Trinity Lutheran Church

Matthew 3:13-17

January 12, 2020

 Baptism of our Lord 

      

‘I went down…’ It’s odd, but I’ll never forget the first lecture Jack Schwandt gave for Ancient Political Philosophy my sophomore year of college. We were going to read Plato’s Republic, the first three words of which are ‘I went down…’ The entire hour Professor Schwandt lectured on three words about how Socrates went down from the heights of the Acropolis, the temples of religion and philosophy, to the marketplace and a festival for a goddess of the moon. There he became engaged in a debate about justice, education, politics, kings and philosophy. Do I remember much else about the Republic? A little, but that lecture stuck with me. Odd. 

I recall it today because of a comment I wrote in my Bible app for this story about Jesus Baptism. I’m not sure where I got this from and its not completely accurate, but it is accurate enough to make the point. ‘Images of Jesus baptism (like the two shown here) are among the only scenes where Jesus is shown as subordinate (lower in the painting) and someone else, here John, is in the dominant position (pictured above Jesus), to whom Jesus submits. Often Jesus arms are crossed in a gesture of humility, barely clothed, vulnerable, in the guise of a new Adam.’ 

Coming out of the Christmas season, the season of God coming to us in Jesus, the idea of God who comes down continues. The story of God with us is the story of God who is not remote, high and mighty and far away. Rather the story of God with us is the story of God who is born in human form and weakness, and submits to human rituals, struggles and death. The Apostle Paul recorded what is thought to be an early Christian song of faith that is all about this: 

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,

who, though he was in the form of God, 

did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, 

but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, 

being born in human likeness.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself

and became obedient to the point of death - even death on a cross. 

I don’t know if this is just a commonplace idea, or if we take it for granted, or just figure this is the way it’s supposed to be, but this is a rather astounding thought. Religion is not typically comfortable with humble gods. We like them almighty and eternal.We are not particularly comfortable with anyone high and mighty becoming commoners, i.e. Prince Harry and Meaghan. It’s not supposed to be that way. I suppose it’s especially not supposed to be that way for one who is God.  

I got a taste of it at a women’s Bible Study in Richey, Montana (granted this was 35 years ago). After the Bible study we had refreshments. The coffee pot was empty so I got up, went to the kitchen, filled the pot and brought it back to the table. As we were leaving I was confronted by some of the women who let me know that the Pastor did not get up to refill and serve the coffee. Uffda. John the Baptist, had an inkling of Jesus identity, and likewise objected when Jesus came to him for baptism. John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ John’s reluctance to accept God who comes down, who submits to humanity, who shows humility and vulnerability plays out again and again in Jesus story. Jesus allows a known sinner woman to wash his feet with her hair and the Pharisees see its as degrading. People brought insignificant children to Jesus and his own disciples rebuked him for the children were beneath them and him, and Jesus instead blessed the children. Jesus washed his disciples feet and told them he was their servant more than their master. Peter was offended. Then there was the cross and death, a slave execution between two terrorists, and the way the truth and the life dead in a tomb. The Apostle said that the Greco-Roman world thought it was a joke and the Jewish people were scandalized. How far down does God go?

Paul finished reciting the ancient song with praise to Jesus exaltation, 

Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name

that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus 

every knee should bend...  

Still the story of Jesus that was told and still is told is not the story of exaltation and glory and power and might. Sitting at the right hand of the Father seems a rather minor point of our devotion to Jesus, or maybe a reality that will have greater meaning later and beyond. We follow Jesus, listen to Jesus, trust in Jesus, along with the rest of the church because he came down that we may have love. And because he came down we have the same mind, we go down too for we are the body of Christ. The church is not some precious exalted institution, though at one time not so long ago it may have thought it was. We are the body of Christ and we go down to serve those who others think are beneath them, insignificant or degraded and rejected. We will serve anyone here or wherever we are, with love and welcome. We believe in God who has come down and we submit to going down with our God that the world may have love. Maybe ‘Go in peace, serve the Lord,’ means “We go down… 

Amen.