3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness:‘Prepare the way of the Lord;Make His paths straight.’ ”

4 John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. 5 Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.6 Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And he preached, saying, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. 8 I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”John Baptizes Jesus9 It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And immediately, coming up [c]from the water, He saw the heavens

Mark 1:1-5 (NKJV)

6 Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And he preached, saying, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. 8 I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

9 It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. 11 Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Mark 1:6-11 (NKJV)

R E N E W A L

“See, I am sending an angel before you to protect you on your journey and lead you safely to the place I have prepared for you. 21 Pay close attention to him, and obey his instructions. Do not rebel against him, for he is my representative, and he will not forgive your rebellion. 22 But if you are careful to obey him, following all my instructions, then I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will oppose those who oppose you.

Exodus 23:20-22 (NIV)

23 For my angel will go before you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites, so you may live there. And I will destroy them completely. 24 You must not worship the gods of these nations or serve them in any way or imitate their evil practices. Instead, you must utterly destroy them and smash their sacred pillars. 25 You must serve only the Lord your God. If you do, I will bless you with food and water, and I will protect you from illness.”

Exodus 23:23-25 (NIV)

JOHN’S BAPTISM IS A SYMBOLIC

REBOOTING OF ISRAEL’S STORY

F A I T H F U L N E S S

“One day Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and John baptized him in the Jordan River. 10 As Jesus came up out of the water, he saw the heavens splitting apart and the Holy Spirit descending on him[e] like a dove. 11 And a voice from heaven said, “You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy.”

Mark 1:9-11 (NLT)

“Then Jesus came from Galillee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 Jesus Replied, “Let it be so; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness”. Then John consented.

Matthew 3:13-15 (NIV)

JESUS’ BAPTISM WAS AN ACT OF

FAITHFULNESS TO THE FATHER

K I N G D O M

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled [made peace] us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20a We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.

2 Corinthians 5:17-20 (NIV)

JOHN PROFESSED A KINGDOM YET TO COME

JESUS PROCLAIMED HIS KINGDOM WAS HERE

For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. 5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.

Romans 6:4-6 (NIV)

M A D E N E W

BAPTISM IS ABOUT IDENTIFYING WITH YOUR UGLINESS

AND DISPLAYING YOUR NEED FOR JESUS

C E L E B R A T E

C E L E B R A T E