This last week as I had the chance to preach at Lutheran Church of Prayer in Bakersfield, CA there were many people who came up to me to introduce themselves.  “What’s your name.” A simple question.  A question we often ask, and even more often answer. Names are not for us.  We do not call ourselves by our names; others do.  So our name exists so that others may know what to call us, may know us.

It is no different for God.  We would not know who God was if He did not tell us.  We would not know who His Son is unless He tells us.  And so He does as Jesus steps into the waters of the Jordan River with John the Baptist. In the waters of the Jordan, the heavens were torn open, the Spirit descending like a dove, and the voice from heaven, “You are my beloved Son, with You I am well pleased.”  Here is the Father’s affirmation of Jesus, calling Him His very Son.  Not so that Jesus knows this, but so that you and I would hear this proclamation from God and believe. The Gospel according to Mark begins this way, “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”  Jesus epiphanies Himself so that we would believe that this Jesus is the One who was present at Creation, who became man, is the One who would suffer and die to rescue us from sin, death, and the devil.

The baptism of John the Baptist was one of preparation, preparing God’s people for the coming of the Lord.  Though He had no sin, Jesus was baptized by John as Israel reduced to One man.  You see, the Jordan was the chief river of Israel and her land, but more importantly functioned as a border.  It was the location of the beginning of Israel’s new life under Joshua. After wandering around the desert for 40 years under the leadership of Moses, God’s people finally enter into the promised land going first through the river Jordan. Jesus is now reenacting the life of God’s people, identifying with our sinful condition, something which He continues to do throughout His life, into His death and finally His resurrection.  As He is the Son beloved of the Father, so by being connected to Him, we become children beloved of the Father.

Our baptism is where this happens. Jesus placed Himself in the Jordan River, so that in Christian Baptism He might place us inside Himself. It is where His name is now placed upon us, His name becomes ours. The name of the Triune God is a powerful thing, for it is the name of the God who created the world, who sustains the world, and who saves the world.  So the splash of water that might seem ordinary, is extraordinary because it is water with the name of God, instituted and commanded by Him.

In the rite of baptism, near the beginning, just after the question “how are you named” the sign of the cross is placed upon the heart and forehead of the one to be baptized to mark them as one redeemed by Christ the crucified.  A simple, yet powerful, blessing directing us to what God is doing in those blessed waters of Baptism.  He is marking you as His own. He marks you with water. He marks you with His Word. Here too God opens up heaven to announce to us that you are beloved, you are pleasing to the Lord.  You are forgiven of your sins, washed clean in the blood of Christ. The name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit are given to you.

So there you have it.  Heaven is opened at Jesus’ baptism, and heaven is opened to us at our baptism into Jesus.  Now, because we are baptized into Him, we are connected to His life and His death.  This isn’t just so that you know who you are, but that the world knows who you are, and whose you are.  God the Father calls Jesus His beloved Son. God calls you His beloved child because of His Son.  You are now named “Christian,” one connected to Christ Jesus our Lord, born of baptism and confessed in word and deed, and marked by the gathering of the baptized around the Word and Table of the Lord. 

Because we are connected to Him, we have a place at His heavenly feast.  Today, and as often as possible, we come to the table of the Lord not of our own desire but listening to the Word of the beloved Son of God and His revealing Himself to us in His very body and blood.  It is the fellowship of the faithful, of those united together in faith in Christ, and it is no casual meal.  We come here discerning the real, sacramental presence of Christ in the bread and in the cup, His flesh and blood given and shed for the forgiveness of sin. 

CFW Walther, the first president of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, explained it well, especially in light of the new year: “Now then, all of you who believe in God's Word, let your watchword for entering the new year be this: ‘I am baptized!’ Although the world may laugh at this comfort, the enthusiasts vex its confidence... nevertheless, abandon any other dearly held pledges and speak only throughout the entire year to come, in all terrors of conscience and necessity through sin and death: ‘I am baptized! I am baptized! Hallelujah!’ And you shall prevail! In every time of need, you will find comfort in your Baptism; on account of it Satan will flee from your faith and confession; and in death you will see heaven opened and will finally come into the joy of your Lord to celebrate a great year of jubilee, a year of praise, with all the angels forever and ever. Amen!” Treasury of Daily Prayer