Jesus... Baptised?

Why was Jesus baptized? Did it ever occur to you as a weird event?

In order to understand the “weirdness” of Jesus’ baptism, we must first understand the meaning of baptism. There are 2 kinds of baptism. The baptism of John the Baptist, and the baptism of the church.

The baptism of John is the "baptism of repentance" (Acts 13:24). He cries, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” As the one whose task is to “prepare the way of the Lord,” John makes people aware of their sins, and preaches repentance. John’s ministry is important to “make His paths straight”, because Jesus’ death on the cross, forgiveness, and redemption will mean nothing if the people do not know that they are sinners in the first place. John prepares the people to accept Jesus as the Messiah by propagating an awareness of sin. People who are baptized by John show that they have realized, and have repented of their sins. (Matthew 3:1-3)

Is there any sin in Jesus? No. Therefore, Jesus does not fit in John’s baptism.

The baptism if the church is an act of identification with Christ. Water baptism is a symbol of spiritual union with Christ. It shows that the believer is “buried with Him through baptism into death,” and is also identified with Christ in His resurrection “just as Christ was raised from the dead.” The act of baptism is a believer’s public announcement to the world that he has placed His trust in Christ, is willing to say goodbye to the world, and is willing to “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:3,4) It is every believer’s desire to go through the waters of baptism as “the answer of a good conscience toward God” (1 Peter 3:21)

Does Jesus need to go through the baptism of the church? No. Jesus does not need to be identified with Christ, because Jesus IS the Christ! Besides, it is also chronologically illogical for Jesus to fit in the baptism of the church.

So then, why is Jesus baptized? Only Matthew’s account of the gospel provides a fitting answer.

When Jesus went to John to be baptized, Matthew records that “John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” (Matthew 3:14,15)

By saying that His baptism fulfills all righteousness, Jesus is not saying that He needs to be baptized because of His sins. Jesus is saying that He has to be baptized because he has to do the right thing at the right time. Jesus has to go through the waters of baptism for 3 reasons:

1) Jesus is joining the believing remnant of Israel who has been baptized by John. Jesus is getting baptized as “one of the Israelites”. He is taking the step to show that although He is truly God, He is also truly man. He is trying to declare that in His humanity, he is being identified as a man who will take away the sins of man. Jesus’ deity enables Him to work wonders as God’s Anointed One, whereas Jesus’ humanity permits Him to be a worthy sacrifice for man’s sins.

2) Jesus is confirming John’s ministry as The Baptist. Jesus is saying that John’s ministry of “preparing the way of the Lord” is instituted by God. Later, Jesus approves of John in Matthew 11:7-19, and indirectly defended John’s ministry in Matthew 21:23-27.

3) Jesus is fulfilling His Father’s will. Jesus is being obedient to God’s will by going through the waters of baptism. Immediately after Jesus came up from the water, God thundered from heaven in a voice, saying “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Because of Jesus’ obedience, God the Father proudly declares His favor on Jesus. God the Father makes known His relationship with Jesus by calling Jesus as “His beloved Son.” (Matthew 3:16, 17)