Reflection on the Baptism of Christ -- Mark 1:4-11

John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased." (Mark 1:4-11)

In this Gospel, we witness Jesus being baptized by his cousin, John, in the Jordan River. We have fast-forwarded 30 years in the life of the eternal Word of God. He is no longer the infant of the Nativity, or even the toddler of the Epiphany. Jesus is now a mature man of 30, ready to begin the ministry for which he became incarnate. He is about to begin the three-year ministry that will reveal him as the Messiah, and end at the cross on Calvary. But first, his baptism.

The question comes to mind, “did Jesus need to be baptized?”

This question is actually two-fold, as Baptism has a two-fold purpose. John’s baptism, and that of Judaism up to this point, was a cleansing from sins. Those who were coming to John to be baptized were coming to have their sins washed-away. Jesus is without sin, so he certainly does not need this cleansing! John knows that “he is not worthy to even untie Jesus’ sandals”.

The second issue here is that, following Jesus, baptism becomes the rite of adoption into God’s family, and carries with it the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the Son of God, a part of the Holy Trinity, for all eternity. He is the family of God, and is in eternal communion with the Holy Spirit, and the Father, so, has no need to receive what baptism offers us.

So, the short answer is that Jesus did not “need” to be baptized as we do. He chose to be baptized by John to announce the beginning of his earthly ministry, and to institute the Sacrament through which we would be able to receive full membership into God’s family after his work on earth was done.

Jesus comes to John at the Jordan to “do what is right”, but this also becomes a public announcement of who he is. As Jesus comes out of the water we have one of the few moments in Scripture where the Trinity is present. Jesus, the Son, comes out of the water. The Holy Spirit in the form of a dove appears. And, the Father makes his proclamation, “You are my beloved Son…” It is much more public than the angels’ announcement at his birth, and this time it’s the Father in heaven, not angels making the announcement. It is also interesting to notice that this announcement is made before those who have come seeking the repentance that John’s baptism offered – they were already seeking answers to eternal questions.

Most importantly for us, at this time, is that Jesus’ baptism announces his earthly ministry. From this point, after a 40-day stint in the desert, his eyes are fixed on the cross. He will spend the next three years healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, opening the ears of the deaf, and even raising the dead to let people know that he is the promised Messiah. Some will follow, some will not, some will walk away, but that will not change his mission – to offer salvation to a world in need.

As I said earlier, following Jesus, baptism is forever changed. It becomes much more than a cleansing from sin, although this remains as a part. From Jesus on, baptism is also the adoption rite into the family of God, and includes the anointing of the Holy Spirit to enable us to carry out the ministry placed before us.

At each of our baptisms, God the Father said in heaven, “This is my son,” or, “This is my daughter.” At our baptism, we received the anointing of the Holy Spirit. We are not made perfect, but we are washed clean of our sins. Jesus accepted his mission, and from his baptism sought to carry it out, knowing what the end was. The question for us today is, “will we accept our mission as members of the family of God?” Will we use the gifts that God has given us to bring others into His kingdom? Will we do our part in easing the suffering of our fellow man? Will we be the Body of Christ – his hands and feet in the world?

Let us be praying continually that we will be given the strength to do the difficult things as we seek to follow Christ and to the work that he has placed before us. That we will be willing and able to give everything that we are, and have in thanksgiving to the one who gave it all to us.