1/7/07 - Baptism of Christ - Luke 3:21-22

YOU ARE HIS CHILD
- Whom he loves
- With whom he is well-pleased

Back in the land of Israel, on the banks of the Jordan River, crowds of people were lined up waiting to be baptized by John. And as they were filing past this forerunner of Christ, who should step into the line, but Jesus himself. And when Jesus’ turn came to be baptized, John was definitely surprised and apprehensive about baptizing his Savior, but after a little convincing, John the Baptist did baptize the Son of God. And as [Jesus] was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” A beautiful scene. An event we well know, but an event we still marvel at. Jesus baptized. The Holy Spirit taking the form of a bird. The Father himself thundering from above. And what interesting words God the Father says to Jesus: “You are my Son whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” The ultimate compliment from the Father to the Son. The ultimate compliment from any parent to any child. Wouldn’t it be great to have your heavenly Father say that to you? “You are my child, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” Wouldn’t that just warm your heart? Wouldn’t that erase any doubts you may have had? Wouldn’t that give you confidence in your relationship with the Lord? But that’s exactly what God the Father does say to you. He loves you, he is well pleased with you, because there is no question, there is no debating: you are God’s child. And you always will be.
Do you have your adoption papers? You are God’s child, but you aren’t God’s child naturally. You and I along with every other believer were adopted by our Father in heaven so that we could be his children. So do you have your adoption papers? You didn’t misplace them, did you? I can’t imagine anyone who has been adopted in this day and age would misplace or forget about or not care about the document that reveals who their new parents are. So do you have the certificate that says who your new Father is? Do you have the document that explains that you were baptized - on such and such a day in such and such a place? That’s an important piece of paper. That’s something worth keeping around. And I’m sure some of you still have it or at least know where it is. Others of you I’m sure don’t have the slightest idea where the certificate of your baptism might be. If you have it: keep it. If you know where it is: get it out. If you can get a copy of it: frame it. If you don’t have it at least remember the date of your baptism. Because your baptism was the single greatest event that has ever happened to you in your life or ever will.
Your baptism was when you were officially adopted. Your baptism was when you became a child of God. Your baptism was one of the most visible and powerful displays that God loves you more than anything else. Just look at what the Lord gave you through baptism compared to what you were able to bring to him.
I would like to read some Bible passages to you and I want you to tell me the blessing of baptism you received in each one. OK? I’m going to read them and I want you to verbally tell me the answer… do you think you can handle that?
Acts 2:38 - Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” What blessing did you receive at your baptism according to this passage? Forgiveness.
Romans 6:4 - “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” What other blessing did you receive? Resurrection, escape from death, new life.
1 Peter 3:21 - “Baptism now saves you also.” This is an easy one… what general blessing did you receive? Salvation.
Acts 2:38 - “Repent and be baptized every one of you… and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” What did you receive? The gift of the Holy Spirit. And what is the gift of the Holy Spirit? That’s right, it’s faith. The main gift the Holy Spirit gives us is faith and it is promised to us through baptism right here in this passage.
And finally, Galatians 3:26, 27 - “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” And what wonderful blessing does this passage indicate we have received? Adoption as sons and daughters.
So at your baptism God gave you forgiveness, deliverance from death, salvation in heaven, the gift of faith, and he adopted you as his child. And what did you bring him? Well, you brought sin along with you to your baptism. That’s why he gave you forgiveness. You brought along the inevitable sentence of death with you to your baptism. That’s why he gave you deliverance from death. You brought the future punishment of eternity in hell with you to your baptism. That’s why he gave you salvation. At your baptism you brought along with you a mind that was spiritually dark, a soul that was spiritually dead, and a heart that was spiritually hostile to God. That’s why God gave you the gift of faith in baptism. And at your baptism you also brought along with you a rebellious nature, and a disobedient brashness of a defiant servant. And so the Lord graciously, lovingly, adopted you not as his servant but as his child.
Do you see what you brought to your baptism? And do you see the love the Lord gave? There was no reason whatsoever for God to shower blessings on you at your baptism because there was nothing you could give him in return. Baptism wasn’t an event where you dedicated your life to the Lord! Baptism wasn’t a ceremony that symbolized your commitment to Christianity! Baptism is the work of the Lord for you! Baptism is where he gives you blessing upon blessing because he loves you! Because he wanted so much for you to be his child. And ever since that day you have been his child. Whom he loves. Forever.
Children, especially small children, tend to want to impress their parents in everything they do. They want their approval. They want to make their parents proud. I’m sure most of you had that desire at some point in your life and, in fact, maybe you still do. Remembering back when you were a little kid, wouldn’t you always say, “Hey, dad, look at me!” or “Hey, mom, watch what I’m doing!” And whatever insignificant thing you were doing at the time you wanted your mom or your dad to see so that they could approve, so that they could be proud of how well you did something.
We are children of our heavenly Father. Children whom he loves. But we also want to be children with whom the Lord is well pleased, don’t we? We want our Father to look at us and approve, to be proud of us for what we’ve done. But, if you remember, that’s not going to happen. Because if God looked at us and the things we do he wouldn’t be well pleased at all! Isaiah said that “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags,” and Paul says that “there is nothing good that lives in [us], that is, in [our] sinful nature.” God will never look down from heaven and be completely pleased by the way we live our lives, because they are so far short of perfection.
This is why I want to take you back to the Jordan River. John the Baptist is baptizing the people, Jesus himself steps in line, and John baptizes the Son of God. Jesus begins to pray, the Holy Spirit comes down in the form of a dove, and the Father says, “You are my son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” The Father looked at the Son and approved. He was proud of what Jesus had accomplished and would accomplish. The Father was completely satisfied with who Jesus was. And what was Jesus exactly? He was our substitute. He stepped up in our place. He took the blow of God’s punishment for us and at his baptism God the Father made that clear. One of the songs we sang for the Seminary choir a few years back referred to Jesus as “heaven’s lightning rod.” Just as a lightning rod is supposed to attract the lightning so that it doesn’t strike buildings or trees, so Jesus attracts God’s punishment so that it doesn’t strike us. That is who Jesus is. Heaven’s lightning rod. That is with whom the Father is well pleased.
And so whenever you read or hear about the baptism of Christ it should always remind you of your own. Because just as the Father is well pleased with his Son, he is also well pleased with you. But it’s not because we can say “Hey, God, look at me! Watch what I can do!” It’s because we can say, “Hey God, look at Jesus! Look at what he has done! I have been baptized in his name.” And the Father will look at Jesus, his only Son, and he will approve. And then the Father will look at you - one who has been washed, one who has been sanctified, one who has been justified in the waters of baptism. And as he stretches out his hand to receive you into his eternal home of perfection he will look you in the eye, and boldly and proudly proclaim: “You are my child, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

Amen.

“You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Sprit of our God.” - 1 Cor. 6:11