One afternoon, as a great crowd was around him, John suddenly stopped in his preaching, and looking at a man coming near, he cried, “Look, there is God’s Son!” All eyes were turned toward the quiet and gentle form of Jesus, who walked forward and said to John, “I would like to be baptized.” John drew back, and said, “Oh, no, no! You should baptize me, rather than that I should baptize you.” But when Jesus said, “It is God’s will,” John took hold of his hand and together John and Jesus slowly stepped out on the pebbly shore, and walked into the river, with every eye upon them. Standing out in the water, Jesus prayed. Then John baptized Jesus. And as Jesus came up out of the water, suddenly the sky seemed to open, and a beautiful snow-white dove flew down and rested upon the head of Jesus. Then a Voice from heaven was heard that said, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
This was the announcement that Jesus was the Son of God and the Saviour of the world. It meant that Jesus would return to the carpenter shop no more. No more would the farmer bring his plow for Jesus to repair. No more would the housemother bring her stool to Jesus to mend. In vain would the children passing by his shop look in at the open door to see his pleasant smile or hear his kind voice. The saw and the hammer and the adz were for other hands now. Jesus had entered upon his great task of mending and healing human hearts and lives, of bringing “Peace on earth, good will to men,” a task in which every one who loves him and is like him may still share a part.
6. WHEN JESUS WON HIS GREAT VICTORY
(Matthew 4: 1-11)
When Jesus was a boy and a young man in Nazareth, he was sometimes tempted to do wrong things or to do right things in a wrong way. But he had decided always to do what pleased God, his heavenly Father, and so he met every temptation to do wrong with a firm “No!” which each time won him a new victory, as it will with any one.
Immediately after his baptism in the river Jordan Jesus was tempted more than ever before because his baptism was the beginning of his public life as the Son of God and Saviour of men. Satan, the tempter, said, “I will make him do something that will not please God!” So, far off in the desert, where Jesus withdrew to plan the best way to begin his life-work, and when he had fasted for forty days and was very hungry, Satan came to Jesus in some strange form and said, “If thou art the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” He pointed to some round, smooth stones lying near that looked very much like loaves. Jesus knew that he could command them to become bread, but he said: “No, God does not want me to use my power for myself, but for others. It is better to obey God and do right than even to get bread when one is hungry. God says in his word, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God,’” So Jesus refused to do what Satan said to satisfy his hunger, and won the first inning of his great victory.
The tempter tried another plan. He seemed to take Jesus suddenly to one of the highest towers of the temple in Jerusalem where he said: “If thou art the Son of God, cast yourself down and surprise the people, for God’s word says, ‘He will give his angels charge over thee, and they shall bear thee up in their hands lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.’” Jesus knew that he could easily do this, but he said: “No, the angels of God only take care of God’s children when they do right in a right way to please him. It is written in God’s word, ‘Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.’” So he refused the tempter, and won the second inning of his great victory.
The tempter tried a third time. He seemed to carry Jesus up into a very high mountain, from which he could see the whole world and all the glory of it. Satan said: “All these things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worship me. The Jews want a Sword-King. Become a Sword-King and lead them out to fight their enemies, and you will win, for I will help you.”
“Get thee hence, Satan,” cried Jesus immediately, “for it is written in God’s word, ‘Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou worship.’” Jesus refused to be Satan’s Sword-King, and chose to be God’s kind of king, a Peace-King. So Jesus won the third inning of his great victory.
Then Satan left Jesus. God’s angels brought him food to sustain him and encouragement to revive him. And Jesus was stronger still to do always those things that pleased his heavenly Father, who would give him help to win other victories through life, as he had helped him to win this first great victory.