This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased

 

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.  And John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he allowed Him.  When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.  And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

 

- Matthew 3:13–17 

 

 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:  "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:  'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'"  Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.  Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.  But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.  And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

 

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.  And John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he allowed Him.  My study Bible comments that Jesus does not need purification.  By making the purification of humanity His own, He would wash away humanity's sin, grant regeneration, and reveal the mystery of the Holy Trinity.  Therefore Christ's baptism is necessary for the fulfillment of God's righteous plan of salvation.  My study Bible quotes St. Gregory of Nyssa:  "Jesus enters the filthy, sinful waters of the world and when He comes out, brings up and purifies the entire world with Him."  

When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.   My study Bible notes that the Spirit of God hovered over the water at the first creation (Genesis 1:2).  Now, the Holy Spirit comes in the form of a dove to anoint the Messiah, the Son of God, at the beginning of the new creation.  Jesus does not become the Son of God this day; rather, it is a revelation to all on this day that He is the Son of God.  The Holy Spirit has always rested upon Him.  From the time of the ancient Church, this day is celebrated as Epiphany (meaning manifestation or revelation) or Theophany (meaning a manifestation of God) on January 6th.  In the very early Church (and still in the Armenian Apostolic Church), Baptism was commemorated together with Nativity on January 6th, celebrating both Christ's human birth, and the birth of His public ministry when He is revealed to the world as Son.  Let us note that Baptism is to be "born again" or born "from above" as the text in John 3:1-8 makes clear.

And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."  This quotation is from Psalm 2:7:  "You are My Son/Today I have begotten You."  My study Bible asks us to note how the Baptism of Jesus reveals the great mystery of the Trinity:  the Father speaks, the Holy Spirit descends, the Incarnate Son is baptized.

Among other things noted by my study Bible, it also remarks about Christ's Baptism that in it, Christ prefigured His own death, giving baptism its ultimate meaning, and also that Christ entered the waters and thus sanctified the water itself for baptism for all.  In the waters of baptism, we are immersed (at least this was so for the early practices of the Church, and continues in many), symbolizing death.  We die to the old self, to the old realities, to the old concepts of life, and in coming up we are meant to be prepared for entry into a new Kingdom, giving us a new orientation and understanding of our lives.  This is most important, and all too often, we forget that this is so.  Baptism, therefore, is not simply a one-time experience and put behind us, but an experience which is meant to be lived every day.  And, in an important parallel to this (and as my study Bible's note indicates), we are meant to live and participate in Christ's own suffering, death, and Resurrection as the constant presence in our lives, symbolized by the Cross.  This is why the Cross is universally symbolic of Christians and Christianity.  We mistake our faith, and dilute its presence in our lives if we don't understand this.  We will also strip our own experiences of meaning that is helpful and necessary in order for us to understand our place in the world as Christians, and especially the spiritual reality that is meant to be our journey through life as members of this particular Kingdom.  As members of this Kingdom, we are meant to have a particular loyalty and a particular outlook -- and as adopted children and members of this "Name" that alliance becomes a part of our very fiber of identity and meaning.  Taking the Eucharist simply deepens this to total nourishment of body, soul, and spirit in this identity.  In the next reading, we will read about Christ's temptations by the devil.   This reminds us that as a part of our baptism, we are also asked to "take sides," so to speak, because the Kingdom to which we belong has an opponent whose presence is felt also in our world.   Just as we become immersed within the death to an old life, and a birth of a new, so we are also asked three times to renounce the devil and the ways of evil in the world.   Baptism is also historically called "Illumination" and we are meant to have our eyes opened and illuminated for discernment in a world where this is necessary, particularly as those who follow Christ.  These are mystical realities that run deeper than the surface or simply intellectual concepts or symbols; they exist on all of these levels for us, just as we are not merely physical bodies but also incorporate spirit and soul.   Christ fulfills all righteousness in His Incarnation because, while He is revealed as Son and divine, He lives a life of righteousness for human beings as One who is also fully human.  He thus, in His divinity, sanctifies the waters for all for baptism.  Let us consider how we live our baptism every day, how death and rebirth define us and our experiences in life, for by participating in His life, we may constantly be renewed in the Spirit who rests upon Him, our lives refreshed in the waters of holiness for meaning and direction and refreshment.