The Baptism of Jesus...This weekend, we mark the Baptism of the Lord Jesus. This event is unique because it is the first public revelation of all Three Persons in the Holy Trinity…Father Son, and Spirit! Wow, really??? Read it for yourself and see. In addition, the Baptism of Jesus is the official revelation/announcement of Jesus as the Son of God to the world (that includes US) by God the Father. You may also be interested in knowing that the Baptism of Jesus is an event described by all four Gospel writers…and it marks the beginning of Jesus' public ministry. The liturgical season of Christmas comes to a conclusion this Sunday with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. Here’s a tidbit of background info for you…neither John nor Jesus invented baptism. It had been practiced for centuries among the Jews as a ritual equivalent to our Confession. Until the “Fall of the Temple” in 72 A.D., it was common for Jewish people to use a special pool called a MIKVEH -- literally a "collection of water" – as a means of spiritual cleansing, to remove spiritual impurity and sin. Men took this bath weekly on the eve of the Sabbath; women, monthly (can we interpret this to mean that women were a whole lot less sinful so once a month for the “bath” was sufficient ???!!!). The baptism by John was a very important event in the life of Jesus. We might describe it as a moment of decision, identification, approval, and conviction. How so? It marked the end of Jesus' private life and prepared Him for his public ministry. Jesus identified with his people. Third, it was a moment of approval. Jesus might have been waiting for a signal of approval from his heavenly Father and during His baptism He got this approval of Himself as the Father's "beloved Son.” Lastly, at baptism Jesus received assurances from heaven about his identity and the nature of his mission…He was the "Chosen One" and the "beloved Son of God..” By descending on Jesus in the form of a dove, the Holy Spirit equipped Jesus with the power of preaching the "Good News" (that God is a loving Father, who wants to save mankind from its sins through His Son Jesus). This is a lot to think about for us. I invite you to consider each of these “moments” in relation to your own Baptism. When you do, you should discover that you too were chosen by God with a mission…and you have the gifts of the Holy Spirit to carry out this mission. The 13th century king of France, St. Louis IX (1226-70), insisted that the grand celebration of his birthday should be held on the day of his baptism, and not on his birthday proper. His argument was that baptism was the beginning of a life that would continue for eternity in the everlasting glory of heaven. Gospel Question of the Week: Do you know your Baptism date? Look it up and CELEBRATE it!