A Famine Not of Bread

"The Baptism of Jesus" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately He went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on Him and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:13–17). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! God’s plan for your salvation, first decreed in Genesis 3, has reached a milestone with the incarnation of His Son. Conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, He takes on human flesh. At eight days of age, He is made a son of Abraha...

"Baptism of Jesus" by Jusepe de Ribera Click here to listen to this sermon. “We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! He’s everything they’re not. And more. Do you see that crowd on the banks of the Jordan River, listening to John the Baptist? They’re the kind of poor, miserable sinners that the world just doesn’t get. Hey, look around and you’ll see what I mean. If you’re a sinner, what are you supposed to do about it? The old-school notion is that you pick up the pieces, ignore the past, and get on with the future. In terms of psychology and sanity, that’s a pretty good way to live. The popular option today, of course, is to parade your sin as blatantly as you can. You can boast in it, daring others to call it wrong. You can excuse it, clai...

"The Baptism of Christ" by Leonardo Da Vinci Click here to listen to this sermon. “Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented Him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?’ But Jesus answered Him, ‘Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness’ (Matthew 3:13-14). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! It all started at the Jordan. Clothed in camel hair and leather, eating locusts and wild honey, John was the very picture of the prophet Elijah, who had called Israel to repentance in the days of King Ahab. The people who flocked out into the wilderness believed he was the forerunner of the Messiah, as Malachi had foretold. John identified himself as the “voice of one crying in the wilderness.” Centuries before, Isaiah had predicted such a messenger would appear to “prepare the way for the Lord” (40:3). And so, John preached his ...

Click here to listen to this sermon. “ We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! In the midst of its songs about drinking beer, driving pickup trucks, and chasing pretty girls, country music occasionally reveals a spiritual side. I remember as a kid, listening to my Dad in the barn singing along with Kris Kristofferson, asking “Why me, Lord?” or Johnny Paycheck as he urged, “Let’s all go down to the river.” Carrie Underwood’s recent hit, “Something in the Water,” follows in the same spiritual stream. And its baptismal theme is hard to miss. I’m guessing that some of you have heard the song, but for those of you who haven’t, let me summarize. The lyrics speak of the wasted life of one who, late one night, is “all out of hope and all out of fight.” She recalls ...