MATTHEW 3:16

  
        "As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him."   (NIV)

  



  


      There is so much going on in this scripture verse that many books could be written about it.  Some would say that this is the first reference to the idea of the Trinity, but they would be in error.  The first reference to the Trinity is in Genesis, with a look at the beginning of the book of John for further clarification.  Genesis 1:1 reads, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters."  Thus, the very first verse of the first book of the Bible refers to God the Father (Creator) and the Holy Spirit - the Spirit of God.  By taking a quick look at the first verse in the book of John, we see another perspective to the creation: "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God."  Further explanation is found in John 1:14 :"The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us..."   Thus, the Trinity was present at creation.  Some people have problems with the idea that God is three-in-one - Trinity.  The best way I can explain it is that I am a mother,  I am a daughter, and I am a wife.  All three are me;  I am all three.

       Matthew 3:16 refers to the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist.  As Malachi foretold,  John the Baptist appeared preaching the imminent arrival of Christ: "After me comes He who is mightier than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie." (Mark 1:7)  Imagine how John must have felt when Jesus appeared and asked to be baptized!  The only sin-free person to ever walk this earth, asking John to baptize Him! John replied, "You should be baptizing me." But Jesus persisted, and was baptized.



  
    The sacrament of baptism is not a new thing.  From ancient days came the ritual cleansing of God's chosen people, the Jews, before they could enter the temple.  This was called a "mikvah"; and, Jewish people still use this term today.  A mikvah  is always done in moving water (living water) such as a river or stream.  And, the person dunked himself, while being observed by a priest or rabbi.   Nowadays, most people consider baptism a spiritual bath through which believers are sanctified and washed in the name of Jesus; and, baptism is performed only after a public declaration of faith in Jesus as ones' personal Saviour.
  

      When I was in Israel in 2006,  even though I had already been baptized many years prior, I took the opportunity to be baptized in the Jordan River - the very river where John baptized Jesus.  I was struck by the fact that white doves were flying around, going in and out of the trees along the river banks.  What a beautiful visual metaphor for this scripture!  It was easy to imagine the heavens opening up and the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus like a dove.

      John the Baptist and the disciples of Jesus baptized many, many people.  But, the scriptures clearly state that Jesus never performed a baptism with water.  I wonder why... Perhaps it was because He knew how the hearts of men are, and realized that people would somehow think they were better because they were baptized by the Master?  Or, perhaps it was simply because He had so many disciples;  He was the overseer, and they did the baptism in His name?  Or maybe it was because He was destined to baptize in a much greater way, as proclaimed by John the Baptist:  "I have baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." (Mark 1:8)

JEREMIAH 3:16

     "... in those days, when your numbers have increased greatly in the land", declares the Lord, "Men no longer will say, 'The ark of the covenant of the Lord.'   It will not be missed, nor will another one be made..."  (NIV)

Painting by Michelangelo, 1512

 The author of this book of the Bible is the prophet Jeremiah.  Jeremiah was known as "the weeping prophet", because his message was a very sober one, and people tended to disbelieve him.  His primary message was,  "Repent; turn away from sin and towards God; go back to Torah."  God sent His people another message through Jeremiah:  the coming destruction of Jerusalem and the temple.
     Jeremiah was delivering these messages from God to Judah during the reigns of the last five kings. These were not good times spiritually.  If you will refer back to I Chronicles, it gives you a sense of the moral climate of Jeremiah's day.   People really don't like to hear scary messages like Jeremiah's.  And, because of the content of his messages, Jeremiah wasn't a popular person. Even so, he continued to deliver God's message for forty years .When it was obvious that destruction was inevitable, Jeremiah urged the leaders to submit to the Babylonians, to accept the punishment they deserved. In this way Jerusalem would be spared. Delivering such a message branded Jeremiah as a traitor. People did not listen to his warnings.
     Jeremiah wept.   But, Jeremiah did not weep for himself; he wept for the loss he knew was coming;  he wept for his people who refused to listen to God's word, and he wept for the destruction of the city and its temple.

courtesy Crystalinks Metaphysical and Science Website

You may recall that the beautiful temple in Jerusalem was built under the direction of Solomon.  Inside was the Ark of the Covenant, which was the sacred symbol of God's presence among His people. The Ark of the Covenant is described in the Bible as a sacred container, which held the stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments as well as Aaron's rod and manna. The Ark was built per God's command, in accord with Moses' prophetic vision on Mount Sinai, and God communicated with Moses "from between the two cherubim" on the Ark's cover (Exodus 25:22).  The Biblical account relates that during the exodus of the Israelites, the Ark was carried by the priests. When the Ark was borne by priests into the  Jordan, the river was separated, opening a pathway for all the Israelites  to pass over (Josh. 3:15-16).  When carried, the Ark was always wrapped in a veil, in animal skins, and a blue cloth, and was carefully concealed, even from the eyes of the priests who carried it.
  

 But Jeremiah, through God, foresaw the day when God would be present among men through the Holy Spirit.  Much of the book of Jeremiah is about the Messiah.  The New Covenant would be a covenant of personal relationship with Messiah.  Today, we are living in that New  Covenant.  WE  ARE  LIVING  IN THAT  KINGDOM  WITH  GOD  AMONGST  US  THROUGH  THE  HOLY  SPIRIT!  The Ark of the Covenant was beautifully made of precious materials and with careful attention to every detail, as directed by the Lord.  But we have the New Covenant, which is Christ Jesus, whose beauty is unspeakable.









Jesus walks alongside me all the time.  If He is not walking with you, ask Him to.

JOSHUA 3:16

     "That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan; and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off; and the people passed over right against Jericho."  (KJV)



     DANGER: KEEP OUT: FLOODING!   If this event happened nowadays, surely some government agency would post a danger sign.  It was Springtime, and, as we read in the prior verse, " the Jordan overflows all his banks through all the time until harvest."   So, every year, from Spring through Autumn, the Jordan River was at flood stage.  Despite this, God gave specific instructions on what to do at the river;  he also gave His promise that He would be there... just as He had been with Moses...

the Jordan River

     Just as crossing the Red Sea with Moses to escape from Egypt was a milestone in the Israelite's history, so was the crossing of the Jordan River with Joshua to enter the promised land.  There are many similarities between the two events.  Both were God-directed.  And, both were God-delivered journeys.
     God gave specific instructions that the priests carrying the ark of the covenant go first and stand in the water. The preists, Joshua, and the people obeyed.  ( Oh, boy, there's that obedience thing again! Are you beginning to notice a trend here?)  The waters parted when the priests' feet hit the water. It actually piled up in "heaps".  (Gives new meaning to the term, "standing water", doesn't it?) The priests then took the ark to the center of the DRY riverbed, and all the Israelites followed, successfully crossing the Jordan River. 
     Now, we're not talking about a couple dozen people here... The army was forty thousand men, fully dressed for battle.  Add to that women and children,  the priests and Levites, and any foreigners who had elected to join the Israelites.... a very low estimate of the people crossing the river would be 100,000.  This was no small pathway!  No small miracle!
     Once all the people had crossed the riverbed, the priests with the ark came out.  Then the water returned and ran at flood stage as it had before the crossing.  Only God could make that journey possible.  All He asked for was faith and obedience.
     The Israelites had been trapped in terrible slavery and oppression in Egypt.  Although their situation was of their own doing, God, with His amazing love and mercy, provided them a way of escape.  Are you experiencing an "Egypt" of your own today?   People are slaves to schedules, the media, substances, possessions, emotions... Do you recognize the slavery in your life?  God can make your journey out of "Egypt" possible.  He will tell you how.  Be willing to listen.  And obey.
     And, if needed,  be prepared to get your feet wet.



priests carrying the ark, as the water parts...