from home in Galilee? People hypothesize that he probably had journeyed to Jerusalem for one of the festivals. Perhaps he heard there about John the Baptist, and God drew him to the Jordan to see him. At any rate, he was there—as well as several of the men who soon became his disciples.
Buzz of the day predicted the Messiah would come when there were enough fully righteous men in Israel. John was calling people to a repentance that would make them righteous. Jesus, Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Nathaniel likely went to the Jordon to be part of that community of righteousness. Did any of them, Jesus included, know HOW MUCH they were going to be part of that righteousness? That is a question to keep until we get to heaven and have a chance to ask people who know.
What we know from Scripture now is that Jesus and at least those five of his disciples went to the Jordan. In light of that background, let’s look at today’s readings.
NOTE: Both my sources use these readings for today. However, Isaiah 40:1-5,9-11 and Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7 can also be used.
Isaiah 42: 1-4, 6-7
This selection from Second Isaiah (chapters 40-55) was written during the Babylonian exile. It is the first of the “servant songs” that describe the character and mission of the coming Messiah. The people of Israel expected the Messiah to be of the line of King David and do the kinds of things for them that King David did—provide peace by first defeating multiple enemies.
Yet here we see that the prophet describes someone much greater than that. He is describing a servant king who brings justice to ALL, even the wounded and weak (“a bruised reed he shall not break”).
As we know from the daily reading last Thursday, January 6th (and as we will see again on Sunday, January 23), Jesus took this reading from Isaiah as his Mission Statement as he began his active ministry in Galilee.
The Church reminds us in this reading, that, as Jesus was baptized, he accepted his role as a servant Messiah.
Acts 10:34-38
The second reading is taken from Peter’s preaching to the people present at the home of Cornelius. It happened about 10 years after the resurrection. Up until now, “the Way” had been a branch of Judaism. Christians were also Jews.
It was time for the vision and practice of Christianity to take its first great leap. God had already converted Paul. Now he needed to get the Christian community to understand it was time to broaden their fields of vision and ministry. So he first gave Peter (head of the Christian community) a vision of many “unclean” animals, telling him to eat. Peter objected, but the Holy Spirit revealed “What God has cleansed, you must not call common.” (Acts 10:15) Immediately, a messenger came from a Gentile named Cornelius, asking Peter to come with him. Peter went, preaching the Gospel, including this passage. Cornelius and his household were baptized, received the Holy Spirit, and Christianity leaped into all the world.
The Church tells us with this brief passage: Christ, the Servant Messiah, came for all. It also adds a very important piece: When someone is baptized, they receive the Holy Spirit.
Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
The baptism of Jesus is in all four Gospels. (Matthew 3:13-17, Mark 1:9-11, Luke 3:15-22, John 1:29-34) Each Gospel gives a slightly different perspective. Luke, who consistently presents Jesus as the “servant Messiah,” makes Jesus one of the crowd. It does not describe Jesus’ specific baptism. It says, “and Jesus had also been baptized and was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.’”
The Descent of the Holy Spirit on Jesus
I have developed a habit of reading a few paragraphs of catechism or Church document every morning as part of my morning prayer. This has turned out to be a wonderful habit. I am currently reading St. Pope John Paul II’s encyclical, Dominum et Vivificantem (The Holy Spirit in the Life of the Church and the World).
St. Pope John Paul II quotes the first reading today from Isaiah and says, “This text is important…because it constitutes a kind of bridge between the ancient biblical concept of spirit, understood primarily as a ‘charismatic breath of wind,’ and the ‘Spirit’ as a person and a gift, a gift for the person.’ The Messiah…is precisely that person upon whom the Spirit of the Lord shall rest.” (paragraph 15)
St. John Paul goes on to say this anointing of Jesus with the Spirit by the Father is the path that ends with OUR possessing the Spirit when we are baptized. We are thus meant to be open to the Spirit to also become the presence of God in our world today (paragraphs 16-26).
Application
With our baptism we each received the Holy Spirit—the SAME Holy Spirit that Jesus received. It may or may not have had the effect on us that it had on him. It may be vibrant like the dawn sky after my personal darkest night, or it may be as hidden as it was in the hours before that dawn. But, because of our baptism, GOD HAS ALSO ANOINTED US to live by some version of Jesus’ Mission Statement.
A new revelation of the glory of that makes me want to renew my baptismal promises. Those promises are the prayer for today. Perhaps you might also like to renew them:
Prayer:
Do you reject Satan? I do.
And all his works? I do
And all his empty promises? I do.
Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth? I do.
Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, was crucified, died, and was buried, rose from the dead, and now is seated at the right hand of the Father? I do.
Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting? I do.
