The Meaning of Baptism
Matthew 3:13-17
Ypsilanti First United Methodist Church
January 13, 2008

Rev. Melanie Lee Carey

There is a story circulating in Detroit about the early days of Henry Ford and Ford Motor Company. It concerns a machinist with Ford Motor Company who had "borrowed," over a period of years, tools and other automobile parts. Although it was against company policy, "everybody did it," and management did nothing about it.

One day, however, the machinist was converted. He was baptized and became a believer who took his baptism seriously. The day after his baptism, he gathered up all the "tools" he had collected over the years, loaded them into his pickup, took them to the plant and presented them to the foreman with his confession and request for forgiveness.

The foreman was so overcome by his honesty that he cabled Henry Ford himself, who was visiting a European plant. After explaining the entire event in detail, Ford immediately cabled back this response: "Dam up the Detroit River," he said, "and baptize the entire plant."

Today’s scripture reading is the story of the baptism of Jesus. It is a familiar story to us, Jesus baptized in the Jordan River by his cousin John. Jesus baptized in the river Jordan, and the Holy Spirit comes down out of heaven like a dove and a voice is heard saying “This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased.”

As we hear this familiar story of Jesus’ baptism, it also calls us to pause and remember our own baptism.

Many of us were baptized as infants, thus we can’t remember the actual baptism day, except if our parents told us stories about it—maybe we cried, or grabbed the pastor’s prayer book or the microphone. Most likely though, we can’t remember the day we were baptized. Some of us were baptized as adults, so we do actually remember the day, but regardless of whether we actually remember our baptism, as we hear Jesus’ baptismal story we have a chance to recall our own and more importantly to remind ourselves of the meaning of baptism.

In the United Methodist Church we baptize people by sprinkling or pouring water on their heads, or by total immersion. In recent years we have had several of our church members baptized in the Huron River. Regardless of the mode of baptism, what does baptism really mean?

The Official United Methodist Book of Worship has this to say about baptism: The baptismal covenant is God’s word to us, proclaiming our adoption by grace, and our word to God, promising our response of faith and love.

Baptism is God’s word to us. And what is that word? It is the word that we are loved, that we belong, that we are part of God’s family. Baptism is our adoption by grace into the family of God. With this water mark the adoption is signed, sealed and delivered. It means that we always and forever belong to God. Nothing can change this mark of love.

And Like when God said to Jesus at his baptism, “This is my son,” for Christians, baptism means that God has also chosen us as daughters and sons. And the most important things about us, our true identity, is that we are now sons and daughters of God.

This is why the introduction to the United Methodist Baptismal Covenant states, “We are incorporated into God’s mighty acts of salvation and given new birth through water and the Spirit.”

Baptism is God’s word to us, proclaiming our adoption by grace. Baptism gives us our identity, as sons and daughters of God. Baptism means that God is with us, and knows us, claims us and loves us always and forever.

I have told this baptism story before, but it bears repeating. At my last church, there were parents who had recently had twins. The parents, understandably weren’t getting much sleep, and the senior pastor and I were there in front of the congregation each holding one of the twins and we got to the part in the baptismal covenant where we ask—“and what is the given name of this child?”—and I asked the question, and looked at the mom for her answer. I had no idea which of the twins I was holding. And the mom just looked back at me, and after a while she said—“I can’t remember his name.” And then not knowing what to do next, I looked at the twin’s dad, and he shook his head and he had this panicked look on his face and then said “I can’t remember either!”—And then we all smiled and laughed a lot and we got out the bulletin—and found the names and then figured out which twin it was—and we baptized him and his brother.

The truth is that it didn’t matter that we couldn’t remember the names of the twins, because God knew and knows their names. And later, at the baptism party, I told the sleep deprived parents that even when they forget their own kids names, God never will. That is what it means to be a child of God, to be adopted by God’s grace, initiated into Christ’s holy church and incorporated in to God’s mighty acts of salvation.

Baptism is God’s word to us, proclaiming our adoption by grace.

Baptism is also our word to God promising our response of faith and love. Now if we were baptized as infants, our parents made the response for us until we were able to respond ourselves. And if we were baptized as youth or adults, we made the responses—promising our love and faithfulness to God for our whole life long.

When we are adopted by grace through our baptism, it means that we are children of God, and this means that we are all connected—related to one another through the flowing waters of baptism. Whether we live next door to one another or half way around the world, baptism connects us with one another through the body of Christ. We are all part of the same family. The implications of our far reaching family tree mean that we must give serious thought to our actions. Think about this…Would you withhold food from a first cousin? Would you authorize dropping bombs on your grandparents? Would you dam a river that causes your siblings crops to wither and die?

Just as baptism was the first public act in which Jesus committed himself to God’s work, so too is our baptism the first public act in which our lives are committed to the reign of God. The work begins by taking care of the family.

Baptism is also a sign that we pledge allegiance to a different kingdom — the kingdom of God. And that allegiance is worked out in our service to others. Baptism marks us, sets us apart as different from the world’s idea of power.

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 sent out to follow Jesus in changing the world. As the “body of Christ” in the world, baptism commissions us to use our gifts to strengthen the church and to transform the world.

In the United Methodist Church we believe that baptism is such a powerful thing that done once , it sticks for life—regardless of whether you were baptized as an infant, or an adult, a Presbyterian, Roman Catholic or a Baptist—baptism is a one time thing and the water mark never washes off. But, we still need the reminders of what it means to be baptized—of what it truly means to be adopted by Grace and to pledge our love and faith to God.

So at times we reaffirm our baptism. At certain times we gather and remember that we are loved, that we are chosen by God, that we are connected and related to one another through the powerful waters of baptism. At certain times we gather to re-commit ourselves to the life of faith and love that we promised or was promised for us at the time of our baptism.

So today, as we hear of Jesus’ baptism, we also remember our own. Today as we face challenges in our lives, as we face changes in our lives, as we face uncertainties and difficulties, we remember our baptism. Today we pray for wisdom and courage for the living of these days—and we remember our baptism. God’s word to us, proclaiming our adoption by grace, and our word to God, promising our response of faith and love.

Brothers and Sister in Christ:

Through the Sacrament of Baptism we are initiated into Christ’s holy Church. We are incorporated into God’s mighty acts of salvation and given new birth through water and the Spirit. All this is God’s gift, offered to us without price.

Through the reaffirmation of our faith we renew the covenant declared at our baptism, acknowledge what God is doing for us, and affirm our commitment to Christ’s holy church.

Remember your baptism and be thankful. Amen

Resources for this sermon:

From A United Methodist Understanding of Baptism by Mark C. Trotter. Copyright © 2001 by The United Methodist Publishing House. As quoted from www.UMC.ORG.

The United Methodist Book of Worship, Introduction to the Baptismal Covenant pp. 81-84

The Upper Room Disciplines 2008: A book of Daily Devotions. Upper Room Books Nashville p. 24 “I Baptize You” January 12, 2008 written by Jennifer Copeland, United Methodist Chaplain, Duke University Durham, North Carolina. United Methodist Understanding of Baptism