by Dorette Saunders
Imagine this: An unconventional prophet wailing in the desert exhorting folks to repent of their sins and be baptized. They listened and came in droves. Today, however, as the Baptizer stood beside the Jordan River, something extraordinary would happen that would change the course of human history. Yet, there were no cameras rolling, no paparazzi, no special planned ceremony or vestment worn to mark the event when Jesus came to be baptized.
But John kept objecting and said, “I ought to be baptized by you. Why have you come to me?”
Jesus answered, “For now this is how it should be, because we must do all God wants us to do.” Then John agreed.
So Jesus was baptized. (Matthew 3:14-16a, CEV)
One cannot help but be in awe of such a momentous occasion. And then it happened.
And as soon as he [Jesus] came out of the water, the sky opened, and he saw the Spirit of God coming down on him like a dove. Then a voice from heaven said, “This is my own dear Son, and I am pleased with him.” (Matthew 3:16b-17, CEV)
What a public display of affection! This consecration through baptism was for Jesus’ messianic ministry to us, yet it was an intimate moment between the Father and Son; a moment that the Father did not mind sharing with the on-looking world.
This is my Son. He’s not just my Son, but I, God, love him deeply and I am proud of him.
Those words of affirmation were not for Jesus only. (Jesus knew God loved him.) They were for us as well. Jesus would become our Emmanuel, our “God-with-us”-in-the-flesh, role model.
If you have children, think of times when they made you proud and you said for all to hear, “That’s my boy” or “That’s my daughter.” Yet, our children don’t always make us proud. But here, Jesus, the sinless Son of God, demonstrates his willing obedience to offer up himself for service and sacrifice. The Scriptures tell us:
Christ was truly God.
But he did not try to remain
equal with God.
Instead he gave up everything
…
when he became
like one of us.
…
He obeyed God and even died
on a cross… (Philippians 2:6-8, CEV)
No wonder God, filled with affection, smiled so hard he broke the curtain in the heavens to make that pronouncement. Who wrote the rule book that men can’t show loving affection to their male offspring? Certainly not God. He gave us the blueprint on how to love.
For those who are still mourning the loss of a father – the one who was physically or emotionally absent; the one who told the court he did not want you—while you were within earshot; the one who loved drugs more than he loved you; the one who apologized for his incarceration, but promptly went back to jail after his release. Remember this: God is “a father to the fatherless” (Psalm 68:5, NIV). He claims paternity over you.
Don’t you get goosebumps just thinking about it? But think about this. We are also God’s beloved. We have God’s DNA- we were made in God’s image. The Scriptures say, “Think how much the Father loves us. He loves us so much that he lets us be called his children, as we truly are” (1 John 3:3, CEV).
Yes, when God publicly affirmed Jesus, God knew that later some would question the source of Jesus’ wisdom: “Isn't he the son of the carpenter? Isn't Mary his mother…?” (Matthew 13:55, CEV). And that the Messiah deniers would mock Jesus’ divine authority and incite violence. “We’re stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a mere man, claim to be God” (John 10:33, CEV).
Like Jesus, “we must do all God wants us to do,” knowing that the Holy Spirit that put his seal on Jesus, has also clearly marked us as the children of God.
PRAYER: Thank you, Lord, for being our Father, and our God. Amen.
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