Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Baptized and set free! Has a nice ring to it, a nice sound to it, don't you think? But what might it mean? Does it mean free as in John 8:32: "You shall know the truth and truth will free you?" Or maybe it means set free like in John 8:36: "If therefore the Son you frees, really free you will be?" (My translations.) Maybe the question should be one of "free to do what?" Maybe it will help if we look at it in the context of these verses from Luke.

Luke starts here by noting that John says he is not the Messiah, then the verses get promising when John says he is not even worthy to untie the thong of the sandals of the one who will follow him. Here we need to keep in mind what a demeaning job that would have been in John's time, in Jesus' time, keeping in mind that only a slave would be told off to do something like that. No one would willingly untie another person's sandals -- would they?

John continues that he baptizes with water, but the one who is coming will baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit. Not only that but he has his winnowing fork in his hand -- not a pitch fork or trident, but a winnowing fork which was used to separate wheat from chaff. Well, that doesn't sound nearly so promising when we read that John says the chaff will be thrown into the fire. But it becomes a lot more promising when we realize that the one who follows John is more interested in saving the wheat than in burning the chaff.

And now Luke begins to talk about Jesus, Jesus' baptism. But if Jesus is sin-free, if he was born the Son of God, then what's going on here? After all, John's baptism is a baptism of repentance. What does Jesus have to be repentant about? The truth of the matter is, Jesus does not have anything to be repentant about. But if you recall my sermons of the last couple weeks, you might recall that I've been talking about the "the Word became flesh," that I talked about Jesus growing up in wisdom and in stature, growing the way any normal flesh and blood child would grow. Jesus waits until the others who are there to be baptized, are baptized, then he himself is baptized, not for his sake, but for our sake. And because as a human being, albeit Son of God, he still needs to be baptized. Why? Because as Matthew quotes Jesus in his somewhat lengthier account of Jesus' baptism, to "fulfill all righteousness." And skipping ahead of myself a little bit (vivid imagery don't you think?) we are righteous before God when we put on Jesus, when we are cloaked with him.

Jesus is baptized and nothing happens. Or does something happen? He is baptized and in prayer. Notice how often in the Gospel of Luke Jesus is in prayer? It is a theme of Luke's and a strong, very poignant lesson for us -- Jesus was often in prayer, in times of stress and thanksgiving, but also simply to talk with God, Jesus' Father. He is in prayer and the heavens open and the Holy Spirit descends as a physical manifestation. The heavens also opened when the Word became flesh, and the angels appeared to the shepherds. The heavens will open again when Jesus comes again in glory. The heavens open and the Holy Spirit descends, after Jesus is baptized. Now, in our time, the Holy Spirit descends when we are baptized. After the baptism of Jesus, the Holy Spirit was a visible manifestation from the Father that Jesus is indeed the Son of God, that Jesus is indeed anointed, commissioned for the ministry that followed and follows to this very day. Jesus shortly after his baptism and receiving the Holy Spirit will be directed into the wilderness where he will face and overcome temptation with the power of the Holy Spirit. And God speaks, here in this first Sunday in Epiphany, as he will do again on Transfiguration Sunday, the last Sunday in Epiphany, when he will again speak, giving public acclamation to his Son as he does here. "You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased." This is what the season of "Epiphany" is all about -- it literally means to "make known" or appear" and this is why this season ends with the Transfiguration of our Lord, where again the voice of the Father is heard.

We come full circle! Jesus baptized that righteousness may be fulfilled commands us to go and baptize, telling us that those who believe and are baptized will be saved. Jesus tells that he makes us free. Really free. Free from bondage to sin and the power of the devil, free to chose to serve one another, even in the stooping and untying of another's sandal, and in so doing to serve God. Jesus tells us that he did not come to be served but to serve. He tells us to love God, love neighbor, to be a good neighbor, to "Go and do likewise," as did the Good Samaritan in Jesus' parable of the same name.

We are free because we are baptized even as Jesus was baptized, because he gives power to become children of God to those who believe in him, he gives power to love, and to serve, even as he did. He gives power to talk with our Father, praying ever the prayer that he himself taught us.

Who knows? Maybe someday you and I will hear from Jesus, "Well done good and faithful servant, enter into the happiness of your master," and we will know we have pleased him!

AMEN