Matthew 3: 13-17 CSB 13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. 14 But John tried to stop him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you come to me?” 15 Jesus answered him, “Allow it for now, because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John allowed him to be baptized. 16 When Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from the water. The heavens suddenly opened for him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased.” Anyone who has been baptized will not forget it. Your nervous, a bit scared, and excited knowing this is step of obedience you can clearly identify. That feeling like finally reaching the top of the rollercoaster and not being able to see over the top knowing what comes next. You fully trust the person baptizing you and you let yourself go backwards. Then, that immediate rush as you are let down and quickly brought back up. That first breath of air you take in and that smile that follows. I have had the privilege of both being baptized and baptizing adults, students, and children and it's the same every time. :) At its core, baptism is about identification. John's baptism identified people with their sin, we are baptized to be identified with our Lord Jesus Christ. But Jesus had no sin and couldn't identify Himself with Himself. Jesus was identified by God His Father and identified with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. At Jesus' baptism all three persons of the Godhead or Trinity were present. Jesus tells John “Allow it for now, because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” It was right for both of them do what was God's will. Jesus did not only die for our sin, He also fulfilled all righteousness perfectly on our behalf. It is what God demands- perfection. Knowing we could not fulfill it ourselves, God sent His Son to live that perfect life and die that perfect death on behalf of sinners. But he did not stay dead, He was raised from the dead. Baptism itself is also a picture of death, burial, and resurrection. As the body goes into the ground and is covered so we go into the water but we do not stay there we are raised again. So it will be for all who trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sin. At death our soul goes to be with the Lord and He will raise our bodies on the last die. So, like Jesus, we will be in a glorified body for eternity. BEFORE Jesus does a single thing (concerning His mission and ministry) God the Father declares that He is His beloved Son and that in Him He is well pleased. From the language of the passage today it would seem that only Jesus and maybe John heard the Father. Jesus was about to start His ministry and hearing the Father and knowing the Spirit of God was upon Him to do all that the Father calls Him too must have felt empowering and just plain good. As a follower of Jesus we find our acceptance before God the Father in His Son Jesus Christ and we are empowered by the Holy Spirit for everything that God wills to do through us. Ask Yourself: Am I trying to win God's favor by what I do? Do I know I am loved in the Son and am fully loved and accepted in Him? My prayer is that we as leaders model this for you in what we teach you and what we do. We should not be trying to win God's favor, we should know that followers of Jesus are fully loved and accepted because of what Jesus did for us- living a perfect life, dying a perfect death and was raised from the dead. God is good. Knowing this should give us confidence to walk worthy as a child of God. Have a great day, Loved Ones, and God bless you real good!
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