Beloved Before the Beginning

This week, we took a long (sometimes meandering) look at the story of Jesus’ baptism at the end of Matthew 3. Of course, the first question most Christians ask is, “If Jesus has no sin, why was he baptized?” The answer, I think, is to ask another question: I ask you not what baptism did for Jesus, but what Jesus did for baptism.

Baptism by John was real, but it wasn’t complete. John himself tells us his baptism is incomplete: I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me…will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. John is already distinguishing two different baptisms, not merely two different ceremonies.

John’s purpose was to prepare the way for Christ, and his baptism prepared hearts. It called people to conversion. It invited them to confess their sins publicly. It disposed them to receive the Messiah. Confession is much more than just examining our consciences and admitting guilt. It’s really interesting to see how all the pieces of confession laid out by John the Baptist are in the Act of Contrition. Everything necessary is there.

The Church, in the Act of Contrition, in the tradition, teaches us to pray:

O my God, I am heartily sorry. That is contrition.

I detest all my sins. That’s rejection.

Most of all because they offend You. That’s really important because that’s love. It’s more than just the pain of punishment.

I firmly resolve. That’s the metanoia, the choosing and following a new path. That’s the conversion.

with the help of Your grace, That’s the acknowledgment that we cannot have this sacrament without the Holy Spirit. There is St. Augustine: Grace comes first, and grace completes it.

to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin.—Again and amen: There’s the metanoia. That’s an amendment of life. It’s changing direction.

That prayer does really represent what John is asking beside the Jordan. But then what comes next? In the confessional, it’s absolution. It’s the grace of God. John brings us up to this, but then the grace of God completes it.

All John’s preparation was right and good and necessary, but John’s baptism could not communicate the grace that Christ’s baptism would later confer. The contrast isn’t simply between two rituals. It’s the difference between preparation and fulfillment.

Just a note before we transition to the paid content: These essays begin weeks before I post them. I read, research, pray, and fill pages with notes. Then I meet live with members of the Take Up community. We ask questions together, and the conversation often leads somewhere I never could have reached alone. I return to those conversations—the transcript, the chat, the notes—to distill what we discovered into these essays. I hope that the process brings the joy of the ministry to more people. You can access the full video replay of this session in the Take Up & Read membership. It is in the archives along with numerous coaching workshops, group coaching sessions, bible studies, and book chats. Come join us.