The Baptism Of The Lord
There are three versions of the baptism of Jesus – Mark, Matthew, Luke. All three include the descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove upon Jesus and an approving voice from the sky. The Gospel of John, for its own theological reasons, omits the baptism of Jesus, but does include a descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove upon Jesus. In John’s gospel there is no voice from the sky, but a private revelation is given to the Baptizer, “The One on whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining will baptize with the Holy Spirit.” Mark’s version is the oldest and the briefest story of Jesus’ baptism by John in the Jordan. Mark composes his gospel about the year 70 A.D. Matthew and Luke, writing ten to fifteen years later, copy from and expand Mark’s narrative with their own theology.
Mark began his gospel with a proclamation that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God. Basing his narrative on homiletic practice in early Christianity, his opening proclamation was followed by a description of John the Baptizer and the Baptizer’s mission. Before Jesus arrived for his baptism, Mark explains thru the mouth of John that John’s baptism is inferior to the baptism which Jesus will later give, as John says, “I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” The pattern of relegating John’s baptism and John himself to a secondary role was set by Mark and followed by the other gospels. John is great indeed, but John said in many ways, “I am second!” The stage for Jesus’ arrival is prepared, and Mark writes, “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.”
The later gospels of Matthew and Luke both have introductory chapters that place Jesus in the small town of Nazareth, Galilee, in his childhood and in the run-up to his public ministry. Mark has no such introduction. This means that his audience was already well aware of Jesus’ origin in Galilee. His baptism by John is stated so matter of factly by Mark that it comes as a surprise to anyone who knows the versions of Luke and Matthew. Theologically the Jordan is important because Jesus represents all of Israel which entered the Promised Land through the Jordan River. See Joshua 3:14-17. Jesus shares his people’s destiny. Mark informed his readers in 1:4 that the Baptizer “proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” Why was the all-holy One proclaimed Son of God and Messiah in Mark 1:1submitting to a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins?
An easy answer: He was giving good example and approving of John’s mission. However, there is a more profound answer to this question. The people who responded to John’s call for repentance, while submitting to this external washing or baptism, confessed their sins during the washing. Jesus had no sins to confess, but in submitting to a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins he was beginning a process which he would complete on the cross – taking upon himself the sins of the world. To make the connection between Jesus’ vicarious baptism and his vicarious death on the cross we may turn to Mark 10:38, where Jesus speaks of his death on the cross as a baptism, when he asks his ambitious disciples James and John, “Are you able…to be baptized with the baptism with which I am to be baptized?” This was said in reference to Jesus’ death, not a baptism with water, but a baptism (a washing) in his own blood.
As Jesus comes up out of the water of the Jordan, “He saw the heavens being split (ripped, torn) open and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him.” The ripping open of the heavens echoes Isaiah 64:1. The prophet desperately pleads of God, “O that you would tear open the heavens and come down….” The plea is answered at the baptism of Jesus in the descent of the Holy Spirit. There is no satisfactory explanation of why the Spirit descends upon Jesus in the form of a dove. The best explanation may be that a dove was a familiar symbol of the divine in ancient religions of Asia Minor, Babylon, and Syria. Mark simply adopts a familiar symbol to express the presence of the Divine Spirit.
“…and a voice from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son. With you I am well pleased.’” These words echo Psalm 2:7, “You are my Son. Today I have begotten you.” This Psalm is a corona-tion Psalm for the inauguration of kings descended from David. Is Mark here pointing out Jesus as the new King David promised in the Old Testament? There may be a more ominous echo here – Genesis 22 – the near sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham. The Lord says to Abraham, “Take your son, your only son…, your beloved son, and offer him…as a wholly consumed sacrifice….” The final words of the Voice, “With you I am well pleased.” The gospels and most New Testament documents use thoughts and words found in four poems in Isaiah to describe Jesus and events in his life. These poems describe a mostly unnamed servant of God, who takes upon himself the sins of his people. His life is taken away “for the transgression of my people,” Isaiah 53:8. The words of the voice from heaven at Jesus’ baptism echo the opening verse of the first of these songs, “Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my Chosen One in whom I am well pleased,” Isaiah 42:1. We do not know if Mark intends to reveal the Holy Trinity at Jesus’ baptism, but there they are: the Son on the banks of the Jordan, the Spirit descending upon him, and the approving voice of the Father from heaven.
