Matthew 3:13-17
Bart W. Newton, Preaching Minister
In the first message of the series “The Ministry of Jesus: From the Jordan River to Pentecost,” we examine the baptism of Jesus and how closely, in many ways, our baptism as Christians relates to His.
To view a simple online worship service of “Word, Communion and Prayer,” and please click on the the following link: "To Fulfill All Righteousness: The Baptism of Jesus".
(Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible: The English Standard Version.)
Today we begin a new sermon series: “The Ministry of Jesus: From the Jordan River to Pentecost”
• In our first lesson we will consider the baptism of Jesus. Next Lord’s Day, Lord willing, the temptations of Jesus during His 40 days of prayer and fasting in the wilderness.
• Then during the Sundays that follow we’re going to spend time learning about Jesus’ table ministry—the times He spent feeding people, times of table fellowship He had with others, including the Last Supper, and even His time around a table with others between His resurrection from the dead until the He ascended back to the right hand of the Father.
• By that time we’ll take another look at Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem on the Sunday before His Thursday crucifixion (Palm Sunday).
• Early on Easter morning, we’ll gather outside, weather permitting, for a simple sunrise service. Then at 10:00 our Easter worship service we’ll celebrate the Resurrection of King Jesus.
• Then between Easter and May 23, we’ll learn about Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances, His ascension back to the right hand of the Father from where He now rules as King and Lord, and finally Pentecost in Acts 1-2.
• So back to today. When you think about Jesus’s baptism by John the Baptist, what comes to your mind? Why do you think Jesus was baptized? Is Jesus’s baptism related to Christian baptism?
• If you have been immersed into Christ, have you ever thought about the similarities between His baptism and your baptism other than that they were both in water and by immersion?
• Depending on many believers’ experience and faith tradition, we tend to think of baptism in one of two ways. 1) We were baptized to receive Christ so our sins would be forgiven and we would go to heaven. Or 2) we were baptized as a symbol that prior to our baptism we received Christ and our sins were forgiven and this is our first act of obedience as a born again believer.
• Both of those understandings of baptism are lacking.
• John Mark Hicks and Greg Taylor wrote an excellent book on baptism titled Down in the River to Pray: Revisioning Baptism as God’s Transforming Power.
• I highly recommend that book.
• Their opening statement is this: “Baptism is more important than you think but not for the reasons you suppose.” --John Mark Hicks and Greg Taylor, Down in the River to Pray: Revisioning Baptism as God’s Transforming Power.
• Regardless of your and my church background, most of us have a less than complete understanding and appreciation for what God does during the baptism of a confessing, repentant believer in Christ.
• And, regardless of your and my church background, most of us have a less than complete understanding of what we were receiving, surrendering to, committing to, and professing during our baptism.
• What we’re going to learn or be reminded of today isn’t all that Scripture teaches about baptism. But, Jesus’ baptism teaches us far more than most of us have considered.
• So let’s take look-see.
Matthew 3:1-17:
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
make his paths straight.’”
4 Now John wore a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
Prayer
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him.
• Specifically, we know from the Gospels of Mark and John that Jesus had traveled from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to the Jordan River near Bethany (Mark 1:9; John 1:28).
• Jesus’s trip was intentional with a specific purpose: to be immersed by John the Baptist in the Jordan River.
• John the Baptist wasn’t so keen on the Lord’s desire:
14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
• If you recall up in verse 11, John the Baptist had told the crowds being baptized by him:
• Matthew 3:11: “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” –John the Baptist
• So John is questioning, “Why should the Greater be baptized by the Lesser?”
• And not only that, but what kind of water baptism was John’s?
• Matthew 3:6:…and they were baptized by him [John] in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
• Luke 3:3: And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
• Jesus was without sin, therefore He had no sins to confess and therefore no sins from which to turn. Confession and repentance was not needed by Jesus.
15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented.
• Righteousness has to do with doing what’s right in God’s eyes. Righteousness is related to obedience to God’s will, right?
• How did Jesus’ baptism fulfill all righteousness? Well, consider:
• Hebrews 10:5-7: 5 Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said,
“Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,
but a body have you prepared for me;
6 in burnt offerings and sin offerings
you have taken no pleasure.
7 Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God,
as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.’” ( See Psalm 40:6-8)
• What was God’s will for Jesus in His coming to the earth as a human being with a body just like yours and mine? Was it not to bear our sins as His own as a sacrifice for our sins?
• Hebrews 10 tells us that it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. But when Christ paid for our sins on the cross it was a once and for all sacrifice sufficient to pay for the sins of the world. (Hebrews 10:8-14)
• Let me ask you: When Jesus who was without sin bore our sins on His body, was He identifying with sinful humanity? Yes!
• When Jesus who was without sin received John’s baptism of repentance unto the forgiveness of sins, was He identifying with sinful humanity? Yes!
• Think about what Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 53:12 which is what Jesus quoted regarding His own impending death in Luke 22:37: It is written: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors’; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfillment.” (NIV)
• This was fulfilled at His crucifixion when He was crucified between two thieves and at the same time bore our sins in His body.
• But at his baptism, even though Jesus was sinless, He was also numbered among the transgressors who were confessing their sins and being baptized for the forgiveness of their sins.
• Just as the sinless Jesus identified with sinful humanity during His crucifixion, so too did Jesus identify with sinful humanity at His baptism.
16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him,
• Mark’s gospel says the heavens were “torn open.”
…and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him;
• Gospel of Luke gives a little more detail:
• Luke 3:21-22: 21 …when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove;
• At Jesus’s baptism, He experienced something those receiving John’s baptism did not experience and would not until Pentecost—the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
• The apostle Peter speaks of this when he was preaching the Gospel to the household of the Gentile Cornelius:
• Acts 10:37-38: 37 ‘You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism. 38 And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.’ (NLT)
• With the anointing of the Holy Spirit came also God the Father’s affirmation of Jesus’ identity:
17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
• V. 17 is the fusing together of two OT Scriptures:
• Psalm 2:7: I will tell of the decree:
The Lord said to me, “You are my Son;
today I have begotten you.
• Isaiah 42:1: 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.
• God the Father was saying, “This is my Son and Servant with whom I am well pleased.”
• John 1:29-31: 29… [John the Baptist] said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.”
• Unlike the rest of the Jews (and Gentiles) who were sinners and needed forgiveness, Jesus from the start was in a true relationship with God the Father.
• What did Jesus do after His baptism? He was led by the Holy Spirit by Whom He had just been anointed out into the wilderness where He prayed and fasted for 40 days and nights and was also tempted by the devil.
• After that He began preaching, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17).
• It was at Jesus’ baptism that He embraced His mission and begins His ministry.
• Here at the Jordan River, during a great national repentance in expectation for the Messiah and His kingdom, Jesus was leading them across the Jordan again as Joshua had. But this time, not into a new land, but a new age!
Does our baptism have anything to do with Jesus’s baptism? Is there any relationship between the two?
Just as John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, so was ours:
• Acts 2:38: Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (NLT)
Just as Jesus was immersed in water, anointed by the Spirit, and affirmed by God the Father as a beloved child at His baptism, so are we:
• Acts 2:38: Peter replied, … Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (NLT)
• Galatians3:26-27: 26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. (NIV)
• 1 John 3:1a: See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! (NLT)
• Just as Jesus is God’s Son and Servant, so too are we made by God upon our repentance and baptism.
Just as Jesus encountered God during His baptism, so did we during ours:
• Romans 6:4: For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. (NLT)
• At Jesus’s baptism was the participation of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
• Jerome wrote, “The mystery of the Trinity is revealed in the baptism.”
• Just as Jesus embraced the mission and ministry of the kingdom of God at His baptism, so do we.
• When Jesus was immersed by John, He surrendered His life to the purposes of God—to fulfill all righteousness—to do what was God’s will, to obey.
• At the end of Jesus’s earthly ministry, just before His ascension, He got the apostles together urged that His followers be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and embrace the ministry of God’s kingdom!
• We did this too! Matthew 28:18-20: 18 When Jesus came near, he spoke to them. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 So wherever you go, make disciples of all nations: Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach them to do everything I have commanded you. “And remember that I am always with you until the end of time.” (GW)
• When we are baptized we are declaring our allegiance to Christ as His followers.
• Just as Jesus obeyed the Father’s will all the way to death, so too are we to practice such allegiance.
• Luke 9:23: Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. (NIV)
• You can look back and forth through the NT and you’ll never find a hint of believers baptized into a consumer Christianity. In fact there are warnings about people looking for teachers who will say what their itching ears want to hear. And they’ll follow them from town to town if they have to.
• As John Mark Hicks points out:
• Jesus’s baptism is a pattern for Christian baptism.
• Repentance; forgiveness of sins; fulfillment of all righteousness; mark of sonship and pledge of the gift of the Spirit; and it’s the beginning of our own ministry as God’s children.
• “When I remember my baptism, I remember the baptism of Jesus. I remember that I committed myself to the way of the cross, the mission of God, and to the ministry of the kingdom. I remember that God poured out the Spirit upon me. I remember that God sang over me in that moment. God announced that despite all my failures and faults—‘You are my child,’ ‘You are loved,’ and ‘I am delighted with you!’ God, even with my sins, celebrated me then and continues to rejoice over me now.” –John Mark Hicks, Enter the Water, Come to the Table: Baptism and Lord's Supper in the Bible's Story of New Creation, p. 46
• This is an experience we bring with us to the Lord’s Table each Lord’s Day.
• 1 John 5:6-8: 6 And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross—not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony. 7 So we have these three witnesses— 8 the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and all three agree. (NLT)
• Jesus is God’s Son, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
• When we were plunged into the water we were washed by the blood of the Lamb and we received the blessed Holy Spirit.
• It seems quite natural to think of our baptism when we receive communion. We were baptized into Christ’s death and raised to newness of life. And at communion we remember Christ’s death and resurrection until He comes again.
• And, we are reminded that together we share in the ministry and mission of the kingdom of God.