When we
study the life of Jesus, we run across some events that we certainly can’t
repeat and can hardly even imitate. For example, we read about Jesus telling
people precisely what they we’re thinking in their own minds. Despite what our
children may think from time to time, we all know that we can’t read other
people’s thoughts! We also read about an event like the Transfiguration, when
the glory of Jesus’ divine nature began to shine through him and make his body
glow. We certainly have no way of imitating Jesus in that.
But when we
look at the Lord’s baptism, we discover that we can imitate him in this through
our own baptisms – not in all the details of course, but certainly in the
spirit of why Jesus was baptized. So today, we’re going to take a look at the
baptism of Jesus to see how we might be able to follow his example.
Setting the Stage
To
understand part of the significance of Jesus’ baptism, we have to place it in
the overall story of his life. As you all know, Jesus was born into this world
with tremendous fanfare and a number of supernatural events. The angels were
working overtime, we remember, as angelic visitors came to speak with Mary,
Joseph, and Zechariah, and then a whole choir of them appeared in the sky to
announce the Lord’s birth to the shepherds. A supernatural light led some Wise
Men from the East to the place where Jesus was, and they referred to him as the
King of the Jews!
And after
all of those incredible events, we read about – well, we read about not much of
anything until Jesus was around 30 years old! Apart from one story of Jesus
demonstrating his knowledge in the Temple when he was 12 years old, the Bible
doesn’t record any details about Jesus’ childhood. Apparently, he just lived a
quiet and normal life for all those years!
I have to
think that the fact that Jesus lived such an ordinary life for so long must’ve
been very confusing and frustrating for all of the people who knew about his
incredible birth. Surely for so many years they were on pins and needles, just
waiting for amazing things to happen through him, yet here he was, growing up
just like a normal Jewish boy.
Jesus’
baptism was the event that began to change all of that. From that day forward,
Jesus’ life was anything but ordinary. It was extraordinary in every way, so
the Lord’s baptism marked a major turning point in his life.
This moment
began to take shape when Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist, began to baptize some
of their fellow Jewish countrymen in the Jordan River. John likely earned his
nickname “the Baptist” because what he was doing was so unusual to the Jewish
people. You see, the Jews did not use the ritual of baptism for themselves –
they used it exclusively for Gentiles who wanted to convert to their religion.
The Jews
thought of the Gentiles as needing a fresh start – a whole new beginning, which
is part of what baptism symbolizes. They didn’t see themselves in the same
light, however. Sure – they were aware that they committed sins now and then,
but they believed their connection to Abraham put them on good terms with God
from the moment they were born.
But John
came along and warned the Jewish people that that was not true. If they wanted
to be on good terms with God, they needed a fresh start, too – just the same as
the Gentiles did. They had to realize that your family tree does not make you right
with God – your faith does, so they needed to repent of their sins and express
their faith in God.
So John’s
call for the Jewish people to undergo baptism was very unusual. His ministry
drew a lot of attention, and the fact that the public was focused on John seems
to have been at least part of the reason why Jesus came to him to be baptized
as well. Jesus’ baptism served as his coming-out party. This was his big
entrance onto the public stage, and with the supernatural events that took
place, it made for quite an entrance!
Baptism is
supposed to serve a similar role for us. It serves as our entrance onto the
public stage as followers of Christ. When you place your faith in Jesus, that
decision begins to transform you, but nevertheless, other people will not know
that you have made that decision unless you tell them. Your baptism is meant to
serve as your formal declaration that you are a follower of Jesus and that you
want to be identified with him.
Matthew 3:13-17
Let’s take
a closer look at what happened when Jesus came to be baptized by John [READ vv.
13-14]. Notice how John initially resisted Jesus’ request to be baptized. After
all, John’s baptism was designed for people to express repentance, and he knew
full well that Jesus had nothing to repent of!
But Jesus
persuaded him with this reply [READ v. 15]. Jesus knew that it was God the
Father’s will for him to be baptized, and this statement is just one of many
that highlight the care and concern that Jesus had at all times to carry out
His Father’s will. In John 4:33, Jesus described obedience as the very food
that sustained his soul: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to
accomplish his work.”
In his
eagerness to do the Father’s will, Jesus has given us precisely the example
that we should follow. We must also have a careful concern to obey God’s will
in everything. Before the Lord Jesus returned to Heaven, he spoke these words
to his disciples in Matthew 28:18-20: “All authority in heaven and on earth has
been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit (here is
another reason why we baptize – because Jesus commanded it for his followers),
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with
you always, to the end of the age.”
It’s almost
as if Jesus could have said, “Teach them to follow my example. Just as I obeyed
the Father in everything, teach my disciples to obey all that I have commanded
you.” For us, choosing to be baptized is an expression of our commitment to do
all that Jesus has commanded us. And with such a public expression should come
a new level of accountability with your brothers and sisters in Christ. We
should celebrate with this young lady today and affirm the decision that she
has made to follow Jesus. We should renew and recommit to our efforts to
encourage her and help her learn as a child of God.
Jesus was
very careful to carry out the Father’s will, and on this occasion of his
baptism, the Father wanted to make his opinion of Jesus publicly known so that
everyone who witnessed this event might begin to understand exactly who Jesus
was. Notice what took place after Jesus came up from the water [READ vv.
16-17].
The Jewish
people in this crowd who witnessed these things and who knew the Old Testament
well may have had their thoughts turn toward Isaiah 42:1-2, which says, “Behold
my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my
Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.”
For
everyone who witnessed Jesus’ baptism that day, the man that they saw go down
into the water may have just seemed like a young man from Galilee. But when he
came up from the water, they had unmistakable signs that this man was unique
and special. From this moment on, Jesus’ life would never be quiet or private
ever again. These people had heard from heaven that Jesus is the Son of God,
and if they followed his life, they would start to learn exactly what that
meant.
God the
Father’s declaration from heaven is filled with such love and compassion. It
would be a terrible oversight for me not to remind you today that when you
accept Christ as your Savior, you enjoy what we might call the “spillover
effect” of the pleasure that God the Father has in God the Son. When you are
born again, on the spiritual level your life becomes hidden in Christ, so that
the deep pleasure that God the Father has in Jesus spills over onto you as
well.
Just
because of your new status as a child of God, He takes great delight in you as
well. This fact that we are joined together with Christ is also part of what we
symbolize through baptism. The act of going under the water and coming back out
again symbolizes that we have been joined together with Jesus in his death, his
burial, and his resurrection so that now our destiny is tied up in his destiny.
Because of what he has accomplished, we are a new creation – dead to ourselves
and our old passions and desires and alive to God as his own children.
May we
rejoice today in all that Jesus has accomplished for us, and in how the act of
baptism reminds us of that and symbolizes it for us. May we rejoice and
celebrate with this young girl who is taking such a great step of obedience and
setting a great example for us all!
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