Devotion • January 14
Scripture Reading
Mark 1:4–11
John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” (NRSV)
Reflection
John the baptizer must have been quite a fellow! Generations and even millennia later, there are entire traditions that take their name from the act of baptism so associated with him. So we can only imagine the day that John was going through the throngs waiting for their turn at the riverside. There is the eccentric John — the camel man, the leather man, the locust-and-wild-honey dude. “Yuck,” say my grandkids, when I tell them that this Bible guy ate locusts and likely scaled a tree to get honey from the comb. And he is the forerunner, the baptizer, the wild, weird, wonderous prophet man who felt comfier in the wilds than in the urban scene. But John totally got what he was about. He got his lead-up role. And after this very attention-grabbing start to the Gospel of Mark, enter Jesus.
His entry into Mark’s story is without flourish. There’s the who, what, where, when, and how. Jesus comes from Nazareth in Galilee. He is baptized by John. (In this Gospel there is no argument from John about feeling so inadequate to do this act. He just does it.) But then ... but then when Jesus has been fully emersed in the Jordan River, yes that same Jordan River that God’s people navigate over the ages, he comes up out of the water and the sky tears open, the Spirit of the living God falls afresh on him, a whirligig of a dove comes down, and Jesus and certainly others hear a voice: “You are my Son, my Beloved, and I couldn’t be more pleased.” That is good news, very good news.
Do you realize that in God’s eyes, you are the beloved good news as well? Think of it: those days when you harness the slim thread of connection with something more powerful than you ever imagined — God’s Spirit, and you find yourself offering a morsel of love to another person. Yes, you are good news. Or when you mess up badly or the world’s mess fills you to the brim with anxiety. You find yourself so sorry, so hurt, so hemmed in by it. And then a friend or colleague or your child reaches for you because, well, that is what they do, and you realize that the morsel of love you shared is the same morsel that someone gives to you. And good news abounds.
We hear the word: in you, and you, and you I am well pleased. You, most precious world, are baptized with light, doused with the Spirit’s power, and with Jesus by your side, you sing the Lord’s song with gusto, yes loud and long.
Prayer
Take our lives, O God, and let them sing with good news for this depleted world. Let our hearts beat with the majesty of our love. And awaken hope for this, your world, through proclaiming through word and deed your good, great news! Amen.
Written by Lucy Forster-Smith, Senior Associate Pastor
Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church
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