Participants: Glenn Russell & Ranko Stefanovic (Host)
Series Code: MTBOTB
Program Code: MTBOTB000004B
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00:01 We're here looking at the marvelous description
00:04 of the baptism that John the Baptist 00:06 was doing in the wilderness. 00:08 Look at Matthew, Chapter 3, verse 11. 00:11 "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, 00:13 but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, 00:17 whose sandals I'm not worthy to carry." 00:19 So you see baptism and also the preparation 00:21 for someone who is coming. 00:22 Oh yeah. You see when John Baptist speaks, 00:28 he speaks like ancient prophets, 00:29 not like Greek philosophers. 00:31 Greek philosophers, they just speak to few chosen one, 00:36 but you see the message of the prophets concerns 00:39 all people, but--but the problem is, 00:42 not all people respond. 00:44 By the way, we will see the case of John the Baptist, 00:46 the majority of people did not respond 00:49 to that-- that message. 00:51 Now He talks about baptizing with the Holy Spirit 00:54 and with fire, the one who will come after him. 00:58 So, there is an anticipation, he's preaching many are coming 01:02 and many are not favorably accepting him 01:05 especially the leaders. 01:07 Actually, this verse 11 is the explanation 01:10 of that metaphor to make the roads straight. 01:14 Yes. So, he's telling them, 01:17 I try to bring you to repentance, 01:20 to prepare your heart for the coming 01:22 of the messiah and for His message. 01:24 So when messiah comes, you'll respond 01:27 to his call and to his message. 01:31 I want to bring you through my preaching to repentance. 01:35 When messiah comes, when messiah comes 01:38 then He will really lead you in that way that you want me, 01:43 in the sense He's greater than me. 01:45 And in verse 13, then Jesus came, 01:48 Jesus comes into the scene now. 01:51 We would expect almost the fanfare. 01:54 The one who's been anticipated, now everyone recognizes Him yet, 01:58 but what happens at this first great event of Jesus ministry? 02:01 But Glenn, keep something in mind, 02:03 with reference what you said in verse 11, 02:06 I baptize you with water for repentance. 02:09 What was the purpose of John's baptism? 02:13 Repent. So those who are baptized, 02:16 it means they repented from the sins. 02:17 And so now he sees Jesus is coming to him. 02:23 He recognize Jesus immediately, first he was his cousin, etc., 02:27 and differently the Holy Spirit showed him 02:28 that actually it was messiah. 02:31 You read in verse 13, that Jesus arrived from 02:34 Galilee and to Jordan, coming to John to be baptized 02:37 and John tried to prevent Him saying, 02:40 I have need to be baptized by you and you come to me. 02:47 Keep in mind, John's purpose 02:48 was to baptize people who repented from sin. 02:51 So, why would now Jesus be baptized. 02:53 So, He's saying Jesus you don't need to repent-- 02:55 He needs repentance. Actually, I need repentance. 02:57 You need to baptize me. So why is Jesus baptized? 03:01 Actually, we have Jesus made very straight answer. 03:05 And Jesus answering said to him, actually I really want 03:10 what the Greek says, they say, John leave the discussion aside. 03:14 We don't want now to talk about that. 03:16 He said, in this way, I wanted to be baptized. 03:21 I've to fulfill what is right, what is righteousness, 03:26 but John quickly recognize it and said John left him alone, 03:31 John did not want to argue with Jesus any longer. 03:36 Could we explore the meaning of Jesus baptism 03:39 and then what's the message for us today? 03:42 Well, we can now really talk a lot and lot about that. 03:46 Keep one more time, what was the purpose of Jesus? 03:50 To save His people from the sins. 03:54 I hope that we still keep in mind what we talk before 03:57 is in order to save his people from their sins, 04:01 Jesus had to go to the experience of his realm. 04:04 Do you remember that we talked in Chapter 1, 04:06 we talked in Chapter 2, now since all the people of God, 04:13 all Israel in the past, and all those people 04:16 who would come to this world in the future 04:18 they have to be baptized. 04:20 They're imperfect people, but Jesus decided to go 04:23 through the ritual of baptism, 04:25 to be baptized for every human being in history. 04:29 See those God's people, that are mentioned in genealogy, 04:32 they were disobedient. They were unfaithful to God. 04:35 And now Jesus steps into that situation. 04:38 He wants to be baptized on behalf of them because 04:40 He wants to save people from their sins. 04:44 And Matthew tells us now that this is a great theophany, 04:47 an encounter where we see the Father, 04:50 the Son, the Holy Spirit all at this event. 04:54 See Jesus was willing, keep in mind when Jesus came 04:57 down to the Earth, He had to empty Himself 05:00 of all the divine provocatives. 05:02 He had to step into the human situation, 05:05 to become a human being, to become a flesh, 05:09 to come to save human flesh, to save human beings. 05:13 So, He has to go completely to the human experience 05:16 and He was willing even to submit himself to fulfill 05:20 the requirements of righteousness for sinners. 05:23 He was baptized for all. 05:25 Glenn, please allow me at this moment, 05:28 I'd like to use one illustration. 05:30 It was a number of years ago when I was in 05:33 the pastoral ministry, there was one lady 05:36 started coming to my evangelistic preachings 05:39 and at the end, she came to me 05:41 and she expressed desire to be baptized. 05:45 And she was baptized, she became a powerful witness 05:49 for Christ, but one day she came to my home and she said, 05:53 you know, I'm married. I said I know. 05:55 She told me few things about her husband and she said, 05:59 I want to be witness for Christ, 06:02 but how to be witness to my own husband. 06:05 I said, just pray for him and we prayed, etc. 06:09 Just to make a long story short, one day she came to me, 06:12 she told me that her husband was in the hospital, 06:16 terminal cancer. The doctors told him, 06:19 it was not even matter of weeks, 06:20 it was a matter of days, how long he would live. 06:23 I said, let me go and visit him, 06:25 earlier to the hospital he rejected me completely. 06:29 Then I came second time and finally we became friends. 06:34 And he asked me openly, can God forgive me all my sins? 06:39 He said, I blasphemed against God. 06:42 I opened the Bible, I read him all those comforting text, etc., 06:46 and finally I gave him Bible studies. 06:50 He was already seriously-- I mean he couldn't even move, 06:54 and he asked me, said, brother Ranko, I said, yes. 06:57 Would you pray for me. I said, yes. 07:01 Is there anything in particular? 07:03 He said that God heals me, that's a good desire, you know. 07:07 But you'll sometimes, we misunderstand he said, 07:10 please brother, I want to let you know 07:12 I'm not afraid of death, I will die. 07:16 Then the fourth question, God can just give me five days 07:19 of healing that I can come to the church and to be baptized. 07:23 So his desire was to be healed in order-- 07:25 Just about--I said after that I will come back 07:28 to the hospital, I settled that issue to God. I said-- 07:32 Ranko, you're suggesting that baptism is that important. 07:35 It's important. This is what John makes in verse 11, 07:39 repentance and then baptism. 07:41 That's why Jesus had to go through baptism. 07:43 So, what did you tell the man? 07:45 And I told him we will pray to God, 07:48 but I said, if it is God's will to give you, if not, 07:52 I opened Matthew Chapter 3 and I told to him 07:55 if God does not answer our prayer. 07:57 If you have to close your eyes, I just want to tell you, 08:01 you can fall asleep, believe that Jesus will come one day, 08:07 stand there on your tomb and call you by name. 08:10 With a full assurance that when Jesus was baptized 08:15 on the river of Jordan, he was baptized also for you, 08:19 when he was baptized, he had you in his mind. 08:24 Actually it was two days after that the person fell asleep, 08:29 he died, with full assurance that his Savior, 08:32 they're in Jordan river, 08:34 actually he was baptized with him. 08:36 That was actually the significance of this baptism 08:40 and I'd like to say to the viewers. 08:42 May be there are some of you watching this program, 08:46 may be you're in the situation and whatever the situation is 08:51 and you would like to set your relationship 08:53 with God by baptism, etc., and it is impossible for you. 08:57 I don't know what situation is, I don't know what 09:00 circumstances are, but I just want to tell you, 09:04 go down on your knees, ask God to step into your life. 09:10 God will accept you as you are. 09:13 Even though you cannot go under that water to be baptized. 09:17 But the gospel of Matthew Chapter 3, 09:20 provide full assurance to you, that Jesus was baptized for you. 09:27 And He accepts you as you are. 09:29 This is actually the hope that we get here 09:32 from the gospel of Matthew. 09:33 Now let me make sure no one misunderstands you, 09:36 because someone might say, oh, then I don't need to be 09:39 baptized if I could be, it's not that important, 09:42 Jesus baptized instead of me. 09:44 You're not at all saying that it's perfectly all right. 09:47 You're saying that this is a vital part of discipleship. 09:50 It comes in at the end of the gospel of Matthew. 09:53 But you're talking about a unique situation 09:54 where person is not able. Okay, you see, 09:56 John the Baptist message was, come to be baptized 10:00 and he was baptizing-- baptizing people. 10:02 And baptism is like wedding, it's a public announcement 10:08 that I have decided to walk with Jesus Christ through this life. 10:12 This is not an option given to us, 10:14 whether I want or not. 10:16 Is the same way, I fell in love with that lady. 10:21 And the climax of that, the crown of our relationship 10:26 was the wedding. Yes. 10:28 That was not an option. That was really our decision, 10:31 we--because we wanted to make that public announcement, 10:34 but we're talking about the people, 10:35 who were--who find themselves in certain circumstances, 10:39 that baptism is impossible for them. 10:41 May I ask just one more question, 10:43 Ranko, about Jesus' baptism? 10:46 It begins this public ministry. Yes. 10:49 Is that something that needs to be more in our thinking. 10:52 Some of us just feel like. 10:54 Well, I'm baptized and that's the end of it. 10:56 But baptism isn't a graduation, it's not the completion 10:59 of a bit of study and now I've arrived and I stopped. 11:03 See, even though the baptism of Jesus, 11:06 the purpose was different than ours. 11:09 This is what John Baptist misunderstood 11:11 and after that he understood. 11:13 Jesus was not baptized because of His repentance that He did. 11:16 He was baptized because of my repentance, 11:20 to be--to be accepted to Him. 11:24 But before Jesus stepped into the situation of His mission 11:28 to go to save people to proclaim the gospel. 11:30 Actually Jesus began it with the baptism and you'll notice here 11:34 that with the baptism, there is proclamation. 11:38 This is my beloved son. 11:41 There is something with the baptism. 11:42 There is--that sole proclamation of God, 11:45 when we are accepted by God, in the special way, 11:47 but what is the next thing is, the Holy Spirit descended 11:51 on Jesus and power of Jesus work his ministry and the baptism, 11:55 yours and mine, the Holy Spirit comes. 11:58 We become God's procession. Yes. 12:00 The Holy Spirit comes to His territory and the Holy Spirit 12:03 then powers us in fighting against sin, 12:06 to live righteous life, and of course to proclaim 12:09 the love of God to the suffering humanity. 12:12 What a wonderful thing when the voice from heaven speaks. 12:15 As you read the gospel Matthew and you get to this point. 12:18 This is my beloved son. 12:20 There's no question who Jesus is? 12:22 This is a clear identifier, let's wrap it up now, 12:25 what should we know? Yes, see, our Savior, 12:28 who came to save His people from their sins. 12:32 He paid such great attention and put such emphasis on baptism 12:39 as the beginning, the first step into His ministry. 12:42 First, He set an example to us, 12:45 what we are supposed to do in this life. 12:48 So this is a great call to all of us to follow 12:53 into the footsteps of the Master. 12:57 And if you really want to follow the example of Jesus Christ, 13:01 it's a call to each one of us that we repent, 13:05 that we turn our relationships toward God. 13:09 Turn toward God and that through baptism that we make 13:12 that public announcement that we've chosen God in our lives. |
Revised 2023-08-14