Being the Church Today: Baptism

Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. 12 What I mean is that each of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.” 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. 16 (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.  

1 Corinthians 1:10-17

I find verses 14, 15, and 16 among some of the funniest in all of Scripture.  Paul is stream of conscious trying to recall who he baptized.  Oh, I baptized Crispus and Gaius...that is it!  Oh yes, and the whole household of Stephanas...but that is it!  Apparently, Paul was not that great at keeping records.  But whether or not Paul's list is exhaustive, really is not the point, is it?  The point is that as the Corinthians are arguing over who baptized whom and whether that gives them a claim to fame, power, and authority, Paul wants to be clear that the most important part of baptism is the connection to the cross.

Usually, because we baptize infants, we don't usually make a connection between baptism and the cross.  I have now taken to looking the child in the eyes and saying, "For you Christ was born, for you he lived his life wide open, for you he died and for you he rose again.  May the mystery of this truth be sealed on your heart."  The claim we make, is that in baptism we die and rise to new life.  In the blink of an eye at baptism, this sacrament (a visible sign of God's invisible grace) contains the whole narrative of Jesus' existence.  We enter the water, we die to our old self and as we came out of the water - or it evaporates on our forehead - the story of Christ is sealed upon our hearts.  It takes a life time to live out that story and to explore this mystery.  That is why we make the symbol of the cross on the child or adult's forehead.  I find it incredibly meaningful that on Ash Wednesday, the palms for last year burned to make ashes, trace the exact location of where the water of baptism once claimed us as God's beloved.

Baptism is not a one and done moment.  We continually die and are invited into new life.  Most of the time, we don't talk this way.  We avoid mentioning death.  We don't want to deal with the mortality of these vessels that carry us around.  Yet, we also try to live our lives so that something beyond us remains even when we are not physically present.  I try to share generously with my family...both because I love them and I pray that in some way I can help them grow in new, life-giving ways that last.  Yet, there are moments I am quick to snap or let the stress of my work overshadow the time we have.  While it seems a bit overly dramatic to call those moments of death, there certainly is grief at missed opportunities.  

So, I think part of being the church is remembering and practicing our baptism.  I have always been taken by churches where the baptismal font is right there at the door when you enter into worship. Remember your baptism.  Remember who you are and whose you are.  Remember that those mistakes and missteps of the last week do not need to confine or define you.  Remember, this water is who you really are.  I need that reminder.  Yet, all too often, the baptismal font becomes furniture.  It is set aside and put out only when there is a baptism.  Ideally, the baptismal font would be at the door, the Bible would be in the aisle as a reminder that we are a people grounded in the Word, and the communion table would be at the front as the place where our baptismal promise and the Word of God point toward.

I hope and pray you will spend some time remembering your baptism this week.  I hope and pray it will connect you to God whose love claims you again and again.  I hope and pray this water which wraps around us and is the living stream where we all stand, renews us for the living out of these day.  

Alleluia and Amen.