Sunday Readings for January 10-11, The Baptism of the Lord
By Lyn Zahorik | For On Mission
Every year, when we hear about John the Baptist, we’re reminded John called people to acknowledge their sins, turn their hearts back toward God, and get ready for the One who was coming. John’s Baptism was a symbolic washing — a way of saying, “Okay, Lord… I’m seeking you.”
But then comes the question that makes us tilt our heads a little: Why did Jesus show up in John’s Baptism line?! He was without sin. He didn’t need repentance or purification. And yet — there he was.
Jesus has this habit of doing the unexpected. And thank God for that. He could have stood just outside the crowd, waiting for John the Baptist to redirect the people’s attention toward him. But instead, he chose to get in the water. With the sinners. With the seekers. With the confused, the hopeful, the broken, and the trying-their-best crowd.
He begins his ministry waist-deep in muddy water — not as a flashy Messiah wrapped in velvet and gold, but as a Messiah willing to stand beside ordinary people who were just trying to find their way back to God. A Messiah who wasn’t afraid to get his feet wet.
When Jesus steps into the Jordan, the heavens open, the Spirit descends, and the Father’s voice proclaims, “This is my beloved Son” (Mt 3:13-17). Suddenly, the water isn’t just water anymore — it becomes holy ground in liquid form.
Jesus, with his muddy, wet feet, teaches us by example. He will never ask us to go where he has not already been. So, when we step into our own moments of conversion — big or small — we know he’s already been there, blessing the path. His Baptism shows us that salvation is relational, not transactional. He doesn’t save us from a distance. He steps into the waters of our life so that we can step into his.
Being sinless, Jesus did not need John’s Baptism, but he chose it to show his closeness, his humility, and his refusal to leave us standing alone in the line. And, honestly, that’s the kind of Savior we need — one who shows up exactly where we are, even if where we are happens to be knee-deep in the messy waters of life.
On the day of our Baptism, we received a sacrament we needed, and we are called to choose that sacrament every day. Not by re-entering the baptismal waters that were our river Jordan, but by re-entering the world each day with the same spirit Jesus carried: a spirit of solidarity, mercy, courage, and love.
Living our Baptism means choosing presence over perfection, relationship over judgment, and humility over image. It means remembering that we are God’s beloved — and helping others discover that they are too.
We are called to step into the waters with others — to stand beside the struggling, the searching, and the hurting. We are called to be people who don’t distance ourselves from the world’s mess but enter it with compassion and a willingness to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, even if it means getting our feet wet.
The readings for Sunday, January 11, can be found at The Baptism of the Lord | USCCB.