Our focus today will be on Jesus’ baptism and the deep spiritual experience he had at the time. Now it may be that many will wonder why the Lord felt he wanted to be baptized at all. Most of us believe that if anyone was ever without sin, it was Jesus. Why then did he want John the Baptist to put him under the water as a symbol of sins being “washed away”? Theologians and Bible scholars may debate the question on and on, but there are two reasons often given that most of us can accept as valid.
First, perhaps he wanted to identify completely with those who did indeed need to engage in repentance and the act of symbolically having their bodies and souls cleansed and renewed. Second, it may be that he felt that at age 30, he should now dedicate himself completely to his ministry. He apparently had siblings to look after his mother so now they could take care of her and he could focus intently on the mission of seriously proclaiming the kingdom of God.
You may recall that it was only shortly after his baptism that he is recorded as saying: “The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news.”1 With those words, he began the greatest work for God ever launched on earth.
Jesus’ ordination by God
But let’s return for a moment to the baptism event. John the Baptist was reluctant to do it. He said of himself that he was unworthy even to stoop down and untie the sandals on Jesus’ feet. Yet, Jesus insisted on
