A Baptism in mid-Lent

3rd Sunday in Lent : 27th February 2005

Ex 17.1-7  |  Rom 5.1-11  |  John 4.5-42

Last week we saw in John’s Gospel Jesus meeting with the only Irishman in the bible - Nic O’Demus - and talking about how discipleship involved being born of water and the spirit... well this week in the very next chapter Jesus meets the very large women... that’s the woman of some-area [Samaria]... and he talks about how God wants worshippers to worship in spirit and in truth.

So starting the Christian journey involves water and the spirit (which we thought of as baptism and faith); continuing in the Christian way involves the spirit and truth - which is something about faith and something about how our faith has a historical rooted nature in the person of Jesus of Nazareth.

Today we’re delighted to be baptising Sophia, and welcoming her into the family of the Church, and marking the start of her Christian journey.

This morning we’ll hear a lot of talk about “faith” - the faith of the Church; the faith Sophia will be baptised into; the faith of her parents and godparents... we could even talk about the faith God has in her...

I want to suggest to you that faith has two elements to it: belief and trust. Belief is something which happens in our heads - thinking stuff; trust is something which comes from our heart - feeling stuff if you like.

I need a volunteer who trusts me...

(And bizarrely enough a visitor to St John’s, called Charlie - who was probably 12 or 13, stepped out... [never trust anybody who sas “Trust me...”] I blindfolded him, stood behind him and told him that I was going to count down from 5 to 0, and when I reached 0 I wanted him to drop straight backwards and I’d make sure he was caught. As I counted I walked from behind him to being several meters in front of him. As I did this, unbeknown to Charlie, Alison took my place, ready to catch him if he did fall backwards - which he didn’t...)

Sometimes it’s easier to trust when we can see what’s going on... sometimes faith can be difficult to maintain when things don’t quite seem to be going your way...

When believe and trust combine, we can say that we have faith.

The story is told of the Great Blondin, the world’s greatest tightrope walker. He strung a rope across Niagara Falls and a huge crowd gathered to watch him. “Do you believe I can walk across the rope?” he asked the crowd “Yes!” they cheered back. So off he went with his balancing pole... and made it both there and back. The crowd cheered. He then placed a wheelbarrow on the rope. “Do you believe I could walk the tightrope pushing this wheelbarrow across?” he said. “Yes!” the crowd cheered... and sure enough he did: there and back. Then he said “Do you believe I could push the wheelbarrow across with a person in it?” “Yes!” shouted the enthusiastic crowd. “OK, who’s it going to be?” he asked - and the crowd went very quiet...

Eventually somebody volunteered (his mother, so legend has it!) and he did push them safely across and back. Many people believed he could do it: only one person trusted...

If belief happens in the head and trust in the heart sometimes that 18 inch journey is the longest one we ever have to make...

As Sophia grows up in all kind of ways, let our prayer be that she will continue to grow in believe and trust as she discovers the God who believes in her.

Fr Andrew J Perry
Rector, St John the Evangelist, Pevensey Rd, St Leonards on Sea