When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.

Why did the Spirit of God descend upon Jesus in bodily form? Why not just fill him like he does us? I wonder about this and have come to an idea: God wanted to leave no doubt in people’s minds that this was his Son. He wanted to clearly mark Jesus as one who was the Eternal Prince of Peace. He wanted us to understand Jesus was God. Just like Jesus showed up in human form, the Spirit of God showed up in bodily form (a dove): 1) to recognize him as the Son of God, 2) to announce his ministry, and 3) to appear before a crowd of witnesses so that there would be no question. And to emphasize this point, God spoke from heaven over Jesus and stated: “You are my Son”.

He also gave Jesus a couple of pieces of encouragement to hold onto and cherish for the road ahead: his love, and his admiration. His love is the love Paul spoke about in Romans in this way: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans‬ 8‬:‭38‬-‭39‬)‬‬. And his pleasure — his approval and admiration. Paul again describes it: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING in Christ. For HE CHOSE US in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love HE PREDESTINED US for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his PLEASURE and WILL— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” (Ephesians‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬-‭6, emphasis mine‬)‬‬
And let it not be lost that God’s Son was obedient in baptism. He made a public confession of his faith, his heart to follow God —no matter the cost!

So my takeaways today are: 1) God gave his love to his Son, Jesus, before he started his ministry. He did this not because it was earned, but because of his good nature. And he loves you and me, too, without us earning it. 2) God is pleased with us when we submit to his will. Jesus did this by coming to earth as a baby to save us. 3) He marked Jesus as a special way to identify him as a part of the triune Godhead: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And just like John the Baptist and the apostles at Pentecost, he places his Spirit on us and in our hearts to love and walk with us! 4) He calls me to be baptized, and in the spirit of baptism, to publicly declare the truth of the Savior, Jesus Christ, and tell how he has changed my life.

Thank you, Lord, for this day you marked history. What an encouragement and confidence-builder for Jesus to have experienced this public recognition of your love for him. Thank you for being public about your love for me and showing up to provide for me in so many ways throughout my life. Teach me to be more public about my love for you each day!