Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."   

Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, 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."

The camel hair-wearing, locust and honey-eating prophet John the Baptist is depicted as eccentric, strong willed, and brazenly antagonistic against the powers and principalities of his time. Recall, just before today’s gospel reading John looks out over the crowd who had come to be baptized by him and calls them a “brood of vipers.” So it seems a little out of character to hear him diminish the importance of what he is doing when he says, “I baptize you with water, but one more powerful than I is coming…” It sounds like he thinks baptizing with water isn’t that important or meaningful in light of the coming Christ. It sounds like he thinks the coming Christ will not concern himself with water but instead will bear something much more inspiring and intimidating – fire.

With the privilege of hindsight, we know that John’s concept of the Messiah didn’t quite measure up to real life. After all, there’s only one account in the four gospels of Jesus talking about fire. But there are many more instances of Jesus’ ministry taking place in, through, and around water. For example,

Jesus turns water into wine
Jesus walks on water
Jesus calms the seas
Jesus washes the disciples’ feet
Jesus asks a Samaritan woman for a drink of water from a well
Jesus teaches about the importance of divine “living water”
and Jesus says, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.” (John 3:5)

John shouldn’t have sold himself short; turns out water is the perfect medium for the Holy Spirit to manifest God’s miraculous and redeeming presence. It also turns out that water is a great metaphor for God. On this day in which we celebrate Jesus’ baptism as well as our own baptism, it seems like the perfect time to talk about little about just how aqueous God can be.

[Earth ball or globe]

At its most fundamental level, water enables life. Without water, we wouldn’t be here; there would be no life whatsoever. The billions of dollars spent on space exploration each year is essentially a search for water in outer space. Where there’s water, there’s life. What better image of God than of the very substance that makes life possible. In our baptism we were touched by the source of life itself.

[Water poured into baptismal font]

While every element can exist as a liquid, water is the only liquid that “performs an active, diverse, and flexible role” within molecular systems.*

Water is the source of life because it is inherently active, diverse, and flexible. So too, God is, by nature, active, diverse, and flexible. We would want no part of a God whose nature is inactive, monotonous, and rigid. In our baptism we were invited into a relationship with a God who participates in life, exists beyond our comprehension, and can work in mysterious ways. So too, our everyday lived-out faith demands that we would be active in the world, that we would thrive within diverse systems, and that we would trust in truths we cannot comprehend.

[Food coloring]

Those qualities in water make it an effective solvent, meaning that water is the most effective liquid with regard to dissolving nutrients from one thing and transport them to another. In our baptism, water served to transport the divine nutrients of God’s love and God’s presence into our human nature. Similarly, we remember that our baptism is something that should always be outwardly expressed. Just as water and the Word transported God’s love to us in baptism, our purpose as disciples is to share God’s love with others.

[Dinosaur toy]

It’s also true that there is as much water on earth today as there was when the earth was formed. The next cup of water you drink could very well be the exact same water that dinosaurs drank millions of years ago. Or, if you prefer to think of it this way, the water that sealed your baptism could be the same water that Jesus waded into in his baptism. This fact reminds us that God is enduring; God’s presence unites us with all that has come before us and all that will come after us. The baptismal waters are not a passing fad; rather, the baptismal water that bears of the promise of God’s love has been around from the beginning of time.

[Lake Michigan stone]

We are also aware of water’s power to impact the environment. From the smooth edges of pebbles to the mile-deep carving of the Grand Canyon, water is an unparalleled force that leaves an enduring visible legacy. A persistent drop of water can eventually dissolve a hole through a rock. A rushing river can carve out an earthen trench a mile deep. What better reminder of God’s power in our lives than to take the time to look back and see the paths that God has carved out for us. In our baptism God powerfully and eternally clears away sin, death, and all that would otherwise separate us from God. Our everyday lived-out faith has the same powerful force behind it; for “nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:37).

[Water balloon]

Water also forces things to expand, which can make things unpredictable. Something that has been filled with water to the point of expansion is just begging to release that water. When we remember our baptism we not only recall the fact that water was placed on us, but more importantly we are called to remember that divine water wells us within us and stretches us beyond our comfort zones. Yes, this water balloon will not last as long as its sibling from the package that remains completely dry. The dry one will last longer, but what is the point of a balloon if it is never inflated with anything?

Self-preservation can seem like the foundational force of human nature, but that’s no way to live. Look at this picture of dried cod from a Norwegian museum. That fish is hundreds of years old. It is perfectly preserved and completely dry and lasts much longer than hydrated fish; but who wants to be a dried cod Christian? Who wants to play it safe and have all the divine water drained from their soul just in the name of self-preservation? Our everyday lived-out faith is by nature a drippy faith that makes life possible, stretches us beyond our self-imposed limits, makes us grow, and compels us to share our faith with others.

[Martin Luther toy]

Martin Luther reminds us of the importance of remembering our baptism each day. This means each day as we give thanks for the role that water plays in our physical life we should let water remind us of the qualities of God that inform a healthy physical and spiritual life.

The next time it rains, remember you are baptized by the God who makes life possible.

The next time you add water to a recipe in order to blend different ingredients into something new, remember that God is active, diverse, and flexible.

The next time you take a drink of water that has been around from the beginning of creation, remember that God is eternal.

The next time you see a stream, river, valley, or smooth stone, remember God’s power and ability to shape new things.

The next time you see something filled with water, remember God designed us to expand, push our limits, and live adventurous lives full of risk.

People of God, remember your baptism and, in so doing, may you positively drip with God’s grace, peace, and love.

*https://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/solarsystem/Water:_Molecule_of_Life.html

Luke 2:41-52

Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day's journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him.

After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, "Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety." He said to them, "Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" But they did not understand what he said to them. Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.

The gospel story for today is the only canonized account of Jesus’ childhood. The primary reason why we do not have any other stories is that no one really cared about kids at this time in history. A child’s every move and milestone was not tracked in a baby journal or documented in real time on Instagram. Truth be told, the reason why we have so few stories of children in scripture, Jesus included, is the same reason why we have so few stories of women in scripture. They just were not important in that culture.

If you recall the story of Jesus’ birth we read on Christmas Eve, it might have struck you as odd that Mary is barely mentioned. There’s all the background about which male rulers were in charge at the time, the male shepherds hear the good news from the angel, there’s no room in the inn, and then we have passing mention that Jesus was born. No labor, no appreciation for Mary’s hard work. Jesus just shows up and he might as well have been carried in and dropped off by a stork.

Now, there’s much more to be said about the absence of women and children in scripture; however, for our purposes this morning I will simply acknowledge that reality and then ask, “Why, then, was this story included?”

It’s worth pointing out that this is not a story about parenting. We can’t get stuck on the thought, “How could Mary and Joseph, those awful parents, lose track of Jesus for over three days?” Sure, it’s not a great look; it is, however, understandable. People journeying to Jerusalem for Passover would do so in a caravan. Kids, as they are want to do, move at their own speed and there would have been an assumption within the group that the care of the kids was everyone’s shared responsibility, not just the immediate parents.

One reason why this story of a 12 year-old Jesus is included because it is an account of a child being exceptional. Sure, all parents thinks their children are exceptional; but in order to really be someone special in this time and place, it helped to have a legend of an exceptional experience as a child.

The great leaders in Roman history were the only ones whose childhood stories were told. After all, the Caesars claimed to be divine, and divinity isn’t just something you stumble into as an adult; rather, one has to show signs that there was something special the whole time. For example, Caesar Augustus, at the age of 12, is told to have delivered a public funeral oration for his grandmother that impressed the nation.

If the only story about a child you hear is about your Lord, Caesar, demonstrating academic skill as a 12 year-old, imagine how your attention would be peaked when you hear of another 12 year-old who taught rabbis in the temple and amazed them with his insight. Could this person be divine, like the Caesars are divine?

This phenomenon of being drawn to stories of exceptional children has persisted through the centuries. There are stories of Mozart playing harpsichord at age 4, composing melodies at age 5, as well the account of him hearing an a performance at the Vatican at age 15 and going home to copy the whole orchestration down on paper by memory. Then there’s French mathematician Blaise Pascal who, despite no formal education, published a paper at at 15 that drew the attention of René Descartes.

The achievements of these men are impressive on their own, but the addition of their remarkable stories of childhood do seem to add something special and unique to their mystique.

The story of the amazing 12 year-old Jesus not only adds to his aura, but on a more practical level, the story gives encouragement to Luke’s original audience, itself a community of faith very much in its adolescence. Imagine you are a part of the first wave of Christ followers. You have very likely been separated from your family as a result of your belief in the Messiahship of Jesus. Nevertheless, you left your family to pursue God’s claim on your life. You hear the story of Jesus who also felt comfortable leaving his family in order to pursue God’s claim on his life. Not only that, but the adolescent Jesus has something valuable and instructive to teach the existing church; just like you and your movement of Christ followers. This story is very much an allegory for the life of Luke’s initial audience.

And finally, there’s the connection with what would come to mark the end of Jesus’ life. How many days did it take Mary and Joseph to find Jesus? Three. Yes, after three days of being lost, Jesus returned to his family and friends. What he was doing in those three days was something incredible, unique, powerful, and divine. In much the same way, Jesus, having been crucified, was gone for three days, doing something incredible, unique, powerful, and divine.

This was a story for a particular group of people to encourage them to claim their authority as followers of Christ. While much has changed today, the church is still very much in a period of adolescence. What never changes, however, is that true authority resides within God’s Word, and pursuing God’s Word will lead us to make sacrifices. There will be times when, in obeying God’s Word, we find ourselves separated from everything we thought we knew or held dear; but we will be found again. Our lostness is never permanent. And our proverbial three days of lostness will allow us to accomplish something incredible, unique, powerful, and divine.

Water God

Three Days of Being Lost