Baptism Is Where It All Begins

1.15.23 Matthew 3:13–17

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented. 16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

Baptism is Where it ALL Begins

One of the unsung beauties of Jesus is the way in which He had to deal with complaints. You’d think nobody could find anything to complain about how a holy God does something, but people always think they know better. The teachers of the law didn’t like how Jesus was eating and drinking with sinners and tax collectors. It didn’t seem appropriate to them. Peter didn’t like it when Jesus was talking about being betrayed and handed over to death. In today’s text, John didn’t like the idea of Jesus being baptized. It didn’t seem right to him. That’s something that sinners do in repentance and a need for forgiveness. It’s not something the holy Son of God should be doing. So he tried to stop Jesus from being baptized. Earlier he had stopped the Pharisees from being baptized because they didn’t even think they needed it. Here he tried to stop Jesus from being baptized because He actually didn’t need it. It wasn’t necessary for Him.

But Jesus said that it was necessary. He had a deeper reason for baptism than what John was realizing or maybe even COULD realize. Why? Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Jesus wasn’t entering into the Jordan so that HE could be righteous or receive forgiveness. He was entering into the Jordan to fulfill ALL righteousness. So Jesus was being baptized in order to save the world, to provide righteousness for the world, for everyone who ever lived or who ever would live. He was doing it for us.

What could I compare this to? It’s like when an athlete or high profile coach signs a contract, and they show up for their first press conference at the building. There is plenty of work that goes on BEFORE that date, but then it becomes official. Then it’s nose to the grindstone - time to get going. The whole fan base puts their hope in this person to change the face of the franchise and to take them back to glory. The difference is that theirs is a TEAM game. When Jesus enters into the water it’s a HE game. He’s going to do it all, for the world.

So if He’s going to do this for the world, then He is, in effect, going to have to become EVERY sinner. Or you could say that He’s going to be treated as the ONLY sinner. God in the flesh, in the water, into sin, coming to save us. Imagine your children falling into the water where there is a school of piranhas heading their way. You cut your arm and your leg, jump into the water and say, “Come get me,” in order to save them. That’s Jesus. He has to enter the water, for us.

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. When Noah sent out the dove from the ark, he was waiting to see if there were trees and vegetation starting to grow. When it returned with an olive branch, Noah could tell that life was starting to come back. It was a sign of peace. The deluge was over. A whole new world lay before him. So also, as the Holy Spirit landed on Jesus, the deluge of God’s wrath would soon be over. The world of sinners was about to embark into a new place of forgiveness and grace and salvation, through Jesus, finished and done. No more promises. Now it’s reality. Jesus would not go on this journey alone. The Holy Spirit would be with Him, guide Him and strengthen Him along the way to open the pathway to heaven.

This was no mere symbolic ritual, that is clear. IN our epistle lesson from Acts for today, Peter mentions that Jesus was “anointed with the Holy Spirit and with POWER, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.” A similar thing happened to David when he was anointed to be King. 1 Samuel 16:13 says, “Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power.” But didn’t Jesus already have power? Wasn’t He already united with the Holy Spirit? Yes. But living in His humility, He put Himself under the same avenues that we go through, and that included subjecting Himself to the same baptism we do for the same gift of the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit enters us He has to fight against our sinful natures and conquer our sinful flesh. But when the Holy Spirit enters the holy Son of God? No inhibitions? Perfect faith? This is going to be an amazing thing! He is going to save the world!