week fifteen of ordinary time
Read Matthew, chapter 3
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
make his paths straight.’”
Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
“I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
The Baptism of Jesus
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
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A mentor of mine in college used to encourage me to remember my Baptism. He would tell me to think of it as often as I could - as often as I came in contact with water - remember your baptism.
Initially this idea struck me as odd because I’d previously only ever thought of it as a spiritual destination I’d already passed. I was baptized as an infant and nurtured in a faithful community that helped me grow ready to claim those truths for myself - something I did publicly and excitedly and only by grace, around the age of 14. I’d never felt called to be re-baptized and I trusted (and still trust) that the sacrament was a sign of God’s preemptive love in my life, cleansing me and purifying me of my sin.
So it was more or less done. That spiritual checkpoint was passed.
But my mentor was encouraging me to think about things differently. Instead of repentance and baptism and sonship or daughtership being these isolated checkpoints, passed over and now mere referential moments in our personal histories, maybe they could instead be centering points we were constantly in the habit of coming back to in the day-to-day. Much in the same way as we wash our hands or our bodies daily, we too can receive the purifying waters of baptism, reminding us of the grace that flows preemptively on our behalf - grace we can receive, be nourished by, and sanctified in presently.
Prayer
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, would you not only help us to remember our own baptisms today, but also that of our neighbors as well? Help us to stand for them, see them, hear them, and assist in making your path straight for them, that our neighbors may experience afresh the cleansing waters of your preemptive grace. Lord, we pray for sanctification both in our hearts and in our communities. Help us not to stagnate. Help us not to forget. You are our Father and we long to draw near. In your name, amen.