Matthew
3:13-17
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the
Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to
deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
15 Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is
proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented.
16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went
up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the
Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And
a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am
well pleased.”
Look! See! Listen!
Something
new is happening! Something New is here! Listen to John the Baptist, listen to
Jesus, look and see and listen to the Voice of God and the Spirit’s presence in
this moment and in this place. Look! See! Listen!
What was
Jesus doing here? Why was Jesus coming to be baptized by John? Remember just
last week, Jesus grew in wisdom and stature. Jesus was sinless, yet God had
given Him His blessing of grace. A different grace from what we are given
through Jesus. Jesus received God’s gift of grace and blessing for all He came
to do on this earth. So, why was Jesus coming to John’s baptism of repentance?
Jesus was sinless!
I think
Jesus came to be baptized by John FOR you and me AND John. Jesus was showing,
and teaching through His very own act of baptism by John, that John’s ministry
and calling was valid. Turn to God. Seek forgiveness. Accept God’s grace of
forgiveness and live a new life in and with God. And guess what? God IS here,
in these waters of baptism right now, right here, IN Jesus very own baptism,
leading you and me forward IN Jesus righteousness and God’s Wisdom and
strength. Not as something Jesus needed, but as something that WE need!
You see,
Jesus came down from heaven in more than flesh and blood to be human. Jesus
came down to be WITH us in every aspect of our earthly life, AND, our spiritual
life as well. Jesus humbles Himself, even in our very own repentance, to be
with us, even when we must face our very own sin, as God turns us around to and
toward Himself, to claim each one of us as His own. Jesus IS NOW with us! All
the time! Even when we don’t want Him or know He is with us, Jesus IS with us
here, and now.
As in
our own baptism we are set apart to be God’s Child, we are called, blessed, by
the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, to begin God’s ministry in our lives as it
unfolds day after day.
Here
Jesus punctuates His own Beginning Ministry to the world as He also punctuates
our ministry to the world, in the waters of baptism. Baptism IS a BIG deal!
Jesus demonstrates that!
Here,
Jesus connects Himself to our sin and blesses us by connecting us to His
righteousness. That there, is not something the world is used to, or prepared
for, but it’s an action only God can take, and God makes that connection now in
the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, FOR you and me and all those Jesus
leads to believe. Talk about a union with God! This IS everlasting life in and
with God, here and now.
When
John hesitates to baptize Jesus, Jesus gently leads John forward in the
baptism. This is not about sin; this baptism of Jesus is about something new
taking place. This baptism of Jesus is about being set apart for God’s work in
this world through Jesus, to bring the grace of forgiveness and ever-lasting
life to all the people that live in sin.
So,
Jesus, gently calls John to do what John himself was called to do, to Point to
Jesus as God’s Savior, and as God in this world, to this world, and for, the
people of this world.
It’s interesting to think that this passage
doesn’t mention that Jesus went under the water, it only states He came up from
the water. This washing is similar to the washing of a priest being called into
service to God. So, Jesus raises up from the water as an eternal priest, and
the Holy Spirit descends upon Jesus. It’s the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry;
the water of life flows forth from Jesus. Water that flows forth in the new
creation that gives life to all the world. AND, it’s nice to think of how the
Holy Spirit enters this world in a bodily form as well. Like in the dove. That
reminds me of when the dove returns to the Ark in the time of the Flood and
Noah, and a new creation begins again. Yet this time, through Jesus, through
the Holy Spirit and through the call of the Father, this New Creation is going
to stick. It comes of God!
Talk
about a Trinity moment! How can this be denied, all three are present, Father,
Son and Holy Spirit. All there as One. May my eyes be open, may my ears hear,
may my flesh rejoice in the water that brings forth my God, my Savior, my Gift
of life!
Who
heard all of this? The passage says John, and through implication, Jesus as
well. But guess what? It’s recorded for all the world to read, to see and to
hear. So, in a sense, we all get to hear the Voice of God as is written and
inspired by the Holy Spirit in Scripture. How great is that!
And like
at the Creation of Paradise, in the Garden of Eden, God IS pleased! There it is
again, a New Creation IS here and now in the coming of the Father, the Son and
the Holy Spirit in this new great coming forth from the life-giving waters of
Jesus. Now Jesus’ ministry begins. Pay attention folks! I’m not so sure it was
only John and Jesus that heard the Voice of God and saw the descending of the
Holy Spirit. Things spill out. Things are heard from a distance. And from this
point on, Jesus’ ministry will be getting bigger and bigger, and louder and
louder, and more visible than ever before.
Through
these waters of baptism Jesus comes forth and raises Himself up and raises us
up to new life. God begins a new creation here in the waters of the Jordan, and
everlasting streams of life-giving water pour forth from Jesus. This is a big
deal here. This is a baptism of New Creation. This is a baptism based in
life-giving water. This isn’t a baptism for the forgiveness of the sins of
Jesus. No, this is Jesus’ baptism FOR the sins of all that Jesus’ new ministry
will draw to Himself to GIVE everlasting life, with Jesus, the Father and the
Holy Spirit. This is a big deal here.
And we
are called to walk into the waters of our very own baptism, in our very own sin,
to be washed clean and to rise with the sinless Jesus, TO, everlasting life
with God. This is a big deal here. This is a new creation.
What can
I say, but for people to seek out their own place of baptism. Baptism is a gift
from God. Don’t worry about being just right to be baptized. Find a church and
BE baptized! Baptism is THE gift of God, not based on you, but based on what
God freely gives to you. In your baptism you will raise to a new life and
become a new creation, called, gifted and sent as a disciple of Jesus, into
this world here and now to take the actions God unfolds for you in your life.
It’s a BIG deal and a time to rejoice. Service to God is a joyful thing.
Sometimes the service gets tough, but so what, God will walk with you through
it all. And that’s the thing. God’s presence in your life is here and now and
in eternity.
Something new is going to happen. And that something New is
here with us today. See God in Jesus. Something New HAS happened! Thanks be to
God!
Listen to the Voice of the
Lord! Listen!
Through
Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are no longer slaves to sin… Jesus continues
to put to death my sin, so that, through His death, I may be raised to new life
in Him… today… tomorrow… and forever. Thanks be to God!
Sit bask
and relax to this YouTube Music Video that I used this past week as I studied
this passage. Enjoy!
“Child
of Mine”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfgd7AzhqvM&list=PLR3OLUzrduhru-BkgBdoojVPnOqvgmkzS
No comments:
Post a Comment