Reflection for Sunday – January 18, 2026

Readings: Isaiah 49: 3, 5-6; 1 Corinthians 1: 1-3; John 1: 29-34 
Preacher: Liz Webster

Do you have small children in your life?  I have two; my granddaughter is 4 and my grandson is 1.  Almost every time we see each other, they both break into huge smiles… their faces just light up! Both Lynda and Clint become beacons of God’s joy for me and the light of God’s love.

In John’s Gospel, we hear John the Baptist proclaim, “…the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’  John baptized with water alone, Jesus is baptized with water and the Holy Spirit which leads to his telling the apostles in Matthew 28 to “… go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.” We, too, are baptized with water and the Holy Spirit!

Baptism for us is more than repentance (as in John’s baptism). It is more than initiation into the Christian family… it is a call that develops over our lifetime journeys in faith, to be, as Isaiah says, ‘a light to the nations that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.’ To be a light that changes people’s hearts… invites them… transforms them… lets them know God loves them.

But a light to the nations?  Really?  Yes!  In the Baptismal Rite for Adults, as they receive a candle lit from the Easter candle, which symbolizes the Light of Christ, it proclaims,

“You have been enlightened by Christ
Walk always as children of the light.
And keep the flame of faith alive in your hearts.”

By being baptized we (or our parents in our stead) have accepted Jesus’ call to follow him.  We have, in essence, as the psalm’s refrain today states, said, “Here am I, Lord, I come to do your will.”  What does doing Jesus’ will entail?

As Psalm 40 says, it does not include sacrifices or offerings of any kind.  It does include ‘announcing God’s justice in the vast assembly’ and following Jesus’ commands…  think of the Beatitudes (Mt 5:1-11), the Judgement of the Nations (Mt 25:31-46) and the Two Greatest Commandments (Mt 22:37-40).

We are called to be the Light of Christ in the world.  To show the world what it means to follow Jesus… To be poor in spirit, knowing you owe everything to God; to mourn those who have died but also to mourn injustice, hatred, etc.; to be meek, to have power but use it with humility, gentleness and obedience to God; to hunger and thirst for righteousness (what is God’s way); to be merciful & forgiving, to be pure in heart, to be willing to be persecuted for righteousness’ sake and to accept persecution in Jesus’ name.  We are called to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to take care of the sick, to welcome the stranger, the immigrant, the outcast… which leads us to the Two Great Commandments.

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” And
“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

In baptism, we are baptized with water and the Spirit.  It is through the “sanctification” of Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit’s actions in our lives that we are able to find what we need to be Jesus’ light in the world… to do all the things mentioned above that follow Jesus’ commands.

Being a baptized, faith-filled follower of Jesus the Christ is not easy, especially in a world where deception is a constant and division is everywhere.  Thankfully, God is with us every second of every day ready to support our efforts at being God’s   “light to the nations.”