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His Baptism |
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Can you pick out the four events surrounding Jesus' baptism that set Him apart and demonstrate
that He is unique?
"Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to the Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John would have hindered him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? But Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffereth him. And Jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway from the water: and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon him; and lo, a voice out of the heavens, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt. 3:13-17 ASV). When John objected to the idea of baptizing the Lord, John was showing that Jesus was unique. John knew that Jesus was sinless, and he also knew that his baptism was "unto remission of sins" (Mark 1:4). How could he baptize someone unto the remission of sins who was sinless? He couldn't. John's objection demonstrated the sinlessness of the Lord. It also shows that there is more to being baptized into Christ than simply obeying God. It must be "unto the remission of sins" to be valid (Acts 2:38). When Jesus was baptized, the heavens did not simply open, but, as Mark says, "the heavens rent asunder" (Mark 1:10 ASV). Mark uses the Greek verb schizomenous. The Greek word means "split or divide." The heavens were divided. What a magnificent wonder to behold! The descent of the Holy Spirit in the bodily form of a dove set Jesus apart from all men. God had promised the prophet John that the Spirit would descend upon the One who "was before" John and who was greater than all (John 1). When the Spirit descended upon Jesus, John knew He was indeed the Lamb of God (John 1:29). The last event in this context that set Jesus apart and demonstrated that He is without parallel among men is the voice of God out of heaven. The heavenly announcement declared Jesus to be special. He is the only begotten Son of God. No baptism had ever, or will ever, witness such a divine display of approval. Unique indeed! If we fail to realize that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God, we miss the whole point. If we fail to submit to Him, we will deprive ourselves of being with Him (Mark 16:16). |