The Baptism Of The Lord Illuminates Our Own Sinfulness

The Baptism of Jesus exposes the true identity of Jesus, the beloved son in whom the father is well pleased. It also offers us a chance to acknowledge the truth about who we are, sinners in need of a savior. The Baptism of the Lord illuminates our own sinfulness. Jesus came down from heaven and entered humanity so that he could pull us out of our sinfulness which had cut us off from God. His baptism shows us his desire to meet humanity in all of its ugliness so that he could elevate us out of it. Do we acknowledge that truth? Do we allow Jesus to be the savior he is?

The Baptism of Jesus

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfil all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; and lo, a voice from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3 : 13-17

Scriptural Analysis – John’s Objection

The Baptism of Jesus marks the start of Jesus’s public ministry in Matthew’s gospel. Jesus travels from Galilee to the Jordan river (near the Judean Wilderness) in order to be baptized by John. Jesus joins the crowds of repentant sinners who have also made this journey.

Mark and Luke also record the Baptism of Jesus in their Gospels, but it is only in the Gospel of Matthew that the interaction between John and Jesus is recorded. John objects to Jesus presenting himself for baptism, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” This response shows that John fully recognizes and acknowledges his subordinate role in relation to Jesus, John had previously acknowledged this reality when questioned by the Pharisees, “But he who is coming after me is mightier than I.” (Matthew 3:11) John is uncomfortable with the reversal of roles that Jesus is proposing.

Despite his objection, Jesus urges John to, “Let it be so now.” Jesus’s rationale for allowing the baptism is that “It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” In the Gospel of Matthew, the word righteousness is used often to describe proper moral conduct, obedience to the will of God, but it is also used to describe God’s saving plan. In the usage here, both meaning may be at play. The word fulfill is used sixteen times in Matthew’s gospel and in almost every one of those usages, the word is being used to point out the fulfillment of the scriptures. Thus Jesus’s baptism fulfills an aspect of God’s plan.

Scriptural Analysis – Jesus Revealed

After Jesus is baptized, Matthew reports of a heavenly vision and voice. This event, occurring at the Jordan river, recalls the commissioning of the Prophet Ezekiel by the river Chebar, “ I was among the exiles by the river Chebar, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.” (Ezekiel 1:1) Jesus is being commissioned as a new prophet to the people of Israel.

Matthew notes that “The heavens were opened.” This phrase shows a unique revelation as if heaven was being unveiled to the people on earth. This phrase also serves as the introduction of God’s own pronouncement about Jesus. Thus far an angel, the magi, and John the Baptist have confirmed who Jesus is. Now, God will confirm who Jesus is.

Jesus sees the spirit of God coming down upon him. This should not be taken to mean that this is Jesus’s first contact with the Holy Spirit. Rather, it marks a pivotal moment: his anointing as Israel’s messiah. This imagery of the Lord’s spirit resting upon people has also been used in relation to the kings.

Saul’s anointing as king – “Then the spirit of the Lord will come mightily upon you, and you shall prophesy with them and be turned into another man.” (1 Samuel 10:6)
The anointing of David as king – “Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward.“ (1 Samuel 16:13)
The promise to raise up a David king – “He will raise an ensign for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel.” (Isaiah 11:12)

The spirit descending like a dove recalls the dove that Noah sent out signaling the end of the flood and the new world that remained, “Then he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground.” (Gen 8:8-12) The phrase, Spirit of God, recalls the story of creation, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters.” This is powerful imagery used by Matthew signaling that in Jesus, God is again doing something new.

The voice from heaven is the voice of God:

“And behold, the word of the Lord came to him.” (Genesis 15:4)
“Out of heaven he let you hear his voice.” (Deuteronomy 4:36)
“While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven.” (Daniel 4:31)

The voice acknowledges the sonship of Christ, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” These words are composed of several Old Testament presages:

“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.” (Isaiah 42:1)
“Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering upon one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” (Genesis 22:2)
“You are my son, today I have begotten you.” (Psalm 2:7)

Daily Application

In order to understand how radical the baptism of Jesus was, it is necessary to understand first, the Jewish understanding of baptism. At the time of Jesus, the Jewish people did baptize but baptism was reserved for proselytes, those people who were converting to Judaism from some other Fatih. These people were considered stained by sin and polluted, so baptizing these people was understandable.

However, the idea that a Jewish person would need to be baptized was unheard of. The Jewish people did not conceive of themselves as sinners who were shut out from God. When John the Baptist burst onto the scene and started preaching a baptism of repentance for those who were already part of the covenant, that was revolutionary. Yet his mission was needed. First, it was required in order to fulfill the scriptures. Second, it was required to prepare the way for Jesus’s message of repentance: for his atoning death and resurrection. John opened the eyes of mankind to their sin and their search for God.

Jesus allowed himself to be baptized not because he had anything to repent of. He is the spotless lamb: the one free from any blemish of sin at all. However, he wanted to identify himself with those he came to save.

Can you imagine what Jesus’s ministry would have looked like had John not gone before him and gotten the people to start thinking about their sins? In many ways, it would look a lot like it does today. We have allowed Jesus to be turned into a wise man: a modern-day guru if you will. But that is not at all who Christ claimed to be. He claimed to be the savior.

Jesus’s claim to be the savior means that humanity has something to be saved from. If we acknowledge that Jesus is the savior then we also acknowledge that we have something we need to be saved from. That something is sin. Acknowledging the true identity of Jesus means that we must also acknowledge our own sinfulness. The two go hand in hand. We cannot acknowledge Jesus as the savior without looking at our own sinfulness.

As we recall the Baptism of the Lord let us take a moment to sincerely look at our hearts and see if we acknowledge the true identity of Jesus. The best way to tell is the degree to which we have acknowledged our own sinfulness: not just in certain aspects of our lives but the entirety of our lives. If there are areas that you are still guarding pray for the grace to let him in. Jesus will help you but only after you first acknowledge that you need the help, that you need the savior.

Additional Resources

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