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The Baptism of Our Lord – January 14^th, 2024 Trinity Ev. Lutheran Church, Block, Kansas Rev. Joshua Woelmer Text: Matthew 3:13–17 “Your New Identity” Theme: In baptism, Jesus gives us the identity of child of God, and that is Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. As a parent, one thing you learn as your kids grow up is that discipline needs to change as well. You can’t discipline a 16-year-old like they’re a 5-year-old. That age difference might be common sense, but getting from one point to another can take some time to work out. A slap on the wrist might work for a certain age, but withholding driving privileges definitely won’t work for other ages. One form of verbal discipline that a lot of parents use on older kids goes something like this—and I’ll pretend it’s me speaking to my own kids: “What you did was wrong. We Woelmers don’t do that sort of a thing.” You can insert your own last name there. Maybe when they grow up a little, you can say something like, “I don’t want to see our last name in the newspaper,” meaning arrested for a crime. What this does is remind your kids that their behavior comes from somewhere. You have taught them to behave in a certain way, and you want them to live up to the name that you’ve given them. This works similarly for good things. Take the example of names in the newspaper. A dad can say that out one side of his mouth, but when his son is the quarterback for the football team that wins the state championship, he’s proud that his son with his last name is in the newspaper, even though he himself didn’t take the field. Likewise, if your kid won a spelling bee or got on the honor roll, or is in the newspaper for something good, we cut out those clippings and take pride in them. A parent’s identity is tied up with their child. Really, each of our identities are tied up with one another. Husband and wife, grandparent and grandchild, uncle and nephew, and cousin and cousin. These are some of the most important identities because they are given to us. What do I mean by that? Well, you have no choice in who your parents are. They were given to you, and you were given to them. They brought you into this world. You are a part of their family. You can’t do anything to change that. It’s written into your DNA. We recognize this even when our parents have passed away. You don’t say “My dad ceased to be my dad when he died.” No, you say, “My dad is in heaven.” Or “My dad is buried out there, and I’ll see him again one day.” You could, I suppose, try to reject it. Some people hate their parents a lot. But even if you change your last name out of hatred for them, they remain your parents. Family: you can either love ‘em or hate ‘em. I brought up this idea of “givens” as important to identity, because not all of our identities are givens. You can choose some things about your life. You can choose your job. You can choose your hobbies. You can choose the clothes you put on each day. But not everything in this life is a choice. Even the person you marry might seem like a choice at the time, but anyone who’s married for any time knows that your spouse is a gift from God. Same with children: they might seem like a choice, but it is God who gives children. Just as God gives you an identity for this world by placing you in a family, He also gives you a greater identity as well. That is what Holy Baptism is all about. Today we celebrate the Baptism of Our Lord. What I want you to see in Jesus’s baptism is a connection to your own baptism. Let’s look at this story. Jesus came to the Jordan to be baptized by John. If I were John the Baptist, I would be similarly confused: “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (14). Baptism was initially a rite to purify non-Jews of their sin and recognize them as set apart from other Gentiles. John the Baptist had come and told Jews that they too needed to be baptized for their sin, so many came out to see him. Why would Jesus need to be cleansed of sin though? Even John the Baptist knew that Jesus didn’t need baptism. He hadn’t done anything wrong in his whole childhood or young adulthood. But Jesus answered, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (15). That phrase is interesting. To fulfill all righteousness? What does that mean? What it means is that Jesus came to do a task: to forgive your sins and promise you eternal life. He accomplishes this by taking your sin from you and onto his back. He does this by taking that sin to the cross, dying, and rising again on the third day. Colossians 2:14 describes it this way: “[Christ canceled] the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.” But when did Christ take up your sin onto him? When did he go to the bank and say, “Give me all your records of debt for so-in-so. I’ll work on paying them off”? He did it at his baptism. The traditional interpretation of Jesus’s baptism is that when he was baptized, it’s not that he was forgiven of sin, it’s that he took your sin upon himself. Think of it as the opposite of your baptism. When you were baptized, all of your sin was washed away. God made you his child. But Jesus takes that sin in the water, and 2000 years ago he drew that sin into himself. In a way, you could say that Jesus is the worst sinner in the world. At least, that’s the way God the Father saw him: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor 5:21). What’s the identity of Jesus? When he was on the cross, it was “sin.” But by living the perfect life and dying the perfect death, he left sin at the cross. What’s your identity? The passage I just quoted says this: “in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Even though you know that you are a sinner in your flesh. Even though you struggle with doubt and temptation and so much more, remember how God sees you. When He sees you, He sees Jesus’s righteousness. That righteousness is given to you in your baptism. You are clothed in perfection. You are considered forgiven of all your sins. That is a new identity. It is a wonderful one. Does it mean that sometimes God can tell you, “You’re a Christian, act like one.” Well, yeah, from time to time when we may not be doing what we should. Does it mean that God is proud of you when you do good works or forgive your neighbor? Does it mean that God is happy when you sing praises to Him, when you love Him and thank Him and glorify Him? Yes, not because he’s a tyrant who demands those things, but because He is your loving Father. Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen. Return to Top \| Return to Sermons \| Home \| Email Church Office

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The Baptism of Our Lord – January 14^th, 2024

Trinity Ev. Lutheran Church, Block, Kansas

Rev. Joshua Woelmer

Text: Matthew 3:13–17

“Your New Identity”

Theme: In baptism, Jesus gives us the identity of child of God, and that is

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

As a parent, one thing you learn as your kids grow up is that discipline needs to change as well. You can’t discipline a 16-year-old like they’re a 5-year-old. That age difference might be common sense, but getting from one point to another can take some time to work out. A slap on the wrist might work for a certain age, but withholding driving privileges definitely won’t work for other ages.

One form of verbal discipline that a lot of parents use on older kids goes something like this—and I’ll pretend it’s me speaking to my own kids: “What you did was wrong. We Woelmers don’t do that sort of a thing.” You can insert your own last name there. Maybe when they grow up a little, you can say something like, “I don’t want to see our last name in the newspaper,” meaning arrested for a crime.

What this does is remind your kids that their behavior comes from somewhere. You have taught them to behave in a certain way, and you want them to live up to the name that you’ve given them.

This works similarly for good things. Take the example of names in the newspaper. A dad can say that out one side of his mouth, but when his son is the quarterback for the football team that wins the state championship, he’s proud that his son with his last name is in the newspaper, even though he himself didn’t take the field.

Likewise, if your kid won a spelling bee or got on the honor roll, or is in the newspaper for something good, we cut out those clippings and take pride in them.

A parent’s identity is tied up with their child. Really, each of our identities are tied up with one another. Husband and wife, grandparent and grandchild, uncle and nephew, and cousin and cousin. These are some of the most important identities because they are given to us.

What do I mean by that? Well, you have no choice in who your parents are. They were given to you, and you were given to them. They brought you into this world. You are a part of their family. You can’t do anything to change that. It’s written into your DNA. We recognize this even when our parents have passed away. You don’t say “My dad ceased to be my dad when he died.” No, you say, “My dad is in heaven.” Or “My dad is buried out there, and I’ll see him again one day.” You could, I suppose, try to reject it. Some people hate their parents a lot. But even if you change your last name out of hatred for them, they remain your parents. Family: you can either love ‘em or hate ‘em.

I brought up this idea of “givens” as important to identity, because not all of our identities are givens. You can choose some things about your life. You can choose your job. You can choose your hobbies. You can choose the clothes you put on each day. But not everything in this life is a choice. Even the person you marry might seem like a choice at the time, but anyone who’s married for any time knows that your spouse is a gift from God. Same with children: they might seem like a choice, but it is God who gives children.

Just as God gives you an identity for this world by placing you in a family, He also gives you a greater identity as well. That is what Holy Baptism is all about. Today we celebrate the Baptism of Our Lord.

What I want you to see in Jesus’s baptism is a connection to your own baptism. Let’s look at this story.

Jesus came to the Jordan to be baptized by John. If I were John the Baptist, I would be similarly confused: “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (14). Baptism was initially a rite to purify non-Jews of their sin and recognize them as set apart from other Gentiles. John the Baptist had come and told Jews that they too needed to be baptized for their sin, so many came out to see him.

Why would Jesus need to be cleansed of sin though? Even John the Baptist knew that Jesus didn’t need baptism. He hadn’t done anything wrong in his whole childhood or young adulthood. But Jesus answered, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (15). That phrase is interesting. To fulfill all righteousness? What does that mean?

What it means is that Jesus came to do a task: to forgive your sins and promise you eternal life. He accomplishes this by taking your sin from you and onto his back. He does this by taking that sin to the cross, dying, and rising again on the third day. Colossians 2:14 describes it this way: “[Christ canceled] the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.”

But when did Christ take up your sin onto him? When did he go to the bank and say, “Give me all your records of debt for so-in-so. I’ll work on paying them off”? He did it at his baptism. The traditional interpretation of Jesus’s baptism is that when he was baptized, it’s not that he was forgiven of sin, it’s that he took your sin upon himself.

Think of it as the opposite of your baptism. When you were baptized, all of your sin was washed away. God made you his child. But Jesus takes that sin in the water, and 2000 years ago he drew that sin into himself. In a way, you could say that Jesus is the worst sinner in the world. At least, that’s the way God the Father saw him: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor 5:21).

What’s the identity of Jesus? When he was on the cross, it was “sin.” But by living the perfect life and dying the perfect death, he left sin at the cross.

What’s your identity? The passage I just quoted says this: “in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Even though you know that you are a sinner in your flesh. Even though you struggle with doubt and temptation and so much more, remember how God sees you. When He sees you, He sees Jesus’s righteousness.

That righteousness is given to you in your baptism. You are clothed in perfection. You are considered forgiven of all your sins. That is a new identity. It is a wonderful one.

Does it mean that sometimes God can tell you, “You’re a Christian, act like one.” Well, yeah, from time to time when we may not be doing what we should.

Does it mean that God is proud of you when you do good works or forgive your neighbor? Does it mean that God is happy when you sing praises to Him, when you love Him and thank Him and glorify Him? Yes, not because he’s a tyrant who demands those things, but because He is your loving Father.

Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.

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