First Sunday after the Epiphany

By the Rev. Alanna C. Sullivan
Associate Minister and Director of Administration
The Memorial Church of Harvard University

(The following is a transcript of the service audio, Jan. 12, 2024)

Before we begin with today's message, I'm hoping that we can have a brief moment of prayer for all of those who have been affected by the wildfires in Los Angeles. Will you join me?

Gracious and loving God, we are devastated by the destruction caused by the fires in Los Angeles. Our hearts ache for all that has been lost. Scorched earth, homes gone, keepsakes gone, loved ones gone. Everything gone. We uplift your safekeeping all those whose lives have been upturned by these wildfires, especially those in need of shelter, food, and medical care.

Holy Spirit, bring comfort and support to all who desperately need it. God, your saint Fred Rogers once said, look for the helpers. We pray for the firefighters, a third of whom are incarcerated people from California. We pray for the firefighters and humanitarian workers coming to help from all over the world. Mexico. South Africa. We pray for all those who are working tirelessly to contain the fires and to provide aid. We stand in awe of communities coming together, whether through donations, volunteering, or simply offering a kind word or hug. Every effort counts in helping those who need.

In this Season of Epiphany, may the light of Christ shine brightly. Guide us to be His hands and feet. May we each find our particular way to bring healing and comfort to those who are suffering in this broken world. We ask your mercy and grace to envelop all affected and feather your peace upon them. My restoration and healing come swiftly to the land and its people. In Christ's name, we pray, amen.

And if we can continue in a posture of prayer. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts and minds be acceptable in your sight, oh God. Our rock and Redeemer. Amen.

Our gospel lesson for today details the baptism of Jesus. And this story begins with an expectant crowd. It is, in fact, one of the few distinctive details that the author of Luke shares about Jesus's baptism. The people in the crowd have come to be baptized by John.

We don't know what brings each person to the river that day, but we can imagine. And some might be frustrated with not knowing what's going on. Some are too sick to stand. Others are ornery from weary limbs and tired feet. Others are being pulled away because someone needs them at home. Some are sharing their food with others, and yet all of them are asking for help. All of them are needing some relief, all looking for something or someone to lead them out of their miserable circumstances.

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All are hoping to be healed. All are searching for a piece of good news. And it's here that we find Jesus waiting in line along with everyone else, searching for God, wanting to know and feel God's love and mercy.

Our lectionary eliminates a few verses from our gospel lesson for today, and these verses reveal that Herod imprisons John right before Jesus's baptism. It's sobering and sadly familiar news. Rulers so often violently resist those who challenge their authority. There is a personal cost to defying corruption and tyranny. Yet amidst deprivation and brokenness and despair, Jesus is baptized and prays. It's here that the Spirit reveals itself and God shares these life-giving words. "You are my child, the beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

Hear it again. Let these words wash over you. "You are my child, the beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

The author of Luke shares little about what happens at Jesus's baptism, which means we should pay all the more attention to this blessing. And the power of Jesus's baptism comes from his posture of prayer. What begins here in baptism persists through prayer in Jesus's life and ministry. The spirit continues to reveal itself to Jesus through prayer. In Luke, it reveals that time and time again, Jesus turns to prayer when he reaches a juncture.

Before he calls the disciples, he prays. Before the disciples ask Jesus who he is, he prays. At his transfiguration, he prays. Before teaching on the night of his arrest, he prays. And as he is dying, he prays.

Prayer is what grounds and sustains Jesus. Nowadays, there has been pushback about the relevancy of prayer. With the waves of hatred and bigotry and violence, natural disaster, the phrase you are in my thoughts and prayers no longer has a buoying effect. In fact, it can weigh us down instead. When used time and time again without any alteration, prayer can begin to sound glib, contrite, or even offensive. If you keep your thoughts to yourself and your prayers in your heart, what good are they? And as Jesus demonstrates with his own prayer practice, it must guide how we live and move and have our being in this world. Prayer becomes how the Holy Spirit, it plants itself in our hearts so that our lives may be our fruit.

In the end, it is not about seeking justice but doing justice. It is not about hoping for peace, but making peace. It is not just saying I love you, but embodying that love. Prayer is not merely the precursor to action. Sometimes, action is the prayer.

So, if you're not sure where to begin with prayer, perhaps start with the very blessing that God bestows upon Jesus. "God, may I remember that I am your beloved with whom you are well-pleased."

It may feel awkward at first, but we all need to know that we're loved and be reminded of our innate goodness.

Preacher Susan Sparks puts it this way. "Perhaps more powerful than the words themselves, is their timing."

The Spirit offered this blessing to Jesus before he has done anything. The words were bestowed on him, not for what he has done, but for who He was, a beloved child of God. And it's not just Jesus. Each of us is born with that same intrinsic belovedness. As Genesis teaches us, God created humankind in God's image. And God declared new human life very good. However, the farther we get from our birth, the easier it is to forget that we are a blessing from God.

Yet God's blessing of our belovedness never goes away. It just gets harder to hear when it's drowned out by other voices of criticism, fear, shame, and pain. And what's more, when we lose touch with our own belovedness, it becomes harder to find it in others. If we forget to recognize God's divine image within ourselves, how can we see it in those around us?

"You are my child, the beloved, with whom I am well-pleased."

These are the words that changed Jesus's life, and they are life-giving words to all who hear them. Let us hold fast to the blessing of these words today as we prepare to baptize Eloise and welcome her into the body of Christ. Augustine said, baptism is God's wardrobe. So let us wrap ourselves and God's love for us and one another and this beloved child.

And in the difficult days ahead, may we hold fast to this prayer so that we may remember our own belovedness and in turn, recognize it in others. There is not a child, neighbor, stranger, or even enemy who does not need to hear this more often and know it's truth more fully. Thanks be to God.

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