The Baptism of Jesus

The Baptism of Jesus

Mt 3: 13 – 17

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Introduction

Today we celebrate the feast of the baptism of the Lord. Our reading shows us Jesus approaching John the Baptist to be baptized. There, we see the Father and the Spirit revealing to us who Jesus is: the Son of God, the Anointed of God and the Servant of God.

Gospel

¹³ Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴ John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” ¹⁵ But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. ¹⁶ And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. ¹⁷ And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”

Reflection

The Lord’s baptism is one of those episodes which is narrated by all four evangelists. On all four gospels, this episode marks the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. However, a number of bible scholars think that this pivotal event in the Lord’s life posed some uncomfortable questions among early Christians primarily because baptism was seen as a ritual that was used for the forgiveness of one’s sins. Perhaps the early Christians wondered why Jesus had to go through this ritual cleansing when their faith told them that Jesus was without sin. 

Such lingering question about the propriety of baptism is somehow echoed in Matthew’s version of the Lord’s baptism today, particularly when John the Baptist asks Jesus: “ I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” John’s question shows how  awkward he must have felt to see Jesus asking him to be baptized. Apparently, John would have preferred being baptized by Jesus instead. 

Such discomfort only showed John’s reverence for Jesus and his conviction about Jesus’ own righteousness. But as our reading tells us, Jesus allowed himself to be baptized notwithstanding John’s hesitation. Jesus wanted to be baptized not for the forgiveness of his sins but as he said: “ to fulfill all righteousness.” This ritual then, for Jesus had a significance other than the simple forgiveness of sins, but that his righteousness may all the more shine brightly before men. 

True enough, the Lord’s righteousness not only stood out before everyone that day.  As soon as the Lord emerged from the waters of the Jordan river, his righteousness was declared loudly by the Father and was visibly manifested through the Spirit who appeared in the form of a dove that alighted on him. This stunning interplay of audio and visual manifestations of the divine, revealed to us who Jesus was: that he was God’s beloved son and was the anointed (the Christ) as evidenced by the presence of the Spirit.  

But far from being a grand and triumphalistic public introduction to Jesus, this passage also bears the true mark of Jesus as savior. When the Father’s voice was  heard saying: “ This is my beloved Son,” Matthew somehow cites a passage from Isaiah 42:1 to disclose to us who Jesus really is. This passage alludes to a servant who is made to suffer for the sins of Israel. This servant is often referred to as the suffering servant of Yahweh who shall take for himself the sins and burdens of his people. The early Christians believed that Jesus suffered death on the cross in fulfillment of this prophecy from Isaiah. He was the anointed servant of God who bore the sins of many through his own pain and suffering. 

But the deeper reason for this baptism perhaps is more in alignment with Matthew’s own portrayal of Jesus in his gospel: that Jesus mingled freely with people who were considered sinful and outcasts in society, a friend of sinners who ate and drank with them. In being baptized, Jesus identified himself with sinful mankind who needed to be cleansed and purified. By immersing himself in the waters of baptism, he did not hesitate to be in the company of sinful mankind by first showing the way on how to gain back God’s grace through repentance. As one who is the first born of all creation, he had to be the exemplar to fallen humanity. Baptism did not show us that Jesus ever needed repentance and forgiveness; it showed his genuine solidarity with us who needed healing and redemption.

Prayer

Dear Lord, your baptism shows me what my own path would be in following you. I became the Father’s child through baptism. Like you, I also became anointed when I was baptized. I thank you too, that when I was baptized, you took away all my sins and gave me the power to live as your child. Help me live as God’s own child now and forever. Amen.

^“ Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. “– Rom 6: 4