My dad taught me
to swim. I don’t know why it was my dad. My mom was a stronger swimmer. She had
taken classes in college and often practiced different strokes in the pool at
the apartment complex where we lived in Parkway Village. But it was my dad who taught
me to swim.
Things began
well. Dad taught me to “breathe” underwater, then how to float, and, finally,
to swim. Then it was time to take a dive. At that point, all the trust that I
had gained in my father – and in myself – just disappeared. It came whooshing
out like air from a busted raft! Horrific images filled my vision every time I
stood at the edge of the pool and looked down into the water. Seemed like all I
could see was concrete, and I quite well what happens when a body hits concrete! Dad realized we would have to progress slowly. VERY
slowly. We could start, he said, by jumping in feet first. But I wouldn’t even
do that!
I couldn’t tell
you how much time we spent – my dad and I – stuck in that one spot. Dad stood
in waist-deep water, holding out his arms, and saying, “Trust me, baby. I’ll
catch you.” And I stood obstinately at the edge of the pool and slowly shook my
head, “No.” But my dad refused to give up on me. Oh, he got frustrated alright!
He got exasperated and downright mad even. But he did not give up on me. And he
did not let me off the hook. He KNEW I could do it. And he was determined to
prove it to me, too.
Slowly, it began
to sink in. My dad had not let me drown when he was teaching me to stick my
head under water. He had not let me sink to the bottom when he was teaching me
to float. And he had been there to hold me up when I was learning the
breaststroke. Dad had proved to be reliable. He even seemed to know what he was
talking about! So, chances were pretty good that he would not let me hit the
concrete floor of that pool now. So, after what
must have been about a hundred false starts, I finally gathered up my courage,
took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and jumped! And Dad caught me. He was
faithful. He had waited me out, and he was there to catch me, just as he had
promised. As I shook the water out of my eyes, I remember my father’s voice,
calling out from far overhead, “Way to go, Jody Lynn! I am SO proud of you!” It
is a moment I will never forget.
So much was
wrapped up in that one moment! When I took that leap of faith, I came to see
how much my Dad loved me because he was there for me and he believed in me. He
believed in me when nobody else did. And he was proud of me! He proudly proclaimed to everybody who would listen that I was HIS child. And, with that kind of love
and confidence behind me, I felt like I could do ANYTHING!
That’s what
baptism is all about. It’s about being claimed by God. It’s about the heavens
opening up as you realize, perhaps for the first time or maybe for the millionth
time, just how much God loves you.
That’s how it
happened for Jesus. He was a grown man, and he came from Galilee one day to his
cousin John, who was baptizing people in the Jordan River. Needless to say,
it is an important event. It is so important that all four gospel writers tell
us about the baptism of Jesus, but the facts of the story change, depending on
who is telling it. In Matthew’s gospel, we are told that Jesus has just come up
out of the Jordan River when a voice from heaven proclaims, “This is my son,
the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”
Can you imagine
how it must have felt to hear those words? “This is MY son. I LOVE him. And I
am so very proud of him.” Surely, every child lives to hear those words. “This
is MY child.” To be claimed. To be given an identity.
Jesus was one of
those kids who probably grew up being a little bit confused about his parentage.
Even if Mary and Joseph had always claimed Jesus as their son, surely he must
have heard the rumors. About Mary getting pregnant before the wedding. And the
claim that she had not had sex until after Jesus was born. That, somehow, the child
conceived in Mary was from the Holy Spirit. Scripture tells us that Jesus was
wise beyond his years, but, still, that’s a lot for a kid to take in. It’s a
lot for GROWN-UPS to understand. So you just figure, if Jesus was human, like
us, and grew, like us, then there MUST have been times in his life when he
wondered, “Who AM I REALLY?”
Surely there
were times when Jesus had an inkling, a feeling, some level of awareness that
he was God’s child. You know Mary must have told Jesus about Joseph’s dream and
the star and the wise men and all the scripture that was fulfilled when he was
born. But, still, there’s nothing quite like hearing the words, “This is MY
Child! Oh, how I love him! I am so very pleased with him.”
Matthew tells us
that, when Jesus was baptized the heavens were opened, and of course they were!
The awareness, the insight, the understanding … to suddenly be able to see
yourself as GOD sees you! Precious! Beloved! Chosen! Could anything be any
better than this? It must have been a huge moment in the life of Christ.
It is a huge
moment in anyone’s life. Sometimes, it happens all at once. The heavens are
opened, and there’s a big, blinded by the light, sudden realization that YOU
are God’s beloved child. That God loves YOU so much that he sent Jesus into the
world to save YOU from sin. But, for a lot of us, especially those of us who
have been raised in church, hearing the stories of Jesus over and over, the
heavens may happen slowly over time.[iii] It may not even happen in worship. You
might be at camp or a Christian concert or in Vacation Bible School when the
heavens are opened and you realize that God truly loves YOU.
Or it may happen
in a more ordinary and unexpected way.[iv] Maybe you’re out looking at the stars
one night and the heavens are opened and God speaks peace right into your
heart. Or you’re holding your first grandchild and the heavens are opened and
your heart is flooded with a profound sense of love and joy and gratitude. Or
maybe you’re standing by the side of a loved one’s grave and the heavens are
opened and you realize that there is indeed life beyond death. The heavens can
be opened in many different ways and at many different times in our lives. God
can speak, and we can be converted more than once. Because conversion is about
changing. And the love of God, which is recognized in our baptism, isn’t just
planted in us. It takes root and continues to grow.[v]
That’s what
happened to Fayette.[vi]
Fayette was a homeless woman who lived with mental illness and lupus. Years
ago, she found her way to Hobson UMC in Nashville, where she joined a new
members class. The pastor, a woman named Janet Wolf, told the class that
baptism is that holy moment when we are named by God’s grace with such power it
will NOT come undone. That really grabbed Fayette’s imagination. Time and
again, Fayette would ask the class, “And when I’m baptized, I am…?” The class
learned to respond, “Beloved, precious child of God, and beautiful to behold.”
“Oh yes!” Fayette would say, and then the class would go back to its
discussion.
On the day of
her baptism, Fayette went under, came up spluttering and cried, “And now I
am…?” And the whole congregation sang, “Beloved, precious child of God, and
beautiful to behold!” “Oh, yes!” Fayette shouted as she danced all around the
fellowship hall.
Two months
later, the pastor received a phone call. Fayette had been beaten and raped and
was at the county hospital. The pastor went right away. From a distance, she
could see Fayette pacing back and forth. When the pastor got to the door, she
heard, “I am beloved….” Fayette turned, saw the pastor, and said, “I am
beloved, precious child of God, and ….” Then she caught sight of herself in the
mirror. Her hair was sticking up, blood and tears streaked her face. Her dress
was torn and dirty and buttoned wrong. Fayette started again. “I am beloved,
precious child of God, and ….” She looked in the mirror again. Then she
declared, “… and God is still working on me. If you come back tomorrow, I’ll be
so beautiful I’ll take your breath away!”
Fayette got it. The heavens were opened, and she truly understood that God loves her. One of the most
profound songs of the Christian faith is a simple children’s tune. “Jesus loves
me, this I know.” But there are so many people who DON’T know. They have NOT
heard. For them, the heavens have not opened. They are closed. They have no
idea how precious they are to God. And the sad is truth is that they do not
know because we have not told them.
When we join the
church, we promise to serve as Christ’s representatives in the world. Jesus
came so that we might know just how much God loves us. For many of us, the heavens HAVE
been opened. We have heard the voice of God calling our names and saying, “This
is my child. Oh, how I love you!” And the Spirit has been poured out on us,
just as it was poured out on Jesus! So we know the truth. And we have the
power! We have the power to open up the heavens for others.
We have the power. Will we use it?
[i]
Baptism and Confirmation. Claim the Name: Confirmation Teaching Plans.
Crystal A. Zinkiewicz, senior editor. Nashville: Cokesbury. The United
Methodist Publishing House, 2000. P. 126.
[ii]
Zinkiewicz, 126.
[iii]
Rev. Dr. Dawn Chesser. “The Heavens Are Opened- Preaching Notes.” Published on
the United Methodist Discipleship Ministries website at https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/the-heavens-are-opened-preaching-notes.
Downloaded January 7, 2017.
[iv] Chesser.
[v] Chesser.
[vi] The
story of Fayette’s baptism is told by Janet Wolf in a story entitled, “Chosen
for…”which is published in Companions in Christ: Leader’s Guide. Stephen
D. Bryant, Janice T. Grana, and Marjorie J. Thompson, eds. Nashville: Upper
Room Books, 2001. Pp. 36-37.
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