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Jesus Baptized

“For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah”

God sent John the Baptist to pave the way for Christ. John warned the people to “Repent! He is coming!” And, he cried out from the wilderness; “Pave the way for the Lord; make His paths straight.” Christ then came to the people from Galilee walking down into the waters of the Jordan asking John to baptize Him. John tried to prevent it, but Jesus said to John:” Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15).

Jesus understood He was the promised messiah sent to identify with the people whom He had come to deliver. His baptism, as He had asked John to give Him, expressed His wholehearted identity with the people whom He came to save. His baptism was also Jesus’ public expression of His dedication to God’s will and to His ministry which began with this event.

Jesus provided us His example even though He was sinless so we could see what our Father’s expectation of us was and still is. Even today, and until His coming again, He remains our perfect teacher. Not long ago a popular marketing campaign for many products was using the initials “WWJD.” Perhaps you remember, maybe you even bought a tee-shirt or a bracelet with these initials on them. I did. The question the initials represented was “What Would Jesus Do?” They reminded us to check our actions against this perfect example we have in Jesus. Our lives are full of choices. Every day we are challenged to make the right decisions in life, in business, in play, in our daily routines. Jesus was baptized and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him as a dove. And after His death on the cross, and His reappearing, He left us His Holy Spirit to guide us and convict us of Satan’s attempts to take us away from God. He is our hope for righteousness and even for our salvation.

Consider your own baptism.

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