Matthew 3:13–17
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented. 16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
Yesterday we talked about John's baptism, and remember, we ended by saying that Jesus did this, not to repent of his sin (he had none) but to, essentially, confirm that he is the Messiah. The events that take place at his baptism confirm this. Matthew spends few words on the mechanics of Jesus' actual baptism, but many words in comparison to the events that happen when he comes out of the water.
First, the heavens are opened. This a relatively common image in prophetic and apocalyptic writing. As an example, Isaiah 64:1 says, "Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you!" (See also Ezek. 1:1; John 1:51; Acts 7:56; Rev. 4:1). This is likely a fulfillment of this prophecy in Isaiah 64. God has opened the heavens and come down in Jesus.
Next, the Spirit of God descends upon Jesus like a dove. This would likely remind the Jewish reader of the Spirit of God "hovering over the face of the waters" in Genesis 1. So, like the opening of John's gospel makes explicitly clear, Matthew here may be leading the reader to see that Jesus' ministry is nothing short of a renewal and redemption of all creation, the likes of which creation has not seen since the beginning. This connection may be rather subtle but the Messianic connections are more obvious.
This event is a fulfillment of Isaiah 11:1-2; 42:1; and 61:1.
Isaiah 11:1–2 1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD—
Isaiah 42:1 1 “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations.
Isaiah 61:1 1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
So, with these two events that occur at Jesus' baptism, it seems as if God is confirming Jesus to be the Messiah.
Additional Content
The baptism of Jesus is only about the first 1:30 of the video
Reflection
Think about how beautiful and cohesive the whole story of Scripture is. Think about the prophecies of Isaiah written 700 years before Jesus. Sit in awe of how God's beautiful story of redemption has been unraveling throughout history. Praise God for his promises of the Messiah and Jesus' fulfillment of those promises. Reaffirm and strengthen your faith that God will do what he promises he will do.