THE BAPTISM OF JESUS CHRIST
MATTHEW 3:13–17
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
(Matthew 3:13–14).
The baptism of Jesus was the inauguration of His public ministry. We are so used to baptism today that we do not realize what a significant and unusual thing John the Baptist was doing. More than that, we often fail to see the strangeness of Jesus’ baptism.
Baptism Was for Sin
Baptism in the Old Testament was a cleansing rite. It signified cleansing from sin. Jesus, though He was like us in all other respects, was without sin. What could it mean, then, for Jesus to be baptized?
In the Judaism of the day, if a Gentile wanted to become a Jew, he had to do three things. He had to make a profession of faith, be circumcised, and be baptized. Because he was a Gentile, he was considered unclean or impure, and was washed according to the cleansing rites of Leviticus. Thus, baptism was a rite that took place for non-Jewish people.
But John’s baptism was designed and directed exclusively to the Jewish people. This was scandalous. John was saying that the Jews needed to repent and be baptized. What John was doing was not a harmless ritual; rather, it was stirring up the whole countryside.
The Baptism of Jesus
John did not want to baptize Jesus because he knew that Jesus was sinless. Jesus, however, said that it was necessary that He be baptized in order to “fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15). Jesus gave no explanation to John; He just told John what to do and John did it. By His baptism, Jesus stepped into the role of the Jewish nation. God had given the Jews a new requirement, to be baptized. Jesus had to be baptized to fulfill His Father’s will. This event marked His consecration and initiation to the mission that the Father had given Him.
CORAM DEO
Jesus was not baptized because of sin, but rather to identify with the Jewish nation. Repeatedly Scripture tells us we have a Great High Priest who identifies with us in all things, knowing our weaknesses and temptations. Christ’s baptism inaugurated His ministry of compassion poured out for lost sinners. Consider what it means when Scripture says Christ is “for us” and not “against us” (Romans 8:31).
For further study: Acts 1:1–8, 2:37–47; Romans 6
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