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Read Luke 3:21-38 every day this week. This is the account of the baptism of Jesus and His ‘family tree’. This is going to be a tough ask, but each day this week, if possible, choose a different translation and ask God to open your eyes to new revelation from His Word. Look at each name in the list and if you have the time, look them up in a concordance and see if there is any other biblical information about them.
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Luke 3:21-22
“When all the people were being baptised, Jesus was baptised too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.””
Over the course of these past weeks of devotions, I have made numerous references to my parents. Today I’m going to give you a deeper insight into my background and how life actually was in the Jones household.
Well, I don’t think I was a particularly bad child and my parents say that I didn’t bring them any trouble, but I know for sure that I was quite ‘chopsy’. I don’t think a day passed where I wasn’t answering back or saying something to my mother that wasn’t very pleasant. I’m certainly not proud of that and am incredibly grateful for the attitude of my parents and for forgiving ‘the sins of my youth’.
My mother took the brunt of my words and sometimes my actions and inevitably she would say the words that countless mothers around the globe have uttered in total and utter desperation: “Wait ‘til your father gets home”. Just like every other child who hears that phrase, I completely ignored it and carried on as normal.
However, the time came when the front door opened and my father arrived home. I remember vividly the first time this happened. My father was a policeman and was used to dealing with very difficult people, and sometimes had to use significant force to subdue people. I was a very, very small boy and I remember looking up at my dad, dreading what was going to be coming my way. My mother then told him what I’d been up to and said “Peter, talk to your son”. He sat next to me and I was fully expecting some kind of extremely harsh rebuke or punishment. I sat with bated breath while he took a sharp intake of breath and said “Hello son”. That was it. Nothing else. Except for mother being quite angry with his apparent disregard for what she’d been through. Clearly, I was disciplined in some way later but the point I’m making is that I just didn’t see that coming. I was expecting one thing and I received something completely different.
In various places, the Scripture shows God as being an ‘all-consuming fire’. He is an awesome God and in the Old Testament demonstrates justice time and time again. The Jews were expecting the Messiah to be the figure to drive out all opposing forces and at the time of Jesus, they were being subjected to a very tough Roman invasion of their homeland. At Jesus’ baptism, God confirms that Jesus is indeed His Son and that He was the anointed one that the Jews had been waiting for.
What we see from Heaven though is far from what was expected. The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus in bodily form as a dove. Where was the fire and brimstone? Where was the justice, the retribution, the vindication? All that was on show for everyone to see was an unbelievable manifestation of grace, gentleness and peace.
Please don’t misunderstand me, God is all that the Scripture says He is. He is almighty God, a God of Justice and a God who will conquer every enemy. Jesus does not come in kind of contradiction to that. He fulfils everything! But His message is that He’s prepared to take all of the punishment for us! What should be on our account, He’s taking on His shoulders. He’s coming in grace so that we can be set free from condemnation. Rejoice in that fact today. His grace is amazing and He is truly the Prince of Peace.
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