22. (a) When did Jesus undertake to become the mediator of the new covenant? (b) Why did John at first object to baptizing Jesus?

²² However, like the prophet Moses, the Lord Jesus had to undertake to become that Mediator of the new covenant. When did he undertake to do this? At the time of his baptism in the Jordan River. At the age of thirty years he left his carpenter shop in Nazareth and went to John the Baptist to be immersed in water. This was a new kind of baptism for John to perform. Up till then, as we read in Mark 1:4, “John the baptizer turned up in the wilderness, preaching baptism in symbol of repentance for forgiveness of sins.” (Luke 3:3) But Jesus the Son of God did not come to John the Baptist to be baptized in symbol of repentance for forgiveness of sins. Jesus was perfect and sinless. (Heb. 7:26) He did not come to John with a bad conscience and seek to have a “request made to God for a good conscience.” (1 Pet. 3:21) John knew this, and that is why we read that John “tried to prevent him, saying: ‘I am the one needing to be baptized by you, and are you coming to me?’” What, though, did Jesus reply?

24. According to Hebrews 10:5-10, which particular one of the prophecies was Jesus fulfilling by presenting himself for baptism?

²⁴ By presenting himself for baptism, Jesus really fulfilled the words of “the Prophets,” just as he said. The apostle Paul indicates which of the prophecies Jesus fulfilled, in Hebrews 10:5-10, where we read concerning Jesus at the time of his coming for baptism: “Hence when he comes into the world he says: ‘Sacrifice and offering you did not want, but you prepared a body for me. You did not approve of whole burnt offerings and sin offering.’ Then I said, ‘Look! I am come (in the roll of the book it is written about me) to do your will, O God.’ . . . By the said ‘will’ we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time.” Jesus was thus fulfilling Psalm 40:6-8. The “will” of God called for Jesus to sacrifice himself, his “body.”

25. (a) Of what, then, was Jesus’ water baptism a symbol? (b) How was Jesus already dedicated and redeemed?

²⁵ Since the prophecy called for this, well, then, Jesus would have had a bad conscience if he did not come to do God’s special will and therefore present himself to John for baptism. It is evident that Jesus’ being baptized was symbolic. His baptism was not “in symbol of repentance for forgiveness of sins.” It was in symbol of Jesus’ coming or presenting himself to do God’s will, which divine “will” included the offering of Jesus’ body in sacrifice once for all time. As a natural Jew he was already under the Mosaic law and was a member of the only nation on earth then dedicated to God, to do “all that Jehovah has spoken.” Also, as the firstborn son of Mary, whose firstborn son her husband Joseph adopted as his own firstborn son, Jesus was sanctified to God and belonged to him. (Ex. 13:1, 2) For this reason Jesus had to be redeemed by Joseph and Mary in order to allow him to engage in secular work. (Num. 3:13-51; 18:14-16) So Jesus’ baptism pictured, not a dedication of himself to God, but the presentation of himself to do God’s will even to the point of sacrifice.