Mark 1:4-11

Is It Real?

Mark 1:4-11

Baptism of The Lord

January 11, 2009

Some of you may know that Sally and I purchased a new – to us – vehicle – a 2004 Ford Explorer last month. It has a lot more “bells and whistles” than the Pathfinder Sally was driving – which had windows you had to manually roll up and down and doors you had to manually lock.

Remember cars like that?

The Explorer has touch button locks – windows – seat warmers – a moon roof – CD player – and a whole lot less miles than the Pathfinder – which was pushing 200,000 miles when we sold it.

Sally is enjoying the Explorer immensely!

Now – I say that Sally is enjoying it – – and she is. She loves driving it.

And me?

Well – I enjoy it too – I enjoy riding in it!

I was telling some of the guys down at Gregg’s Store one day after we bought it that I wasn’t sure Sally was going to let me drive it. One of them replied:

“Preacher – I’ve seen how many dents are in your Camry. I don’t blame her for not letting you drive it!”

But – I do enjoy the ride!

We enjoy having an SUV. Sally likes being able to see over other cars and feels safer in an SUV — and they’re great for transporting her pottery stuff. Our old Pathfinder even made it into a story our niece wrote about Sally when she was in elementary school (she’s now a Journalism major at USC) entitled “My Aunt”. On one page it read:

Some aunts drive economical cars – but my aunt drive a 4 wheel drive SUV!

Yea – she loves SUVs !

But – if you happen to turn on the TV – especially during sporting events like the College Bowl games of the past few weeks or now the NFL Playoffs – you’ll see commercials touting the “next generation” of SUV’s.

Each commercial looks about the same — attractive people load up their oversized 4×4 to head out over some terrain negotiable only by Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, throwing up dirt and gravel all the way. The automotive action is usually followed by an image of the same folks setting up camp or jumping into a kayak or dangling off a rock.

Looks like fun.

“Looks” being the operative word here.

Actually analysts say that only about 5 percent of SUVs are ever taken off-road, which means that you’re more likely to see a Range Rover at Starbucks, for example, than on a wilderness road. For some SUV owners the look and the possibility of one day actually locking in the four-wheel drive are worth the extra bucks in the purchase price. I think we used 4 wheel drive once (maybe) on the Pathfinder to get out of the drive one winter when the snow was piled up behind it where the road had been scraped – and Sally did go down a dirt road at Lee County Park not long ago and had to sue 4 wheel drive to get the Pathfinder out. But as for rugged camping – well – that same story our niece wrote about Sally included a page that read:

Some aunts like to go camping in the woods. My aunt camps at the Holiday Inn.

A lot of SUV owner prefer the Holiday Inn over the woods.

Of course, with the current debate about rising gas prices, oil shortages, environmental impacts and alternative energy, many SUV owners feel they have to explain themselves to their those who may object to their driving such a “gas guzzler” when they won’t even take it off the road. Why have four-wheel drive if the only dirt those four wheels will ever touch is at the fringe of the kids’ soccer field?

Well, I have discovered the perfect product for those who want to look like they take their SUV “off road” – even if they don’t! It’s called “Sprayonmud” – and it’s a spray on concoction that creates the illusion that an SUV has, on more than one occasion, been baptized in mud.

What will they think of next?

For a mere $14.50 per quart-sized bottle you can buy “fake mud”to spray on your vehicle in order to make it look as though you’ve just bumped back from a wild ride in the wilderness when, in fact, you’ve been merely hiking through the aisles at Target.

The promotional material says:

“If you’ve got a 4X4 or off-roader, Sprayonmud will send the message that you use your off-roader, off the road as well as on it.”

Inside each quart-sized plastic container is real dirt from the Britain (where the product originates), mixed with water and a “secret ingredient” which helps the mud stick to the vehicle’s body. A few strategic squirts on the fenders and you’ve got an Escalade that’s dirtier than a mudslide.

Real off-roaders, though, know that the best mud is free and generally available. Their vehicles wear that mud as a badge of honor, marking them as adventurers. Fake-mudders mark themselves as – well – fakes.

To be real you have to go where the dirt is.

You know — when Jesus burst on the scene in first- century Israel, one of his first actions was to mark his life and ministry with some real mud. He traveled way off-road, all the way out into the Judean wilderness, to see his cousin John, the quintessential rugged individualist. In the manner of other ancient Israelite prophets, John lived a solitary life amid sand and snakes but preached a message so compelling that people were willing to get their feet dirty to go find him.

Standing there in the notoriously muddy water of the Jordan River, John offered a “baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” Now –- first-century Jews were used to ceremonial washings, but the only one that involved immersion was for those converting to Judaism. But John called everyone, even ethnic Jews, to be baptized — or “marked” — as being in need of forgiveness and salvation. What John called for was that the mud and muck of human sin needed to be washed away and replaced with a real mark of repentance and confession. John’s baptism was, in a real sense, a great equalizer, declaring that — rich and poor, Jew and non-Jew, righteous or roustabout — all must turn toward God.

Now – I have learned through the years that you don’t wash dishes in dirty water. Yet John calls for people to be “washed,” marked, or cleansed in the dirty waters of the Jordan.

Baptized in dirty water?

When Jesus came to the edge of the water, John recognized that He was “the one” who “is more powerful than I … I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals”

If anyone needed to skip this particular mud bath it was Jesus. Yet Jesus willingly steps down into the brown water to take on the same muddy mark as others John is baptizing.

Yea — when we’re baptized we take on that same mark as Jesus did.

Jesus’ baptism is the prototype for those of us who would follow him.

But — what does our baptism say about us?

Well, we understand baptism as a mark of God’s favor.

Jesus came to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. For him it was a form of anointing — not just with water but with the Spirit. Here we see the Trinity in action: the Son receiving the blessing, the Father expressing his love for the Son, and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. Baptism marks Jesus as “the Beloved” in whom God’s own nature is revealed and with whom God is “well pleased.” It’s a powerful expression of the intimacy of God’s own relational nature.

For us, baptism is a sign of God’s favor as well, but it is favor that is unmerited.

We can’t fake out God and look like we are something that we’re not – so we “come clean” through repentance and confession and simply receive the love of God who created us and sees us as being “very good.”

But — there’s more.

The baptism of Jesus was a form of anointing by which the Messiah, the promised One, would save Israel and the whole world. Israelite kings were marked as a symbol of their office and their responsibility. For Jesus, and for us, baptism is preparation for ministry.

Baptism is a sign that we pledge allegiance to a different kingdom — the kingdom of God. And that allegiance is worked out in our love for God and our service to others.

Baptism marks us, sets us apart as different from the world’s idea of power. It’s not fake – like the “Sprayonmud” some people might spray on an SUV to make it look used. It’s the real thing.

When the great reformer Martin Luther was tempted, he would often put his hand on his head to remind himself that he was baptized — that he was different — that he could resist temptation because of his connection with Christ. Our baptism into Christ calls us to be a different, peculiar and passionate people who are called to love God and then sent out to follow Jesus in changing the world.

In other words, we’re called to “come” to worship, learn, and fellowship – and then “go” into the world and get dirty serving others. There’s no room for pretending or keeping to our own side of town. Our baptism is a commission and a call to go into the wilds of a hurting world.

Jesus, God in the flesh, lived and moved in the world but was not “of” the world. He was tempted like us, human like us, but recognized that His kingdom was beyond the human realm. Jesus didn’t merely call people to get straightened up so that they could fly off to heaven when they died. The real good news that He preached is that God’s kingdom, in the person of Jesus, had broken into the world — — a new reality was coming to the forefront

Our baptism means that what we do now matters. Our baptism means that we can be to be agents of kingdom of God in the community we live in. Our baptism means that we can experience the promises and purposes of God in our lives – then share it with others. Our baptism, then, invites us to live in that new reality — that heavenly, God-ordained reality where we can share God with the world – with the community – as we “come” to worship, fellowship,. and learn – then “go” to serve. It means that we can be a part of God’s work in the Church and the community — here and now.

Living as baptized followers of Christ is something we can’t fake. No amount of spray on religiosity can hide who we really are. As Jesus waded into the muddy water, he set the example for us.

The bottom line is this: If the Son of God is willing to get dirty changing the world, we who follow need to do the same.

So – how about it?

Is your commitment to Christ – who was willing to get Himself dirty – willing to go into the world and bring the Good News of Salvation to all people – real?

Are you willing to follow Jesus into the world – follow Him as He calls you to “come” and worship – serve – and fellowship – then “go” to serve — showing His love to all people – even if it means going “off the beaten path” at times – and even if it means really “getting dirty” for His work?

Is it real?

Friends – a “spray on commitment” won’t work. It has to be the real thing.

So – how about your commitment?

Is it real? Amen.