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Matthew 3:13-17
“13 Then cometh Jesus
from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.
14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to
be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?
15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer
it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he
suffered him.
16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway
out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit
of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is
my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”.
I have learned that the best way to learn something is to
ask questions, for these verses some of the questions could be: Why was John
hesitant to baptize Jesus? What reasons Jesus had to be baptized? What is
taught here about the Holy Ghost? What can
we learn about the Godhead in this passage?
Let’s start talking about John. Can you imagine being chosen
to be the one preparing the way for the Savior of the world? The only
experience I have had that could relate to this, but in a tiny tiny way, was
expecting my son. For nine months I tried to prepare myself, my home, my life,
to receive that little baby and take good care of him. I had no words when I
met him, and somehow I felt a little inadequate. Could I really be a mother? It
was an incredible experience and I feel very blessed for being the recipient of
that gift. So, I can only imagine how it must have felt for John to finally
meet someone he had been preaching about for years. He knew Jesus lived a
perfect life, with no sins or weaknesses. He also knew that he baptized people
to clean them from their iniquities. It is understandable that he might have
felt a little hesitant. But then Jesus helped him comprehend that He needed to
keep all God’s commandments, including being baptized by immersion by someone
with the right authority. John understood and did his part.
Now comes the part where we read “…and he saw the Spirit of
God descending like a dove”. For a long time I didn’t really know what exactly
that meant. I am thankful for modern prophets and revelations and all the tools
we have to learn about the gospel. One of these tools is the New Testament
Institute Manual. There, on page 28, we read the following: “All four gospel authors record that the
Spirit descended ‘like a dove’; Luke adds that he also came in ‘bodily shape’;
and the Book of Mormon accounts say he came ‘in the form of a dove.’ (1 Ne.
11:27; 2 Ne. 31:8.) Joseph Smith said that John ‘led the Son of God into the
waters of baptism, and had the privilege of beholding the Holy Ghost descend in
the form of a dove, or rather in the sign of the dove, in witness of that
administration.’
“Then the Prophet
gives this explanation: ‘The sign of the dove was instituted before the
creation of the world, a witness for the Holy Ghost, and the devil cannot come
in the sign of a dove. The Holy Ghost is a personage, and is in the form of a
personage. It does not confine itself to the form of the dove, but in sign of
the dove. The Holy Ghost cannot be transformed into a dove; but the sign of a
dove was given to John to signify the truth of the deed, as the dove is an
emblem or token of truth and innocence.” (Smith, Teachings, pp. 275–76. Italics
added.) It thus appears that John witnessed the sign of the dove, that he saw
the Holy Ghost descend in the ‘bodily shape’ of the personage that he is, and
that the descent was ‘like a dove.’” (McConkie, DNTC, 1:123–24.)”
And finally, in this passage we can furthermore learn that
the Godhead is constituted of three distinct personages. We see all three in
the same moment doing different things. There is Jesus being baptized, the Holy
Ghost descending like a dove and Heavenly Father speaking from Heaven about His
Son.
I would just like to add my testimony about Jesus Christ. I
know He is my Savior and Redeemer. That because of Him my life is full of
second chances.
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