Schroer: Why was Jesus baptized?

Published 5:00 am Sunday, January 21, 2024

Why was Jesus baptized?

That’s a good question.

The word baptize means “to wash.” Peter, however, tells us that baptism isn’t the washing of dirt from the body, but rather a cleansing of the conscience (1 Peter 3:21). Baptism is the promise and seal of forgiveness. When a person is baptized, God is assuring them that they are washed of all their sins through faith.

So, again I ask: Why was Jesus baptized? Jesus is God in every way. Jesus never sinned even once. Why would he need to be baptized?

When Jesus went to the Jordan River to be baptized by John the Baptist, John was confused as well.

“I need to be baptized by you,” John told him, “and do you come to me?” (Matthew 3:14).

But Jesus insisted. It was a part of God’s plan for him. He needed to be baptized.

When Jesus came out of the water, the skies opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in the form of a dove. God the Father spoke from the clouds. “This is my Son,” he said, “whom I love; with him I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17).

Jesus’ baptism was his anointing.

In ancient times, oil would be poured over the head of a person to mark them as the chosen one for a specific position. The act was called “anointing.” In the Old Testament, prophets, priests, and kings were anointed – marking them as the “chosen ones.”

Throughout the Old Testament, God promised to send the “Messiah” – a Hebrew word which means, “the Anointed One.” Every time the New Testament calls Jesus the “Christ,” that’s the Greek version of the same name.

At his baptism, Jesus was “anointed with the Holy Spirit and power” (Acts 10:38). Jesus’ baptism was his inauguration. It was his launch party. It was God’s way of saying to the world, “This is the Messiah. This is the Christ. This is the Chosen One.”

“This is my Son, whom I love.”

In your baptism, God washes you. He assures you that you are forgiven. But in a very real way, he also is anointing you. In your baptism, God is telling you and the world who you are.

“This is my son – this is my daughter – whom I love.”

You are a baptized child of God. You belong to him. You have been washed of all your sins in Jesus’ blood. That is who you are.

As a Christian, your baptism defines you. It tells you and the world who you are.

Why was Jesus baptized? His baptism tells us who he is.