Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34;
Luke 3:23-38;
Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13
John the Baptist preaches baptism for the forgiveness of sins, yet Jesus — Who has no sin and needs no forgiveness — insists on being baptized by John, even when John says it ought to be the other way round, that he himself should instead be baptized by Jesus. So why is Jesus baptized? Jesus answers the question with, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” (Matt. 3:15)
We don’t have space here to fully expound what Jesus means by this statement, but from ancient times the church has understood that Jesus is here sanctifying the waters of baptism, initiating the Sacrament by which we are buried with Him into His death and raised with Him into new life. (Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:12) The church has also always recognized that Jesus’ baptism serves to confirm His Messiahship, first to John the Baptist and then to everyone else by the descent of the Spirit like a dove and by the voice from heaven saying, “This is My beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased.” (Matt. 3:17)
Jesus’ baptism foreshadows His death. In taking on baptism, Jesus is accepting that death. He is actively identifying Himself with us, putting Himself in our shoes, and taking upon Himself the death that we deserve. In so doing, He provides the vehicle by which we might then identify with Him. So as we consider Jesus’ baptism, we might want to reflect on our own baptism, joining Him in His death and rising with Him to new life.
See also:
- January 10 (2021) / Matthew 3:1-17
- January 11 (2021) / Mark 1:1-13
- January 13 (2021) / John 1:19-34
- January 14 (2021) / Luke 3:21-38
- January 15 (2021) / Matthew 4:1-11
- January 16 (2021) / Luke 4:1-13
One more thing…
With regard to the chronology of events, I am of the opinion that The Chronological Study Bible leads us slightly astray today. It seems clear to me that John 1:1:29-34 (where the Baptist sees Jesus and says, “Behold, the Lamb of God…“) describes an encounter that occurs well after Jesus’ baptism. When the Baptist talks about his seeing the Spirit descend like a dove, he is reflecting back on that baptism that occurred earlier. How much earlier is impossible to say, but if we are going to make chronological sense of the rest of the chapter (John 1:35-51 — which starts off, “The next day…“), I think we need to at least allow time for Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness — and potentially quite a lot more time.
No, I don’t have some big theological point to make here. It is just an observation. But it goes to say that we need to hold the chronological guesswork loosely and not rely too heavily on how things might be presented to us.
Whoohoo! I am finally up to date! Listening to the audio gives a new perspective to familiar words. We are all so blessed by our church family and all that they do to feed our souls. Thank you John and Fred (and technology).