Wednesday, June 1, 2005
Matthew 3:13-17
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” (ESV)
by Jo Anne Kandel
Why would Jesus, who was without sin, need to be baptized? The New Jerome Biblical Commentary offers three reasons.
First, in contrast to the Pharisees and Sadducees who wanted to distance themselves from the common folk, Jesus may have wanted to identify himself with the people who had come to John to be baptized. Second, Jesus was fulfilling God’s will by being obedient to his command. Third, Jesus was establishing a model of Christian baptism for his believers to follow.
Copyright Information
Daily Bible Meditations are taken from The Helping Hand,a Sabbath School student quarterly for youth and adults. Copyright © 2008, Seventh Day Baptist Board of Christian Education, Inc.
Scripture quotations marked "ESV" are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Text provided by the Crossway Bibles Web Service .
