It’s not easy to kneel down to anyone. From childhood we are taught to “stand up tall.” And that doesn’t just refer to our physical posture. We live in a world where being king or queen of the hill is more than just a game. It’s a way of life, especially in a country as powerful and rich as ours. It’s not easy to be humble. It’s not easy to kneel down. It’s not easy to be vulnerable, to walk in the shoes of those less blessed.
In our gospel today we meet the prophet John the Baptist who had attracted large crowds of followers through his powerful preaching. He became so popular that many of his disciples thought he was Elijah come back in his fiery chariot; some went so far as to declare that he was the Messiah.
But John’s biggest moment came the day that he cried out, “Look there. Look at the carpenter from Nazareth. Look at that gentle one, so different from me. Look at Jesus. He’s the one. Look at the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John remembered the ancient Jewish tradition that the Messiah would be found in a hidden figure, in a person one does not recognize at first glance.
Jesus called John the greatest of all the prophets, but never was John greater than when he came down his ladder and recognized salvation hidden in his midst. “He must increase; I must decrease.”
John was not the only one to come down the ladder that day. Jesus also made a humble gesture. He knelt down to John for baptism. It was a shocking gesture because he who was sinless took on the ritual of John the Baptist which was a baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
Some biblical scholars have remarked that it is extraordinary that we find John’s baptism of Jesus recorded by all four evangelists. It is extraordinary because, when the gospels were written, the early church was struggling to hold on to the conviction that Jesus was the sinless Son of God. Wouldn’t the fact that Jesus knelt down for baptism prove embarrassing? Wouldn’t it confuse the people?
The story of Jesus’ baptism by John was kept despite the fact that it was open to misinterpretation. The story was remembered and cherished because it told us what kind of Savior we have. He is a Savior who emptied himself and came down the ladder so that he could enter our real world where our lives, as blest as they are, are often cracked at the corners. That is what we proclaim in the Creed each Sunday: “For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven.”
May this Eucharist where we meet our God hidden in the humble forms of word, bread and wine strengthen us also to come down the ladder and to know the humble joy of Jesus.
Paul A. Magnano
Pastor