Great Expectations ~ Luke 3:15-22 ~ Baptism of Our Lord

During our last year at the seminary, Elizabeth and I attended a very large Lutheran congregation in Gettysburg.

It was so large, in fact, that there was a baptism just about every week—and most were of infants.

Usually, the infants “received” their baptism in one of two ways: kicking and screaming, or sleeping.

But there was a two-year-old little girl I remember: with all her might, she tried to leap out of her sponsors arms and into the font—with giggles and smiles all the way.  As she was lowered towards the font, she splashed her hands in the water, practically baptizing herself.  I have never seen a child that excited to be baptized. 

But even if she had slept through her baptism, or took it kicking and screaming, she would still be baptized.  That’s what’s important for us to remember about baptism: regardless of how we come to that baptism, that baptism is all about what God does for us.  In baptism God claims us as beloved children.  Nothing we can say or do, and nothing that could happen to us—will ever change that. 

But what about life after the baptism?  Will we live as God’s beloved children?

This is the point where we become like the infants at their baptism...  we either embrace the baptized life with eagerness and joy—or; we resist it, or we sleep through it...  

For starters, the fundamental duty of any child is obedience.  This is the most basic duty of children.  And God makes it very clear what is demanded from us.  We are to love and trust in God above all things; we are to love our neighbors as ourselves and care for those in need; and we are to forgive others as God forgives us.  Yet living a life that pleases God isn’t as easy as it sounds. 

This is a life that demands everything of us.  We cannot live for ourselves, chasing our own dreams and the best that our world has to offer.  The life of a beloved child is a life of submission; a life of humility; a life lived for others.

This was the life Jesus lived—and this is what his baptism teaches us. 

You see, Jesus wasn’t baptized because he needed it.  He was sinless.  He was God’s Son. 

Instead, Jesus’ baptism was an act of submission.  Jesus knew that he was born for the cross.  Yet Jesus had the faith that the cross would not be the “be all, end all.”  He had faith that God would raise him from the dead, together with the world that God loves. 

God had great expectations for Jesus—but Jesus had great expectations for God, and none were going to be disappointed.  It was because Jesus had such great expectations of God that Jesus was able to be obedient unto death, even death. 

That is what faith is all about: expectation.  Faith means living in expectation of God loving for us and caring for us as beloved children.

So what are your expectations of God?  What does it mean for us to be God’s beloved?

One of the biggest problems in the Christian is that we suffer from low expectations of God.  This is why we struggle to live the baptized life; this is why we struggle to faithfully pray and worship God.  This is why we struggle in our obedience.  We simply don’t believe that anything good will come out of it. 

But God does not command obedience as pointless busy work.

Moreover, God’s love for us is not just something to read about or sing about; it is a reality for us to experience.  Because we are loved, we can expect God to good for us. 

We can pray when we believe that God will respond to our needs.  We can worship God and study the Word when we believe that we will encounter Jesus.  We can serve a neighbor in need when we believe that God will make us a blessing.  We can face even the worst days when we believe that God will care for us every step of the way. 

We can take up our crosses and follow Jesus when we believe that we will experience resurrection. 

Obedience is all about living in anticipation of God’s goodness.  That is why the call to obedience is actually good news...  In our obedience and faithful submission, we are in the best position to recognize God’s presence in our lives—and know just how greatly we are loved.  

There will be times when we will be disappointed with God.  Prayers are not always answered the way we want, and the good that we strived for will not be realized. 

Bet we cannot let the disappointments blind us to the reality of God’s love. 

You are the beloved.  You are unconditionally loved and accepted as a child of God just as much as Jesus was.  This is why you can trust God and obey. This is why you can EXPECT God to do great things in your life and even through your life.

So don’t throw away the baptized life.  And don’t sleep through it.  Dive right in to God’s grace.  Embrace your life with joy.  Remember what you believe—and act upon your beliefs with the expectation that you will taste the goodness of God.