“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.”
O God be in my mouth as I speak
for you and fill this place with your great grace that we may leave this place
less of us what we use to be and more of what we ought to be, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen
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.
This verse from St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians
probably seems a bit strange to most of you sitting in your pew this morning.
I use the word “strange” because Paul’s passage seems to
suggest that baptism is not as important for Christians as telling people about
their savior, Jesus Christ.
For most of you who have joined the Episcopal Church in the last thirty years, this sentiment swims against most of the pro-baptismal propaganda of theologians and liturgical scholars.
The 1979 Book of Common Prayer, that’s the red book
in your pew, sought to restore an emphasis on the rite of Baptism as the
central act of Christian initiation.
If you open the book to page 299, you will see how this
importance was emphasized. (Pause)
The service of Holy Baptism is placed before all the
communion services of Rite one and Rite two.
In the fine print of the instructions on page 298, it says
that “Holy Baptism is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into
Christ’s body the Church.” It goes onto to say that Holy Baptism is
appropriately administered within the Eucharist as the chief service on a Sunday
or other feast days.
These instructions for a proper Baptism, and we know that
Episcopalians like to do things properly, stand in stark contrast to the
instructions given in the older 1928 Prayer Book.
Its’ fine print said, “When there are children to be
baptized the parents or sponsors shall give knowledge thereof to the minister.
And then the Godfathers and Godmothers and the people with children must be
ready at the font, either immediately after the second lesson at morning or
evening prayer, or at such time as the Minister shall appoint”.
These instructions assumed two things. First that the
church would only baptize children and second that the service did not need to
happen during celebrations of communion or even on Sundays.
This gave rise to what some people call private baptisms
or Baptisms that take place at times other than Sunday morning worship.
I myself have a very vivid childhood memory of standing in
line one evening with my parents for my youngest sister’s baptism at Christ Church,
Macon.
How many of you have stood in line for Space Mountain at
Disney World? The baptism was a little like standing in one of those Disney
World lines. The line wound its way
down the center aisle and then back up one of the sides and around to the area
to the font in the back of the church.
It felt like we would never get there.
Finally just like in Disney World our turn came, we
stepped up to the font, answered some questions, Lucinda was sprinkled with
water and Fr. Albritton went on to the next screaming child.
I suppose this after hour’s method does have the advantage
of not disrupting a preacher’s sermon.
And to be fair, we also must remember the instructions in
the older pray book went back to the 16th century in an age before
antibiotics when infant mortality rates were higher and people wanted to get
their children baptized as soon as possible after birth.
Those who put together the last Prayer book did not like
these private celebrations of baptism.
They wanted baptism to be front and center in the worship
of the church as part of our weekly celebration of Holy Eucharist.
They wanted it emphasized on the church’s holiest days:
Epiphany, All Saints, The Easter Vigil, and Pentecost.
They wanted Christians to understand that their Baptism
was central to their membership in the Christian Church.
Yet at the risk of being a little heretical maybe all the
liturgical experts in their rush to make baptism so important, committed the
sin of fanaticism.
What do I mean by this. Well I heard a wise person once
say that the definition of fanaticism is when you redouble your efforts but
forget your aim.
The revisers were so concerned about making sure everyone
knew baptism was central to Christian life, they forgot that in the New Testament,
baptism usually comes as a response to the gospel message.
We see this in the story of St. Phillip and the Ethiopian
Eunuch in the book of Acts chapter 8 verses 26 through 40. The Ethiopian on his
way from pilgrimage in Jerusalem hears the story about Jesus first from the
apostle Phillip.
It is only after Phillip explains the prophecy of Isaiah
to him that the Ethiopian asks Phillip to baptize him into the Christian
church.
This is the same theological problem that is Paul is
wrestling with in his letter to the Corinthians.
He tells the community of Christians living in the Greek
seaport of Corinth, “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. For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there are
quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters.”
I hope none of you are shocked to discover that Christians
had arguments with each other in the first century.
Paul goes on to write, “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.”
St. Paul’s words indicate that many Christians in the
first century associated their baptisms with the individual who had done the
baptizing.
They used the personality of the apostle who had done
their baptism to boast about their own holiness and sanctity.
They would say to each other my baptism is better than
yours because “I was baptized by Paul” or “I was baptized by Apollos.”
To our modern ears, this sounds like a theological version
of my dad can beat up your dad.
Like modern day rock stars, the apostles in Corinth begin
to take on almost mythical status with each individual party trumpeting the
merits of their particular apostle.
The people in Corinth forgot that it was Jesus who should
be the central focus of their lives not the person who did the baptizing.
This is why I think Paul is so vehement, when he writes,
“Has Christ been divided.” “Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in
the name of Paul?”
For St. Paul being a faithful Christian is not about being
a member of some apostolic fan club.
Instead, it is about living a life transformed by the
risen savior, Jesus Christ.
Now if we are honest, we have to admit that our times
today are not that much different from St. Paul’s.
We live in an age of social, and political polarization,
of red and blue states where everyone seems anxious to find the next guru, the
next Messiah.
Yet in order for us to be faithful to Christ, we must like
Paul always reject those who seek to make the messenger the Messiah.
Our souls and our bodies belong to Christ alone. Not to
Paul, not to Apollos, not to Trump, Madison Avenue or any political party.
As a newcomer, when I look at St. Martin’s history, I
believe our witness to Christ has been shaped by the willingness we have always
to share our cloak, to us our own God-given resources to transform the lives of
other people just like Philip and Paul did in the first century.
This is what has made and will continue to make our
message our witness to Christ authentic and one that will endure.
St. Paul says to us, “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.”
And may God help us all, if we ever forget that our
proclamation of the Gospel is shaped by the lives we live not the amount of
water that we pour.
Amen.