BEYOND THE WATERS OF BAPTISM
Text: Mark 1:9 -15
Mark 1:9-15 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. (10) And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. (11) And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." (12) And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. (13) He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him. (14) Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, (15) and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."
Pastor David Kalas shares an interesting insight that helps us grasp the text for today. He talks about it in terms of alarms.
An earlier generation really only knew of two alarms. First, there was the alarm clock by the side of the bed that you used to awaken yourself at the proper time in the morning. Second, there was a timer on the oven in the kitchen that would sound an alarm to indicate that the cooking time was completed. Now, however, we have alarms to notify and remind us of all kinds of things. https://www.sermonsuite.com/emphasis-preaching-journal/other-side How many of you like alarms?
Do you jump for joy when your alarm goes off in the morning? My wife does with the five alarms I set on my I-Phone that go off every morning. What about if the security alarm on your house goes off? Have you ever gotten annoyed with the super sensitivity of the fire alarm near your stove that you took the battery out? We need those alarms. They warn us of impending danger in most cases.
The fifteenth verse could be taken as an alarm clock warning when it says “the time is fulfilled and the kingdom has come near, repent, and believe in the good news”(NRSV).
We see God’s confirmation of Jesus followed by His testing in the wilderness which can give us confidence in our faith journey. Is there contradiction here? If God is well pleased with Jesus His only begotten Son and He is, then why would God allow Him to be driven in to the wilderness for forty days and nights where He would be tempted?
CONFIRMATION
Why does God confirm Jesus? God is pleased with Jesus because of how His ministry for the last, the least and the lost was about to unfold.
1) Calling the cavalry: In the old days when it was when it was crucial where a battle could be won of lost they called the cavalry. The phrase [calling the cavalry] refers to literal cavalry, who were soldiers fighting on horseback in years gone by. Cavalry were a decisive element of battles up until the 20th century, and a single unit of cavalry could change the course of a battle in mere minutes if used at an opportune moment. https://www.quora.com/Whats-the-meaning-of-Its-like-calling-in-the-cavalry It was indeed an opportune moment when Jesus came as it says in Galatians 4:4 that Jesus came to us in the fullness of time. Jesus was far better than the cavalry because He is the only one who can save our souls for eternity!
2) Stooping: The Apostle Paul reminds us of Jesus’s humility in Philippians. Philippians 2:6 [Jesus] who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, 7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, 8 he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name (NRSV).
3) The lamb and the lion: Only Jesus can be the lamb of God who takes away our sins (John1:29). The lamb became a a lion---the lion of Judah (Revelation 5:5). “Jesus Christ is pictured as both a Lion (symbolizing his authority and power) and a Lamb (symbolizing his submission to God's will)”. (Life Application Study Bible Notes). God confirms Jesus Christ as His Son in whom He is “well pleased” because of His absolute obedience. There is no other Name by which we can be saved (Acts 4:12).
Did Jesus hold back on His abilities? There are two times in the Gospel of John where Jesus explains how He did nothing of Himself.
1) John 5:19 -20: Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise. 20 The Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing; and he will show him greater works than these, so that you will be astonished.
2) John 8:28: So Jesus said, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own, but I speak these things as the Father instructed me. Jesus never waved from absolutely following God’s will!
A group of scientists and botanists were exploring remote regions of the Alps in search of new species of flowers. One day they noticed through binoculars a flower of such rarity and beauty that its value to science was incalculable. But it lay deep in a ravine with cliffs on both sides. To get the flower someone had to be lowered over the cliff on a rope.
A curious young boy was watching nearby, and the scientists told him they would pay him well if he would agree to be lowered over the cliff to retrieve the flower below.
The boy took one long look down the steep, dizzy depths and said, “I’ll be back in a minute.” A short time later he returned, followed by a gray-haired man. Approaching the botanist, the boy said, “I’ll go over that cliff and get that flower for you if this man holds the rope. He’s my dad.” (Galaxie Software. (2002). 10,000 Sermon Illustrations. Biblical Studies Press. Our Daily Bread, April 8, 1996). Jesus illustrated that same kind of trust in our Heavenly Father.
Jesus had infinite abilities that He did not use while He was being tested in the wilderness. He willfully restrained Himself to succeed where Adam and Eve failed. Jesus was showing us how to operate by being obedient and completely trusting God. We will come back to this thought in a moment.
CONTRADICTION?
Does sacrifice contradict love? Is sacrifice about unconditional love that goes the distance? Does sacrificial love involve obedience?
1) Loving obedience: Jesus was being obedient even to the point of death on a cross (Philippians 2:8). Love and obedience are connected. Romans 5:19 says “For just as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous” (NRSV). How does Jesus’s obedience make us righteous?
2) Atonement: Hebrews 2:17 tells us [Jesus] had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Jesus allowed Himself to be tempted just like we are (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus knew that our future and atonement were hanging in the balance! Jesus’s love for us is beyond our comprehension because He died for His friends as well as His enemies.
Why did Jesus not use His power own to defeat Satan? In using His own divine power would Jesus have been avoiding sacrificial love?
1) Angel option?: Jesus had unlimited power and authority that He could have used to face being tempted but He purposefully laid it aside (John 5:19 and 8:28). In Matthew 26:53, Jesus mentions that He could have called on twelve legions angels if he had wanted to, but He didn’t! If you look up the word legion in the context of Biblical interpretation you will see that it means 3000 to 6000 soldiers. Jesus had angels He could have called at His disposal the 12 legions could mean 36,000 or 72,000 angels Jesus could have called on when He was being arrested but He didn’t. He could have called on those angles when they were nailing Him to the cross, but He didn’t! Why? Jesus had to (FROG) fully rely on the power of God our Heavenly Father to beat the devil! How are we doing with our frog?
2) Sacrifice: Following His baptism, Jesus was on His way to the cross as our high priest. Hebrews 5:5 says “… Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him [God the Father] who said to him, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”; (ESV). We have to ask ourselves some questions
First, “Why would God sacrifice His only Son for undeserving people?”
Secondly, “Why would Jesus refuse to use His power and His angel option to beat the devil (I John 3:8)?”
Thirdly, “If Jesus had used His power to avoid being tempted in order to beat the devil, then wouldn’t He have reneged on being our atoning sacrifice?”
Lastly, “Do you think that is why the devil tempted Jesus so hard?
3) Removing the curse: There is something very important here that we do not need to miss. On the cross Jesus took our sins and gave us His righteousness (II Corinthians 5:20). Galatians 3:13 says Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"— (NRSV). Jesus took our sinfulness and gave us His righteous!
4) Summary: All of these things help to explain why Jesus was driven by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Wouldn’t there be a contradiction about how a Loving God could allow all of these things to happen to His only begotten Son without this explanation?
“Albert Drecker left his box to close the drawbridge over the Passaic River for a train to cross, his little boy of ten came running after him ad fell into the river. A scream from the child reached his father’s ears, just as he was closing the drawbridge, the train was in view dashing along. To leave the bridge would involve the loss of many lives, to stand at his post would sacrifice the life of his boy. He stood at his post, the train passed over in saftey, but when he turned to look for his child he has sunk. He sacrificed his son to save that train and its passengers. It was the limit of human love. The love of God is greater. He gave His son to die for His enemies (Romans 5:6 - 8)”. (John Ritchie. 500 Gospel Incidents. London: Kilmarnock, 1912, p. 9). What would you have done if you were Albert Drecker? Is that not the same thing that God did for us?
CONFIDENCE
How can we stand up to the temptations on our own that the devil throws at us? 1) Death bait: Satan seeks to deceitfully tempt us and entice us to make us bite the bait of sin that leads to death (Romans 3:23).
2) The Gospel armor: Being saved does not make us off limits to Satan’s attacks. Satan waits for us to drop our guard and lower our shields of faith so he can aim at the hearts of all believers (Ephesians 6:10 - 20).
3) Submission: James4:7 tells us “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (NRSV). Isn’t that the same thing as fully relying on God? Isn’t that what Jesus did? He completely submitted to God. The devil did flee but he always comes back to test us.
Who is the object of our confidence, our assurance of salvation? Can our feelings be misleading? Will we always feel confident? Can we be confident without Jesus?
1)In Christ alone!: “A man once came to D. L. Moody and said he was worried because he didn’t feel saved. Moody asked, “Was Noah safe in the ark?” “Certainly he was,” the man replied. “Well, what made him safe, his feeling or the ark?” The inquirer got the point. “How foolish I’ve been!” he said. “It is not my feeling; it is Christ who saves!” - D.J.D ( Galaxie Software. (2002). 10,000 Sermon Illustrations. Biblical Studies Press. [original source: Our Daily Bread, March 9) Are we safe in God’s grace? Ephesians 2:8 gives us assurance: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (NRSV).
2) Pioneer: Jesus is alpha and our omega (Revelation 1:8) because He is the author and perfecter of our faith!
Hebrews 2:10 reminds us that “It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings” (NRSV).
Hebrews 12:2 tells us that”looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God” (NRSV).
3) Victory: We can only succeed with Jesus’s help beyond the waters of our own baptism. Romans 8:37 says “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us”. Jesus wants us to share that victory and His love with others that they may know that we are His disciples. Jesus beat the devil, conquered sin, death and the fear of death giving us the victory so that we can have assurance while we are pilgrims here till we finish our race. Apart from Jesus we can do nothing (John 15:5) but through Jesus we can do all things in the strength that only He can give us (Philippians 4:13). His strength is mad perfect in our weakness (II Corinthians 12:9). He calls us out of the world to be saved and sends us back into the world to be fishers of people. God wants hear the alarm and know that the time is fulfilled and the kingdom is near because one day Jesus is coming to claim the harvest of His kingdom on earth! God wants all to hear the alarm for God is not willing that anyone should perish but that all repent and be saved.
In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
