“You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I
am well pleased.” (Luke 3:22)
I have a lot of affiliations. I’m a
Griffiths—my parents’ son, my siblings’ brother, my wife’s husband, my daughter’s
dad, my nieces’ and nephews’ uncle.
I’m also an American. I’m a Welsh-American,
too, and very proud of it. I’m a citizen of the great Garden State of New
Jersey and of my township. I’m a Philadelphia Eagles fan. I’m also a registered
Democrat.[i]
I’ve been a Boy Scout, a member of the
Actors Equity Association, the Screen Actors Guild, the American Association of
Television and Radio Artists, the International Association of Theatrical Stage
Employees, and the United Teachers of Los Angeles. I’m a “card member” of
American Express, and I belong to medical and dental “groups.” I’m an alumnus
of the California State University at Long Beach, the University of Wisconsin,
and the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia[ii].
I’m an ordained pastor, a member of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod,
the Northeast/West Philadelphia Conference, the Far Northeast Philadelphia
Ministerium[iii], and Faith Lutheran
Church.
And I’m a baptized Christian.
Of all the groups and affiliations to
which I may lay claim or which may lay claim to me, that last one is the most
important. Why? Because all the others are temporary. Baptism is eternal.
The First Sunday after the Epiphany is traditionally
celebrated in liturgical churches as the Baptism of Our Lord. In Luke’s Gospel
this wonderful event is handled in only two verses:
21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when
Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon
him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son,
the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”
These two verses are packed with a lot of meaning. First, it’s
so powerful to see Jesus being baptized. He’s going through the same ritual we
all go through. He’ll also go through the same pain, loss, temptation, hunger,
disappointment, bereavement, and everything else we face. It’s also inspiring
to see him in prayer. But the real power comes when God tears open the barrier
between himself and us. God’s spirit comes down on the baptized and declares him
to be a son, a beloved child, and one who is the source of pleasure to the
Father.
That’s a pretty important announcement, don’t you think? We
often think of our baptism as God’s promise of forgiveness, the washing away of
our sinful stains. Indeed, that’s what the sacrament is. But it’s also
something more. It’s the adoption of us. It’s our inheritance. In this water we
become God’s children and, as such, members of God’s family. Jesus became one
with us in baptism, but in our baptism, we become one with him, and we receive
the same promise—we belong, we are loved, and we delight God.
On my office walls are lots of artwork and certificates. I
proudly display my seminary diploma and my certificate of Urban Ministry, my
letter of congratulations from the bishop when I became the longest serving pastor
of my parish, an award from the Seventh Day Adventist congregation, and my
Certificate of Ordination. But I also display my Certificate of Baptism. Of all
these other scraps of paper—however nice they look in their frames—this one document
resonates with me the most. It says I am God’s child. It says I am part of a
family which includes you, my dear reader. It says I can share with Jesus in
his eternal life just as he has shared my sin and sorrow. It tells me who I am.
[i]
Does this shock you?
[ii]
Now part of the United Lutheran Seminary.
[iii]
I’m the chairman of that group. Just thought you’d like to know that.
No comments:
Post a Comment