The Perfect Righteousness

Please open to Matthew chapter 3, verses 13 through 17. This week, we will begin three weeks deeply examining these verses. This may seem like a lot, but here in a brief narrative about the baptism of Jesus, there is a golden opportunity to fix our eyes on the Savior. To see His redemptive purpose and understand how we are to be joined to His church in salvation and that our public profession is that of Baptism.

Matthew 3:13–17 ESV

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: Help us to:

Fix our eyes upon Jesus

Affirm His divinity and Godhood

Submit ourselves before His will and His calling as He submitted Himself unto death, yes, death on a cross!

Verses 13 & 14 - The setting

Verse 15 - The Perfect Righteousness

Verse 16 - The Promised Resurrection (We see resurrection in the baptism, Hallelujah!)

Verse 17 - The Beloved and the Accursed

Jesus affirmed baptism

Matthew 3:14 ESV

14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”

This affirms repentance

Not salvation by repentance. A work

For salvation to be a work of God, it cannot be dependent on response, but on the effectual call of God

Gen 12:1-2 “1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.”

Gal 1:15 “15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace,”

This is baptism by immersion

Baptizo - dip, plunge, immerse

This is creedobaptism

This is joining and aligning to the body.

Consider Neh 7:6 “6 These were the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of those exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried into exile. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his town.”

Baptism requires oversight of the Church.

One of the reasons that while we may benefit from online church, it is not a substitute for placing oneself underneath the authority of the local church body.

Jesus not only affirms baptism, but

Jesus demonstrates righteousness

Matthew 3:15 ESV

15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented.

In Jesus’s response, “Let it be so now,” we see that perfect righteousness requires obedience to baptism.

Consider the great commission: Matt 28:19-20 “19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.””

Repent & follow

Proper observance of the Law according to Matt 5, in anger, lust, divorce, keeping oaths, not taking retaliation into one’s own hands, loving enemies, caring for those in need

Prayer - private prayer (don’t seek recognition) and public prayer (The Lord’s prayer is a corporate prayer “Our Father, Give us, forgive us”)

Give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and give to God what is God’s

The greatest commandment: Love the Lord, Love your neighbor as yourself (evangelism, not so-called tolerance)

Jesus affirms baptism, demonstrates righteousness,

Jesus obeys the Father

This is an extension of demonstrated righteousness, but is important to recognize that Jesus is fully man, He is fully God as well, and yet he subordinates himself to the Father’s will.

The Father affirms the righteous obedience of the Son

Matt 3:17 “17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.””

Luke 22:41–42 ESV

41 And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”

I would be hesitant to try and draw out an application from this point. Obviously, if Jesus Himself obeys the Father how much more should we?

The true purpose of this point is to call our attention to the amazing display of

The existence of the will of Jesus separate from the will of the Father

and yet the perfect obedience even within the Godhead

This marvelous God is worthy! He is worthy of worship and praise

From the third verse of “Worthy of Worship”

Almighty Father, Master and Lord

King of all Kings and Redeemer

Wonderful Counselor, Comforter, Friend

Savior and Source of our life without end

You are worthy, Father, Creator

You are worthy, Savior, Sustainer.

You are worthy, worthy and Wonderful

Worthy of worship and praise.

Jesus affirms baptism, demonstrates righteousness, obeys the Father,

Jesus serves mankind

Today is palm Sunday, the beginning of the Holy week. Do you remember the story? When Jesus came to dine with His disciples, He did the job nobody else wanted to do. He washed the feet of the disciples.

Luke 22:27 ESV

27 For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

In the action of allowing Himself to be baptized by John, Jesus illustrates His purpose on this earth: to be buried and to be brought forth in resurrection.

Consider the words of our Lord

Matthew 13:44 ESV

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

The man is Jesus, the treasure is His bride, the church. How does He sell all he has? He went to the cross, He was nailed to the tree. He bled for us. He died for us.

Matthew 13:45–46 ESV

45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.

Again, we see a man, the merchant: Jesus. He finds His one pearl of great value: His bride. His church. YOU. A wicked sinner. Faithless and corrupt. Self-serving and hopeless. Jesus was nailed to the cross, and those nails were for your sins. The beatings are what you deserve. The full wrath of the Father, poured out upon the man Jesus instead of upon you.

Jesus went to the cross for the sake of His disciples. He did the job nobody else wanted to do. He did the job nobody else could do. He washed the feet of the disciples, dealing with their uncleanliness. He spilled his blood for you… for you were unclean.

1 Cor 6:11 “11 … But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

Jesus affirms baptism, demonstrates righteousness, obeys the Father, serves mankind

Jesus is God’s Son

And here is the crux of the matter: There is no one holy

Ps 14:1-3 “1 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good. 2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. 3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one.”

And so what did our God do? He sent His only begotten Son. See this in our text:

Matthew 3:17 ESV

17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Jesus, the Son of God teaches us about the righteousness of obedience to baptism.

Jesus, the Son of God, demonstrates righteousness to us, and in doing so,

Jesus, the Son of God, is perfectly obedient to the Father.

Jesus, the Son of God, serves mankind in spilling His blood for our sake.

Jesus is the Son of God. He is the Savior. He is our Lord. And what does our Lord do?

Hebrews 7:25 KJV 1900

25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.