Recently, I happened to hear someone teaching on the Baptism of Jesus. The question was asked “Why are people baptised?” And the answer given was “ To become a Christian”.
So I ask you, why then was Jesus baptised?
You, like me, can probably see the flaw in the answer previously referred to – there’s a few to spot.
The term Christian was first used around 44AD in the city of Antioch, as recorded in Acts 11:26 which says “And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch”, to describe followers of Jesus. Earlier followers called themselves “The Way” and the term Christian was not more widely adopted until later. It became a more standard term around 100AD when the word “christianity” was first recorded.
So Jesus did not get baptised to become a Christian – a word that was not even in existence at that time.
Neither did He need to be baptised to follow Himself -especially as Facebook didn’t exist then either.
Likewise, Jesus didn’t need to be baptised to believe in Jesus. He knew He was and is the Son of God.
When a baby is baptised the parents have made the decision and make the declarations on behalf of the baby (or young child). If, like Jesus, someone is getting baptised as an adult then they have found their faith, believe in Christ and, as a believer of Christ, are already a Christian.
People are baptised as a public declaration of their faith, symbolising the person’s identification with Jesus’s death, burial, and resurrection, and a commitment to a new life in Christ. It serves as an outward sign of an inward change, a public testimony of one’s belief and a way to formally join a Christian community.
But, at the time of Jesus’s baptism, He hadn’t been crucified, dead, buried and resurrected yet.
So why did Jesus get baptised?
His cousin John, who was already known as John the Baptist, was calling people to be baptised and was baptising them. Yet Jesus was still alive, had not yet met His death and had not yet started His ministry. So why did the crowds flock to John in such great numbers and why did they and Jesus get baptised?
John’s mission was to prepare the way for the Messiah. He was calling the people to repentance for the forgiveness of sins and his baptism was a symbolic cleansing – a public declaration of turning away from sin and having a new start. It was also an act to make way for Jesus, who would baptise with the Holy Spirit, and served as a way to demonstrate a commitment to God’s law.
It was about spiritual readiness; John was urging the people to change their ways so they wouldn’t reject the Lord when He came.
Jesus was baptised to fulfil all righteousness, publicly launch His ministry as God’s Son, identify with all humanity (including sinners), and inaugurated a new covenant. All this was confirmed by the descent of the Holy Spirit and by the Voice of God.
Jesus’s baptism symbolised His union with sinners, foreshadowed His death and resurrection and established a model for the baptism we have today.
By getting baptised by John, Jesus was signifying His obedience to God’s will and His immersion into humanity’s condition. It was a public act marking the start of His ministry and mission as the Messiah, validated by the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. By being baptised by John Jesus identified with sinful humanity, taking humanity’s burden upon Himself.
The water symbolised death and burial and the chance of a new life (or a new start). It points to Jesus’s ultimate “baptism” on the cross – His death and resurrection.
Jesus’s action set an example to His followers, showing the path to God and infusing the sacrament of baptism with God’s grace for us and for future believers.
Finally, when Jesus was baptised the heavens opened, the Holy Spirit descended like a dove, and God’s voice declared, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” – the indisputable confirmation of Jesus’s divine identity and mission.
Just because 