The Baptism of Jesus

THE BAPTISM OF JESUS

    1. One God – Three Persons

    “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit...”  Matt 28:19

    “It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove.  Then a voice came from heaven, "You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."  Mark 1:9-11

    When Jesus came out of the water, the voice of the Lord was heard as the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the visible form of a dove. .The voice of the Father said, "This is my beloved Son, in who I am well pleased."  Then after being filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus went out into the desert where He fasted and prayed for 40 days.  

    Many in the early Church saw Christ's Baptism as the institution of Christian baptism (the baptism that makes Christians). His Flesh blessed the water, and the descent of the Holy Spirit (in the form of a dove) and the voice of God the Father announcing that this was His Son, in Whom He was well pleased.  This marked the beginning of Christ's public ministry.

    “The Spirit of God descending like a dove was anointing Jesus, through whom salvation would come. This event was like a king's being anointed with oil at his coronation. The Holy Spirit empowered Jesus to accomplish God's salvation and defeat Satan (see 12:18, 28). This same Spirit empowers Jesus' followers (10:20; Acts 1:8).—NLT Study Bible

    "Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased! I will put My Spirit upon Him, And He will declare justice to the Gentiles.”  Matt 12:18 (NKJV)

    “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; ¹⁰ and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.”   Col 2:9-10 (NKJV)

 

    2. The Son of God, the Human One.

    “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰ This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.' ³¹ I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water." ³² And John bore witness, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. ³³ I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' ³⁴ And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God."  John 1:29-34 (NKJV)

    “And they sang a new song, saying: "You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation...”  Rev 5:9 (NKJV)

 

    3. To fulfill all righteousness

   “But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he allowed Him.”  Matt 3:15

    The key to what took place at the baptism of Jesus is found in these words by Robert Brinsmead.  “A thing cannot be a new covenant sign or seal if Christ as God did not give it.  Neither can it be God’s sign or seal if Christ as man did not also accept it from God and give God thanks for it.  The baptism of Jesus set the pattern for Him to be the first among many brothers and sisters (Rom. 8:29).”  We learn that this event was to be the mark of identification to show the one who was the Messiah (see John 1:29-34).  In the same way, Christian baptism can be viewed as a mark of identification in which the Holy Spirit seals us to God (Eph. 1:13-14).  God the Father voiced His approval of  Christ Jesus in a way which all those present could hear (compare John 12:28). So it was Jesus the Christ, the Word, as a human being, who came both with the water of His baptism and the blood of His death (1 John 5:6).

    “That work was the regeneration of mankind. The word has too often lost its force; it should be recovered. The apostles set out to generate mankind anew. They had not the language; they had not the ideas; they had to discover everything. They had only one fact, and that was that it had happened. Messiah had come, and been killed, and risen; and they had been dead “in trespasses and sin,” and now they were not. They were re-generate; so might everyone be. “The promise,” they called to the crowd at Jerusalem, “is to you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off.” “ Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the Holy Ghost.” They had believed in Jesus of Nazareth, without very clearly understanding him; his Resurrection had seemed to justify them; but much more now they were justified, or rather he was justified. The  thing had happened. In every kind of way it was true that the God of Israel would not leave their souls in hell nor suffer his Holy One to see corruption.”  Williams