The Baptism of Our Lord

Matthew 3:17, And behold, a voice from Heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were present in the beginning (John 1:1-5). Now here at Christ’s Baptism, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are present again. Why would Christ—a sinless man—need to be baptised? We are baptised for the forgiveness of sins, but Christ was sinless. So, why was He baptised? When we are baptised, His Baptism becomes our Baptism and our Baptism becomes His Baptism, just as by faith He becomes our sins on the cross and His righteousness becomes ours (i.e. justification by faith). In Baptism, we die to sin and are reborn as children of God, in whom God is well pleased on Christ’s behalf. This is no symbol; it is no metaphor. The Holy Spirit does something very real to us, namely, He kills us in our sins and raises us as new creatures in Christ (Romans 6:1-4ff.)