Jesus’ ministry began with His baptism. John had been encouraging people to repent of their sins and to be baptized to prepare for the coming of God’s Servant & King. Then Jesus came to be baptized.
And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. (Mark 1:9).
If John’s baptism was for repentance, why was Jesus baptized? That’s a great question. Although Jesus didn’t need forgiveness, I discovered that He may have been baptized for several reasons:
- to confess sin on behalf of the nation, as Isaiah, Ezra, and Nehemiah had done (Is. 6:5; Neh. 1:6; Ezra 9:2).
- to inaugurate his public ministry to bring the message of salvation to all people;
- to show support for John’s ministry.
- to identify with the needs of people, thus with humanness and sin.
- to give us an example to follow.
I am sure these are all good reasons, but Jesus Himself gave the reason He was to be baptized in answer to John’s reluctance. He said it was ‘to fulfill all righteousness‘ (Matt. 3:15).
Jesus was baptized in keeping with His entire mission on earth: to do the will of the Father. Jesus didn’t have to be baptized. He also didn’t have to die on a cross in our place. He did both things because His Father wanted Him to do it.
As we live our life, we sometimes will give excuses for not following God’s directives. But a true servant will always do what his master commands. Jesus did.
Today, why don’t you ask God to guide you in all your decisions? Begin your day asking God to move you in the direction you should go. As you meet people throughout the day, ask God how you should treat them. When situations come up, ask God how you should respond.
The best way to live our life is in obedience to Him. And if you haven’t been baptized, that’s a good place to start.