---

Baptism And Christian Identity
based on Luke 3:22-23 and Romans 6:1-4
by Rev. Frank Schaefer

One of the most universal rites for any religion or club or fellowship is the initiation rite.  For the Christian church this initiation rite is Baptism. For many, if not all, Christians Baptism is a defining event that happens somewhere near the beginning of their discipleship and active church life.  Baptism is the initiation rite of the church and the beginning of a Christian’s active faith life.

In his 1995 autobiography, In the Arena, Charlton Heston describes making The Greatest Story Ever Told in November of 1963. Heston appeared as John the Baptist. Director George Stevens had chosen to film the baptism in Glen Canyon, Arizona, on the Colorado River. Heston points out that in November the water temperature was in the forties. It made for some interesting reactions as the hundreds of extras were immersed, one by one, in the cold Colorado. "As they came up, gasping and wild-eyed, the cameras conveyed pure, heartfelt epiphany."

It took several days to shoot the scene. Heston remarks that they "baptized" around sixty a day. He suspects the real Baptist did better. So, after several days of standing in cold water dressed in a bearskin, he got to pretend to baptize Jesus. As he was waiting in the water for the shot, he warmed his hands on a cup of coffee with his head down. This might have caused Stevens some concern, for he called out, "How ya doin', Chuck?" And Heston says he answered, "I'm okay, George. But I'll tell you this, if the Jordan had been as cold as the Colorado, Christianity never would have gotten off the ground."

In Romans 6, the apostle Paul calls us to remember your baptism.  For us Methodists, it’s really hard to understand what he is talking about. I can’t remember my baptism--I was too young.  What’s that mean to remember my baptism?

And what is the meaning of baptism anyway? What actually happens in baptism?  I made the mistake to ask that question in a children’s sermon once.  The answer I got:  that’s when the pastor gives a baby a bath!

What happens in baptism?  First, we get our Christian names. Through baptism Jesus received his identity. The voice of God was heard from beyond the clouds: “you are my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.”  Just like Jesus received his identity as the beloved son of God, we receive our identity as persons and as Christians.

At one point or another, all of us ask the existentialist questions: Who am I?  Where do I come from? And where am I going?   Somehow, as Jesus baptism defined his life,  our baptism defines our lives, just as much as the name we’ve been given.  To those of us who were baptized as infants, our parents stepped forth in faith in our place and made a promise to raise us in the Christian traditions and beliefs.  They are part of who we are and who we are becoming. These values define and shape our lives.

I came across an article by a new father who noted the importance of naming and being called names.  He writes…

I recently ran through the list of nicknames Alene and I have called Bridgette since she was born. I was amazed. In only 22 weeks, we have referred to her, alternately, as: Bridgette, Bridge, Bridgey, Bridgelet, Bridgester, Bridgemeister, Bridgeman, Bridgette-the-Fidgettey-Midget, Bridgettes-of-Madison-County, Pooh, Poop, Poopy, Pumpkin, Pumpkin Seed, Pumpkin Pooch, Peanut, Muffin, Noodle, Doodle, Doodle-Doo, Dew Drop, Sweet Pea, Pea Pod, Boopie, Bubbles, Bundles, and Stinky the Bald-Headed Girl. (That last one was Bridgette's name her first week only. I fully expect her to take me to court over it one day.)

What we are called makes a difference. As we grow, if we are called "smart," it makes a difference; if we are called "stupid," it makes a difference.  What we are called makes a difference.  As in baptism we receive our Christian name, we also receive our identity of who we are in Christ.

Did you know that Christian means “little Christ?”  If we are committed Christians we are to follow in the footsteps of Christ. We are supposed to be little “Christs.”  Represent Christ in all we do and say.  And that is a radical concept.  And when you are wrestling with the problems of the world, remember your baptism, remember who you are in Christ.

So, baptism defines us, our identities as “little Christs.” What else does baptism mean?

Paul, in Romans 6, defines baptism in this way: “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”

So, remember your baptism when you face a loss or a crisis.  Jesus never said that life will be all roses.  On the contrary, Jesus said: unless a grain falls into the earth and dies it cannot bear fruit, unless you die to the world and sin, you cannot live.  Remember your baptism!  You died with Christ, you died unto the world, to your own selfish desires, to everything that this world has to offer in terms of false joy.

The world tells us: you need this, you cannot do without that, its bliss and joy and fulfillment.  But later you find out that this and that isn’t all that it promised to be and, yet, you want more and more of it without ever finding fulfillment.

The message of the media is: you need to have all these things to really live, you need to be a consumer, you need to own that nice house, car (or cars) and before you know it you have become addicted to materialism, and you start envying your neighbor, you start bickering over an inheritance with your own family members.

Immorality is being packaged nicely too on TV, the internet, and elsewhere, isn’t it?  It amazes me how even adultery is made to look attractive.  And the headache is great when you wake up to reality.  Our divorce rate is rampant.

As those who have been baptized, we need to remember that we have died with Christ, we have died to the world, to the lusts and pleasures it may give for a while.

What does it mean to die to the pleasures of this life?

Jesus has a few suggestions.  Among other things, he said: If someone asks you to walk a mile, if you want to inherit the Kingdom of God, walk two miles.  Jesus told the rich young ruler:  give all your possessions away, all that you own, and give it to the poor.  Deny yourself, take up your cross. You will suffer persecution, the student is not greater than the teacher.

But there’s more.  It doesn’t stop at the dying to the world and to our own selfish ambitions.  After the dying comes the rising with Christ, like the Phoenix from the ashes.

Jesus once said: If you give up all of these things for my sake, you will not only inherit the Kingdom of God, but even in this lifetime you will be blessed.  For your bodily needs, there is MasterCard, but God’s blessings are priceless.  And the greatest blessings of all are: the joy of God in the midst of sadness, the peace of God in the midst of a storm, the love of God in the face of enmity and hatred. You cannot put a price tag on these.

You see what’s happening here: Christ turns everything upside-down.  He takes the message of the world and reverses it.  The world tells you: live all you can, get everything out of life, then die.  But Jesus says: first you die and then when you’re already dead, what’s it all matter?  But here comes the surprise factor:  then and only then will you will experience the real and deeper joys in life, because the best things in life just aren’t things. In the world you will experience fleeting joy, then the big hangover. In Christ you will taste death first, then you’ll be blessed beyond comprehension.

So when you feel the pain because you lost possessions or a job or anything valuable to you, remember your baptism. Remember you gave it all up already at that moment of your baptism. You are called to be a faithful steward of what God gave you in the first place. When you experience broken dreams or broken relationships, remember your baptism. God is in control, surrender your future into God’s hands once again.

Let us on this morning remember our baptism, let us renew our baptismal vows, let us recommit ourselves once again to die to the world and rise with Christ.  Let us recommit to the real joy-giver instead of the world that promises pleasure and leaves us with a terrible headache. Amen.