Standing Out

This coming Sunday we move from Matthew’s first-hand description of the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist in the River Jordan to the Baptizer’s second-hand account in the Gospel according to John. At first this leaves me thinking, “Oh great, we get to hear the same story, but from an obscured point-of-view.” However, as I read through the Fourth Gospel’s telling of the baptism of Jesus, which began his public ministry, several key details stand out!

First, John describes Jesus as the “Lamb of God.” As someone who has never dealt with lambs directly, I cannot truly say what they are like. On the one hand they seem like submissive, vulnerable, and often weak animals such that one herding dog can manage an entire flock. On the other hand, I recall a classmate in seminary describing her attempts to teach her German Shepherd to herd sheep and how difficult that task truly was because of the lambs’ ability to be obstinate, strong, and even bullish! As John recognizes his inferiority to this lamb, this use appears to be leaning towards the latter, although true strength comes from laying down of power.

Second, John recognized Jesus as the Christ who had been for all time, and John’s entire ministry was setting up Jesus’ mission. In baseball there are middle-inning relief pitchers and I am sure they have pride in what they do, but I always think that when the manger calls in the closer for the ninth inning they have to be upset that they do not get to finish the game. Likewise, I always wonder how John remained humble and obedient to his calling. He recognized that he was the setup man whose baptizing might reveal who Jesus was to Israel.

Third, John did not know who Jesus was. This seems a bit strange, as Luke’s Gospel account specifically paints the picture that Jesus and John were cousins. To me it is unclear why John’s account of the Gospel mentions two times that the Baptizer did not know Jesus. Knowing here though could be something other than simply being acquainted with someone else. Perhaps John could not conceive of this almost incomprehensible concept of God coming to dwell as a human being. He could not know this in the same way that we still struggle to wrap our minds around the Incarnation.

Fourth, in John’s telling of this story the Spirit not only descended upon Jesus, but it remained there. Humans often express rare moments when they perceive of the Spirit or something beyond them resting upon them; however, these are brief and illusive moments even for the saints among us. For the person of Jesus though, the Spirit rested upon him eternally.

Finally, John testifies to Jesus being the Son of God. From our vantage point this seems like a trivial proclamation, but think about this belief in that day. In a world that proclaimed the Emperors as gods to believe that a lowly religious teacher from the backwaters of Galilee was a long-shot viewpoint. While we might not want to hear another account of Jesus’ Baptism what we discover as we look closer are some radical elements that challenge us to see Jesus as the Lamb of God, the Incarnate One, whom John came to foretell and who had the Spirit of God rest and remain on him, so that all might see him as the Son of God.