Slideshow image

When Jesus’ Ministry Started  

When we look at the chronological order of Jesus’ life, the years of His ministry are marked by the Passover celebrations that He attended. Many scholars believe that the first Passover He attended in His ministry was the Passover of 27 A.D. However, there are some events in His ministry that appear to have happened before that Passover of 27 A.D. 

Those events included Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:13-17, Mark 1:9-11, Luke 3:21-23), His temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-13), the calling of His first disciples (John 1:35-51), and the wedding at Cana (John 2:1-11). Since most of these events were outdoor events, it appears that these events most likely occurred in the Summer of 26 A.D. Let’s look at the baptism that started everything.

The Baptism of Jesus - Matthew 3:13-17, Mark 1:9-11, Luke 3:21-23

When Jesus came to John the Baptist to be baptized, a very surprised John responded by saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and You are coming to me?” (Matthew 3:14, NKJV). Jesus replied by saying, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15, NKJV). John asks a very understandable question, and Jesus’ reply seems somewhat vague. Why would Jesus, who had no sin, come to John, whose ministry is baptisms of repentance, to be baptized?

Although the nation of Israel was a long way from realizing that Jesus is the Messiah, as Messiah Jesus was surely the leader of the nation. A leader of a nation sometimes takes action on behalf of the nation. For example, in the Old Testament both Daniel and Nehemiah confessed to God the sins of Israel on behalf of the nation (Daniel 9:3-16, Nehemiah 1:6-7). In our own culture, each year our President brings a wreath to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery on behalf of the nation to express the nation’s gratitude for those who have died defending our country.

It appears that Jesus may have been doing something similar to what Daniel and Nehemiah did. As leader, Jesus might well have been acknowledging the sins of the Jewish nation, as well as foreshadowing what will happen at Calvary (Moore, p.72). As Jesus came up from the water, the heavens opened (the sky was “torn asunder” in the original language - Mark 1:10, Moore, p. 72), the Holy Spirit came down as a dove and rested on Jesus, and God the Father spoke from heaven saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:16-17, NKJV). Thus all of the Trinity was present at the inauguration of Jesus ministry.     

 

Source

Moore, M., The Chronological Life of Christ, 2024, pgs. 72-73.