In Sharpie

Sermon Delivered at The Local Church
January 12, 2025 • Baptism of the Lord C
Scripture: Luke 3:15–17, 21–22

This abbreviated sermon was given as an introduction to a presentation by Reality Ministries. Learn more about their good work of belonging and belovedness here.

My youngest, Eliza, is in kindergarten this year, and she's learning so much. Everything is new and exciting. Every day, she's exploding with sight words and coming home with all kinds of fun facts about space and animals. Every afternoon, she is giddy for us to take the bright yellow folder out of her backpack to show us what she's been working on and all that she's learning. But I'd wager that in this formative year, the thing she's spent the most time on is practicing writing her name. Eliza. E-L-I-Z-A.

She takes great pride in it. And she should. We picked a good one. But because she takes great pride in it, she wants to write it on everything. Every paper that comes home. Every canvas of artwork. I even caught her recently trying to write it on a five-dollar bill. So I quickly gave her a Post-It Note and said, "Here. Try this instead."

But a few weeks ago, she was rummaging through our pantry and discovered one of those popsicles that come in a long pouch of sugary liquid before you freeze it. I watched her pull it out of the pantry, go straight to our junk drawer to find a Sharpie, and declare, "I want to write my name on this, too, so that people know it's mine." Just like Andy does in Toy Story—writing his name on Woody and Buzz and all the toys.

And this instinct—to mark what belongs to us—is at the heart of what we celebrate today on Baptism of the Lord Sunday.

This morning, we hear the story of Jesus' baptism in the Jordan River. As you heard, the story opens with John at the Jordan River. John, if you recall, is the one sent to prepare the way of the Lord. And here, he's living that out, basically saying, what I'm doing is nothing compared to what Jesus is going to be able to do. What you're getting from me is symbolizing something new, but when he comes, it'll actually make you new—heart, mind, soul—everything.

For the Jewish people, baptism was a ritual act of cleansing or preparation, and it also served as an act symbolizing conversion to Judaism. It was about forgiveness and repentance. Initiation into a community. That's what it was about when John baptized those who had gathered. They were likely Gentile converts.

But when Jesus is baptized, the meaning of baptism is enlarged and expanded. It takes on a new dimension. It still represents cleansing and turning and belonging—an acknowledgment that something new is taking place, but there's something else that happens, too. When Jesus is baptized, he's given his identity. Take a look.

“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)

At his baptism, Jesus is given his identity: that of God's own child with whom God is well pleased. He's called "Beloved."

And what I want us to notice here is that this blessing of belovedness—this affirmation breaking through heaven, this pronouncement of who Jesus is—it's foundational for Jesus. It comes before Jesus has healed anyone. Before he's raised anyone to new life. It comes before every sermon. It comes before every miracle. Before any of it, it's as if God takes a Sharpie, writes God's own name, and declares, "You are mine, and you are beloved."

And the same is true for us.

Because it's quick, and you might've missed it, but there are two tiny words in this scripture that change everything:

“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)

Jesus also. There's a humility there. A solidarity there. Jesus also.

And as a result, we get to share in this same identity, Beloved, because God claims us, too. On Baptism of the Lord Sunday, we remember that this is who Jesus is—the Beloved son of God with whom God is well pleased. And today, we also remember our own baptisms, too.

This is foundational to who we are—God's name written on our foreheads and hearts. But as we move through life, we find ourselves in a world that constantly demands we prove our worth. We chase accomplishments, certifications, and social media validation. We exhaust ourselves trying to earn what we already have. The voices of comparison, competition, and criticism try to scratch out or cover over that original name: Beloved. We forget who we are. We forget whose we are.

One of my favorite stories about this comes from Henri Nouwen. Henri Nouwen was a prolific author, priest, professor, and theologian who, late in life, left his prestigious teaching position at Harvard to join L'Arche—an international organization of communities where individuals with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities live and work together.

He was leading a chapel service, and at the end of the service, a woman named Janet approached him and asked him for a blessing. Henri was distracted, so he merely made the sign of the cross and quickly tried to send her on her way.

But Janet held firm and said, "No! I want a real blessing." And Henri promised Janet that at the next service, he would give her a special blessing.

And so, at the next service, he announced to those in attendance that Janet had asked for a special blessing. Henri wasn't quite sure what Janet was looking for, but Janet walked up to Henri and gave him a big hug. And as Henri returned it, he looked into her eyes and said:

"Janet, I want you to know that you are God's Beloved Daughter. You are precious in God's eyes. Your beautiful smile, your kindness to the people in your house, and all the good things you do show what a beautiful human being you are. I know you feel a little low these days and that there is some sadness in your heart, but I want you to remember who you are: a very special person, deeply loved by God and all the people who are here with you."

Having received this blessing, Janet sat down. But then someone else stood up and said, "I want a blessing, too." And she walked forward, embraced Henri, and Henri said, "It's so good you're here. You are God's beloved daughter…" And then one by one, they all came forward for their blessing. They all came forward to hear the words, "It's so good you're here… You are God's beloved…"

This is what we remember today on Baptism of the Lord Sunday. That God has taken God's big Sharpie and said, "I want everyone to know this is mine. This child is my beloved." Amen.