“You Are My Beloved”

 by The Rev. William G. Lamont, Pastor

“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.’”  Luke 3:21-22

Last summer, a friend of mine lost his wallet…all his cash, his driver’s license, his credit cards, his health insurance card…everything gone!  It was a real nightmare.  He went to the DMV to get a temporary driver’s license and the lady behind the counter said to him:  “I’ll need two pieces of ID.”  He said, “But I just told you I’ve lost my wallet with all my identification.”  “Well the rules are the rules - I need two pieces of identification before we can proceed.”  He was without credentials.

It’s a helpless feeling to be without credentials.  A few years ago there was a commercial for American Express Traveler’s Checks on the television.  It pictured a couple on vacation in a foreign country who had been pick-pocketed…all their cash was gone.  The couple was frantically rushing here and there trying to get the necessary funds, and not even able to identify who they were to authorities.  It then showed another couple, who also had been robbed, but they had lost traveler’s checks!  They were lounging by the pool sipping tropical drinks while new traveler’s checks are personally delivered to them.  The point was clear – if you carry American Express traveler’s checks, you might get robbed but you’ll never be completely without credentials.

Having credentials is important.  We want them so badly that sometimes we’ll even chase after false credentials.  Back in the 16th century, Pope Leo X was rebuilding St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.  The cost of the project was huge and he needed a way to fund it.  He came up with the idea of selling indulgences to church members who gave alms to the church.  An indulgence is the full or partial forgiveness of temporal punishment for sins that have been committed.  If a person had neglected Mass, absconded funds from work, or cheated on their spouse, they could go to confession, and ask for forgiveness.  The priest would grant forgiveness, after assigning penance – a temporal debt to be performed…prayers, fasting, or charitable work.  The sale of Indulgences was a way to sidestep or shorten penance.  It was said – I don’t know if it’s true, but I’ve heard that it was even possible to buy an indulgence for a sin you hadn’t committed yet!

The Catholic Church pushed the sale of indulgences throughout Europe, and this led to a minor protest by a little- known monk named Martin Luther.  Martin Luther tacked his “95 Theses” on the Wittenberg church door in October of 1517…it was 95 issues or disagreements he had with the church – things he wanted to debate with the church.  One of the issues he had was over the sale of indulgences, which he argued was the selling of salvation – something only God could grant.  Well, the printing press had just been invented, and somebody took down Luther’s document, printed it and spread it all over Germany.  Soon, what was the minor revolt of one monk had become a large-scale movement for reform…known as the Protestant Reformation.  And now you know the rest of the story.

In spite of the protest, the sale of indulgences was quite popular and Pope Leo raised a good deal of money to help finance the rebuilding of St Peter’s.  So why were indulgences so popular?  Because people desire credentials…something to point to that says they are legitimate…they are authentic, they belong…they are loved.    If you go in my office the first thing you will see on the wall are my credentials.  There’s a Bachelor of Arts degree from York University in Toronto, and a diploma of graduation from Knox College in Toronto, and a  Masters of Divinity degree from Knox College.  I was never more thankful to have those credentials as I was a couple years ago when I received a surprise visit from Homeland Security.  I had applied for a green card and they wanted to know if I was legitimate and whether Hidenwood Presbyterian Church was in fact a real church.  The fellow was very interested in those pieces of paper on my wall.  He studied them closely and even took photocopies of them back with him.  

Credentials are important…so I ask you this morning:  What are your credentials before God?  How do you know that God loves you?  On what basis can you claim to be a child of God?  What can you point to that gives you the assurance that you are God’s beloved?   Obviously I’m not talking about the kind of credentials you find in your wallet or tacked to your wall.  There’s no credit card you can pull out that will give that kind of assurance, and no diploma either…even your ribbon for perfect Sunday school attendance won’t do it.  So what can you point to?  
  

I believe the best sign we have of God’s love for us is our baptism. Baptism is a sacrament and the best definition I’ve heard for a sacrament is – it’s a meeting…a holy meeting between God and us.  In baptism God meets us at the font and there is a sacred exchange that takes place.  It’s as if the minister is saying “God, I’d like you to meet Johnny Jacobs…he’s being presented for baptism.  And Johnny Jacobs, I’d like you to meet God.”  The two may have already met before but this is a formal meeting where a formal exchange takes place.  Johnny Jacobs, or his parents acting on his behalf, makes vows to God, and God blesses the baptized one – claiming them as a child of the covenant.  So baptism is a holy meeting that assures us that we are God’s own.  
  

In Luke’s gospel today we have the story of Jesus being baptized.  Luke’s account of the baptism of Jesus is the most scant of any of the gospels – just two verses in all.  Luke does not even mention the place where Jesus was baptized…just that he was baptized with a crowd of others.  Nor does Luke tell us who did the baptism.  Our assumption would be that it was John but Luke has already said that John the Baptist had been arrested by Herod and put in prison!  The account is scant and leaves unanswered questions, but the part that receives attention is the exchange between God and Jesus.  Luke tells us that Jesus was praying while he was being baptized and it was then that the heavens opened up, the Holy Spirit descended as a dove and a voice from heaven said: “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”
  

For Luke, the important part about the baptism is what it is declared by God to Jesus:  Jesus is recognized as the beloved Son of God.  And isn’t the same true for the sacrament for us too – what’s important isn’t the place you were baptized, who performed the baptism, or whether they sprinkled, doused or dunked you.  What’s important is what God declares to us in that sacred act.  Our baptism declares that we belong to God.  Our baptism proclaims us children of the Covenant!  Our baptism assures us that we are the beloved of God!  And God’s love for us never ends.  Your love for God might wax and wane, but God’s love is steadfast and sure forever.  You might forget God but God never forgets you!  Because when God is introduced to you and hears your name spoken aloud, God never forgets that name!  You are known and loved eternally.
    

There is a Presbyterian minister in San Diego who is known for his work in church renewal.  What’s unique about him is where he has focused his attention.  Most preachers who are trying to renew the church have focused on music – they are pushing contemporary music - tearing out church organs and replacing them with guitars and drums.  Some have focused on liturgy - they’ve simplified the liturgy, cut back on formality and introduced more folksy language into the service.  This minister plays the guitar and has taught his congregation some contemporary songs, but it’s not the focus of renewal for him.  He dresses less formal than many clergy, but again, that’s not the focus of renewal for him…in fact he can be formal and informal in the same service.  No, the focus of renewal, according to this pastor, must come through our understanding of the sacraments.  He’s pushing for renewal through a renewed emphasis on the sacraments.  One of the things they did was to replace the old wooden baptismal font that sits closed and off to the side in most churches most of the time.  (Unless there happens to be a baptism).  He replaced it with a larger font with a massive clear glass bowl in it.  There is no lid for the font…it remains open and filled with water at each worship service.  A light has been mounted inside the font that shines up through the bowl.  The light is refracted as it goes through the water and spills the reflection of water onto the ceiling above.  The people in that church are reminded of their credentials every Sunday…they remember their baptism and that they have been washed, renewed, recommitted to God.  The font shouts every Sunday from the front of the sanctuary… “You are God’s beloved!”
  

And when we remember who we are we can become who we are…we can begin to live up to our God-given potential.  Fred Craddock tells a wonderful story of a vacation he and his wife Nettie took together in the Smoky Mountains.  They were having dinner at the Black Bear Inn near Gatlinburg.  An older gentleman came to their table in the hotel dining room and started talking to them.  The man learned that Fred was a minister in the Christian Church and he said “I owe a great deal to a minister of the Christian church” and he pulled up a chair and sat down to tell them his story.
  

Seems he grew up in the mountains, and was known by everyone in the community as an illegitimate child.  His mother never married and in those days there was great shame involved in that.  Nobody knew who the father was although people would talk behind his back about who they thought it might be.  At school the kids would tease him and say things like, “Who’s your father, Ben?”  “When’s your father coming back?”  He had no response to them so he just kept to himself most of the time.
  

In his teens he began to attend a little church called Laurel Spring Christian Church.  He was intrigued by the preacher but was afraid he wouldn’t be welcome so he would arrive just before the sermon and be the first out the door at the end so that nobody ever had a chance to talk to him.  One day, however, he got caught in the aisle and in the crowd and before he could get out the door he felt a hand grab his shoulder.  He turned around and saw it was the minister.  Fear filled his heart:  afraid the minister would find out who he was: 

 
"Well, son," the preacher's voice boomed out, "who’s your father?”  He could hardly have asked a more embarrassing question. The boy flushed and started to stammer -- but before he could say anything more, the preacher said: "Wait a minute, I know!... the resemblance is striking.  You're father is God.  Yea, that’s it; you’re a child of God!"  He slapped him on the backside, looked him straight in the eye and said, "Boy, go claim your inheritance."  “And I left the church a different person.  In fact that was really the beginning of my life.”
  

“That’s a moving story” Fred said to him.  After the man left the couple sitting beside them said to him.  “Do you know who that was talking to you?  That was Ben Hooper…the former governor of the state of Tennessee!”  You are a child of God…made by God, loved by God, chosen by God. Now go out and claim your inheritance!

Let me end with a poem I wrote after my daughter’s baptism years ago now:

“At the Font”

Take my hand little one
And join me on this journey
Come share the joy and experience the love
Which is ours in the blessings of Christ.
Come, and we will learn the stories,
Sing the great hymns,
And share the laughter
That is good news for all.

We will divide our sorrows,
And multiply our joys.
We will build a community and grow and life
That is as beautiful and mysterious
And as wonderful as you are this very day.
For we are God’s people
We are in charge of celebrations!

Amen.