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Week:02, Season:1,
2015
Posted on Saturday by PCT
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Is He Truly the Son of God？
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Scripture：《
Mark 1:4-11
》
4 And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 6 John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
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This Sunday is the “Baptism of our Lord” in the church calendar. Among the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke all mention Jesus Christ’s Baptism. However, compared with Matthew and Luke, the account in Mark about John the Baptist and the Lord’s Baptism is quite brief. It seems that the author of Mark although understanding that John the Baptist was the pioneer who prepared the road for the Lord, did not draw much attention to John the Baptist’s preaching or the difference between the identities of John and Jesus. The author of Mark’s gospel only uses a few words to mention John the Baptist.
Following this analysis, the record of the Lord’s Baptism in the Gospel of Mark is very different from that in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. In the same brief style, the author of Mark just wrote that Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan. It seems that the author of Mark was not concerned that such a short record of such an important historical event might lead his readers to become confused and to consider Jesus as a sinner who needed to be baptised by John.
The Lord’s Baptism reveals his true identity
Therefore, we may assume that for the author of Mark, the point of this Bible passage of the Lord’s Baptism is not to explain the relation between John the Baptist and Jesus, but rather, to focus on the inspiration in Mark 1:10-11. In other words, the record of the Lord’s Baptism offers a reasonable explanation of Jesus’ real identity. Additionally, the second part of this Bible message in Mark mentions that the Holy Spirit sent Jesus out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan and began his journey of preaching the truth of God which also helps us to conclude that the event of the Lord’s Baptism reveals his true identity.
The Lord’s Baptism symbolises the extension of the relationship of God and the long history of the people of Israel. It is because the baptism of Jesus by John defined that Jesus admits the Israeli history (verses 2 to 6). In addition, Jesus represents a start of a new chapter in the history of Israel and, the inspiration in verses 10 to 11 tells us that Jesus is greater than any prophets in the previous history of Israel.
Paying attention to the details of this Bible passage in Mark and you will be able to tell that verses 10 to 11 are not only a record of the Lord’s Baptism. “Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.” (Verse 10) Here it says that Jesus saw the “heaven opens” or “heaven being torn open.” What does this mean？ If referring to Mark 15:38, when it mentions Jesus’ death and final breath, it says, “The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.” Therefore, the “heaven opens” or “heaven being torn open” indicates that God is showing his purpose in entering this world and tore the heaven open. The heaven being opened when Jesus received the baptism shows that God was entering this finite, wrong and sinful world through his great power and that he will reveal his amazing purpose for this.
The Holy Spirit is with Jesus
During the Lord’s Baptism, the Holy Spirit descended to Jesus and was with him. We may not know how much Mark understood about what the Holy Spirit is but from his writings we may conclude that he understood the close connection between the Holy Spirit and God. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” God declares that Jesus is his beloved son during the Lord’s Baptism; this shows God’s love and confidence in Jesus and this passage is the highlight of the story.
Perhaps we all wonder what Jesus and others saw at the site of the Lord’s Baptism but it is useless to explore this question. If we ask what the Holy Spirit looks like, we also misunderstand the point of this Bible passage. When the Bible says, “the Spirit descending on him like a dove,” it does not imply that the Holy Spirit looks like a dove but it indicates that human eyes saw the Holy Spirit. As for what people saw or understood at the site, it should not be the focus of this passage. Those who dwell on such questions are the outsiders of the Lord’s Baptism; they read and hear about this event but they feel confused about it. To help you clearly know the focus of this passage about the Lord’s Baptism, I shall emphasise again that the passage about the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus does not tell us what the Holy Spirit should look like but expresses that Jesus experienced its presence and power.
Is he truly the Son of God？
Verse 11 says that a voice from heaven said that Jesus is the Son of God, whom God loves. By reading the beginning of Gospel of Mark we know the identity of Jesus through this verse. Throughout the whole book of Mark, we can also find several places where the author emphasises Jesus’ identity. For example, when Jesus transfigured on the mountain, a voice from cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” (Mark 9:7); while Jesus was on trial at the court of high priest, Jesus remained silent and gave no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One？” (Mark 14:61-62); at the most important site, while Jesus was crucified, a centurion said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:39). We can conclude that the Gospel of Mark publicly declaims that “Jesus is surely the Son of God!”
The notion that God declared that Jesus is his loved son at the Lord’s Baptism still provides many questions. In all the Bible stories in Mark, everyone wants to know who Jesus is and the real meaning behind his preaching and words. When Jesus cured the sick, the crowds still wondered who gave Jesus such a power. People listened to Jesus’ parables and wanted to know their meanings. People wondered if Jesus was the Messiah, why he has to suffer such a great pain in being crucified on the cross. God declared that Jesus was his beloved son at the Lord’s Baptism; but when we read the Gospel of Mark once again, such a declaration keeps on challenging us: is he truly the Son of God？
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For discussion：
1. Is Jesus truly the Son of God to you？ Why？
2. What did the record of the Lord’s Baptism say to you？
3. Try to recall your baptism or confirmation. What things touched your mind the most from it？
Please pray for：
1. Church ministers and leaders. May God help them to value the importance of holding baptisms of members and providing a baptism course for those preparing to be baptised. Help those who are attending the baptism course to know the true meaning of baptism and to practise their faith in daily life.
2. What does baptism mean to you？
Prayer：
Gracious and merciful God, we thank you for giving your own Son Jesus to be the head of church. We thank you for instructing, guiding and protecting the Christian church built by your Word. May you shine into the darkness inside our hearts with the light of truth and remind us of our wrongdoings. Help us to repent and walk in only your righteousness. May the Holy Spirit work on church brothers and sisters to raise you up on high and learn more about our faith with humility. May we can all become your true disciples. In the name of Christ. Amen.
Something you can do：
1. Ask your church minister or elders to organise a baptism course for those brothers and sisters who are ready to receive baptism; may the course help them to understand the meaning of baptism and to continue the journey as true disciples of Jesus after being baptised.
2. Try to find photos of your baptism or baptism gift from your church. Use these as a meditation to rethink the meaning of baptism to you. Resolve again to follow Jesus and honour his name.
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