Right Righteousness ~ Matthew 2:13-17 ~ The Baptism of Our Lord
It’s been just about ten years since I moved out of my parents’ home.
My first "bachelor pad" was a first floor, two-bedroom apartment in the Borough of Aspinwall.
Apartment life was loads of fun for about the first year—until the night it became interesting…
It was almost midnight. I’d just come home from a late-day shift. I was unwinding with some Oreo cookies and the David Letterman show.
Then I hear a trickling of water coming from the bathroom. I get up, turn on the light, and I see this huge bubble, the size of a beach ball, bulging from the ceiling—with water trickling through a small crack. Immediately, the plaster gives way, and a tidal wave of hot soapy water from the upstairs neighbor’s shower gushes down on my face. I dash to the kitchen, grab the trash can, dump its contents on the kitchen floor, and run to the bathroom to catch the leak.
Soon, the water begins pouring out of the light fixtures and the exhaust fan.
I finally catch up with it enough that I can contain all the leaks—but the upstairs shower just keeps running in what could be the longest shower in history.
All out of options, I go upstairs and knock on the neighbor’s door—soaked from head to toe. Of course, the single mother of two teenage children isn’t happy to be answering her door after midnight. And when I tell what’s happing, she says: "That’s not my problem! You can’t ask us to stop lives our lives!" And she slams the door in my face.
I guess I could call that event my literal "baptism" into the realities of apartment living.
In our day-to-day speech, we have what we call "a baptism by fire," which we usually define as the harsh and unpleasant initiation one undergoes into a new position or place in life. I remember my boss referring to my first bad day on the job as "my baptism."
Even though this figure of speech has nothing to do with God, it’s meaning is not lost. Baptism is the work of God, acting through the people of the church, to initiate women, men, and children into the Body of Christ. It’s not just a ritual or a milestone; God is giving you a whole new reality that is rooted in God’s love.
This is exactly what is happening in Jesus’ baptism. In his baptism, Jesus joins us in our humanity. He takes his place with us. He is Emmanuel—God with us. He becomes one with us in life and in death, so that we may be one with him in resurrection.
This is how Jesus fulfills all righteousness. And in dying a death he does not deserve, he gives his righteousness over to you. We are made righteous by what Jesus does for us. He does all this because you matter to God.
Jesus is on your side.
But are we prepared to live in Jesus’ righteousness?
It’s easy to equate righteousness with "being good people." We know there’s certain things we just shouldn’t do—and as long as we don’t do them, we can comfortably consider ourselves righteous. But that’s not godly righteousness. It doesn’t demand anything from us.
Godly righteousness demands everything. Godly righteousness means living for and doing what matters to God. And what matters to God? Our neighbors—that their needs are met; that they are loved and accepted as bearers of God’s image. Purity matters to God—that the good we seek be sought only in God. Peace matters to God—in our communities, cities, and nations. Witness matters to God—that we take the Gospel and make it public. Faithfulness matters to God—that we put obedience to God’s will above the satisfaction of our needs and wants. We focus our righteousness on others—because God has focused Jesus’ righteousness on us. But even that is easier said than done…
Do you ever notice how infants and small children react when they are presented for baptism? Most of the time, they cry and fuss. I once saw a toddler jump right out of his sponsor’s arms and run away that he had to be chased. The rest of us aren’t really that different.
There are two reasons why we resist God’s righteousness: (1) we do not trust that God has our best interests at heart, and (2) our hearts’ desires are consumed by the desire of what is not God, but instead yields instant gratification.
But why should we resist living in Godly righteousness when Jesus stands on our side? God knows better than we do what truly matters in our lives—and God holds all of these people and commitments in hand. Jesus remains at our side when evil strikes; he’s on our side when our hearts are breaking; he remains at our side even when we breathe our last breath.
Godly righteousness begins with simple faith in the promises Jesus makes on the day you are baptized—that he will love you and be faithful to you for all eternity.
What freedom; what peace; what joy that comes in believing that you matter so much to God that he would give the life of his Son. If you matter that much, God is going to take care of what matters to you. It’s not a burden to live for what matters to God—it’s a gift. Living in righteousness is the truest path to a meaningful life—because we are truly living in Christ. What better way is there to know the mercy and love of the Savior—and live in God’s peace and joy—than to live only for what matters to God—by putting what matters to you into God’s hands?
My first "bachelor pad" was a first floor, two-bedroom apartment in the Borough of Aspinwall.
Apartment life was loads of fun for about the first year—until the night it became interesting…
It was almost midnight. I’d just come home from a late-day shift. I was unwinding with some Oreo cookies and the David Letterman show.
Then I hear a trickling of water coming from the bathroom. I get up, turn on the light, and I see this huge bubble, the size of a beach ball, bulging from the ceiling—with water trickling through a small crack. Immediately, the plaster gives way, and a tidal wave of hot soapy water from the upstairs neighbor’s shower gushes down on my face. I dash to the kitchen, grab the trash can, dump its contents on the kitchen floor, and run to the bathroom to catch the leak.
Soon, the water begins pouring out of the light fixtures and the exhaust fan.
I finally catch up with it enough that I can contain all the leaks—but the upstairs shower just keeps running in what could be the longest shower in history.
All out of options, I go upstairs and knock on the neighbor’s door—soaked from head to toe. Of course, the single mother of two teenage children isn’t happy to be answering her door after midnight. And when I tell what’s happing, she says: "That’s not my problem! You can’t ask us to stop lives our lives!" And she slams the door in my face.
I guess I could call that event my literal "baptism" into the realities of apartment living.
In our day-to-day speech, we have what we call "a baptism by fire," which we usually define as the harsh and unpleasant initiation one undergoes into a new position or place in life. I remember my boss referring to my first bad day on the job as "my baptism."
Even though this figure of speech has nothing to do with God, it’s meaning is not lost. Baptism is the work of God, acting through the people of the church, to initiate women, men, and children into the Body of Christ. It’s not just a ritual or a milestone; God is giving you a whole new reality that is rooted in God’s love.
This is exactly what is happening in Jesus’ baptism. In his baptism, Jesus joins us in our humanity. He takes his place with us. He is Emmanuel—God with us. He becomes one with us in life and in death, so that we may be one with him in resurrection.
This is how Jesus fulfills all righteousness. And in dying a death he does not deserve, he gives his righteousness over to you. We are made righteous by what Jesus does for us. He does all this because you matter to God.
Jesus is on your side.
But are we prepared to live in Jesus’ righteousness?
It’s easy to equate righteousness with "being good people." We know there’s certain things we just shouldn’t do—and as long as we don’t do them, we can comfortably consider ourselves righteous. But that’s not godly righteousness. It doesn’t demand anything from us.
Godly righteousness demands everything. Godly righteousness means living for and doing what matters to God. And what matters to God? Our neighbors—that their needs are met; that they are loved and accepted as bearers of God’s image. Purity matters to God—that the good we seek be sought only in God. Peace matters to God—in our communities, cities, and nations. Witness matters to God—that we take the Gospel and make it public. Faithfulness matters to God—that we put obedience to God’s will above the satisfaction of our needs and wants. We focus our righteousness on others—because God has focused Jesus’ righteousness on us. But even that is easier said than done…
Do you ever notice how infants and small children react when they are presented for baptism? Most of the time, they cry and fuss. I once saw a toddler jump right out of his sponsor’s arms and run away that he had to be chased. The rest of us aren’t really that different.
There are two reasons why we resist God’s righteousness: (1) we do not trust that God has our best interests at heart, and (2) our hearts’ desires are consumed by the desire of what is not God, but instead yields instant gratification.
But why should we resist living in Godly righteousness when Jesus stands on our side? God knows better than we do what truly matters in our lives—and God holds all of these people and commitments in hand. Jesus remains at our side when evil strikes; he’s on our side when our hearts are breaking; he remains at our side even when we breathe our last breath.
Godly righteousness begins with simple faith in the promises Jesus makes on the day you are baptized—that he will love you and be faithful to you for all eternity.
What freedom; what peace; what joy that comes in believing that you matter so much to God that he would give the life of his Son. If you matter that much, God is going to take care of what matters to you. It’s not a burden to live for what matters to God—it’s a gift. Living in righteousness is the truest path to a meaningful life—because we are truly living in Christ. What better way is there to know the mercy and love of the Savior—and live in God’s peace and joy—than to live only for what matters to God—by putting what matters to you into God’s hands?
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