Readings (Year A):
Isaiah 42:1 – 4, 6 – 7
Psalm 29:1 – 2, 3 – 4, 3, 9 – 10
Acts 10:34 – 38
Matthew 3:13 – 17
Reflection: May we do the Spirit’s work of healing and renewal
Water is everywhere. We need it for our own survival as well as for every living thing on Earth. We are made up of 60 percent water, and 70 percent of the Earth is covered by water. Water gives us life, and it also powerfully connects us to God.
Scripture includes many stories involving water, such as the creation story, the story of Noah’s Ark, the crossing of the Red Sea, and many more. In Matthew, Jesus comes to the Jordan and steps into the water, where John has been calling people to repentance and transformation. The gospel begins not with mind-blowing miracles, nor with some almighty power from a mountain, or a throne in the sky, but with Jesus joining humanity in the water of baptism.
John first resists Jesus’ desire to be baptized and says, “I need to be baptized by you.”John’s confusion is also our confusion: Why would Jesus, without sin, want or need to be baptized? Here we see that God is not a distant God but rather comes to our lives, our wounds, our fears, and even our hopes. God enters the spaces where we feel abandoned, overwhelmed, or unworthy. God does not abandon us, but enters the waters with us.
Jesus’ baptism teaches us that God is with us and in solidarity with us. God does not flee from the world’s pain but comes to be with us. And in a world where so many people feel erased or cast aside, Jesus’ baptism declares that everyone is important.
Jesus steps into the water to renew the world, to transform it, and to embody justice. This moment reminds us that faith is never passive. Jesus begins his ministry with an act showing that God’s justice is rooted in solidarity and love. As Jesus rises from the water, the heavens open and the Spirit descends like a dove: gentle and life-giving. And a voice comes from the sky: “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” Before Jesus ever performs a miracle, preaches a lesson, or heals a person, he is called Beloved, and the Spirit is with him.
God’s love is at the heart of the gospel, and God’s delight in us is not based on success, perfection, or productivity. We live in a world that constantly tells us to prove ourselves. Every day we get up, we need to prove to everyone that we are worthy and valuable. But the voice of heaven interrupts and says that we, too, are beloved, as love comes first before anything else.
This understanding of being beloved calls us into action. Jesus emerges from the Jordan empowered to confront injustice, heal the brokenhearted, challenge oppressive systems, elevate the marginalized, and proclaim God’s kin-dom. Similarly, our baptism sends us out into the world on the same path.
Right now, the Earth is crying under a climate crisis, people of color suffer from racism, refugees flee for their lives, and the poor are simply trying to survive. Marginalized communities are fighting for their safety and dignity. As God calls us beloved, we must also stand with every person who has been told they are not.
The waters of baptism flow outward toward justice, repair, and courage. At his baptism, Jesus is named Beloved, and so are we. God tells us who are baptized: I love you, you are mine, and I am pleased with you.
May we live out of God’s love and join the Spirit’s work of healing, justice, and renewal. May the waters that touched Jesus continue to renew us as we live out God’s calling.
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