We recently explored the question, “Why did John baptize?” The most famous person John baptized was Jesus. Naturally, this raises a new question: “Why was Jesus baptized?” In this study, we will see three clear answers to this question. First, let’s address where this question is coming from.
When John was baptizing, he “came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Mark 1:4). Those who came to be baptized came “confessing their sins” (Mark 1:5). How is it that Jesus could submit to a baptism related to repentance of sins, confession of sins, and forgiveness of sins if Jesus had never sinned?1 It seems even John himself had this question.
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?”
Matthew 3:13
John was flabbergasted. How could the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world submit to a water ritual that washes away sins? This reminds me of some of the reasoning people present today: “If Jesus had to be baptized, then certainly I need to be baptized.” If you’ve ever said something like that, you’ll want to read till the end, because we are going to show both the truth in that reasoning, as well as a serious fallacy you should be aware of.
1. Jesus’ baptism fulfilled all righteousness
Here was Jesus’ answer to John’s question:
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.
Matthew 3:15
So, somehow Jesus’ baptism fulfilled all righteousness. What does that mean? Righteousness is the state of being or doing right. When the Scriptures say that “the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9), it means that those who are not right in the sight of God should not expect to be with God. Of course, that rules all of us out, right?
As it is written:
Romans 3:10
“There is none righteous, no, not one.”
The truth of the gospel, though, is that God “made Him [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Hold onto that thought for a moment.
Before we further study why Jesus was baptized, let’s ask when He was baptized. Luke tells us that it happened when Jesus was “about thirty years of age” (Luke 3:23b). But more importantly, Jesus’ baptism happened before Jesus “began His ministry” (Luke 3:23a).
The timeline is this:
- “John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Mark 1:4).
- “Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins” (Mark 1:5).
- “Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan” (Mark 1:9). (Given that Jesus was without sin, this shows us that Jesus’ baptism was not the same baptism as the one “of repentance for the remission of sins.” More on that in the next section).
- “Coming up from the water, He [Jesus] saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. Then a voice came from heaven, ‘You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased’” (Mark 1:10). (This, by the way, shows us the method of baptism. Although many artists’ renderings show that John baptized by sprinkling or pouring, the Scriptures show us Jesus was immersed into [εἰς] the Jordan River. For more on that, see this article.)
- After He was baptized, “The Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan” (Mark 1:12–13).
- “Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God” (Mark 1:14).
- “Then Jesus said to them [Simon and Andrew], ‘Follow Me’” (Mark 1:17).
Let’s simplify this timeline and see why it’s important. Notice the order of events:
- Jesus was baptized.
- The Father and the Holy Spirit gave their public approval of Jesus and His baptism, and Jesus was declared to be the Son of God.
- Jesus was tempted.
- Jesus began His ministry and called His first disciples.
The Scriptures say:
Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.
Hebrews 5:8–9
Jesus was appointed as Savior to those who obey. First, He Himself obeyed. Why was Jesus baptized? Putting this all together, here’s what we’ve got so far. It was the right thing for Jesus to be baptized. It fulfilled all righteousness, including obedience to the Father. Without Jesus’ obedience, He could not have been the spotless lamb of God.
Although we may not learn everything God had in mind, the Scriptures do give us two more reasons why Jesus was baptized. As baptism is seen as a starting point to one’s faith journey, Jesus launched His ministry by being baptized and tempted. We will see how that relates to our baptism below.
2. Jesus’ baptism provided a public display and declaration of the unique Sonship of Jesus to the Father
John’s ministry was vital in preparing the way for the Messiah. Although John knew something of Jesus’ righteousness (demonstrated by his reluctance to baptize Jesus and desire the reversal), evidently, however, John did not know the identity of the lamb of God until Jesus’ baptism. It raises questions in my mind about how John could grow up knowing Jesus as a relative and righteous person, but not fully know who He was. The Scriptures don’t say, so it’s not worth our time speculating. Here’s what we can know:
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water.” And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”
John 1:29–34
John was the forerunner of Jesus the Messiah. When he saw “the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon” Jesus, and he heard the voice from heaven declaring, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:16–17), it proved to those present and to John himself that Jesus was the one who was to come into the world. Although John had amassed his own followers by this point, at the revelation of Jesus, he declared clearly, “this is the Son of God” (John 1:34), and “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). Anyone who had been following humble John now saw how important it was to follow Christ Jesus.
Was Jesus the Son of God prior to His baptism? Certainly. Just read the gospel accounts prior to Jesus’ baptism, and you’ll see this. However, there was a special declaration used at Jesus’ baptism. This is similar to how God used Jesus’ resurrection to proclaim the same thing:
His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
Romans 1:3–4
Why was Jesus baptized? To provide a public display and declaration of the unique Sonship of Jesus to the Father.
3. Jesus’ baptism served as an example for us
Jesus was baptized. Does that mean you should be baptized too? It is certainly true that Jesus serves as our example in many things. Peter Himself says that the sufferings of Christ serve as “an example, that you should follow His steps” (1 Peter 2:21).
For those who want to say that baptism is unimportant or irrelevant, I want you to notice Matthew 3:13 carefully:
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.
From His home in Galilee, Jesus came all the way to the Jordan for one express purpose: to be baptized. Sure, He would have made similar journeys several times in His life up to this point. Yet, what would Jesus say to those of us today who sometimes feel worshiping with Christians on a regular basis is too much trouble if it requires more than ten minutes of driving? I know Christians who have to travel four hours one way by bus to meet with Christians, and it is the highlight of their week. Jesus was willing to walk some sixty miles (nearly 100 kilometers) in order to be baptized. Are you still thinking baptism isn’t important to Jesus? Do you still think it’s an optional part of our discipleship?
Jesus told His apostles:
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Matthew 28:19–20
Multiple times, Jesus teaches that in order to be His disciple, you must first take up your cross. Jesus showed us how to do that. He also says that you must be baptized. He showed us how to do that too.
So, when folks say, “If Jesus had to be baptized, then certainly I need to be baptized,” what should we think? That is true in the sense that Jesus is our example. But be careful, for saying this may also be misleading. Going back to the cross teaching, we know Jesus took up His cross, and so should we. However, Jesus took up His cross for a different reason. His cross was a literal one made from wood and was for the sacrifice of the perfect lamb of God for the sins of the world. Yes, we may be called upon to literally die for our faith, but that’s not what Jesus meant when He said to take up our cross. Our cross is metaphorical and serves as a death to self and a surrender to Him. Similarly, Jesus’ baptism was to fulfill all righteousness. Our baptism is the right thing to do, but it’s for a different reason. According to Scripture, baptism is when we crucify the old self, when we die to sin, are buried with Him, and we are raised to walk a new life (see Romans 6:1–7, as well as this study).
Depending on how you count things, there are eight different baptisms mentioned in the New Testament. We covered them briefly in the lesson on John’s baptism. Some of the baptisms were figures of speech. Others were literal and physical. Yet, out of all of them, only one of them is commanded of you and me. We are to be baptized in water for the forgiveness of our sins. It’s then that God places you into Christ and washes away your sins. For further study on this subject, check out these studies, as well as the Scriptures below.2 Again, Jesus had no repentance, for He had no sins. Yes, we follow His example. We also remember that our baptism is not the same as His baptism.
Why was Jesus baptized?
- Jesus’ baptism fulfilled all righteousness.
- Jesus’ baptism provided a public display and declaration of the unique Sonship of Jesus to the Father.
- Jesus’ baptism serves as an example for us.
God bless you. Go with God.