WHY DID JESUS GET BAPTIZED?

This Sunday (1/12/2025) celebrates a mystery: Why did sinless Jesus get baptized?

“Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:21-22)

Luke passes by it like of course Jesus was baptized; all the people were baptized. But when Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit came down upon him. Theologically, we get it; until Jesus, the Holy Spirit would just drop in for a visit; in Jesus, the Spirit finds a vessel worthy to dwell in.

John skips the Christmas narrative entirely and starts with a quick summary of Jesus in eternity – no easy trick. We don’t actually see the baptism in John’s narrative, but we hear John the Baptist describe it. “And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon who thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remain on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.” (John 1:32-34)

In Matthew, when John the Baptist suggests that Jesus should be baptizing him and not vice versa, Jesus said it was “to fulfil all righteousness.” So, even in his sinless state, there was righteousness to be fulfilled in his life. Some translate that as simply “do things right”. It was right for John to baptize Jesus and everyone else who requested it. It was right for Jesus to experience the baptism. He enjoyed what every pastor hopes for: a Holy Spirit baptism to go with the water baptism.

I cannot say if baptism is required for salvation. In scripture as in life, the Holy Spirit may come, before, during, after, or completely without water baptism. I can say it was vitally important to the early church, as was the sharing of communion and fellowship.

Why was Jesus baptized? He came to the water covered with the dust of this world. Water baptism, though symbolic of repentance, was still accepted as a physical cleansing. The priest prays God forgive the sins of his people, above and beyond his own. We suffer from the sins of others as well as our own. Jesus was indeed baptized for the remission of sins – but not his own. The sins forgiven that day included Peter’s denial, Judas’ betrayal, Thomas’ doubt, Pilot’s arrogance, gambling soldiers and Paul’s assault on the faith.

It’s fair to wonder if they accepted that forgiveness.

Jesus died for the sins of the world. He was baptized for the sins of the world. That day, he forgave years of absence from church while we found ourselves. He forgave the gossip that endangers fellowship. When we as children and youth went astray, he prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” He forgave us when the Holy Spirit descended upon him – maybe before!
Jesus was baptized to fulfill all righteousness – to do everything the right way.

Paul said we flee sin because we have died with Christ in baptism. “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4)

We are invited to model our lives after the life of Jesus. We are also reminded that there is a dusty world to walk through. Jesus suffered as we do; pick your suffering. Isaiah said in anticipation, “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isaiah 53:3) The Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8 was reading from there when Philip met him, witnessed to him, and baptized him.

“In this world you will have trouble,” Jesus said, “But fear not; I have overcome the world.” We aren’t given an escape from the dust of this world. We are taught to wash feet. We are taught to wear shoes. That should get us through until Jesus comes again.