ArchivedWhy was Jesus baptized by John?I'm glad someone was edified. I did expect far more resistance to the ideas because they go so much further than the traditional perspectives of Christ's obedience and his identification with John's baptism of repentence. Some messianic schollars relate this insodent to the traditional Mikvah, which was used for personal purification and in the conversion of a gentile to Judaism, but the Mikvah is a more recient development. Some say it was a copy of the Christian ritual, and was not implimented until after the destruction of the temple. However, it is reflective of a more ancient practice of preparing Priests for their duty, and clensing animals befor their sacrifice. So the principle of cerimonial washing does hold a piece of this answer here, as Jesus was “the son of man”, and as such represented the anti-type of Naaman as he entered the waters of John’s baptism. The disease in the human condition was lifted, heaven opened, and the Spirit came to rest on Jesus. My mind is drawn to how the Spirit was hovering over the waters in Genesis 1:2 and the picture of the ark and the dove returning with the olive leaf. In Jesus, the Holy Spirit found ground that could be inhabited. So when heaven opened, it didn't just open for the Jesus, it open for all of humanity! Also, this baptism (to whelm, to cover wholly in a fluid - Strongs) of John’s was distinctive from a conventional cerimonial wasing in its manner and uniqueness, as it was perceived by the Jewish authorities to be brought to Israel by one of three qualified individuals: 1)The Prophet (Deut 18:15) - who was to be “like me”, as Moses said. As Moses guided the children of Israel through the Waters of the Red Sea, “The Prophet” could be qualified to lead the people through the waters. 2)As Elijah (2 Kings 2) took Elisha through the waters of the Jordan, he was thought to return from the clouds on day and would be also qualified to lead the people through the waters. 3)The Christ – Who was prophesied to return from the west and open the eastern gate of the temple. The question I might ask here: is there any other ways the messiah was prophesied to be associated with cerimonial washing or crossing the Jordan? |
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