Read: Matthew 3:13-17
John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (Matthew 3:14 ESV)
John is called The Baptist for a reason, and its not because he was a member of a specific denomination. He baptized people as a sign of repentance and righteousness. It was their way of showing the people around them that they were making an effort to change their lives. So when Jesus showed up to be baptized by John it naturally caused him some inner confusion. John recognized the superiority, and divinity, of Christ. As such, it seemed strange to him that Jesus would seek to be baptized by John. In other words, John saw his need for Jesus.
The first step for us toward a right relationship with God is always the recognition of our need for God. We aren’t big enough, good enough, smart enough, rich enough, or powerful enough to mend the rift between God and man on our own. Mankind created this spiritual disparity, but it is God that fixes it. It is God that wrapped his infinitude with finitude and stepped into history as Jesus.
Our need for Jesus is clear, it is real, and it is fulfillable, but only by Christ, through Christ, and in Christ. Jesus allowed John to baptize him as a testimony to John’s authority and mission, but it was Jesus himself that became John’s way to God. He is also our way to God. The only way to God.
