Jesus' Baptism | A Sermon on Matthew 3:13-17

Introduction
Today, we continue our journey through the beginning parts of the Gospel of Matthew.  Last Sunday, we were introduced to John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin.  He was called the Baptist because he preached repentance and baptized those who repented—turned away from their sin.

John came to prepare the way for Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Lord and Savior of the world.  Today, Jesus comes to be baptized by John.  Let’s read the story.

Matthew 3:13-17
¹³ Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴ John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” ¹⁵ But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. ¹⁶ And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him,^[a] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; ¹⁷ and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son,^[b] with whom I am well pleased.”

Introducing Jesus
This is the first time in Matthew that we meet Jesus as an adult.  The earlier chapters show Jesus as a baby.  But now Jesus comes down from Galilee to be baptized by John and he is probably 30 years old (according to Luke 3:23).

John preached about repentance—that everyone needed to turn away from their sins and turn to God because the God’s Kingdom was at hand. When they repented, John baptized them as a sign.  But Jesus doesn’t need to repent.  1 Peter 2:22 tells us Jesus “committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”  Jesus did not need to repent.  And so, John is taken aback.  He says, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”

John recognized Jesus was special.  Of all the people who ever lived, Jesus is the only one who never sinned.  Think about that.  Everyone you have ever known has sinned.  And you know yourself; and you know you have sinned.  Even if it was only a small sin, you sinned.  You have been angry at someone in your heart. Or you have lusted in your heart.  Or you have been jealous or coveted what you neighbor had.  Romans 3:23 tells us, “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glorious standard of God.”  Everyone has sinned in one way or another.  But not Jesus.  Jesus was absolutely perfect and Holy, just as God is perfect and holy.  Yet Jesus was baptized for other reasons.

Jesus was Baptized “…to fulfill all righteousness.”
In Matthew 3:15, Jesus says He is to be baptized “…to fulfill all righteousness.”  What does that mean?  Jesus’ baptism was part of God’s plan and symbolized His obedience to God and His identification with humanity.  Though Jesus was sinless, He was baptized to fully identify with us—the people He came to save. His baptism symbolized taking our sin and dying in our place.

Jesus was Baptized To Mark the Beginning of His Ministry
Baptism is a sacred ceremony that marks the beginning of a spiritual journey.  For Jesus, baptism served as the launching point for His public ministry.  Immediately after His baptism, the Holy Spirit descended on Him like a dove, and the Father declared from heaven, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased” (Mt. 3:16-17). This was a clear affirmation of Jesus’ divine identity and mission.  And it was the starting point for His ministry.

Jesus was Baptized To Set an Example for Us
Jesus’ baptism was an example for us to follow. We are baptized when we start following Jesus.  At the end of His ministry, Jesus commanded His disciples to baptize others (Mt. 28:19-20), signifying a commitment to God and new life in Jesus and their beginning of a new life.

Lessons for Us Today
Jesus' baptism matters to us today because it shows His humility and His willingness to identify with sinners, even though He was sinless. We often struggle with pride.

We don’t want people looking down on us or to feel like people are judging us.  We may even avoid coming to the altar to pray in church just because we wonder, “What will people think?”  Jesus’ humility to be baptized right alongside all the other sinners of His day—even though Jesus was innocent without any sin in his life—should be an example to us.  Stop worrying about what everyone else thinks.  Just be obedient to God.  Listen to His voice and obey.

Jesus’ baptism also marks the beginning of His public ministry and sets an example for us.  How do you officially mark the beginning of your faith journey?  It is through baptism.

Some are baptized as infants, a sign that they are part of God’s family from the very beginning.  What a beautiful and sacred thing to seek God’s grace to raise our children in the Christian faith.  But even children who are born into a Christian family that promises to raise them in the faith must confirm their faith for themselves when they are old enough to make their own decisions.  In the Christian church, we call this ceremony “confirmation”, because the person who was baptized as an infant “confirms” they have decided for themselves to follow Jesus as Lord.  And those who were not baptized as infants and decide to follow Jesus as adults, begin their discipleship with the sacrament of baptism.  Baptism is the beginning for us, just as it was for Jesus. 

For us, baptism is a symbol of repentance, cleansing, and a new life in Christ.  It is an outward sign of something real God does inside us.  Jesus didn’t need to repent, but He was baptized to fulfill all righteousness (Matthew 3:15), showing us the importance of obedience to God. His baptism also foreshadows His death and resurrection, reminding us that through Him, we too can be made new.  Ultimately, Jesus' baptism points us to our own need for salvation and a relationship with God. It’s a call to follow Him, turn from sin, and live as citizens of His Kingdom. 

“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
When Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit descended on Him, and God the Father affirmed Him, saying, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17).  This moment reveals the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—all present together.  But it can reveal something else too.  It reveals how God see us when we walk with Christ. 

There are several Scriptures that teach when we are in Christ, God sees Jesus in us. For example:
Galatians 2:20 – “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
2 Corinthians 5:17 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
Romans 8:1 – “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

The mystery of the Christian faith is that our sins are washed away by the blood of Christ.  When God looks at us, He doesn’t see the dark and shameful deeds of our past.  Instead, He sees Christ in us.  And the affirmation the Father spoke of Jesus, He speaks over us:  “This is my beloved Son [or daughter], with whom I am well pleased.” 

Now, if you’ve ever had your earthly father or mother affirm their love and admiration for you, it is a tremendous blessing.  But now imagine the Father of the whole universe affirming His love for you.  Wow!  What a blessing!

If you are a Christian—meaning, you have repented of your sin and decided to follow Jesus—God looks at you and affirms you just as He affirmed Jesus:  “This is my beloved Son (or daughter), with whom I am well pleased.”  Take a moment to imagine God the Father saying these words to you right now…  If you follow Jesus, this is how God sees you.

There may be some reading this message who have not yet decided to follow Jesus.  Maybe you don’t believe because something about the story is really hard to believe: that God could overlook your sins, or that God would become a man and die for us, or that Jesus could rise from the dead.  I understand that it is remarkable and hard to believe.  I can't prove the Good News about Jesus to you the way a scientist can prove gravity, but I'm not asking you to believe blindly.  There is plenty of evidence for a Divine Creator God and for the Love of God reaching out to us.  And there is plenty of evidence for the real difference faith in Jesus makes in a person's life and the hope.  Being a Christian requires a leap of faith.  It's not blind faith, because we have evidence that we can trust God, but we need faith to leap across what we can see and know to full trust in God.  But it is so worth it.  I encourage you to take that leap.

Maybe you are afraid, but I pray you will be bold and courageous.  Maybe you are too proud and don't want to admit your mistakes.  But don't let pride deter you from something so important.  Turn to Jesus today and be saved.

The saddest and most dangerous reason some people don't follow Jesus is because they don't care.  They are just fine with living their life however they want.  They don't care about God or even if there is a God.  They don't care about what will happen once they die.  They just want to live their life however they please and don't care what God or anyone else thinks.  I pray that God's message through Jesus and John the Baptist will shake those who don't care to the core.  I pray that God will send whatever trials or tribulations necessary to wake people up so they do care. 

John and Jesus preached the same message. They said, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  God has extended an offer of grace and mercy.  He will forgive your sin.  He will give you a new and perfect heart—one that is full of love for God and your fellow man.  And He will welcome you into His Kingdom if you will accept Jesus as Lord.  And He will look at you too and say with genuine love:  “This is my beloved child, with whom I am well pleased.”

But if the Kingdom comes before you repent and you are found still to be in rebellion, then there will weeping and gnashing of teeth and eternal punishment.  Jesus and John both said there would be hell to pay for anyone who doesn't repent of their sins and enter into the Kingdom of God.  For only those who accept Christ as Lord can dwell in the eternal Kingdom of God where there is eternal love, and joy, and peace, and life.  For all others, their will be eternal punishment. 

The choice is yours.

Guest Blog - Lifted Up: Embracing Jesus' Sacrifice for Eternal Life by Noah Hunt

This past Sunday, we were blessed to have guest speaker Noah Hunt deliver a powerful sermon at Pleasant Grove Methodist Church. Noah's message, centered on John 3:14-18, beautifully illustrated the profound connection between Moses lifting up the serpent in the wilderness and Jesus being lifted on the cross for our salvation. For those who couldn't be with us or who wish to revisit Noah's insightful words, here is a summary of his sermon.

---

If you have a Bible with you this morning, or if you'd like to grab a pew Bible in front of you, the verses this morning will come from page 1,513. For those of you who brought a Bible with you, we will be in John chapter 3, reading verses 14 through 18. It is indeed a pleasure to be here with you this morning and to bring a word from the Lord. We'll begin reading at verse 14:

"Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life. For God loved the world in this way: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God."

Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, we are thankful for Your word to us. It is a clear word and a word of truth. You speak to us from the pages of Scripture, the Gospel, the good news. I pray this morning that You would awaken faith, belief, and trust in our hearts, that we might believe upon the name of Jesus Christ. I pray for those this morning who have believed for many years, that You would encourage our hearts, that we might want to follow You to greater depths of faith, and that we might want to act in greater acts of service for Your name's sake. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Amen.

I don't know how many of you own pets out there or how many of you are dog people, but if you've ever had a dog and watched it grow old and gray in the face, seen its joints begin to move slower than they used to, it's sort of a sad picture. You realize the truth of the old adage: it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks. I've had limited time in education—four years—but I can also say it's hard to teach older teachers new lessons. As we grow old, it's harder for us to learn, to become open to things that challenge us, to look at old truths with new sets of eyes.

In today's text, many of you who have studied the Bible for years know this passage comes from a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a wise teacher of the Bible, an older man with experience. I'm sure he was locked into his best practices and his understanding of how to communicate truth to his people. But here we have Nicodemus, an old Pharisee, coming in the dead of night to sit at the feet of Jesus of Nazareth, the Light of the World, a young Rabbi, a Carpenter's son. Who is He to you today?

Nicodemus, while old, callous, and perhaps jaded, knew there was something in the miracles and message of Jesus that he needed to hear. This morning, I invite you to turn the eyes of your heart upon Jesus and look full in His wonderful face, because the concerns of this world will grow dim in the light of His glory and grace.

Jesus does not condemn Nicodemus. He does not berate him or tell him he should know more by now, though He is a little critical. Jesus begins to build on what Nicodemus already knew. He turns to what Nicodemus knew best—the Old Testament, specifically the book of Numbers, chapter 21. Jesus mentions an example from Moses: "Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up."

This might seem confusing at first. You might think of Moses' miracle before Pharaoh where he threw down a stick that became a serpent, but that's not what Jesus was referring to. In Numbers 21, the children of Israel were brought out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness. They began to grumble and complain against God and Moses. In response, God sent snakes into their camp. As the snakes bit them and they began to die, the people cried out to Moses, confessing their sin and asking for intercession. God instructed Moses to make a bronze serpent and lift it on a pole. Those who looked at the serpent in faith were healed.

This morning, do you need to turn your eyes upon the One who was lifted up on a cross for you, to cover your sin with His blood? Do you need to turn your eyes upon the One who did not stay in the grave but was raised for your justification and freedom from sin?

Jesus was building new faith in the heart of Nicodemus, and He can do the same for you today. You might ask, "Why should I turn my eyes upon Jesus?" I offer you two points from these verses:

1. Jesus is God's greatest gift, given so that believers will live forever.
2. Jesus is God's Son, sent to save believers from condemnation.

This morning, I encourage you to wrestle with the truth of who Jesus is to you. Is He someone you acknowledge in passing, a good teacher, a moral philosopher? Or is He the very Son of God? Jesus is God's final offer, the only offer for eternal life, a life that begins today and continues into eternity. If you believe this gospel, you are living that eternal life now. It's not something to wait for; it starts today.

To appropriate this gift into your life, you must believe—not just intellectually, but to trust, to have faith, to rest yourself in Jesus. This morning, if you want to believe in Jesus Christ, you are trusting in a personal Savior who will carry you from this world into eternity.

Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, we thank You this morning for Your word to us. Convict us of our sin and show us the condition of our hearts. Help us to believe that Jesus Christ is who He says He is, and that He is Lord. If someone is making a decision of belief today, I pray they would not leave this church without confessing that belief. Go with us this day and help us to seek and save that which was lost. In Jesus' name, amen.

Thank you for joining us for this powerful message. We pray that Noah Hunt's sermon has touched your heart and inspired you to turn your eyes upon Jesus, embracing His gift of eternal life. If you have any questions or need prayer, please reach out to us. God bless you!