Why was Jesus baptized?

Lamb

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http://lutheranconfessions.blogspot.com/2012/01/why-was-jesus-baptized.html

1) By being baptized by John, Jesus witnesses to the continuity between John's ministry (and the entire prophetic tradition that preceded him) and his own ministry.

2) By being baptized by John, Jesus points forward to his future ministry that continues but also transcends (without exactly replacing) the ministry of John.

3) His baptism fulfills what the prophets wrote about in Isaiah 40:3, Malachi 3:1, and Exodus 23:20. For Mark, this is the starting place.

4) Jesus' baptism sends him on a mission, first into the midst of wild animals where Satan tempts him and the angels minister to him, then straightaway into the calling of his disciples and the long journey of exorcisms, healings, teachings, and so much more that constitutes his life's work until he is crucified.

5) By being baptized for the forgiveness of sins, Jesus becomes sin, completely. Jesus repents. Given who Jesus is, the Son of God, this means God takes sin into Godself, and the nature of God (if we can say it this way), is itself repentance. This point, in the midst of all these points, should give us extreme pause for thought, humility, and repentance ourselves.

6) It's a Jesus-then, Jesus-now thing, from a literary perspective. So just as Jesus was baptized then, so too each of our individual baptisms participates now in his baptism. If this book was used in a liturgical setting (which is very likely) then it is like a remembrance of baptism litany at the beginning of worship, reminding the worshipping community of their own baptism by narrating the baptism of Jesus.

7) The baptism is like an initiation rite, initiating him into the priesthood (of Melchizedek, see Hebrews) and into the mission of his Father.

8) Jesus stands in for, in a sense is, all of humanity. His life as all of humanity begins here, in baptism.

9) Notice what the Spirit is up to in this text. Lots. It's Pentecost in the life of Jesus, which will be repeated later in the life of the church.

10) Notice what the Father says concerning his Son. It is not just initiation, it is also confirmation, affirmation, of who Jesus is as the Son of God, and what regard the Father has for who this Jesus is and what he will do and be.
 

NewCreation435

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so in his case it wasn't an act that led to salvation since he didn't need it. It was an act of obedience since he could have chosen not to be baptized.

Again, there is nothing passive about it. He didn't get baptized without doing anything. He had to go to the river and be obedient and be baptized. He had to allow John to do it
 

Josiah

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Jesus' baptism was JEWISH. It was one of several types of Jewish baptism. The one recorded was known as "The baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."

Jesus had not yet even begun His ministry. Christianity didn't exist yet. This was in a purely JEWISH, OLD COVENANT milieu.


The reason given is that it "fulfills all righteousness." How so? I don't know.... the text doesn't say.
 

MOJS4545

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Jesus' baptism was JEWISH. It was one of several types of Jewish baptism. The one recorded was known as "The baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."

Jesus had not yet even begun His ministry. Christianity didn't exist yet. This was in a purely JEWISH, OLD COVENANT milieu.


The reason given is that it "fulfills all righteousness." How so? I don't know.... the text doesn't say.

where in the law does it command people to be baptized?
 

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where in the law does it command people to be baptized?
It was custom for a Jew to be baptised before becoming a Rabbi, Jesus had to be baptised in order to become a priest, seeing he had no sin it gives me the impression he did it for priest hood before beginning his ministry.. There was no law that ordered everybody to be baptised
 

Josiah

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Josiah said:
Jesus' baptism was JEWISH. It was one of several types of Jewish baptism. The one recorded was known as "The baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."

Jesus had not yet even begun His ministry. Christianity didn't exist yet. This was in a purely JEWISH, OLD COVENANT milieu.


The reason given is that it "fulfills all righteousness." How so? I don't know.... the text doesn't say.


.

where in the law does it command people to be baptized?


It doesn't, at least not in anything recorded in the Bible. But as I understand it, the Jews developed at least 3 different forms of Baptism; one of which was called "The Baptism of Repentance for the Forgiveness of Sins" (sound familiar?) There's no evidence that GOD established any of these but it seems they were established.

In any case, the Bible specifically states Jesus embraced this JEWISH baptism because it "fulfills righteousness." WHY it does, the Bible never says.
 

Particular

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Jesus gives one sentence in answer, and it is massively important. He says, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15). It is fitting. That is why he is doing it. It is fitting. Well, what is fitting? Fulfilling all righteousness is fitting.

Evidently, Jesus saw his life as the fulfillment of all righteousness. The fact that participating in a baptism of repentance even though he had no sins to repent of is part of that shows that the righteousness he wanted to fulfill was the righteousness required not of himself, but of every sinful man.

Jesus had read Isaiah 53. Indeed, Isaiah 53*was his life mission. And here is what he read in verse 11: “By his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous.” The righteous one will cause many to be counted righteous.

My answer to the question of why Jesus insisted on being baptized is that this new people who were being gathered by John the Baptist on the basis of repentance and faith, not on the basis of Jewishness, would need to be justified. They would need to be counted righteous, because they weren’t righteous. They would need to have a righteousness not their own, as Paul said in*Philippians 3:8–9.

That righteousness included the fulfillment of all righteousness in life, the life of Jesus. All the righteousness that would be required of men before the court of God, Jesus performed. So he joined fallen humanity, for whom he was providing righteousness by sharing their baptism.

https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/why-was-jesus-baptized
 

Arsenios

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The reason given is that it "fulfills all righteousness."
How so?
I don't know....
the text doesn't say.

ουτως γαρ πρεπον εστιν ημιν
For in this manner fitting it is to us...

πληρωσαι πασαν δικαιοσυνην
to fulfill all Righteousness...

The text clearly states that by John baptizing Christ THEY - The two of them - fulfilled ALL Righteousness.

This clearly rules out Baptism being a social proclamation of a private spiritual event...

So you have to ask yourself a very serious question...

A kind of spiritual Dirty Harry question about feeling LUCKY...

HOW can John Baptizing Christ FULFILL ALL Righteousness?

A Jewish baptism of whatever kind can do no such thing...

Neither can a "Social Proclamation" baptism do so...

Neither does entry into the Jewish Priesthood do so...

Nor did He obediently ALLOW John to Baptize Him...

He COMMANDED John to Baptism Him...

AFTER John asked HIM to baptize himself...

Sooo.... Ya FEELIN' LUCKY???

How DID Jesus and John Fulfill ALL Righteousness in that one event??


Arsenios
 
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Arsenios

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Gosh -

Sure is quiet around here...

I def' heard a pin drop...

Cheese Louise I say!

A.
 

Josiah

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ουτως γαρ πρεπον εστιν ημιν
For in this manner fitting it is to us...

πληρωσαι πασαν δικαιοσυνην
to fulfill all Righteousness...

The text clearly states that by John baptizing Christ THEY - The two of them - fulfilled ALL Righteousness.

This clearly rules out Baptism being a social proclamation of a private spiritual event...

So you have to ask yourself a very serious question...

A kind of spiritual Dirty Harry question about feeling LUCKY...

HOW can John Baptizing Christ FULFILL ALL Righteousness?

A Jewish baptism of whatever kind can do no such thing...

Neither can a "Social Proclamation" baptism do so...

Neither does entry into the Jewish Priesthood do so...

Nor did He obediently ALLOW John to Baptize Him...

He COMMANDED John to Baptism Him...

AFTER John asked HIM to baptize himself...

Sooo.... Ya FEELIN' LUCKY???

How DID Jesus and John Fulfill ALL Righteousness in that one event??


Arsenios


It's okay to ask questions. But doing so does not suggest self ergo can answer it. Or even that anyone can.
 

Particular

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It's okay to ask questions. But doing so does not suggest self ergo can answer it. Or even that anyone can.
.
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