Other Sunday and Holy Day Readings
THE FEAST OF THE BAPTISM OF THE LORD (Cycle C)
Readings:
Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7 or 40:1-5, 9-11
Psalm 29:1-4, 9-11 or 104:1b-2, 3-4, 24-25, 27-30
Acts 10:34-38 or Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7
Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
Abbreviations: NABRE (New American Bible Revised Edition), NJB (New Jerusalem Bible), IBHE (Interlinear Bible Hebrew-English), IBGE (Interlinear Bible Greek-English), or LXX (Greek Septuagint Old Testament translation). CCC designates a citation from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The word LORD or GOD rendered in all capital letters is, in the Hebrew text, God's Divine Name YHWH (Yahweh).
God reveals His divine plan for humanity in the two Testaments, and that is why we read and relive the events of salvation history in the Old and New Testaments in the Church's Liturgy. The Catechism teaches that the Church's Liturgy reveals the unfolding mystery of God's plan as we read the Old Testament in light of the New and the New Testament in light of the Old (CCC 1094-1095).
The Liturgical Year: There are five Church seasons: Advent, Christmas, Lent, the Paschal Triduum (a three-day season), and Easter. There are also two blocks of "Ordinary Time," which isn't a season but just a way to describe the weeks between the liturgical seasons. The word "ordinary" means regular or plain, but it also means "counted." Ordinal numbers are 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and so on, and this is the meaning of Ordinary Time since we count the weeks between the Church's seasons.
The Church distinguishes the Sundays of the major seasons of the Liturgical Year by their relationship to the Solemnities of Christmas (Advent and Christmas) and Easter (Lent and Easter). The other parts of the year called "Ordinary Time" refer to all the Sundays outside the Christmas and Easter seasons that fall under "celebrations of the Day of the Lord." The weeks of Ordinary Time number thirty-three or thirty-four depending on the year and divide the liturgical year into two parts. The first part of Ordinary Time begins the day after the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord until the day before Ash Wednesday. With the date of Easter varying every year, the first part of Ordinary Time may include as few as four and as many as nine weeks. Part II of Ordinary Time begins the day after Pentecost and continues to the Saturday before the 1st Sunday of Advent. Each year during Ordinary Time, the Gospel readings are mainly from the Synoptic Gospels but with parts of the Gospel of St. John during certain parts of the cycle. For example, one year, we read Cycle A, which focuses on the Gospel of St. Matthew. The following year is Cycle B, focusing on St. Mark's Gospel. In the third year, we read Cycle C, which focuses on St. Luke's Gospel. After Cycle C, at Advent, we return to Cycle A.
The Theme of this Sunday's Readings: The Baptism of the
Chosen Servant
Jesus is the Servant-Son that the 8th-century BC
prophet Isaiah describes in our First Reading. An outpouring of God's Spirit accompanies
the selection of Yahweh's Servant, who He will anoint as His chosen Servant like
God's other holy agents, the prophets, priests, and Davidic kings of Israel. God's
Servant will be a man sent to serve others and bless the people with peace. However,
this divine blessing is not only for the covenant people of Israel but is the universal
salvation God promised through the prophets. In the New Testament, Simeon was
the first to announce this universal blessing as he held baby Jesus in his arms
at His Temple dedication, saying: "for my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the
Gentiles and glory for your people Israel" (Luke 2:30-32).
In the alternative First Reading, God sent Isaiah as His messenger to Zion (the covenant people) to announce that He is coming in power and authority to "shepherd" (rule over) them. It will be another theophany, like the theophany of God on the holy mountain of Mt. Sinai in Exodus Chapter 20. But this time, the theophany will be on Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem. In John Chapter 10, Jesus made the same announcement in Jerusalem to the covenant people, fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy by declaring that He was the Good Shepherd come to redeem the "lost sheep" of the house of Israel.
The first Responsorial Psalm selection is a hymn of praise, inviting the members of the heavenly assembly to acknowledge God's supreme sovereignty over the heavens and the earth by offering a cry of "glory" to God the eternal King. The alternate psalm follows the sequence of the creation narrative in Genesis Chapter 1: God created the heavens and the sea and the earth. He filled the sea and the land with living creatures and provided their food. The Spirit of God is the source of all life, and none of the earth's creatures can live without the breath of God's Spirit. God, the eternal Father, sustains life, temporally and eternally.
St. Peter testified to God's gift of universal salvation through the Sacrament of Christian baptism (Second Reading first selection). In Acts Chapter 10, St. Peter spoke of God's gift of salvation to the Gentiles as he prepared to baptize the men, women, and children gathered in the house Cornelius, a Roman centurion who accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord. This event fulfilled Simeon's prophecy when he held the Christ-child in his arms at Jesus's Temple dedication and prophesied a universal blessing and the promise of the gift of salvation for both Jews and Gentiles (Lk 2:30-32).
In the alternate Second Reading, St. Paul wrote that the "grace of God," who has "appeared for the salvation of all men," is Jesus Christ. Christ has called us to renounce the world and its disordered passions and to embrace proper worship through godly lives dedicated to good deeds as we await the return of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, at the end of time. The Christian life of righteousness is the fruit of grace. God is the source of that grace, and salvation is our goal through Christ Jesus. Divine grace manifested in the Incarnation is actively at work in redeeming each Christian. It is also the basis of our hope in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
In today's Gospel reading, we remember Jesus's baptism by St. John the Baptist in the waters of the Jordan River. The Gospels relate His baptism as another epiphany (manifestation) of Jesus as the promised Messiah, the "Chosen One" and "Servant" Son of God promised by the prophets. Jesus's baptism is the event in Scripture that presents for the first time the revelation of the Most Holy Trinity: the Holy Spirit descending from Heaven in the form of a dove, the voice of God the Father heard from Heaven, and Jesus identified by the divine voice as God the Son (Mt 3:16-17; Mk 1:12-13; Lk 4:21-22).
Jesus gave us the Sacrament of Baptism to renew our souls by imparting to the baptized a new life in a covenant relationship as reborn sons and daughters in the family of the Almighty (Mt 28:19-20; Jn 3:3-5). In Mark 16:16, Jesus commanded that baptism was necessary for this spiritual transformation and the promise of eternal salvation. For those baptized by water and the Holy Spirit in the Trinitarian formula Christ gave us (Mt 28:19), the waters of Christian baptism become the "the springs of salvation" that the prophet Isaiah promised (Is 12:3). It is the water that will "cleanse you of all your filth ... and give you a new heart and a new spirit" as Ezekiel prophesied (Ezek 36:24-27). The waters of Christian baptism are God's invitation to all humanity to receive the promises made through God's Son and the heir of the eternal Davidic covenant, Christ Jesus: Come to me heedfully, listen, that you may have life. I will renew with you the everlasting covenant, the benefits assured to David (Is 55:5).
The First Reading Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7 ~ Yahweh's Chosen
Servant
1 Here is my
servant whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I am well pleased, upon whom I have
put my Spirit; he shall bring forth justice to the nations, 2 not
crying out, not shouting, not making his voice heard in the street. 3 A bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering
wick he shall not quench, 4 until he establishes justice on the earth; the
coastlands will wait for his teaching. [...] 6 I, the LORD, have called you for
the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set
you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, 7 to open the eyes of the blind, to bring
out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in
darkness.
1 Here is my
servant whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I am well pleased, upon whom I
have put my Spirit; he shall bring forth justice to the nations...
An outpouring of God's Spirit will accompany the choosing
of His Servant. God will anoint His chosen Servant with His Spirit like His other
representatives to the covenant people: the prophets, priests, and kings of
Israel (Ex 29:7; Lev 8:12;
1 Sam 9:16; 10:1; 11:6; 16:1, 12-13;
1 Kng 1:39; 19:16; 2 Chr 20:14).
Verses 3-4 suggest that a mark of God's Servant's ministry will be the contrast between his mild and gentle demeanor and the power of his mighty works. Even though he has great power, he does not loudly announce himself. The Servant is so gentle that he would not even break a crushed reed or snuff out the failing wick of an oil lamp, symbols for those who are faint of heart and spirit. Nevertheless, he brings forth judgments that are righteous and just. Justice in Scripture denotes more than merely addressing crime; instead, it designates a society that functions in obedience according to God's divine Law.
4 until he establishes justice on the earth; the
coastlands will wait for his teaching.
God's Servant is gentle, but he is not frail or indecisive.
No matter the obstacles, he is determined and dedicated to his mission to
establish righteous judgment and provide instruction for all peoples on earth.
His mission is universal and not just for the covenant people of Israel.
6 I, the
LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the
hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the
nations,
In verse 6, God the Creator speaks, further endorsing the
selection of His Servant. The Servant's righteous character and God's divine guidance
will shape the Servant's ministry. That the Servant is "a covenant of the
people" suggests he serves as God's special covenant mediator to the covenant
people, and that he is "a light to the nations" speaks of his reach beyond
Israel to the Gentiles, sharing the light of God's truth with them.
7 to open
the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the
dungeon, those who live in darkness.
The Servant brings a special blessing to those who receive
him in physical and spiritual healing. The spiritually "blind" will be
identified as Israel six times in Isaiah 42:16, 18 twice, 19; 43:3 and 8.
Who is the mysterious Servant of God whose coming Isaiah foretold in the 8th-century BC? In Isaiah 42:1, Scripture identifies the Servant as God's "Chosen One." And this is how God will identify Jesus at the Transfiguration event in Luke 9:23, And a voice came from the cloud saying, "This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to Him." St. Matthew identifies Jesus of Nazareth as the "chosen Servant," quoting Isaiah 42:1-4 and applying it as a prophecy fulfilled in Jesus in Matthew 12:17-21. And when St. John the Baptist's disciples came to Jesus, asking if He was the Messiah, Jesus alluded to the passage from Isaiah 42:7, applying it to Himself and His mission, saying, "Go back and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind see again, the lame walk, those suffering from virulent skin-diseases are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, the good news is proclaimed to the poor; and blessed is anyone who does not find me a cause of falling" (Lk 7:22-23).
Alternate First Reading: Isaiah 40:1-5, 9-11 (NJB)
~ God's Promise of Deliverance
1 Comfort,
give comfort to my people, says your God. 2
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her service
is at an end, her guilt is expiated; indeed, she has received from the hand of
the LORD double for all her sins. 3 A
voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the LORD! Make straight in
the wasteland a highway for our God! 4 Every
valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made a plain, the
rough country, a broad valley. 5 Then
the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all mankind shall see it together;
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. [...] 9
Go up onto a high mountain, Zion, herald of glad tidings; cry out
at the top of your voice, Jerusalem, herald of good news! Fear not to cry out
and say to the cities of Judah: Here is your God! 10 Here comes with power the Lord GOD,
who rules by his strong arm; here is his reward with him, his recompense before
him. 11 Like a shepherd, he
feeds his flock; in his arms, he gathers the lambs, carrying them in his bosom
and leading the ewes with care.
1 Comfort,
give comfort to my people, says your God.
The doubling of the word "comfort" constitutes a double
imperative, and in the plural in the Hebrew text. The repetition emphasizes the
urgency of the command. The plural may indicate that God is calling upon Isaiah
and His heavenly court or upon Isaiah and all who are in a position to comfort
God's people, including priests, prophets, elders, and other leaders. In Isaiah
Chapter 40, Yahweh tells His prophet to console His covenant people with the good
news that a new exodus will begin when God comes to redeem His people and forgive
their sins.
2 Speak
tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her that her service is at an end, her
guilt is expiated; indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD double
for all her sins.
In Hebrew, this verse begins with "speak to the heart"
(IBHE, vol. III, page 1684). The same expression "speak to the heart"
occurs elsewhere in Scripture to denote gentle, loving words (i.e., Ruth 2:13;
Hosea 2:16/14). In verse 2, we hear that God's covenant people have paid for
the offenses of their sins twice over. The double payment for sins has a sense
of completeness, and because they have atoned fully for their sins, it is now
time for God's promised redemption.
In verses 3-5, God will show His glory by preparing a way for His covenant people's return from exile, and a mysterious voice will also announce His coming. Sts. Matthew, Mark, and John identify the prophetic voice as St. John the Baptist. His voice announces the imminent arrival of the Redeemer-Messiah and His Kingdom to His people. In St. John's Gospel, he also tells the people of the wondrous, all-encompassing change the Lord's coming will have on the world. He will overcome all obstacles, and nothing will hinder the Messiah's arrival or the message of His gift of salvation to humanity (see Mt 3:1-3; Mk 1:1-8; and Jn 1:19-23).
God promises it will not be a difficult journey because He will be with them, and He will also reveal His glory to them: 5 Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all mankind shall see it together; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. Yahweh will lead his people through the wastelands on a new exodus just as He led the children of Israel through the desert wilderness to the Promised Land. And like the procession of the children of Israel in the wilderness journey, all other nations will witness the journey of God's people in their return to covenant union with Him. Jesus's mission as the Redeemer-Messiah is to lead an exodus out of sin and death. He will guide "all mankind" (all humanity) into a New Covenant relationship with the divine on a journey to the true Promised Land of Heaven, as He announced in John 14:6 when He said, "I am the Way" ... "and no one can come to the Father but through Me."
9 Go up onto
a high mountain, Zion, herald of glad tidings; cry out at the top of your
voice, Jerusalem, herald of good news! Fear not to cry out and say to the
cities of Judah: Here is your God! 10 Here
comes with power the Lord GOD, who rules by his strong arm; here is his reward
with him, his recompense before him. 11 Like
a shepherd he feeds his flock; in his arms he gathers the lambs, carrying them
in his bosom and leading the ewes with care.
God sent Isaiah as His messenger to Zion (the covenant people)
to announce His Servant's coming in power and authority to "shepherd" (govern
and guide) His covenant people. It will be a new theophany, like the theophany
of God on the holy mountain of Mt. Sinai in Exodus chapter 20, but this time the
theophany will be on Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem. Jesus will make the same
announcement in Jerusalem to the Pharisees in John 9:10-11 and 14, fulfilling this
prophecy and that of the 6th-century BC prophet Ezekiel in
Ezekiel 34:11-16, 23-24 where Yahweh promised: "I myself will take care of my flock"
and "I myself will pasture my sheep" (Ezek 34:11, 15). In the same
passage, Yahweh also promised to "raise up" "my servant David" to shepherd His
people centuries after David's death (Ezek 34:23). Jesus, the descendant of the
great King David (Mt 1:1; Lk 1:32), will announce that He is the Good Shepherd
who has come to redeem the "lost sheep" of the house of Israel (Jn Chapter 10).
Responsorial Psalm 29:1-4, 9-10 ~ Yahweh is Acclaimed King of the Earth
The response is: "The Lord will bless his people with peace."
1b Give to the LORD,
you sons of God, give to the LORD glory and praise, 2 give to the LORD the glory due his name; adore
the LORD in holy attire.
Response:
3 The voice of the
LORD is over the waters, the LORD, over vast waters. 4 The voice of the LORD is mighty; the voice of the
LORD is majestic.
Response:
9 The God of glory
thunders, and in his Temple, all say, "Glory!" 10 The LORD is enthroned above the flood; the LORD is enthroned
as king forever.
Response:
God's divine covenant Name, YHWH [Yahweh], rendered as LORD or GOD in many translations, is repeated 18 times in Psalm 29. This hymn of praise invites the members of the heavenly assembly (angels are "sons of God" collectively) to acknowledge God's supreme sovereignty over the heavens and the earth.
4 The voice of the
LORD is over the waters, the LORD, over vast waters. 4 The voice of the LORD is mighty; the voice of the
LORD is majestic.
The phrase "the voice of Yahweh" is repeated seven times in
verses 3-9 and probably suggests the sound of thunder (verse 9a) just as the Israelites
heard God's voice as thunder in the Theophany at Mt. Sinai (Ex 19:16, 19). The
"voice" or Presence "of Yahweh" "over vast waters" is also probably a reminder
of the presence of God's Spirit over the waters of Creation in Genesis 1:1 as
He began the Creation event.
9 The God of glory
thunders, and in his Temple, all say, "Glory!" 10 The LORD is enthroned above the flood; the LORD is enthroned
as king forever.
The angels, who have witnessed God's supreme power (verses 3-9a),
acknowledge that the King of the universe is enthroned forever and offer Him
their cry of praise, "Glory!" recognizing His supremacy as the eternal King
(verses 1b-2a and 9b-10). Their praise in the heavenly Temple recalls the hymn the
angels sang at the birth of the Christ-child in Luke 2:14, which also began with
the word "Glory." We repeat their cry of praise and joy in our Lord God in
singing the "Gloria" in the company of the heavenly host in the Mass when
earthly and heavenly liturgy joins in one celebration.
Or Psalm 104:1b-4, 24-25, 27-30 ~ The Glories of Creation
The response is: "O, bless the Lord, my soul."
1b O LORD, my God, how
great you are! 2 You are clothed
with majesty and glory, robed in light as with a cloak. You have spread out the
heavens like a tent,
Response:
3 You have built your palace upon the waters above,
making the clouds your chariot; you travel on the wings of the wind.
4 You make the winds your messengers, and flaming fire your ministers.
Response:
24 How manifold are your works, O LORD! In wisdom you
have wrought them all—the earth is full of your creatures; 25 the sea also, great and wide, teeming with countless creatures,
creatures both small and great.
Response:
27 They look to you to give them food in due time. 28 When you give it to them, they gather it; when you open
your hand, they are filled with good things.
Response:
29 If you take away their breath, they perish and return
to the dust. 30
When you send forth your spirit
life begins, and you renew the face of the earth.
>Response:
Psalm 104 follows the sequence of the Creation narrative in Genesis chapter 1: God created the heavens, the earth, and the sea. He filled the sea and the land with living creatures and provided their food. The Spirit of God in verses 29-30 is the source of all life; none of the animals on the land or in the sea can live without the breath of God's Spirit. God, the Creator and eternal Father, sustains life temporally and eternally.
The Second Reading Acts 10:34-38 ~ St. Peter's
Homily in the House of Cornelius
34 Then Peter
proceeded to speak and said, "In truth, I see that God shows no partiality. 35 Rather, in every nation,
whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him. 36 You know the word that he sent to the
Israelites as he proclaimed peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all, 37 what has happened all over Judea,
beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached, 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with
the Holy Spirit and power. He went about doing good and healing all those
oppressed by the devil, for God was with him."
God sent St. Peter to the home of a Roman centurion named Cornelius, who, along with his family and friends, was ready to receive Jesus as his Lord and Savior (Acts 10:17-23). Acts 10:34-43 is Peter's fifth kerygmatic address and has the same basic outline as his other proclamations of Jesus as Lord and Savior (see Acts 2:14-39; 3:12-26; 4:8-12; 5:29-32 and 10:34-43. The Greek word "kerygma" means preaching or proclaiming as distinct from teaching or instruction. Peter and the other Apostles and disciples preached the fundamental message of the Gospel:
St. Peter's proclamation of the Gospel to this gathering of Gentiles was followed by the outpouring of God's Spirit upon the group (Acts 10:44) and confirmed what Peter stated in verse 34 that Jesus offers eternal salvation to Gentiles as well as Jews. The gift of universal salvation through Christ Jesus is a fulfillment of St. Simeon's prophecy in Luke 2:32 that Jesus is "a light of revelation for the Gentiles and glory for your people Israel."
Or Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7 ~ The Basis of the Christian's Moral
Life and Instruction for Believers
2:11 For the grace
of God has appeared for the salvation of all men, 12 training us to renounce irreligion and worldly
passions, and to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world, 13 awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of
the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all
iniquity and to purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good
deeds. [...] 3:4 But when the
goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of deeds done by us
in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration
and renewal in the Holy Spirit, 6 which
he poured out upon us richly through Jesus our Savior, 7 so that we might be justified by his grace and
become heirs in hope of eternal life.
The "grace of God" who has "appeared for the salvation of all men" is Jesus Christ. He has called us to renounce the world and its disordered passions and to embrace right worship through godly lives dedicated to good deeds as we await the return of our Lord and Savior at the end of time. The Christian life of righteousness is the fruit of grace. God is the source of that grace, and salvation is our goal through Christ Jesus. Divine grace, manifested in the Incarnation, is actively at work in redeeming every Christian. It is also the basis of our hope in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
Verse 14 is a summary of the doctrine of Redemption and lists four essential elements:
In 3:4-7, St. Paul lists the effects of Christian baptism as rebirth, the forgiveness of sins, reception of His Holy Spirit (Rom 5:5), and justification by grace so we can obtain the immediate enjoyment of all rights as heirs to eternal life (2 Cor 1:22). These are the gifts of the Christian life that begin with a new life when we are reborn into the family of God through the Sacrament of Baptism, when every Christian baptized in Christ, in the Trinitarian formula Christ gave us in Matthew 28:19, becomes God's "chosen servant."
The Gospel of Luke 3:15-16, 21-22 ~ The Baptism of Jesus
15 Now the people in
the crowd were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts
whether John might be the Messiah. 16 John
answered them, saying, "I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I
is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize
you with the Holy Spirit and fire. [...] 21 After
all the people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized and was
praying, heaven was opened, 22 and
the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came
from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you, I am well pleased."
15 Now the people in
the crowd were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts
whether John might be the Messiah.
St. John's call to repentance through a ritual of water
purification and his warnings of divine judgment for those who oppress the weak
and disadvantaged probably reminded the people of the prophecies of the Messiah
in the books of the prophets Ezekiel and Malachi:
16 John answered
them, saying, "I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is
coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize
you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
St. John denied being the Messiah and told the crowd that the
Messiah would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire instead of his baptism with
water. It is an event fulfilled at the Jewish feast of Pentecost fifty days
after Jesus's Resurrection in Acts 2:1-14, fulfilling the prophecies of the
purifying and refining characteristics of the Messiah prophesied in the Ezekiel
and Malachi passages.
21 After all the
people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying,
heaven was opened 22, and the Holy
Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven,
"You are my beloved Son; with you, I am well pleased."
When John baptized Jesus, the gates of Heaven, closed since
the fall of Adam, began to open. The Gospel of Mark dramatically announces this
event: On coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens being torn open (Mk 1:10;
see CCC 536 and 1026). At that moment, the gates of Heaven opened, ready to
receive those redeemed by the sacrifice of Christ, and the waters were
sanctified by the descent of the Holy Spirit as a prelude to the new creation!
According to the Gospels, God the Father's voice was heard from Heaven three times during Jesus's ministry, beginning with His baptism:
Jesus was without sin (2 Cor 5:21; CCC 602), but St. John's baptism was for the repentance of sins (Lk 3:3). So why did Jesus submit to John's baptism if He was without sin, and what did His baptism mean in God's divine plan? Jesus told John that He must be baptized (Mt 3:13-15). By baptizing Jesus:
In Mark 16:16, Jesus told His disciples after His resurrection: Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. The profession of faith/belief must be followed by the act of submission to Christ in the Sacrament of Baptism. Saint James warned that faith without action/deeds is dead faith (Jam 2:24).
The Gospel of Matthew provides more details on the event of Jesus's baptism (Mt 3:13-17), but all the accounts in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke record the first undisputed evidence of the Most Holy Trinity in Sacred Scripture. The Most Holy Trinity has been present in human history from the beginning. However, for the first time, the revelation of God's Triune nature took place at Jesus's baptism. The Most Holy Trinity was present at the baptism of Jesus:
The dove is another sign of the Holy Spirit in addition to water, cloud, and fire (CCC 535, 555, 694, 696, 701, 1137, 2652).
Catechism References (* indicates Scripture is quoted
or paraphrased in the citation):
Isaiah 42:1 (CCC 536*, 555*);
42:2 (CCC 580*);
42:6 (CCC 580*)
Isaiah 40:1-3 (CCC 719*); 40:11 (CCC 754*)
Psalm 104 (CCC 288*); 104:24 (CCC 295*); 104:27 (CCC 2828*); 104:30 (CCC 292*, 703*)
Acts 10:35 (CCC 761); 10:38 (CCC 438*, 453*, 486*, 1289)
Titus 2:12 (CCC 1809*); 2:13 (CCC 449*, 1041*, 1130*, 1404*, 2760*, 2818*); 2:14> (CCC 802*); 3:5 (CCC 1215*); 3:6-7 (CCC 1817*)
Luke 3:16 (CCC 696*); 3:21 (CCC 608*, 2600*); 3:22 (CCC 536*)
Baptism is necessary for salvation (CCC 846*, 1256*, 1257*, 1258-1260, 1261*, 1277)
Baptismal promises (CCC 1185, 1254, 2101, 2340)
Christian life is rooted in baptism (CCC 1266)
The significance of baptism (CCC 628*, 950, 1213, 1214*, 1220, 1227*, 1228, 1234-1236, 1237*, 1238*, 1239-1242, 1243*, 1244*, 1245, 1262*, 1617*)
Michal E Hunt, Copyright © 2016; revised 2022 Agape Bible Study. Permissions All Rights Reserved.