1 Epiphany January 11, 2009
NEW BEGINNINGS The Rev David Kidd Our lessons for this day are all about beginnings. Genesis shows us the beginning of Creation itself, with the Spirit and the Word of God bringing light out of darkness and order out of chaos. The account from Acts shows Christian Baptism as the conscious beginning of transformed and empowered life in Christ. In Mark’s account of Jesus’ baptism, God affirms Jesus’ identity as his Beloved Son and empowers him with the Holy Spirit to guide and sustain him in the ministry he is about to begin. God is all about new beginnings for us, his children. I use the plural of that word "beginnings" very much on purpose. God does not bless us, pat us on the back, and send us off to fend for ourselves following our baptism. Instead, as with Jesus, God imparts to us his Holy Spirit to empower and guide us as we seek to live out our baptized life in Christ. St Paul celebrates God’s empowerment of us in his prayer for the church at Ephesus. We heard these words in our second lesson last Sunday, but they are well worth hearing again today because they express the heart and soul of the new beginning which God grants us in Holy Baptism. "I remember you in my prayers and ask the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, to give you the Spirit, who will make you wise and reveal God to you, so that you may know him. I ask that your minds may be opened to see his light, so that you will know what is the hope to which he has called you, how rich are the wonderful blessings he promises his people, and how very great is his power at work in us who believe. This power working in us is the same as the mighty strength which he used when he raised Christ from death and seated him at his right side in the heavenly world." (Eph 1:17-20) Beloved, that’s a powerful tool box God has given us with which to face the challenges and opportunities of our day to day lives. God gives us these gifts to empower us for the mission to which he calls us. It’s Jesus’ own mission, the mission of the Church, and our mission as those baptized into the death and resurrection of Christ, and made members of his Body, adopted by God the Father as brothers and sisters of Jesus. I ask you to turn with me to page 855 in the Prayer Book and to respond in unison to the questions as I read them to you. What is the mission of the Church?
The mission of the Church is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ.
How does the Church pursue its mission?
The Church pursues its mission as it prays and worships, proclaims the Gospel, and promotes justice, peace, and love.
Q.Through whom does the Church carry out its mission?
The Church carries out its mission through the ministry of all its members.
Who are the ministers of the Church?
The ministers of the Church are lay persons, bishops, priests, and deacons.
I hope you noticed that you, as lay persons, are listed first among the ministers of the Church - before bishops, priests, and deacons. That’s because we become ministers of the Church by Baptism, not Ordination. Ordination sets apart those lay ministers the Church chooses to serve it in special functions of its life together as the Body of Christ. These specialized ministries are described in the continuation of the Catechism and in the services of Ordination as set forth in the Prayer Book. I commend them to your prayerful study.
But for right now, I ask you to turn over to page 856 for the final question of this section on ministry:
What is the duty of all Christians?
The duty of all Christians is to follow Christ; to come together week by week for corporate worship; and to work, pray, and give for the spread of the kingdom of God.
Jesus was baptized not because he needed it, but because we needed it. He chose to become like us so that we might become more like him - fully human persons reflecting the image of God in which we were created. As we celebrate Jesus’ baptism this day, let us stand, turn to page 292 of the Prayer Book, and join in the renewing of our own Baptismal vows. - -
