6 January

I. Reading: 1John 5:5-13: There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the Water and the blood.

Gospel: Mark 1:6-11:You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on you.

Jesus Christ and His Baptism: A Decision for God (Mark 1:9-11)

Jesus’ baptism pictures what happened when a person makes a decision for God.

1.     There is a decision for God and submission to God (v.9):

A total surrender to God’s Will & Mission:

i.                   The sacrifice of all that Jesus had in Nazareth.

ii.                 A sacrifice of a long earthly life. By choosing the mission of God, he was to be killed in only thirty-six months.

iii.              The sacrifice of His Godly righteousness, He was to become the sin-bearer for the world (Justification - Rom 5:1; 1Pet 2:21-24).

iv.              The sacrifice of God’s presence. In death, God was to forsake Him (Mt 27:46-49).

v.                 By being baptized Jesus was leaving Nazareth and surrendering totally to God’s will and mission to save the world by His death on the cross.

2.     There is a beginning and an identification with God and His people (v.9)

3.     There is a commissioning and empowering (v.10)

4.     There is the approval and encouragement of God (v.11)

Thought: The decision to follow Jesus is a momentous decision. It involves the total surrender of all we are and have which means self-sacrifice until death with a joyful life following Christ the Lord.

www.believeinthegoodnews.blogspot.com