Pastor: Knowing that you are loved by God, what will you do?

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The post-Christmas season fast-forwards Jesus’ life at warp speed. We basically go from the manger to the Jordan River, from baby Jesus to adult Jesus. Luke is the only Gospel that tells any stories at all about young Jesus ― being presented in the temple as an infant and then years later, staying behind in Jerusalem after the Passover festival to hang with teachers without telling his parents. And then, even Luke goes silent. There is nothing about Jesus between then and him showing up with a bunch of other people to be baptized.

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Which makes us wonder if Jesus even knew he was, well, Jesus. He seemed to have done nothing noteworthy up to this point. We have no record of him being in the gifted and talented program, a chess club standout, or captain of the debate team. He did not have an NIL deal. He seemed to be just another 30-something millennial living in his parents' basement.

Perhaps this was why Jesus showed up at the Jordan River? There is no indication he had a purpose-driven life or had written a personal mission statement. Maybe he trudged out to the middle of nowhere to hear a motivational speaker in the hopes of getting, well, motivated.

Or it could have been that Jesus was a procrastinator perfectionist, described by Katherine Schafler as one who “waits for the conditions to be perfect before starting. Dwelling in hesitation, they live alongside the void that forms within you when you don’t do the thing you most want to do.” It’s possible that Jesus felt frozen, unable to launch.

What we do know is that John the Baptist was persuasive enough to get Jesus to move from the riverbank to the riverbed, and once there, a voice from the heavens said, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

The voice from heaven could have said, “This is my Son, the Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.” But God didn’t say that, instead, delivering the most significant message a person can hear about themselves: You are loved.

This may have surprised Jesus. It’s a message that can be hard to receive. With God’s declaration in this text in mind, Henri Nouwen writes, “It certainly is not easy to hear that voice in a world filled with voices that shout, ‘You are no good, you are ugly; you are worthless; you are despicable, you are nobody ― unless you can demonstrate the opposite.’ These negative voices are so loud and so persistent that it is easy to believe them.”

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But it did not matter to God that Jesus was not self-published, peer-reviewed, or hadn’t started yet. God’s mind was already made up: “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

What we often overlook is what happened next: Jesus believed it. This seems to be the turning point, for the next verse reports, “Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his work.”

The transition appears to be strongly connected to the message of belovedness. This message defined his ministry. In his book, "Life of the Beloved," Nouwen writes: “I must tell you that claiming your own blessedness always leads to a deep desire to bless others … It is remarkable how easy it is to bless others, to speak good things to and about them, to call forth their beauty and truth, when you yourself are in touch with your own blessedness. The blessed one always blesses.”

We have a record of what Jesus did once he believed he was beloved, but what will we do? God was certainly talking to each of us, too. The hard part is believing it. This is especially challenging for people raised on capitalism, achievement and productivity, always trying to prove ourselves worthy and accomplished.

So, whether you are a 30-something, a 90-something, unemployed, mid-career, retired, wandering or wondering, God’s mind is made up about you: “You are my beloved; in you I am well pleased.”

Do you believe it? Act accordingly.

The Rev. Lori Allen Walke is senior minister at Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: God was talking to each of us when he told Jesus he was 'beloved,' Walke says