Sunday 13 January 2019: The Baptism of the Lord

When Jesus had been baptised and had been praying, the heavens were opened and the Holy Spirit came upon him

...After his baptism by John in the Jordan, Jesus emerged from obscurity and began his public ministry. Recalling the humility of the Baptiser – who declared himself unworthy to perform even the slave’s act of loosening the straps of the messiah’s sandals – Luke underlines how amazing is the event that is to take place, as Jesus submits himself to John’s baptism of repentance. ‘I baptize with water’, John declares, ‘He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire’ - Luke’s narrative of the first Pentecost is clearly foreshadowed.

Believers of every generation have been puzzled by this unexpected turn of events. Seeking the reason why, takes us to the heart of God’s plan of salvation. This plan, in the words of the Greek Fathers of the early Church, is an expression of the divine ‘condescension’ – God would open the way to eternal life for a lost world, not by a remote divine edict, but in a way that gives expression to the mystery of God’s active love for the human family...

Extract by John Thornhill sm - read more at The Emmaus Series | Image courtesy of pixabay.com