Day 96: Matthew 3:13–15

But John tried to stop Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and yet You come to me” (v. 14).

Our gloriously deliberate God orchestrated the lives of two extraordinary men, born six months apart, to converge waist-deep in the waters of the Jordan River. For John the Baptizer, it was the beginning of the end. He had prepared God’s way, and now God was preparing his. For Jesus, it marked the end of the beginning. His life would descend on Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem like a desert storm. That day in the river of promise, John baptized Jesus with water, and Jesus baptized the Jordan with glory.

Just imagine what was going on in the mind of Christ as He was walking to the river Jordan. I wonder if He stopped to watch the scene for a while, with the people confessing their sins. Did He watch this mighty servant of God preaching the Word with boldness? I’m just picturing somehow that horizon and His figure overlooking the scene. Then He walks up to the shore, and John sees Him.

I’ve written something that is strictly fiction. I was just reflecting on what might have been going through John’s mind as Jesus approached him. Perhaps these thoughts will help us see again what happens when very real people encounter the Son of God:

“My tongue had been like a flame that day. The Word of God came to me in the desert like fire from heaven. If I hadn’t preached it, it would have consumed me. I had no fear. No intimidation. God sent me to those Jordan waters, and I knew they’d come. No prearranged meeting. Just the wind of the Spirit wooing, drawing, then blowing away the debris of sin, preparing the way for the Deliverer. No matter who came to the shore to hear or to jeer. The message was immutable, “Repent! For the kingdom of heaven is near!”

“The fruit of repentance pierced the wind with cries of confession and waves of grief. I hardly stepped out of those waters that day. My voice grew raspy and hoarse but never quiet. Boldness was the marrow in my bones. Funny how stunned we are when the future we prophesy suddenly becomes present. I had told them I was unworthy to loose His sandals and that I would only baptize with water for repentance. He would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire. I spoke like an authority. Like an associate of the closest kind. Like someone who knew it all. I didn’t.

“I was just raising a repentant man from the waters when I saw someone out of the corner of my eye walk to the water’s edge. As I think back, how those waters kept from parting that day, I’ll never know. Numbers were gathered on the shore. Others were waist-deep in the water. Suddenly I became oblivious to all but the overpowering presence of the One. There He stood, looking straight at me, through me. Oh, it was Him all right! I had been preparing for Him all my life, and yet I was not ready. All I could do was look at Him and shake my head, ‘No. Please, no! Not me. I have need to be baptized by You!’

“Suddenly I was overcome by my own compulsion to flood the shore with waves of repentance, and He answered, ‘Let it be for now. It is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.’ So I consented, shaking all over. I placed my left hand on His back and my right hand on His chest. I felt the heartbeat of the Son of God. As if in slow motion, I leaned Him back into those waters, His weight submitting to my hands.

“All of a sudden the Jordan chilled me to the bone. I raised Him from the waters, and He stood before me drenched in the river of promise. The water dripping from His beard seemed to drop like diamonds, proclaiming His endless perfections. He alone had no confessions to make that day. Only one was made over Him, the confession of His holiness enthroned in heaven. ‘This is my Son whom I love and with Him I am well pleased.’ The blessing of the Father fell like a dove from heaven. He walked out of those waters and into our lives, interrupting a fallen world with grace and truth. My name is John. I am the son of a simple man and woman. I baptized the Messiah that day.”

Can you imagine? He had prepared all his life. When we set apart our lives unto Him, He will do wonders with us the likes of which we cannot imagine.