John Baptizes Jesus (Lk. 3:21, 22)

The short narrative of the baptism of Jesus has many different layers.  Jesus being obedient to the commandment to be baptized, though he was sinless. The presence of all three members of the trinity.  And Jesus mission to take away the sin of the world. 

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John baptizes Jesus. (Luke 3:21, 22) 

Jesus is now a grown man. Thirty years old, or maybe a little older. It is time for Jesus to begin his official ministry. And three things had to take place before he could begin: the preaching of John the Baptist, the baptism of Jesus, and his time of testing in the wilderness. 

During the time of Moses, God’s son, Israel was first baptized in the cloud and in the sea. (1 Cor. 10:1, 2) The waters of the Red Sea were piled up like walls as Israel passed through. And it may be that the cloud passed over them while they crossed. (cf. Ps. 68:7-9) 

 Israel was baptized, and now Jesus will be baptized. Israel entered the desert, where they were tested for forty years. And Jesus will go into the wilderness and be tested for forty days. Jesus and Israel follow the same path: baptism and then testing. Today will focus on his baptism in Luke 3.

 More Worthy than John  [1:44] 

During the infancy of Jesus there were testimonies that he was the Messiah. Gabriel to Mary. The angels to the shepherds. The prophets Simeon and Anna. And while John was preaching in the wilderness, he told them there was one who was standing in their midst, and they did not know him. (Jo. 1:26) He is more worthy than I am. Jesus was standing in the crowds listening to John preach. And they did not know who he was. Jesus was blending in like a common Jew. Listening along with the others. 

He is more worthy and he is more powerful. I baptize with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 

Jesus’ Baptism [2:51]

And one day, after John had finished baptizing the others, Jesus came forward to the river to be baptized by John. And John tried to deter Jesus from being baptized. (Matt. 3:14)  I would think it would have been such a great honor to be able to baptize the Messiah. But John tried to avoid it. 

Very interesting. Some came to be baptized and John refused because they had not repented. (Lk. 3:7,8) They had not transformed  their lives. Bring forth the fruits of repentance. Then I will baptize you. He doesn’t want to baptize them because they have no repentance; he doesn’t want to baptize Jesus because he has no sin. “I should be baptized by you.” (Mt. 3:14) 

But it must be done. Jesus told him we must do this to fulfill all righteousness. Both of us must fulfill all righteousness. I must be baptized so I will fulfill all righteousness. And you must baptize me so that you will fulfill all righteousness. Even though Jesus had no sins to be forgiven, he was obedient because it was God’s commandment. Anyone who says that they follow Jesus but refuse to be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins needs to reflect deeply upon Jesus’ obedience. 

The Trinity  [5:00]

And when John baptized Jesus, and when he went up out of the water, the heaven were opened and the Holy Spirit descended. While Jesus was praying, it came down in the form of a dove and landed upon him. (Lk. 3:21) And a voice from heaven, the voice of God, said, “This is my Son. I love him. I am well pleased with him.” 

What a baptism that was. What a baptism. The trinity. The Son being baptized. The Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus. And God the Father declaring that Jesus is his Son whom he loves. 

In the early centuries when someone doubted that there is a trinity, they were  told, “To learn the teaching of the Trinity, go visit the Jordan River. (Gills’ Commentary) They were telling people that if they doubted the trinity, read about Jesus’ baptism. The Son prayed on earth. The Father spoke from heaven. And the Holy Spirit came down in the form of a dove.

A Sign for John [6:40]

It was a clear sign to John. Have you ever wondered why John began baptizing in the first place? 

When the people came the day after Jesus was baptized, John told them this. The one who told me to baptize, that would be God, told me that the Holy Spirit would come down and remain on God’s Servant. (Jo. 1:33). God had told John to baptize. It wasn’t John’s idea. It was God’s commandment.  And the Holy Spirit would descend upon the one who would baptize with the Holy Spirit. 

So, this was a sign for John. Did John know before this that Jesus was the Messiah? He seems to have had an idea that Jesus was the Messiah. He didn’t think he was worthy to baptize Jesus. I need to be baptized by you!  John seems to have had a sense that Jesus was the Messiah. But he really did not know for sure until the Holy Spirit descended. 

John could not tell the people that Jesus was the Messiah based upon what he thought. He is a prophet. He can only speak what he knows as a fact. It has to be revealed to him. Can you imagine if John had told people that Jesus was the Messiah, only to find out it was someone else? What a disaster that would have been! 

But, when John saw the Holy Spirit descend upon Jesus, he knew for a fact. It had been revealed to him. Forty days later, after Jesus returned to John from his temptations, John revealed the Messiah.  He saw Jesus coming and said, “Look. The lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29) 

The Voice [9:37]

This is not the only time that we read about a voice from heaven. Later in his life, just before he goes to Jerusalem to die, Jesus was transfigured. And a voice came from heaven saying, “This is my Son. I have chosen him. Listen to him.” (Lk. 9:35, 36)  

And, there is a third. Not as well known. It is in the Gospel of John, after Jesus has entered Jerusalem for the last time. Some gentiles had come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. They came to Jesus disciples and asked to see Jesus. Jesus replied by saying that the time had come for him to die. And whoever serves me must follow me. And then Jesus asked his Father to glorify his name. At that moment a voice from heaven said, “I have glorified it.  And, I will glorify it once again.” (John 12:28) And the people heard the voice. 

So John heard the voice from heaven at the Jordan River. And Peter, James and John heard the voice from heaven at the transfiguration. And during the week of Jesus death the voice spoke in Jerusalem when the gentiles wanted to see Jesus. 

Jesus is God’s Son. Jesus is God’s Servant. That is why Jesus is able to baptize with the Holy Spirit. 

The Sin of the World  [11:30]

The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.   

That is what Jesus is about. Not about economics. Not about politics. Not about armies and wars. Jesus takes away the sin of the world. 

There are men and women who seemed to born with a destiny to do great things. They educate and cure. They make scientific and medical advances. They change the world. 

But only one has been born who can effectively deal with the greatest problem of man. Jesus, the lamb of God, who takes away sin. The guilt of sins committed in the past, and the power to overcome sin in the future. 

There was a very strange custom in England, Scotland and Wales during the 18th and 19th Centuries. In some places it survived even into the 20th Century and the same ritual took place in parts of the United States. It took place at funerals to erase the sins of the deceased man or woman. 

The villages had a person who was called a “sin eater.” Usually a very person who needed food. The sin eater would come to where the deceased was and eat food which had been brought by others. It was believed that the food soaked up the sins of the deceased. Then they were transferred to the sin eater when he ate the food. 

The guilt became his and he thought he would pay for at the final judgment. Strange custom. One writer described sin eaters as being willing to sell their birthright for a bowl of soup, like Esau. It sure sounds that way. 

But no mere man can take away the guilt of sin. Not by any work or plan which he may devise. Not by any religion which he might create. Not by any ceremony which he invents. And, no, baptism was not an invention of man. Man did not create Christian baptism. It is not man’s work. Baptism, Christian baptism, is the work of God because God told John to baptize for the forgiveness of sins. 

Well, man needs forgiveness. And he knows deep down that he needs forgiveness. That is why they had sin eaters in Europe and in the United States. 

Jesus takes away the sin of the world. He takes away the guilt of sins we commit. And he gives us power to live godly lives. Forgiveness comes through his death on the cross. And the power to live a godly life comes through his sending the Holy Spirit. 

We can compare it to a prisoner. He is in prison for some crime, or maybe a lot of crimes. The penalty for his crimes has got to be paid. And he is paying by being imprisoned. 

But there is another reason we put men and women in prison. It is hoped that he or she will give up their life of crime. It is hoped that they will be rehabilitated. That they will have a new outlook on life. They will stop committing crimes. Sometimes that works, but not always. 

Now we have the spiritual work of Jesus. Man is guilty of sins. He needs someone to pay the penalty for his crimes, or sins. And Jesus brings that forgiveness. But man needs something more. Like a prisoner needs to give up his life of crime, the sinner needs to give up his life of sin. 

Jesus pays the penalty of our sins for us. By his death we are forgiven. But he also takes away sinful living. The criminal no longer lives a life of crime, and the believer no longer lives a life of sin. It is not the direction of his life. 

Or, in the words of the apostle John, “No one who lives in Jesus keeps on sinning. If someone keeps on sinning, he does not know Jesus  (1 John 3:6). Oh, that doesn’t mean that a man will never sin. It means that sin is not the pattern of his life. It is not the desire of his heart. It is not his direction. It is not what he lives for.

There is so much in the short little narrative of Jesus’ baptism. Jesus keeping God’s commandment, even if he did not need forgiveness. The testimony of the Trinity. And John revealing to the world that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah. 

Behold the lamb of God. He takes away the sin of the world.

Rick Walker
Church of Christ
Georgetown, Guyana, South America