Sunday Worship Service July 23, 2023

Call to Worship Nehemiah 13:31b
Hymn JBC # 363 Lord of the Church, we pray for our renewing
The Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Supper
Offering
Scripture Luke 3:15 ~ 38
Prayer
Sermon “The Baptism of Jesus Christ”
https://youtu.be/IWxF80c9hGw
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 552 Day by Day
Doxology JBC # 671
Benediction


　Today's scripture begins with the sentence, "The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah.”
　The people here are the people of Israel. The Bible refers to the Israelites depicted in today's passage as "the people waiting for the Messiah" about 2020 years ago.
At that time, Israel/Judea was ruled by the Roman Empire. Under such circumstances, the Israelites were looking forward to the coming of the Messiah, who would deliver their nation from Roman rule.
　The word "Messiah" means "anointed one" in Hebrew. It is a word derived from the custom of anointing the heads of kings and priests with costly perfumed oil when they were installed on the throne.
The phrase 'The people were waiting expectantly [for the Messiah]' illustrates the profound anticipation of the Israelites for the arrival of the Messiah, who would rescue them from their humiliating and painful circumstances.

　　Don't we all feel this way? That we expect our lives, our society, and the world to be changed for the better by a single outstanding person or leader?
　In a democracy, politicians and national leaders are elected by the people. At the time of election, I believe that we all have a certain expectation that the next new leader will somehow improve the current difficult and bad situation.
Therefore, I believe that we can empathize with the Israelites in today's passage, who were looking forward to a Savior who would liberate their nation from the grip of other nations.
　John the Baptist was baptizing people at the Jordan River, calling them to repent and live God-centered lives instead of self-centered lives.
The people, hearing John's powerful message and seeing his appearance, thought, "Isn't this the Messiah we have been waiting for?”
Sensing that the people were thinking him to be the Messiah, John said the following.

“I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.
John tells people that he is not the Messiah, saying, "One who is more powerful than I will come” John pointed people to the coming of Christ, the true Messiah, who is "more powerful than I."
No matter how good a person is, no matter how powerful a leader he is, a man will not save mankind or solve in an instant the painful and miserable conditions of society and the world.
　The only One who can fundamentally change us as from the core and bring us true salvation and deliverance is Jesus Christ. John's words today, and the entire Bible, tell us this.
　John gives the ritual of baptism by water (ordinary river water), but it is Jesus Christ, the true Savior, who through that ritual cleanses and transforms the inner man's heart by the Holy Spirit and fire.

But if we are expecting a superman-like person as our savior who can solve everything (whatever we want) in an instant, Jesus Christ does not fit the description of such a savior.
　Rather, Jesus, though He was God Himself, became a man like us, suffered, took on and experienced sorrow, and bore our sins. He chose to live among us.
　He lives in us as the Holy Spirit, giving hope, strength, and joy to those who believe in Him. He transforms us and enables us to live for God and live for the realization of His Kingdom.
Because Christ lives in us, we can live with hope in the midst of hardship and difficulty, getting a taste of the Kingdom of God that will be completed in the time to come.
If we believe in God, it does not mean that hardships and difficulties will disappear, but rather that we will know that God is with us and will support us in the midst of hardships and difficulties.

Believing in God does not mean that hardships and difficulties will disappear, but rather, we can be assured that these hardships and difficulties have some meaning before God.
　　People who deny (criticize) religion and "God" often say things like this: "Relying on God or on prayer makes us dependent on other things.”
That praying and believing our prayers will come true would result in us abandoning our own efforts.
　It is true that if we are not careful, there is a possibility (danger) that Christians would end up with that thought process.
There is a danger that we assume everything will be fine if we just believe in God, or that all our problems will be solved if we leave everything to the pastor (or in some religious organizations, the guru).
　In the worst case scenario, some people mistakenly argue that if we give a lot of time and money to God and the church, God will grant us whatever we want.

　　These claims completely reverse the order of what is important. It is a mistake to think that God will praise us for doing a lot of service and offerings.
　Rather, we must first believe that God has blessed us greatly already, forgiving all our sins and giving us all grace through the cross of His Son, Jesus Christ.
　Through believing this, and because we are grateful for God's love and forgiveness, we give and serve in response.
All things begin with God's grace, and we can really only express gratitude for such abundant blessings. We are only capable of repaying a mere fraction of God's grace.
　Christians who believe this pray to God. And we ourselves strive to achieve our dreams and goals. Hard work is essential if we want to achieve anything.
　　And if we get the result (achievement) that we desire, it is God's grace and gift.
Paul, the evangelist, said “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.(1 Corinthians 3:6)”
Planting and watering refers to the ministry of evangelism of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ to people.

　　Paul, Apollos, and other church leaders of the time carried out evangelistic work to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to various countries and regions.
However, the fact that believers in Christ were born, churches were formed, and each believer was able to grow was not due to their own power of evangelism, but God's power, Paul said that.
　John the Baptist in today's passage is also such a believer. John called people to repentance, to live a God-centered life rather than an egocentric one.
Today's passage describes John being arrested and put in prison by king Herod.
John, based on his religious convictions, criticized Herod for marrying his own brother's wife. As a result he was arrested (and eventually killed).

　Even after working so devotedly for God, John the Baptist humbly stated, "I am merely baptizing with water. The one who truly touches people's hearts and bestows genuine salvation and new life upon them is Jesus Christ, the true God."
　That is what it is like to be saved by Jesus Christ and to live believing in His saving grace. Because we have been saved by Christ, we can live our lives to the fullest.
　And we do not take the results or outcome of our work as something to be proud of. We simply give thanks back to God. I pray we all grow to become believers like this.

Verse 21 tells us that Jesus was baptized by John. Jesus himself was baptized by John.
　Jesus was the only one who was born without sin. Therefore, Jesus did not need to be baptized for the remission of sins like we do.
　But Jesus still got baptized. By getting baptized, Jesus personally set an example of how to live as a believer in every aspect.
　It is written that Jesus prayed after being baptized. Baptism is the starting point of the faith. And when we make a decision of faith and are baptized, it means that from that point on, the hard road of faith begins.

　Jesus shows us here the importance of constant prayer to God on the path of faith.
　Through His own prayers, Jesus teaches us how to pray to God and live in communion with God, receiving strength and hope along the sometimes difficult journey of faith.
Through prayer and studying the Bible (with the guidance of the Holy Spirit), we come to know God's Word, enabling us to have spiritual encounters with Jesus Christ and live a life of faith, receiving daily strength and hope from Him.
Furthermore, the greatest gift a believer can receive from God is His love.
　In today's passage, we read that when Jesus was baptized, "heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove.”

Then a voice was heard from heaven saying, "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
　Jesus was born with the harsh mission of dying on the cross, bearing the sins of all of humanity. However, Jesus was loved by God the Father in heaven.
　Jesus Christ is the one who graciously bestows upon people, including us today, the boundless love of God the Father in heaven, a love that He Himself also received abundantly.
Let us continue to walk in faith, filled with joy and hope, as we follow Jesus Christ and abundantly receive God's love through Him.