1994 issue 5 - sermon on luke 3:21-23 - the baptism of jesus part 2 - counsel of chalcedon

7/21/2019 1994 Issue 5 - Sermon on Luke 3:21-23 - The Baptism of Jesus Part 2 - Counsel of Chalcedon

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THE EVENTS CONNECTED; WITHjESUS BAPTISM

Luke's focus in]esus' baptism is onthe opening of he heavens, the comingdown of the Holy Spirit on Jesus andthe words of the Father ou t of heaven.

The Opening of the Heavens

With the opening of Heaven westand before the humanlyincomprehensibleand theunfathomable . divine.GeJden-h uys :

Heaven opensitself, which hitherto Was dosed, andbecomes now atChrist's baptism 'adoor and windowso that one can Seeinto it . : -MartinLuther. Weare nottold what becamevisible when theheaven as sud, .denly opened s we are told n the caseof Ezekiel and of Stephen. Yet we maywell say \hat the Heavenly Glory wasvisible, and that john and any otherswho were present beheld its radiance.-Lenski

This opening of Heaven indicatesthat after Jesus had now offeredHimself so completely and voluntarilyas the Substitute and Redeemer, Godgave to His human consciousness a

perfect revelation of the majesty andglory of the Father, and of the fact thatHe was the Son of God in an absolutesense. -Geldenhuys

The Descent of the: Holy Spirit

The Descent of the Spiriton the One Conceived y the Spirit

Thedescent of the Holy Spirit, the

Third Person of the Trinity, upon j esusat His baptism does not imply thatjesus, in His humanity, was notpreviously filled with the Holy Spiritor that He was conceived by the HolySpirit, o r kept sinless in His humanityby the Holy Spirit. It means that now

He was being equipped by the HolySpirit with all the OFFICIAL gifts, i.e.all the gifts connected with His fulfillingthe office of High Priest for oursalvation. At the time of Hisconception by the Holy Spirit it was aquestion of the forming anddevelopment of His human nature,

but at the baptism it is a question of thepublic declaration of His Messiahshipand His eqUipment with the giftsnecessary for this official and publicfulfilling of His vocation as the Christof God. -Geldenhuys

The Descent of the Spirit and theMessianic Prophecies of Isaiah

The descent of the Spirit and theVoice from Heaven comptise God'sresponse to jesus' willingness to takethe judgment of God upon Himself inthe place of His sinful people. Both ofthese elements are to be associatedwith the new exodus in the wildernessprophesied by Isaiah, 32: 15; 44:3;63: 10-14. This prophecy is fulfilled inproleptic (anticipatory) fashion in thedescentoftheSpirituponJesus.ltwasin the wilderness that Israel was first

10 ~ THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon l' June, 1994

designated as son by God, andparticularly the prophet Hosea pointedforward to a time when God wouldrenew Israel's sonship in thewilderness, Ex. 4:22f; Jet. 2:2; Hos.ll:I-3. In Jesus this ancient promisefinds fulfillment precisely because His

pilgrimage into the wilderness was theonly true exodus. Many went out toJohn but only Jesus understood that areturn to the wilderness involved thedetermination to live under thejudgment of God -Lane Mark pg. 56.

The Descent of the Spirit as theAnointing of God

. The comingdown of the HolySpirit upon Jesuss the promised

noin t ingprophesied inPsalm 45:7 andIsaiah 61: 1. (Seealso Acts 10:38.)The Descent of theSpirit in the Form

ofaDoveIt is difficult to

know for certainwhat this implies.

Two interpretations ,commend themselves morethan others . (1). The referencecontainsa veiled allUSion to Genesis 1 2, where 'the brood ing of the Spirit over thewaters at creation suggest(s) ... theaction of a dove. The descent oftheSpirit ' signifies New Creation,'corresponding to the cosmic overtonesin the rending of the Mavens. -- (2).More frequently, the rabbis referto thedove as a symbol of the community of

Israel, and this assoCiation may havebeen n Mark's mind. At the momenlof His baptism Jesus is the one trueIsraelite, in whom the election of Godis concentrated. The descent of theSpirit 'as a dove' i n ~ i c t e sthat He isthe unique representative of the newIsrael created through the Spirit.-Lane, pg. 57.


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Lenski, and Mattin Luther offerother explanations, (3). According toLutherthe dove symbolizes the Spirit'sfriendliness, because the Spirit desiresto show us that He is not angry with usbut is ready to save us. Still otherspoint to purity innocence andmeekness as symbolized by the dove.

Lenski concludes that we must contentourselves by saying that the dove-likeform intended to convey the idea ofthe graciousness oftheSpilit. -Lenski.

But the question remains, why didthe Holy Spirit take a bodily form, aphysical form, Lk. 3:22, at all? Whydid the invisible Holy Spirit take avisible form at Jesus' baptism. Jesussaw the visible form, Mat. 3:16, as didJohn Jn. 1:32? The answer should beobvious: Like the opened heaven andthe heavenly voice, human sensesmust perceive what was happening.

The Need ofJesus for the Anointingof the Holy Spirit

The Humanity afJesus and the Tlinity

It must be clearly understood thatthe Spirit was bestowed upon thehumanity ofJesus, not upon His deity.In His deity the Son of God is of thesame essence and equal in power and

glory to the Father and the Spirit,therefore one Person could not bebestowed upon Another. But, inje sus'humani ty the Holy Spiritwas bestowedupon Him to equip Him fuUy for Hispriest ly task. So great is the task beforeHim that all Three Persons of he Trinityare involved in it: the Son is baptized,the Spirit is bestowed on Him and theFather speaks from Heaven to andabout Him. At jesus' baptism we haveone of the clearest proofs of he Trinity.

The Intimate Relalian afJesusand the Holy Spirit

A distinctive feature of the N.T. isthe close and intimate relation ofjesusand the Holy Spirit. Everything wehave from Christ comes to us throughthe Holy Spirit. His work is to bring

Christ to us and to bring us to Christ,to remind us of Christ's words, torevealto us the glory of His Person andthe autholity of His .Word, and tobestow upon us His grace. Christ andthe Spirit are distinct Persons, buttheir Presence is the same. To have theSon is to have the Spirit and to have the

Spirit is to have the Son.The HaIy Spilit

in the Life and Ministry afJesus

The Fulfillment oj Prophecyand the New Age

The O.T. prophesied; Andthe Spiritoftlte Lord shall restuponHim tlte Spiritof wisdom and understanding, tlte Spirito counsel and might, the Spirit ohnowledgeand tltefear of he Lord, - lsa.11:2. At the Jordan River with the

baptism of Jesus this prophecy, andothers with it, such as Isa. 61:1, cametrue. Jesus publicly took on the role ofSuffering Servant and Messianic Son,empowered by the Holy Spiritcommencing the New Age of Salvati on.The baptism of esus and the descentof the Spirit bridge the Old Testamentera and the New Testament era. TheNew Age has now arrived in the personofjesus. He becomes the unique Bearerof the Spirit Who introduces a new erain the history of salvation. - CharlesHummel Fire in the FireplaceInterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Ill1978, pg. 70-71.

The presence, initiative and activityof the Holy Spirit are particularlyconspicuous in three events in the lifeofJesus: His baptism, His temptation,and His preachinglhealing. At Hisbaptism, as we have seen, the Spiritequips Him for His ministry as the

Mediator of the New Covenant.Immediately after His baptism, Jesus,jilll of e Holy Spirit, returned from tlteJordan and was led by the Spirit in tltedesert,whereforfortydayshewas temptedby the devil, Luke 4:1-2. The HolySpirit leads jesus into the wildernessand plunges Him into conflict with

man's enemy, Satan. Throughout thefotty days in the wilderness, the fullnessof the Spirit was a cont inuingcharacteristic of His life. After iswilderness-experience Jesus begins ispreachinglhealing ministry. Jesusreturned to Galtlee in tlte power of theSpirit, and news about Him spread

through the wholecountryside. He taughtin their synagoguesand everyonepraisedHim, Lk. 4:14-15. The source of Hispreaching power was the Holy Spirit.Later at His hometown in Nazareth inthe synagogue He stands up readsIsaiah 61:1-2--- The Spirit of the Lordis on Me; tltere He has anointed Me tpreach .. , and applies it to Hirnself-- Today tltis SCripture is fulfilled in yourhearing, LK. 4:21. As Luke makesclear the preaching and healing

ministry of Jesus, intended to reachevery dimension of human need iscarried out in the awesome power ofthe Holy Spirit of God. Jesus evendrives demons out of people in thepower of he Spirit of God, Mat. 12:28,Whom Luke deSCribes as the finger ofGod, Lk. 11:18,20. Jesus' powerfulpreaching and His miraculous healings,especially the casting out of demonsare signs that the New Age has dawnedin human history .

Luke describes jesus as anOinted,filled, led and empowered by he Spirit .jesus Himself attributes bothHis power(DUNAMIS) to heal and His authority(EXOUSIA) to preach as manifestationsofthe Spirit. -- lnjesus Christ we seethe unified Act and Word of God; lifeand message are one as He teaches byexample and precept. And the resultsaffected not just the minds but thetotal lives of those who heard andresponded. --- Picking up from theOld Testament, jesus is conceived,guided, filled with the Spirit. Hecenters in Jesus Who will bringsalvarion. God's presence through theSpirit comes to focus in the characterand ministry of His Son. From now onall teaching and experience attribute d

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to the Spirit must be in harmony withthat of Jesus. -Hummel, pg. 75-76.

The coal and Purpose of the Ministry ofthe Spirit n and Through the Life

and Ministry ofJesus

The Clarifying of Christ in the Bdiever

Referring to the Holy Spirit, Jesussaid: Hesha1lglorifyMe .. (John 16:14).--- He shall recelve of mine and show tto you. He sh lll testify of Me. 00hn15:26) . . The ministry of the HolySpirit s Christ-centered. The functionof the telescope is not to reveal itself,but the glories it .bringsinto the .range of vision.The ministry of the HolySpirit is to concealHlmseH behind the

scenes .and ,giveprominence to Jesus .Christ.. -- Any lmowledgewe have of ,Christ hasbeen iI11paned throughthe Spirit's illuminationof the Scriprures He hasinspired. As the Spirit of .Christ, . He delights tounveil His glories tobelieving heans. ,-- TheSpirit's primary ministry is to glorifyChrist and to secure the acknowledgemeitt and practical manifestationof His Lordship in our lives, He doesnot add anything to the personal gloriesof he ascended Christ, but He glorifiesHim in theexpenence of men. Hereveals and explains Him (it). andthrough the Word). ~ .What light is tothe eanh, the Holy Spirit is to Christ.J. O. Sanders, The Holy Spirit and His

Gifts, Zondervan, pg . 72_73.

The liVing and True God can onlybecome known td us in the histori cJesus, the experience of Whom ismediated to us by the Holy Spirit.-W.H . Griffith Thomas, TheHoly Spiritof God, Eerdinans, pg, 143. Or as thegreat PUritan,John Owen has written:As He represents the Person and

supplies the place of Jesus Christ, soHe works and effects whatever theLord Christ has taken upon Himself towork and effect towards His disciples,Wherefore as the work of the Son wasnot the Son's own work, but, as Heloves to say, the work of the FatherWho sent Him , and in Whose NameHe performed it , so the work of theSpirit is not the Spirit's own work, butrather the work of the Son by WhomHe is sent and in Whose Name Hedoth accomplish it. - Owen's Works,Goold edition , iii , pg. 195.

. .if you desire to see how the workof the Spirit come to us in connectionwith the work of Christ, rememberthat IT IS THE SPIRITS WORK TOBEAR WITNESS OF JESUS CHRIST,--- The Holy Spirit of God is engagedin a service in which the Lord JesusChrist is the beginning and the end.He comes to men that they may cometoJesus. Hen ce He comes to convinceus of our sin that He may reveal thegreat saCrifice of sin: He comes to

convince us of righteousness that wemay see the righteousness of Christ:and of judgment that we may beprepared to meet Him when He shallcome tojudge the quick and the dead. -Charl es Spurg eon, 12 Sermons on theHoly Spirit, Baker, pg. lOS. The Spirituses the Word to bear witness of andto glOrify Christ, thus revealing the

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things of Christ to us, He usesthe hearing of the word of Gbd forthe con viction conversionconsolation and sanctification ofmen. His usual and ordinarymethod of operation is to fastenupon the mind the things of God,and to put life and force into theconsideration of them. He revivesin men's memoties things that havelong been forgotten and Hefrequently makes these the meansof affecting the heart andconscience . - Spurgeon, pg, 109.

The Bringing of the Believerco ruth in and Obedience

to hrist the Lord. Paul wrote: No m n

can confess that]esus is Lord

but by the Holy SPirit; ICor. 12:3. The Puritan,Thomas Goodwin, comments on this verse: Itwas and is the Holy Spiritthat .proclaims liim Christin all men's hearts. He setsthe crown upon Him therealso , as well as in heaven,in so much that no man

' COUld ~T come toacknowledge Him the chrisrbut fromthe Spirit . - Works ojTliomasGoodwin The Banner of Truth, pg , 13. Or asSpurgeon puts it : . . the Holy Spirit'swork is to conform US to the likeness ofJesus Christ. lie is not working us tothis or that human ideal, but He isworking us into ttie likeness of Christthat He may be the first-bom amongmany brethren. Jesus Christ is thatstandard and model t9 which the Spiritof God by His sanctifying processes isbringing us till Christ be forme .d in usthe hope of glory . -pg. 109,

How May We Receive the Presenceand Ministry of the Holy Spirit

ofGod Inio Our Lives?

The liol ySpirit's Personal presence,gifts and ministty may be received intoyour lives ~ once: They are received


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into our lives by believing in JesusChrist--- But this He gesus) spokeof theSpirit, whom those who believed in Himwere to receive..., In. 7:39. Butthere isanother thing to do as well, and that isto pray--- .. everyonewhoasks receives;and he who seeks finds; and to him whoknocks it shall be opened. Now suppose

one ofyou fathers is asked by his son forafish; hewJll notgive himasnahe insteadofafish, will he? Or ifhe is asked for anegg, he will not give him a scorpion, willhe? Ifyou then, being evil, know how togivegoodgifts toyour children,

is not a messianic title, but is to beunderstood in the highest sense,transcending m essiahship. It signifiesthe unique relationship which Jesussustains to the Father, which existsapart from any thought of officialfunction in history: Jesus is God'suniqu Son. -Lane , pg. 57-58.

The Clausesin the Divine Appraisal

ofJesus

Thou Art My Beloved Son....

confers a right to claim the entirehousehold property .

I wJll surely tell of the decree of theLORD: He said toMe, 'ThouartMySon,Today I have begotten Thee. Askof Meand 1 will sW'elygive the nations as Thyinhelitance, and the very ends of he earth

as Thy possession.'In the case of the Son of God the

reference can only be to the sovereigntyofthe world, and to such a sovereigntyas would be exercised not by a Jewish

how much more shall yourHeavenlyFathergive the HolySpirit to those whoask Him? -Luke 11:10-13. Ask Godto make you all that the Spiritof God can may you, notonly a satisfied believer inJesus who has dJUnk forhimself, but a useful believer,who overflows the neighborhood with blessing. -Spurgeon, pg. 114.

Jesus did not becomeGod s Son t His baptism,He is the Son o f God, nd

He is the unique Son ofGod from ll eternity

to ll eternity. 11

emperor but by a DivineSovereign. These wordsfrom God at the baptism ofJesus thus unequivocallyproclaim our Lord's absoluteauthOrity. -Geldenhuys, pg.

l48f../n Thee I am Well-Pleased.

The second clause with averb in the (timeless) aoristindicative implies A PASTCHOICE FOR THECARRYING OUT OF ASee Appendix: 'Jesus

and the Holy Spirit.

The Voice o God

The Point of the Divine Appraisal

ofJesusThe voice of God thundered out of

the opened heaven as the Spirit cameuponJesus. It was as real to the ears ofJesus andJohn,Jn. 1:34, as the otherwas real to their eyes. Thou art MybelovedSon in Whom I am well-pleased.In Luke's account God addressesJesusas His unique Son, the object of Hiseternal good pleasure and His eJectinglove. In this expression of unqualifieddivine approval there is recognition ofJesus competence to fulfill themessianic task for which He has beenset apart . -- The declaration providesa unique appraisal of Jesus. Thedesignation 'Son' is enriched by theconcept of the Servant of the Lord ofIsaiah 42: I, but the primary emphasisis upon sonship. In this context 'Son'

This first clause with a verb in thepresent tense of the indicative moodexpresses AN ETERNAL ANDESSENTIAL RELATIONSHIP. Jesus

did not become God's Son at Hisbaptism, He IS the Son of God, and HeIS the unique Son of God from alleternity to all eternity. And He is thebeloved Son of God. Beloved is

HO AGAPATOS in Greek. t s passiveand the Father is the implied agent. Itdenotes the highest kind oflove, thatwhich is coupled with fullcomprehension and understandingand is accompanied by corresponding

purpose ... -- The Father 10vedJesus,His Son, because He comprehendedall that Jesus was doing and with thepurpose of seconding His evelY act.Lenski. (See]ohnl:14 ;3:16; 10:17;17:23.)

This first clause is taken from Psalm

PARTICULAR FUNCTION INHISTORY. God was well-pleased inchoosing His Son to be the Savior ofsinners. TheetemalSon is the Father'sElect for the great task. This Son, nowincarnate and now presenting Himselfforthe task, is thus the Beloved.' Uponthe human natme of this Elect andBeloved One the Spirit Himself isbestowed for the great task. All thismight have transpired between theFather and the Son without anywitnesses. ut it took place so that theBaptist and all of us might know.-Lenski

The rending of the heavens, thedescent of he Spirit and the declarationof God do not alter Jesus' essentialstatus, but serve to indicate the cosmicsignificance ofjesus' submission to theServant-vocation and affirm God's

2:7f,wherethepositionofGod'sonly good pleasure in His SON. -Lane,Son is regarded as a legal status which pg.58f

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Thec1ause, inTheelamweU-pleased is taken from Isaiah 42 :Hf, and shouldbe interpreted in the light of the mainpoints of this prophecy:

Behold, y Servant, whom I uphold;y chosen One in whom y soul delights.

r have put y Spirit upon Him; He willbringforth justice to the nations.

The main points of this prophec yare these: 1) . The central theme is thedivine choice, dignity and ministry ofthe messianic Servant of the LORD.(2). The whole passage indicatessomething distinctive, somethingunique about this Servant: .He belongsto God, and God willingly aCknowledges Him. 3). This Servant, with aUtbat word implies , is alsoilie Elect ofGod. He Whom God has chosen is

God's Servant. (4). God promises tosustain His Servant, showing that He

holds Him in the deepest affection. did nothing to diminish that love. That(5). The One Whom the Lord has iswhattheFatheristellingtheSon. ' Thatchosen is also the One in Whom God is what He is also telling all ofus. Howdelights with the fullness of His Being.(6). To eqUipHis ServamforHistask,the filled with comfort this Pilragtaph,Lord has bestowed His Spirit on Him. comfon not only for the Son and for(7). This Spirit-endow ed Servant in John , but for evety child of God, for itWhom God delights is being sent to indicates that not only the Son loves His

eanh from God to bring forth justice to followers enough to suffer the pangs ofthe nations. Or as John Calvin has hell in their stead,butthat also the Spiritwtitten: Christ was sent in order to fully co-operates by strengthening Himbringthewholeworldundertheauthority for this very task, and that the Father,of God and tlnder obedience to Him. -quoted by Youngin Isaiah, TCOT,vol. n. instead of frowning upon the One who

The point of the clause in Thee Iamw e U - p l e a s e d ' ~ i sthis: In the quiet recessof eternity the Son was the object oftheFather's inexhaustible delight, Pro>'.8:30: The fotn:1er:s pUblicaffirrnation,

bymeans ofbaptism, of His purpose toshed Hisbl ilbd for a world lost in sin

undertakes it, is So vety pleased withim that He must n eeds rend asunder

the very heavens, that His Voice ofdeligb,tful approval may be heard onearthl AllThree are equally intereStedin

our salvation, and the Three are Onel-Hendr\kse n -- To be conilnued.

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14 ~ THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon ~ June, 1994

1994 issue 5 - sermon on luke 3:21-23 - the baptism of jesus part 2 - counsel of chalcedon

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