EPIPHANY 1 - The Baptism of Jesus: Mark's Gospel This week two momentous events converge in this early point in the Christian year. The first, The Epiphany, celebrated in the western church, commemorates the first manifestation of the divine to the Gentiles, in the form of the wise men, and the second, the Baptism of Jesus. We could draw a neat contrast between these two events. We might regard the arrival of the Magi, the three wise men, the Persian priests so glamorized in paintings and Christmas cards, as an end story, while the Baptism of Jesus a beginning story, since baptism signifies the start of a life commitment to faith. But both are much deeper and different when we delve into the gospels. Matthew, Luke and John give accounts of the birth of Jesus, and Matthew alone tells of the wise men following the star that guides them to Jesus (probably occurring a year or so later). Mark starts with the baptism of Jesus. And Mark tells the story of Jesus with stark simplicity. His is the shortest gospel and most likely the earliest. Many believe that both Matthew and Luke had Mark's gospel before them when they wrote their versions of the life of Christ. In today's text Mark uses only seven verses to tell us about John the Baptist and Jesus' baptism. When Jesus came up from the waters of his baptism, Mark reports that a voice from heaven said, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” This was a dramatic way for God publicly to give his stamp of approval to endorse Jesus' ministry. Matthew is very interested in wisdom and in the fulfillment of OT patterns and his account of the wise men was prophesied by Isaiah in the words “the young camels of Midian and Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord”. By the way, nowhere in the Bible does it say there were three of them. Some scholars think there were as many as 12. And what was it that made them wise? Well, they are looking for the truth. And having arrived, after an arduous journey of about 1000-1500 miles, (which would have taken them 2 years), once they have found the Christ child, been the first Gentiles to behold him, wasn't that closure for them? A fulfillment, a journey's end? Well the fact is it doesn't end there. For them it was actually a new beginning. They have been searching and have now found what was promised, but because of that manifestation they will never be the same again. Nothing will be the same again. These men were wise because they came willingly, driven by a search for knowledge, truth and God. So it is when we come to experience something momentous in our lives, something disrupting, life changing. We are never the same again. Life thereafter is a new a different life because of it, as we try to make sense of it and grow in wisdom because of it. The wise men recognized truth when they met it, and as changed men they knew what they needed to do. They went back another way. What a powerful metaphor that is. New life, new hope. In the same way, Baptism gives new life, the triumph of life in Christ through the death of sin. Things happen fast in the gospels. Only last week we were hearing about magi bringing gifts to the infant Jesus. Now in the space of a week, he has become a man of thirty years seeking to be baptized by his cousin John the Baptist. John is somewhat reticent about it. He has proclaimed that his mission is about preparing the way for the greater more powerful one, the one whose sandals he is unfit to unfasten. But why would Jesus need to be baptized? Yet, the messiah - the longed for messiah - is offering himself up like ordinary sin laden men and by doing so is putting himself right in among them. And it is no accident or spur of the moment event. It's very deliberate, it's Jesus as he prepares to fulfill the prophesies in the Gospel that is about to unfold. A messiah, fully human, and fully divine. Seeing the gathering of flawed people who have come to John, Jesus does not - as some remote Deity - condemn them, for their shortcomings. Instead he joins them. He gets right down in the river with them. For as One who is truly as human as he is divine, he immerses himself totally with us and in us. But as well, there is the heralding of something new. John has been baptizing his fellow Jews with a baptism for repentance. He has been exhorting people to change the direction of their lives. But with the baptism of Jesus we see how Christian baptism creates new dimensions. In the baptism of Jesus, we witness the presence of the Holy Spirit, and Jesus hears the voice from heaven declaring him to be God’s beloved son. So momentous is this that in his short and so powerful gospel Mark speaks of the sky and heaven being torn apart. These things lie at the heart of Christian baptism. In it we welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit. And we rejoice in the parental love of God which is offered to everyone. By it we arrive into God’s family where we are forever loved deeply and strengthened by our great creator. Martin Luther, regularly afflicted by severe depression, in his darkest times would walk around saying over and over to reassure himself “I am baptized.”

So today as we celebrate the baptism of Jesus, we can rejoice that his baptism points us to the message of our baptism - that by God’s grace we are all divinely loved and divinely called to live out the Christian life. This is not simply about life in church, among other Christians: it is about the when and how of daily prayer; about what we know and seek to learn about our faith; how we treat other people, and our willingness to tell them that we are Christians who believe in, worship, and love God.

If we let it, this story is about us being wise men. They represent all who have found salvation through the manifestation of Christ. We who are baptized like the wise men live in faith and hope. Like them we through our baptism found the one born for us and who one day will die for love of us.

The story of the wise men might only have been told in one gospel and not in ours today. But its legacy is profound and significant. On communion plates used in the early church there was usually engraved the star of the wise men. It symbolized the star leading those who would be wise to Christ's presence here. The star is on our plates in this church. And the wise men's star is a major Christian symbol for all time, constant reminders to us of the Christian endeavor of perseverance, faith and hope.

AMEN

AMEN