Luke 3:15–22: Why was Jesus Baptized?

June 26, 2026

The Ten Signposts of the Bible
CAMDE—400—CALY
Creation. Abraham. Moses. David. Elijah. 400. Christ. Apostles. Letters. Yet-to-Come.

John the Baptist was riveting as he burst onto the scene, immediately capturing people's attention. He dressed like the legendary Old Testament prophet Elijah, wearing a garment of camel hair and a leather belt around his waist (2 Kgs. 1:8; Matt. 3:4; Mark 1:6). His mystique only grew when people learned of his unusual diet consisting of locusts and wild honey. 

That was enough to draw a crowd, but it was his message that moved the curious audience to action. John's words were neither the watered-down platitudes of the Sadducees nor the self-righteous legalism of the Pharisees. He spoke boldly and was forthright in calling for repentance–a change in thinking that led to a change of behavior—urging his listeners to prove the reality of their faith by the fruit of their lives. 

John's appearance and message also stirred great expectation, and many began to wonder if he might be the long-awaited Messiah. But John quickly put these questions to rest by declaring, "I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" (Luke 3:16). 

Jewish teachers taught that their disciples should serve them by performing the same duties that slaves did for their master—except untying their sandals. Stooping to remove a teacher's footwear was considered beneath even the lowliest student. John understood that Jesus was so much greater than he was that he did not consider himself worthy to perform even the lowest servant's task for him. John could only offer a simple ritual cleansing with water, but Jesus would send his Holy Spirit to powerfully produce spiritual transformation from the inside out. 

The power of Jesus' coming would also bring judgment. Drawing on a familiar image from agrarian life, John proclaimed that Jesus' "winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire" (Luke 3:17). 

In this brief statement, John sets forth a profound eschatological truth. In the Old Testament, the winnowing fork often serves as a figure of speech referring to divine  judgment.^[1] Gathering the wheat into the barn depicts God's people being brought safely to God himself, while the "unquenchable fire" clearly portrays hell—eternal separation from God. As one Bible scholar observes, "Hell is the isolating and permanent purging of evil from God's creation!"^[2]

Luke notes that not all of John's messages were recorded, writing that "with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people" (Luke 3:18). Yet not everyone who heard John's exhortations accepted them as good news. Luke then moves ahead in the narrative to recount the story of Herod and Herodias.

Herodias was married to Herod's brother, Philip, and the couple lived in Rome. At some point, however, Herod and Herodias fell in love, and Herod took her away from Philip. Their affair became widely known, and John the Baptist publicly condemned the illicit relationship. His rebuke did not sit well with Herodias. Luke simply concludes that John was thrown into prison, however the gruesome details of his beheading are recorded in Matthew 14:1–12 and Mark 6:14–29. 

Luke wants to keep the main thing the main thing and it is now time for him to introduce Jesus to his readers. Jesus' first public act is his baptism. Luke records, "Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized…" (Luke 3:21). 

At this point we need to pause and ask: Why would Jesus, the sinless Son of God, need to be baptized? In one sense it was not necessary because he was sinless. He did not need to show repentance and seek forgiveness. However, there are varying explanations for his baptism, but let me share what I believe are the most reasonable ones. 

• Jesus was sinless,^[3] yet in his baptism he chose to identify himself with sinners. Ultimately he would fully associate with sinners when he "bore our sins in his body on the tree…" (1 Pet. 2:24; Isa. 53:4–6, 11–12; 2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:13; Heb. 9:28).
  
  
• Jesus was baptized as an example for believers to follow. Today, a believer's baptism is often likened to driving a spiritual stake in the ground—publicly identifying with Jesus' death (going into the water), burial (going under the water), and resurrection (coming up out of the water). 

Jesus did not need to participate in John's "baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." However, he chose to be baptized in order to identify with those he came to save and to provide an example of a public profession of faith. 

When Jesus was baptized, he was also praying. Luke highlights Jesus' prayer life more than any other Gospel.^[4] If the sinless Son of God was compelled to pray, then it stands to reason that we should be those who pray as well. As Jesus was being baptized and praying, "the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, 'You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased'" (Luke 3:21b–22). 

This unique moment marks the beginning of Jesus' earthly ministry. The heavens opened, revealing a stunning display of the Godhead: God the Son standing before the crowd in the flesh, his hair and clothes still wet from the waters of baptism; God the Holy Spirit descending in the form of a dove, echoing the opening of creation when the Spirit "was hovering over the face of the waters" (Gen. 1:2); and God the Father, who spoke the world into existence, now speaking over Jesus, and declaring him to be his beloved Son. God in three persons—standing, descending, speaking—publicly presents Jesus as the Messiah and launches the mission through which he will save us from our sins. 

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Read and reflect on Luke 3:15–22: John called people to produce fruit in keeping with repentance. What evidence of spiritual growth and obedience is God producing in your life right now?

Talking to God: Ask God to help you honestly evaluate the evidence of his work in your life. 

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