Matthew 3: 1 – 17
Why Was Jesus Baptized?
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.’” 4 Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. 13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” 15 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. 16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
We find interestingly enough that the other three Gospels include this situation. Let’s see what they have to say.
Mark 1: 1- 11, “1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 2 As it is written in the Prophets: “Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.” 3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.’” 4 John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. 5 Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. 6 Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And he preached, saying, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. 8 I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” 9 It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. 11 Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Luke 3, “1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. 3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, 4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: “ The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough ways smooth; 6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’” 7 Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 9 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” 10 So the people asked him, saying, “What shall we do then?” 11 He answered and said to them, “He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.” 12 Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than what is appointed for you.” 14 Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?” So he said to them, “Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.” 15 Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, 16 John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.” 18 And with many other exhortations he preached to the people. 19 But Herod the tetrarch, being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, 20 also added this, above all, that he shut John up in prison. 21 When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. 22 And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”
John 1, “19 Now this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” and he answered, “No.” 22 Then they said to him, “Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said: “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Make straight the way of the LORD,”’as the prophet Isaiah said.” 24 Now those who were sent were from the Pharisees. 25 And they asked him, saying, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 John answered them, saying, “I baptize with water, but there stands One among you whom you do not know. 27 It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.” 28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing. 29 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.”
Do you see any differences? Well let me point out a few. In the Gospel of Matthew we read about John’s confrontations with the religious leaders. Matthew was a Tax Collector who probably wasn’t there at the Jordan when all this happened. During the three years that he was part of the Lord’s Apostles he heard all about what had happened. In addition, in Matthews Gospel we read of John’s acknowledgement of our Lord Jesus Christ’s Holiness. He asked Him why He would come and want to be baptized by one who was not worthy to baptize the Son of God.
Luke wasn’t at any of the events that happened to our Lord Jesus. He was a disciple of Paul. Being a doctor and a curious investigator Luke went back and interviewed all the people who had any contact or dealing with our Lord. Luke gives us a little history lesson on who were the political rulers at this time along with some of John’s teachings. We find out about John’s advice to the people in general encouraging them to be generous and caring for others. He also addresses government workers to not cheat or use their power incorrectly. Luke also mentions the imprisonment of John.
One who was a possible eyewitness was John the Apostle. At first he was a follower of John the Baptist. Once our Lord came onto the scene to begin His ministry John then followed our Lord Jesus Christ. John brings out the fact also regarding the confrontation with the Pharisees. They wanted to know if John the Baptist was one of three potential promised special people. Moses had prophesied that there would be a special prophet sent from God. In addition, the Jews awaited the return of Elijah. And lastly they were all waiting and hoping for The Messiah. John the Apostle points out that John the Baptist informed them that Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of all three of promised heroes sent from Jehovah Elyon – The Lord Most High.
The Gospel of Mark who was known as ‘John Mark’ had probably known the Lord Jesus Christ when He visited Jerusalem. He was probably the young man who fled away naked when our Lord was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane. Mark had probably spent considerable time with all the disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, especially Peter. In the 2nd century a person by the name of Papias wrote that Mark was Peter’s interpreter who wrote down accurately all that Peter recollected about the Master.
Peter finally decided to give a whirl at writing and wrote two letters. It is interesting that he lists his devotion to the One Who Is God’s Annointed – The Messiah. Peter proudly announces in the beginning of his letter that he is a follower of the Son of God, “ Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ’
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.’” 4 Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.
Now we will come upon another problem that needs to be addressed, that I am sure some of you are already thinking and it is this, ‘How come our Master, King, Lord, Savior and God was baptized?’ We will talk about this shortly when we come upon the verse, okay?
The prophet Isaiah prophesied of John when he wrote, “ 2 As it is written in the Prophets: “Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You. 3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.’”
Have you ever seen on TV the preparations that a town or city undergoes when the President of The United States is going to make a visit. As this passage is taken from the prophet Isaiah, how much more should be done to honor the very personal visit of our Creator God.
The interest of verse 3 is this, is this saying that those people sins who were baptized by John eliminated? Remember, our Lord Jesus had not yet given His life for the sins of the world. So, are these people forgiven only temporarily or are they permanently forgiven?
By the way, what does the word ‘remission’ mean?
Remission less commonly, remittal
n
1. (Law) (Business / Commerce) the act of remitting or state of being remitted
2. (Law) a reduction of the term of a sentence of imprisonment, as for good conduct he got three years’ remission
3. (Christianity / Ecclesiastical Terms) forgiveness for sin
4. discharge or release from penalty, obligation, etc.
5. lessening of intensity; abatement, as in the severity of symptoms of a disease
remissive adj
remissively adv
Well what I read here means ‘forgiveness of sins’ Hymm.? Now what?
I think this verse is the answer to this question and it comes from the Gospel of Luke chapter 16, “16 “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.”
John The Baptist was the last of the Old Testament prophets as verse 16 declares. Up until the end of his life people who had ‘repented’ were forgiven. Baptism means ‘to be identified with’. As John The Baptist preached, the people identified with his message. They were baptized as an outward sign of their inward repentance or ‘change of mind’. It reflects the contrite heart that comes to God for forgiveness and renewal as these verses highlight;
Psalm 34, “18 The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit.”
Psalm 51, “ 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise.”
Isaiah 57, “15 For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “ I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.”
Isaiah 66, ‘2 For all those things My hand has made, and all those things exist,” says the LORD. “ But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.”
When you interact with new believers it reminds you of the time when you ask our Holy Jesus to be your Lord and Savior. You want to know what you must quit or get out of your life. We see the same thing happening here as people asked John what they need to do. However, not everyone is sincerely interested in changing their lives
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
Now do not miss what is also said in these verses of Luke -15 Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, 16 John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”
The people believed that when the Messiah would come then prophecy would again be spoken like the prophets of old used to do. Don’t forget that it has been over 400 years since the Lord spoke.
Please notice that John was quick to point out to everyone that He was not the Messiah. We should learn from this passage that in all situations we must not take any credit or glory for achievements. We are to give all the credit and glory to the One Who deserves it – our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
What we see here is a listing of our Lord’s first and second coming to the earth. He came the first time identifying Himself with us sinners when He was baptized in water. He shall return a second time in judgment with fire.
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” 15 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. 16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
The baptism of our Lord Jesus was necessary. It indicated His full approval of what John was doing.
He was baptized, not for His Own sake, because He summed up in Himself the whole of all Jewish believers. He was baptized along with them as their representative. He was identifying Himself with them and with us. Remember, baptism means ‘an identifying with’. He would walk where we humans walk and go through what we go through. What a Great and Mighty King we have.
Before ending this study, please do not miss out how the entire Blessed Holy Trinity – our Father, our Lord Jesus Christ, and our Precious Holy Spirit - 21 When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. 22 And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven [Father] which said, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”
And after He left the water The Holy Spirit led Him into the Wilderness because there was a battle to be won. Our ancestor Adam lost to Satan in a garden of paradise. The second Adam, our Lord and Savior Is going to win the next confrontation but this time it will be in a wilderness.
