Gospel of Luke 3:21, 22
We are in a message series on the Gospel of Luke
The word “gospel” literally means “good news”
So, you could say that this series is about “The good news of Luke”
What exactly is this good news?
Simply put, it’s the life story of Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ is, without a shadow of a doubt, the most influential person who has ever existed
Even if you’re not a Christian, or even a particularly religious person, you cannot deny this fact
No one life has affected the whole of humanity more than Jesus Christ
Since He has affected the world so deeply you would think that all of us would know a lot about Him, but unfortunately that is not true
Many claim to know about Jesus, but in reality few people really do
The Gospel of Luke details the events of Jesus’ life from His birth to His death on the cross and subsequent resurrection
Luke is written by a Gentile to a Gentile audience
Since the vast majority of us listening to this message are Gentiles I think it’s very appropriate that we study this Gospel
Today we’re going to be looking at Luke Chapter 3
At the beginning of chapter 3 we read about Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist
John is an interesting character, living in the desert, wearing clothes made from Camel hair, and eating locusts & honey
Even though these characteristics may make us questions John’s mental stability, he had a very vital role to play in Jesus’ ministry
John was the prophet foretold about in Old Testament prophecy that would precede the coming of the Messiah
John’s message was simple – prepare the way of the Lord
In other words, get ready because the Messiah is coming!
In addition to preaching John also was baptizing people
Why was he doing this?
We tend to think of Baptism in the Christian context – that once we’ve received Christ as our Savior we follow His command and be baptized in water
But how many of you knew that baptism was something that had been practiced among the Jews as well?
To the Jews baptism was an act of ceremonial cleansing
All priests were required to go through this ceremonial cleansing before they began their ministry in the temple
Anything used in the service of the temple – clothing, utensils, furniture, etc. – also went through this ceremonial baptism
John’s baptism was a little different though
The baptism of John was a baptism of repentance
This is not to be confused with a Christian baptism – Christianity did not exist yet
John’s baptism was simply calling people to repent of their sins and get ready for the coming of the Messiah
So, in picking up our story, John the Baptist was at the river Jordan baptizing people when suddenly his cousin Jesus showed up
Now before I continue let me tell you that what I’m about to preach I fully believe to be the truth, however I admit that I may not fully understand all the theology involved.
I could easily be wrong, but in prayerful consideration I believe what I’m teaching is true – if I ever find out different I will let you know
Let’s continue in …
Luke 3:21-23 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
23 Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.
What exactly is going on here?
Obviously Jesus came to John to be baptized, but why?
I know John was wondering the same thing because in the Gospel of Matthew John said to Jesus “You don’t need to be baptized by me, I need to be baptized by you!”
Let’s think about this for a moment
Why did Jesus need to be baptized?
It certainly wasn’t because He needed to be cleansed of anything or repent of sin
2 Corinthians 5:21 clearly stated that Jesus was sinless – there was nothing to be cleansed or repent from
When John made his statement that he shouldn’t baptize Jesus but that Jesus should baptize him Jesus’ reply tells us why He needed to be baptized
In Matthew 3:15 Jesus told John it was to “fulfill all righteousness”
In other words Jesus was saying “we need to do it because it’s the right thing to do”
Why was it the right thing to do?
Remember when I said that all priests had to go through the Jewish rite of baptism before they could enter in to their priestly duties?
Do you know at what age this took place?
According to the Mosaic law the earliest age this could happen was 30
How old was Jesus when He began His ministry?
Luke 3:23 tells us He was 30 years old!
If you’ve ever wondered why Jesus waited until He was 30 to begin His ministry here is the answer
Scripture tells us that Jesus holds the offices of prophet, priest, and king
You can be a prophet and a king before the age of 30, but you couldn’t be a priest – that’s why Jesus waited until He was 30
In fact, I wonder if He had just turned 30, if His birthday was near the time He was baptized – just a thought, there’s no way we can know
So, here is Jesus getting baptized by John and during the process something unusual happens
… heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
Can you imagine being one of the people there and experiencing this?
Jesus comes out of the water, the Holy Spirit descended like a dove, and God the Father spoke!
There should have been no doubt in anyone’s mind who Jesus was!
But there’s something else very significant happening here
The Holy Spirit came upon Jesus in the form of a dove
Many people, myself included, believe that at this moment Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit – what would later be called being Baptized in the Holy Spirit
At first this idea seemed a little odd to me
Why in the world would Jesus need the baptism in the Holy Spirit?
Jesus is, after all, God – the second person of the Trinity
Why in the world would God need the baptism in the Holy Spirit?
To grasp this concept we need to understand something
Jeremiah 23 speaks about the coming Messiah and the fact that He would be both human and divine – both God and man
Yes, Jesus is God, but Jesus was also human
Prior to His birth in the manger Jesus was living in heaven as a full member of the Trinity with all the omnipotence that that implied
However, when Jesus was born in the manger He also became fully human
Although He was God, to be human He also had to limit Himself
Did you ever wonder why Jesus spent so much time in prayer?
I mean, if He was God why couldn’t He just communicate with the rest of the Trinity the way He always had?
Because He had to limit Himself to become human
Did you ever wonder why there are no recorded instances of miracles before Jesus’ baptism?
Certainly there were people who needed healing – but we read nothing about it
The answer is simple – to be human Jesus had to limit Himself, which mean limiting His power
Can you imagine how hard it would have been for Jesus to not heal people if He had the power within Himself for those first 30 years?
Jesus is the embodiment of compassion and I’m sure He wanted to heal all the sick He encountered
But He couldn’t because He willingly limited Himself of His power when He left heaven
There are no recorded miracles of Jesus prior to His baptism in the Holy Spirit because it was that baptism that returned His divine power to Him
At the age of 30 Jesus was old enough to minister as priest, and that’s when the Holy Spirit came upon Him and that’s when the miracles began
In other words, Jesus needed the Baptism in the Holy Spirit to be able to fulfill His ministry
So what does this mean to us?
What it means is simple – if Jesus needed the Baptism in the Holy Spirit to fulfill His ministry, then so do we!
If Jesus needed it, why do we think we can do without it?
We are a Pentecostal church
What exactly does that mean?
That means that we believe the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is for today – that just like Jesus received the baptism in the Holy Spirit, just like the disciples on the day of Pentecost and countless others mentioned in the book of Acts received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, so can you
This doctrine of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is probably one of the most controversial doctrines the church faces
I could preach for a couple of weeks about the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, but due to time constraints today we’ll just touch on it briefly
I will say that if you have questions about this doctrine that are not answered in my message today please feel free to speak with me or Pastor Adam directly and we will gladly help you find the answers you need
Back to this controversial doctrine
There are many who believe it is for today & there are many who believe that it stopped with the Apostles and first century Christians
Why do some believe that it stopped?
Because of a verse in
1 Corinthians 13:8-10 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
Those that believe that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is not for today recognize the fact that every time Scripture mentions someone being baptized in the Holy Spirit that baptism is always accompanied by speaking in tongues
This passage clearly states that tongues will be stilled when “perfection comes”
They believe that this perfection is the Bible
Those of us who are Pentecostal believe that although the Bible is most certainly the inspired Word of God the “perfection” mentioned here is not the Bible, but Jesus
When Jesus returns we will no longer need to speak in tongues so they will indeed stop
Since Jesus has not returned then the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is still available today
So, this begs the question “Didn’t I receive the Holy Spirit when I received Jesus?”
Yes, you did
The Holy Spirit convicts people of sin, convinces them of righteousness, and dwells within them.
No one becomes a Christian without the work of the Holy Spirit
However, this is different than the Baptism in the Holy Spirit
When we become Christians we automatically receive the Holy Spirit
When we get Baptized in the Holy Spirit we do not get more of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit gets more of us!
I heard one person say that when we get saved the Holy Spirit is resident in our lives. But when we get baptized in the Holy Spirit, then the Holy Spirit is president in our lives!
Jesus stated clearly in Acts chapter 1 that the purpose of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is to give us power to become witnesses
It gives us the boldness that we need to fulfill the task that God has called us to do – namely to preach the Gospel to the world
The Gospel of Mark also states that there are certain signs that will accompany believers:
Mark 16:17-18 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
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How will all of this happen?
Certainly not on our own or through our own power
It will happen through the Baptism in the Holy Spirit
How do you know if you have it?
You will speak in tongues
If you don’t have it how can you get it?
Ask!
Think about it – if Jesus needed it then so do we!
Jesus set the example at His baptism, will we follow it?
