Baptism is the start of a new life in the image of Jesus in obedience to God. It is a rebirth to a new life in Christ, just as Jesus was resurrected and lives today.
In this reading, we see Jesus as one of the people and yet set apart. In so many ways, Jesus is the same as us all, yet he is also so different. Luke’s description of the baptism of Jesus, the heaven opening and the love of God flowing down illuminates the love that God has for Jesus. Jesus, in a sense, paves the way for God to love us in the same way that he loves Jesus. Jesus is among us, he lives as we do, takes on our sins, and God still
loves him and blesses him. In this same way, God loves us, too, despite our sins. The baptism of Jesus and our baptism is truly an opening of God’s heart and an outpouring of his love into our lives.
A question that we could ask of this passage is why Jesus would choose to be baptised? We know that John baptised people so that they may repent. Jesus is the Messiah, one without sin, so why be baptised? Perhaps Jesus chose to be baptised to fit in more with the crowd, perhaps he wanted to set an example to his disciples, perhaps to show us that baptism is a gift from God and that he chooses this gift too.
How has being baptised been a gift to you?
Jesus told his disciples to go and make disciples of all nations, to baptise them. We, too, are called to spread the good news about God, that people may be baptised in God’s love.
How are you doing this today, at this time, in your life?
