Baptism of the Lord

 

Today, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Baptism of the Lord.

The need for baptism began all the way back from the very beginning when Adam and Eve at the forbidden fruit and committed the original sin. Due to their original sin, our first parents were driven out of paradise, lost sanctifying grace; heaven was closed; they would now suffer from disease, illnesses and die, where otherwise they would not have; they lost God’s friendship; their intellect was darkened and will was weakened and were prone to sin. Because Adam was the head of the whole human family, everyone would suffer from original sin, except for Jesus, the New Adam and Mary, the New Eve.

But God did not forsake mankind. He would give us a remedy for original sin and a way to restore friendship with Him and Jesus Himself would show us the way as He would be baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist.

Since, Jesus is sinless. Why did He want John the Baptist to baptize Him? There are at least four reasons. First, when Our Lord was baptized, it was the first public revelation of the Blessed Trinity. For thousands of years, the Jews believed that there is only one God, and they were right there is only one God. Yet, they could never have known there are three persons in one God, until Jesus came to reveal the Blessed Trinity. When Jesus was baptized, the event revealed He is His Son of the Father and that there is a third person, the Holy Spirit, who appeared in the form of a dove.

Another reason, Jesus was baptized, was to sanctify all water. The water poured on the head of Our Lord was made holy and therefore all water is made holy by His baptism.

The third reason why Jesus was baptized was to give approval of John’s baptism. Jesus wanted all to know that what John was doing was in accord with the will of the Father. He was baptized by John as an example for us, so that we too would choose to be baptized.

The fourth reason, Jesus allowed Himself to be baptized was out of humility, such that He allowed Himself to be numbered among sinners, though He was free from original sin and never committed any personal sin in His life.

John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance and not a washing away of original sin. However, the Baptism which Jesus instituted, when He told His apostles, to “Go therefore and baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”,--was different then John’s Baptism. Though sinless, Our Lord took the sin of all mankind upon His shoulders, as He carried His Cross, to Calvary. He was crucified, resulting in the baptism of His bloody death. Out of love for us, He consented to His death, for the remission for our sins.

Through the waters of Baptism, we go down under the water, in order to die to sin, as Jesus died on the Cross. When we rise out of the water, sin is washed away and we rise to new life, which is a life of sanctifying grace and life of union with God.

We see in the Acts of the Apostles, the apostles did as Jesus told them to go out and baptize. Immediately after the Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter stood up and said, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit.” St. Luke then tells us about 3,000 were baptized that day.

The effects of baptism include: washing away of original sin; the complete forgiveness of all personal sins; for those who are old enough to have committed sin; the complete remission of all punishment due to sin; the restoration of our friendship with God; the gift of sanctifying grace in the soul; the Blessed Trinity comes to dwell within our heart; we share in God’s divine life; we become a child of God; a member of God’s family; a member of the Catholic Church; a member of the local church; we receive spiritual gifts such as faith, hope and charity; and the gift of being able to go to heaven when we die.

Baptism is the door to the other sacraments, so that we can receive Holy Communion, Confirmation, Anointing of the Sick, to be ordained a Priest and to go to Confession. It can also make Marriage (a sacrament) between two baptized persons.

Baptism puts a seal on our soul. It’s called an edible mark. This means once we are baptized, we are always baptized and so the sacrament cannot be repeated. And suppose, a baptized person would, God forbid, deny His Christian faith and become Muslim or Hindu or Jewish. Then he is still baptized. He can never remove his baptismal seal. He takes it with him to eternity.

Jesus made it clear baptism is necessary for salvation. He told His disciples, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved.” Although God has not made known to us any means other than Baptism for salvation, this does not mean God is restricted to saving by baptism.

Today, let us give thanks to God for the gift of our baptism. May we invite the non-baptized to be baptized because we desire that they will have the opportunity to go to heaven. And let us choose to live our life always rejecting Satan, and striving for virtue, so we may enjoy the glory of heaven, and our eternal union with the Blessed Trinity forever.