Theme: Pleasing God is what brings true happiness in life.

The Word-Became-Flesh . . .

Exegesis: Matthew 3:13-17

All four gospels record the events of Jesus’ baptism at the hand of John. And each one of the four gospel writers add their own unique touches to the story. Our text this morning from Matthew contains elements not found in any of the other gospels, suggesting he had either a unique source for this information or was writing out of a community concern that required a special perspective.

To begin, Matthew specifically brings Jesus on a long journey. It was about seventy miles from Nazareth in Galilee to the southern regions of Palestine and Perea where John was actively preaching and baptizing. The impression is made firm that Jesus specifically seeks John out in order to be…