Episodes
Sunday Jan 13, 2019
Sunday Jan 13, 2019
Water Washed and Spirit Born
A sermon preached by Rev. Ginger E. Gaines-Cirelli at Foundry UMC January 13, 2019, Baptism of the Lord. “This Is Us” series.
Text: Luke 3:15-17, 21-22
Water stories in the Bible are always important and dramatic. From the very beginning when God’s Spirit moved across the waters and spoke all creation into being; to the flood, ark, and rainbow; to the parting of the Red Sea and the passage of the Israelites from slavery to freedom; to the water pouring from the rock in the wilderness providing sustenance to God’s people; to the miraculous healing of General Naaman in the Jordan at the hand of the prophet Elisha; to the stormy sea that took Jonah down meet that big fish; to the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan and many more… Water is a powerful and creative force in these stories; it can represent both chaos and healing and restoration.
And water is not only metaphorically powerful, it is concretely powerful. It’s one of the primary elements without which life cannot thrive. For many of us, it’s easy to take water for granted. Turn the knob, water appears. But then there’s Flint, Michigan and so many countries around the world in which having any water, much less clean water—is a central issue of justice—a daily matter of life and death.
In America, our history with water and justice is dicey (at least the sliver of our history I know). First of all, we’ve polluted our water with disastrous results to ecosystems and human health. Our nation’s collective contribution to climate change is significant, affecting water temperatures and levels with looming catastrophic effect. The people of Flint continue to grapple with the water crisis there—with the poor bearing the brunt of the struggle.[i] And as we enter 2019, I’m mindful (thanks to the Rev. Jesse Jackson)[ii] that this year marks 400 years since the first 20 African slaves were transported to our shores by white slave traders. And as I thought about water in this country, I couldn’t help but think of segregated water fountains and swimming pools. I thought of stories I’ve heard of “dirty” Italian and Irish immigrants also being excluded from public pools. When you’ve been denied such a basic human right as access to clean water and the dignity of being received as 100% a human being, these things become much less easily taken for granted.
For those of us who’ve been knocking around the church and its stories and rituals for a long time, we may be tempted to take the waters of Baptism for granted. In some ways, it may seem like a fairly benign and simple thing. A little water, a little prayer, often a cute baby. But, like all the other water stories in the Bible, this one is so important.
In the story we learn that John’s water baptism is a ritual of repentance, of turning from an old way of life toward a new one. John’s water baptism is a washing of the body—the body that participates in systems of injustice willingly or not, the body that often gives into destructive temptations, the body that has not walked gently in relationship or creation; John’s water baptism is a cleansing from what we’ve stepped in; and it also soothes the wounds and aches of human life—a softening and scrubbing of all that would cling to us and keep us in the old life. For infants, the water washing is a ritual of that same turn toward God’s life… the child is carried on the waters of Baptism into a community in which love, grace, and mercy is the chosen and desired way to be in relationship. The story of God’s steadfast love will be the child’s family story from the very beginning, and the community that tells that story, their “tribe.”
There is more to the narrative than just John’s baptism. The story we tell is that Jesus—in solidarity with us—enters the waters of our human need. And after, while he’s praying, Spirit appears at the water, accompanied by the voice of God. The presence of Spirit, water, and God’s voice call to mind another story—the story at the beginning of all things, when Spirit moved over the waters of chaos and God’s voice said, “Let there be…” The presence of Spirit, water, and God’s voice signal new creation, you see, new life. And in our story today, the voice speaks to Jesus saying, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” This affirmation is for Jesus to be sure, but we believe it is also for us. And this word of love gives life—new life—every time it is received; some might call it a second birth through Spirit’s love. “You are my child, the Beloved; with YOU I am well pleased.” We are born anew every single time we open our hearts to receive this profound affirmation: You are my child, the Beloved; with YOU I am well pleased. With YOU—the you you are, the you you’re becoming…with YOU God is pleased. God loves YOU.
The longer I live on this planet, the clearer it has become that most people struggle to truly believe they are lovable or loved. Several years ago, a video was making the rounds on social media that has stayed with me in a powerful way. A student named Shea filmed classmates—some known to her others, not—as she explained her project to photograph things she finds beautiful.[iii] Every time I watch the video I cry. The varieties of responses—both spoken and communicated through body language—reveal so much about our common human desire to be seen, to be valued, to be loved, to know we are beautiful. As those who follow Jesus into the waters of Baptism, claiming to desire a life that resembles God’s way, it is our call to not only look in the mirror and see a beautiful and beloved image but also to look around and see beauty in each face. //
Today’s Gospel story tells us that we who are Baptized are water washed and Spirit born. The things of life—all the mess and beauty—are metaphorically or literally submersed in the water to be cared for as may be needed—and as God knows is needed. And our core identity as beautiful and beloved children of God is named and celebrated.
The other piece of today’s story we simply must not overlook is that the waters of Baptism are not restricted. There is no “separate but equal,” no segregation in God’s love. There is no exclusion in God’s love. There is no keypad code, code word, or season pass required to enter the waters of God’s grace and mercy. There’s not a registration fee, pedigree, or I.D. needed to be water washed and Spirit born. All that’s required is a desire to turn toward a new life in God’s love… And if we really go in and allow more than our forehead to be touched by the waters—if we allow our whole selves to feel the effects of the baptismal waters, then our our hands will be moved to action, our feet moved to stand up in solidarity, our hearts softened with compassion and patience and self-sacrificial love; and the new life we turn toward will lead us deep into relationship with others who also seek God’s love and God’s life, whoever they are and wherever they come from and whatever their history or politics or identity or orientation or ability or anything.
The Church’s history with water and justice is dicey. We play around in the water without letting it really touch or change us, mouthing the words of resistance and freedom without changing any of our behaviors. We bring our kids to get “done” without following through on our promise to raise them in the faith and life of Christ’s love in the community that seeks to follow Jesus. And we so quickly forget the truth that the waters of Baptism flow freely and welcome and wash anyone, no restrictions.
The waters of Baptism flow from the heart of God’s justice, God’s radical hospitality, God’s sacred resistance…God shows no partiality, God receives ALL of us just as we are. And God resists any urge to abandon us when we start trying to toss people out of the pool or when we forget who we are or that we are beautiful and precious in God’s sight or when we fail to see the beauty of a sibling in God’s family.
Friends, water stories in our tradition are always important. And the one we tell today is kinda everything. Let’s try not to ever take it’s life-giving and justice-making power for granted.
[i] https://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2018/10/20/Flint-water-lead-crisis-michigan-neurotoxin-legionnaires-miscarriages/stories/201810150196
[ii] Jesse Jackson, “White Churches Have a Moral Responsibility to Stand Up,” https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/white-churches-have-a-moral-responsibility-to-stand-up
[iii] https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=SHEA+VAUGHAN-GABOR&qft=+filterui%3auserpage-ucn5jhfaz9hijq0fqlpauhgq&view=detail&mid=7E1BCBB57CF66DBD784A7E1BCBB57CF66DBD784A&&FORM=VRDGAR
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