After His Baptism
Matthew 3:16
After His Baptism
As soon as Jesus was baptised, 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 lighting on him.
Baptism is the water which divides believers in Christ Jesus our Lord. Mention baptism among professing Christians and tensions are almost assured to mount. There are churches which believe that baptism is a means to obtain salvation. Other churches are equally assured that baptism is a symbol. Some Christians assert that the mode of baptism is immaterial, while other Christians insist that the mode is vital to the practise. Each side holds to a given view with tenacity, and most are prepared to anathematise those who disagree. If the practise of baptism is controversial within the Faith, how much more controversial was the baptism Jesus requested and submitted to!
The baptism of Jesus presents problems for each of us who would honour God. Can we discover the mode by which John baptised? Does the mode he employed reveal anything of the meaning of baptism? When Jesus was baptised, what was He confessing? Such questions have plagued theologians for centuries, and those same questions nag at the mind of conscientious believers as they read the Word. Join me in exploring the account which Matthew provides to discover some answers to these questions.
Why Should Jesus be Baptised? When Jesus was about thirty years of age, He began His ministry [cf. Luke 3:23]. Whereas His first miracle was changing the water into wine at the wedding in Cana [see John 2:1-11], the first official act which marked the initiation of His public ministry was His baptism by John. Each of the synoptic Gospels [Matthew, Mark and Luke] provides an account of Jesus’ baptism. Together, they give us a thorough understanding of that initial scene in the final act of redemption. Matthew’s account preserves the detail relating John’s reluctance to baptise Jesus.
It is evident that Jesus specifically sought John out with the intent that He would be baptised by this strange man. Who was John? And what was this baptism to which He called the people of Judea to receive? John and Jesus were cousins, so in one sense they may well have had a fair degree of acquaintance. Elizabeth, John’s mother, and Mary, the mother of Jesus, were relatives (cousins). Both John and Jesus are clearly presented as ordained for service by God—one as forerunner and the other as Messiah.
John understood that His service before the Lord was fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy. Matthew carefully details this great ministry of the Baptist. We observe His claim to be the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy. We marvel at his willingness to eschew creature comforts as he focused with single-minded intensity on fulfilling his assigned ministry. We hear his bold speech as he confronted sin. And we hear his words concerning his baptism—words which will help us understand what Jesus was doing.
In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:
“A voice of one calling in the desert,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.’”
John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptised by him in the Jordan River.
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptising, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
“I baptise you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire” [Matthew 3:1-12].
It should be obvious to even the most casual reader that John’s baptism demanded transformed lives. Even Pharisees and Sadducees—religious leaders—were swept along in the great human tidal wave washing up at John’s feet. They were compelled by force of numbers to acknowledge that John represented a divine movement. Presenting themselves for baptism, he challenged them to present evidence of transformed lives. These great men would need to humble themselves just as though they were common people. The baptism John demanded of those who came to hear him was not mere ceremony, but an ordinance picturing a change.
About seven years ago, Lynda and I attended a theatrical presentation of the Cotton Patch Gospel. In the decade of the sixties, a Southern Baptist preacher named Clarence Jordan formed a biracial farming community in the Deep South—Koinonia Farms—in Americus, Georgia. You must remember that this was at a time when interracial activities were not simply frowned upon, but such flaunting of convention could easily precipitate violent reaction. Clarence Jordan died in 1969, but not before translating much of the New Testament into the vernacular of the Old South.
His efforts, known as the Cotton Patch Version of the various books he managed to translate, held a mirror to southern society. Consequently, the accounts Jordan uses are not simply entertaining, but they are a critical commentary on the similarity of religious veneer which can ever mask sin when confronted by the freedom which is found only in Christ Jesus as Lord.
Listen to Matthew 3:7-17 from the Cotton Patch Version of Matthew.
When John noticed a lot of Protestants and Catholics showing up for his dipping, he said to them, “You sons of snakes, who put the heat on you to run from the fury about to break over your heads? You must give some proof that you’ve had a change of heart. And don’t think that you can feed yourselves that ‘we-good-white-people’ stuff, because I’m telling you that if God wants to he can make white folks out of this pile of rocks. Already the chain saw is set at the trunk of the trees, and every tree that doesn’t perform some worthwhile function is sawed down and burned up. I am indeed dipping you in water into a changed life; the one who follows me is so much stronger than I that I’m unworthy to shine his shoes. He will dip you in Holy Spirit and fire. His combine is already running and he’ll give the field a thorough going-over. He’ll store the grain in his bin and burn off the stubble.”
Then Jesus arrived at the Chattahoochee from south Georgia, to be dipped by John. But John tried to put him off. “Look,” he said, “I ought to be dipped by you, yet you are coming to me.” Jesus replied, “Please let me be baptised right now, for it is proper for us to give meaning in this way to all that’s right.” Then John consented. Now when Jesus was immersed and just as he came up from the water, the sky was split and he saw God’s Spirit settling upon him like a dove alighting. And you know, a voice spoke from the sky, “This is my dear Son; I’m proud of him.”[1]
The baptism which John taught was a baptism of repentance [see Mark 1:4]. That is, the baptism John practised required a change of mind resulting from forgiveness of sin. Even Josephus stated that John’s baptism required the one coming for baptism be characterised by a soul [which was] thoroughly purified beforehand by righteousness.[2] Those submitting to John’s baptism were in need of accepting God’s forgiveness, through believ[ing] in the One coming after him, that is in Jesus [Acts 19:4]. John’s baptism did not induce repentance, but it characterised those who had repented and received forgiveness of sin. The baptism which John presented differed not a whit from that of the disciples of Jesus presented throughout the Gospels and Acts.
Thus, when Jesus presented Himself for baptism, John was astonished. How could the sinless Son of God repent? What had He to repent of? Why should He submit to this rite demonstrating submission to the divine assessment of human sinfulness? Jesus had no sin to confess, nor did He need to repent of evil and turn to righteousness. When John demurred, Jesus said that He sought to fulfil all righteousness [verse 15].
Focus on the fact that Jesus’ words—fulfil all righteousness—point to completion of everything that forms part of a relationship of obedience to God. Jesus identified with and endorsed John’s ministry as divinely ordained, and certified that the message which John had delivered was to be heeded.[3]
John’s message had two foci: repentance and faith. The baptism of John demanded repentance (turning from sin and self-justification) and faith in the coming Messiah. Repentance and faith are necessary to salvation. Repentance will always turn the sinner from sin and to Christ. Godly repentance will always result in faith in the Living Son of God. Faith in the Son of God will always be associated with repentance as the believing sinner ceases to depend upon his own goodness and begins to depend upon God’s mercy. Jesus was identifying with fallen humanity, picturing His own coming death for the sin of fallen mankind and His resurrection to justify all who will believe.
I want to note one little word in Jesus’ response to John. Let it be so now [a[rti]. Jesus acknowledges that John’s objection is correct in principle, but he must nevertheless now baptise Jesus.[4] Jesus, by this act of submission to the will of the Father, was openly accepting His role as the suffering servant presented in Isaiah, just as John was serving to fulfil the role of the forerunner prophesied by Isaiah.
In coming to John, Jesus was submitting to the will of the Father in all matters. His submission was not limited to great matters, but it extended to the smallest detail. Consequently, those individuals who depreciate baptism, or who insist that any mode will suffice, must confront this matter of submission to the will of God. If baptism is optional, or if the mode is of no great importance, then we must somehow assure ourselves that God has not addressed these issues in the Word. If, however, God has clearly revealed His will on these issues, we dare not dismiss Jesus’ submission to such small of details. In His baptism, Jesus looked forward to His own death, burial and resurrection. In doing so, He identified with sinful humanity. In our baptism, we confess our death, burial and resurrection and we identify with the Risen Christ.
Details of Jesus’ Baptism — I do not need to argue that the word baptivzw means to dip or to immerse since that understanding is well known and generally accepted by scholars from all denominations. It is certain that Jesus went down into the water since the text is careful to state that He went up out of the water. The evangelist Mark agrees with Matthew (perhaps even precedes Matthew) in noting this detail of Jesus coming up out of the water. As Jesus was coming up out of the water… [Mark 1:9-11]. This seemingly small detail is strengthened by Mark’s careful use of the Greek language which states emphatically that Jesus … was baptised by John into [ejbaptivsqh eij" to;n jIordavnhn] the Jordan [Mark 1:9].
This detail is important in light of Jesus’ insistence that in submitting to baptism He would fulfil all righteousness. If, as I have suggested, He was embracing His role as the suffering servant, and if He was certifying John’s message of repentance and faith, then it would be necessary for His baptism to point to some essential aspect of that message and to some central truth associated with His role of prophetic fulfilment. Of course, it was necessary that Messiah must die and be buried in order to fulfil prophecy.
Perhaps you will recall the scene that Luke paints as the Risen Jesus walked with two disciples journeying to Emmaus. They told the stranger who joined them how the One in whom they hoped had been crucified and how women visiting the tomb on the first day of the week had found it empty. They told how the women spoke of a vision of angels. Then the stranger walking with them gently upbraided them.
He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself” [Luke 24:25-27].
What did He tell them from Moses and the Prophets? Perhaps He spoke of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac and how God provided Himself a ram. Perhaps He spoke of the sacrifices which could never bring peace, but which were offered again and again. Perhaps He spoke of Judah, and how through His suffering God preserved Israel. Surely He spoke of these things before He turned His attention to the prophecies which told of His death and His burial.
I have no doubt that He reminded them that God’s Anointed One would have no particular outward beauty which would serve to attract others to Him. Without question He spoke of the fact that Messiah would be despised and rejected by men and that He would be a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering [see Isaiah 53:3]. He must have spoken of the Lord’s will to crush His servant, causing Him to suffer and make His soul a guilt offering [see Isaiah 53:10]. One must think of prophecies such as Isaiah 53:4-9.
Surely he took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
By oppression and judgement he was taken away.
And who can speak of his descendants?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
for the transgression of my people he was stricken.
He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
nor was any deceit in his mouth.
I do invite you to examine another prophetic passage in Psalm 22:22-24.
I will declare your name to my brothers;
in the congregation I will praise you.
You who fear the LORD, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honour him!
Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
For he has not despised or disdained
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.
For Messiah to be able to fulfil the prophecy of Psalm 22:22-24, it would be necessary that He experience the agony of Psalm 22:1-18. That Psalm speaks of desertion by the Father, mockery by sinners, shameful nakedness before the cruel taunts of His foes, and the cross which would serve as a rude altar on which He would offer His life.
All that Jesus related to those two disciples on the road to Emmaus, He had forewarned His apostles would happen throughout the days of His ministry. They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking on ahead of them; and they were amazed, and those who followed were fearful. And again He took the twelve aside and began to tell them what was going to happen to Him, saying, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death, and will deliver Him to the Gentiles. “ And they will mock Him and spit upon Him, and scourge Him, and kill Him, and three days later He will rise again” [Mark 10:32-34].
Jesus knew and accepted these detailed prophecies of death and resurrection for Messiah. He gave the Scriptures and He taught them throughout the days of His ministry. He prepared His disciples, though they were rather dull in accepting what He taught. It is appropriate that He embrace that role of prophetic fulfilment at the initiation of His ministry. He pictured His death, burial and resurrection, demonstrating obedience to the Father in the smallest detail.
When Jesus gave the Great Commission to the Church following His resurrection, He was specific in detailing how that Commission was to be carried out. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” [Matthew 28:18-20].
Discipling is accomplished through baptising into the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and through teaching to enable those so discipled to themselves become disciplers. To relegate the detail of His baptism to an option, or to say that what is pictured is of no consequence, or to change the symbolism itself, is to transform this precious instruction into the Great Omission. Baptism is not for cleansing, it is for identification with the Christ in His passion and in His triumph.
Note that the divine writers are careful to note that Jesus saw the Spirit of God descending. Matthew says, he [Jesus] saw the Spirit of God descending… In this he seems to follow Mark who states that As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased” [Mark 1:10, 11]. Perhaps John also saw the Spirit, but it is certain that those witnessing His baptism did not see the Spirit descend. Jesus was anointed by the Spirit, being equipped for the ministry He now accepted.
I do not mean to imply that Jesus was somehow separate from the Spirit until this time. There is a sense in which the Son of God was always united to the Spirit of God, but He was being specifically fitted to fulfil His ministry of sacrifice and suffering at this time. The dove is a symbol of sacrifice. The Hebrew mind would naturally turn to this symbolism and think of sacrifice.
Jesus had just pictured His acceptance of prophecy as the suffering servant as He was lowered into the watery grave and was then raised again by John. Now the Spirit of God pointed Him to that same service of sacrifice, anointing Him for death, for atonement. Henceforth, the Son of God would be opposed by wicked men and He would live from this moment forward in the shadow of the cross. He had consented to death and resurrection, and the Spirit of God would provide power to fulfil that prophecy. Christ… through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God [Hebrews 9:14].
The King as a man is energised by God for dealing with that which is fundamentally wrong in the Kingdom, and setting it right. God clothes Himself with man that He may proceed to the redemption of the lost race; and the Son is enwrapped in the power of the Spirit’s anointing, and crowned with the dove-like form. So the King faces the conflict, already conquering in the glory of the victory that is to be.[5]
Divine Certification of Jesus at His Baptism — Heaven was opened… A dove descended… A voice asserted, This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased… What an unusual baptism! What strange events attended this most dramatic beginning for service! On the other hand, were they any stranger than those which attended the conclusion of His earthly service mere months later?
As the Son of God hung on the cross, such dramatic events occurred that even a centurion posted at the foot of the cross exclaimed, Surely this man was the Son of God [Mark 15:39]! The sky was darkened throughout the period He hung on the cross [Matthew 27:45]. The earth was convulsed with a great earthquake [Matthew 27:51]. The curtain of the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom [Mark 15:38]. The graves of many of the saints were opened and those long-dead holy men and women were witnessed walking about in Jerusalem [Matthew 27:52, 53]. No less astonishing was the manner in which He died—never swearing in anger nor cursing those who tormented Him, but rather forgiving them of their sin [1 Peter 2:23].
Before His Passion, Jesus had repeatedly told His disciples that death could not hold Him—He would rise from the grave [cf. Matthew 17:23; Luke 9:22; 24:7]. When He did break the bonds of death and forever destroy the power of the tomb, the disciples were so overjoyed that they could not believe. Though He had repeatedly foretold that He would conquer death, they could not believe. Can you? Can you believe that He has conquered death? This is the Son of God who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord [Romans 1:4].
It is highly significant that the ministry of Jesus receive divine certification. On only three occasions, according to the divine text, did the voice of God speak from Heaven. At His baptism, a voice spoke, asserting that the One baptised was the Son of God [Matthew 3:17]. At His transfiguration, a voice was heard from the cloud saying This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him [Matthew 17:5]! Entering Jerusalem, Jesus spoke of His death one last time. At those awful words, He seized the opportunity to instruct His disciples.
Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honour the one who serves me.
Then the mood turned pensive as the Saviour reflected on His pending sacrifice. Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? “Father, save me from this hour”? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!
Notice what happened when He had spoken. Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.”
The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
In order to clarify what had occurred and to ensure that those present understood the significance of that voice, Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. Now is the time for judgement on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die” [John 12:26-33].
The Son of God received divine certification at the initiation of His ministry. We would suppose that few present, other than perhaps John, understood what was occurring. He again received divine certification as He prepared His disciples for His exodus, and they received greater understanding of the will of God. As His ministry was drawing to a conclusion, many, including those who were poised to believe though yet hesitating were instructed. Just so, you who hear my voice today have heard through the Word of God the divine assurance that this Jesus is the Son of God.
Just as those ancient people were responsible to grapple with the significance of His life and ministry, so you are responsible for what you will do with the knowledge that He is the Son of God. The message was that the Father was well pleased with Him, and based upon this divine pleasure, man is responsible to hear the voice of the Son of God. He has again received the glory which He shared from the beginning with the Father. Just as you are to honour the Father, so you are now called to honour the Son.
The Word of God declares that the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgement to the Son, that all may honour the Son just as they honour the Father. He who does not honour the Son does not honour the Father, who sent him [John 5:22, 23]. The manner in which we honour the Son (and consequently honour the Father) is through faith in the Son. Listen to Jesus as He explains honouring God. I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life [John 5:24]. If you have heard the call of God to believe that Jesus is the Son of God, you are responsible to accept this truth.
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
…We accept man’s testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his heart. Anyone who does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life [1 John 5:1-5, 9-12].
And that is our invitation to you. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved. This Jesus whom we preach is the Son of God, sent by the Father to give His life as a sacrifice because of your sin. God raised Him from the dead and He has ascended into Heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Father until the time of the end when He shall return to call His own to Himself. Will you be part of that great Body called out to life in the Son? You will if you believe Him today. Amen.
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[1] Clarence Jordan, The Cotton Patch Version of Matthew and John, (New Win Publishing, Inc., Clinton, NJ 1970) pp. 18-19
[2] Josephus, Antiquities 18.5.2 (Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids MI 1960) pg. 382
[3] see Craig L. Blomberg, The New American Commentary: Matthew Vol. 22 (Broadman Nashville, TN 1992) pg. 81
[4] D. A. Carson, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark and Luke, (Frank E. Gaebelein (ed.)), Volume 8 (Zondervan Grand Rapids, MI 1984) pg. 108
[5] G. Campbell Morgan, The Gospel According to Matthew (Marshall, Morgan and Scott, London UK 1976) pg. 28