Jesus came to John the Baptist while he was baptising people in the river Jordan. John tried to make Him change His mind, but Jesus answered, “In this way we will do all that God requires.” So John agreed. As soon as Jesus was baptised, He came up out of the water.
In Christian theology, a baptism is a kind of rebirth; a washing away of original sin and a purification of the soul. According to the Bible, the first known baptism occurred with Jesus, sometime around 30 AD, when He was baptized in the River Jordan by His disciple John (later known as John the Baptist). But note baptism was being performed before Jesus was baptized! Jesus was God’s Son, so He was sinless and there was no need for Him to receive forgiveness. John tried to refuse to baptise Jesus saying that it was he, John, who should be baptised by Jesus. Christians believe Jesus was baptised so that He could become like one of us.
Bap·tism /ˈbapˌtizəm/
noun
- (In the Christian Church) the religious rite of sprinkling water onto a person’s forehead or of immersion in water, symbolizing purification or regeneration and admission to the Christian church. In many denominations, baptism is performed on young children and is accompanied by name-giving. “The sacrament of baptism” Similar:Christening, naming, immersion, sprinkling, lustration
- A ceremony or occasion at which baptism takes place. plural noun: Baptisms “weddings, funerals, and baptisms are carried out in the parish church”
- A person’s initiation into a particular activity or role, typically one perceived as difficult. “This event constituted his baptism as a politician”
https://www.biblestudytools.com/topical-verses/bible-verses-about-baptism/
https://www.openbible.info/topics/baptism
The ritual of baptism symbolizes the dying to sin and the rising again in newness of life to serve our God. But as we are “in Christ, ” who died to put away our sins once and for all and then rose in glorious and eternal victdory, we can be said to “die and rise with Him. “
And we pray:
Help us, O Lord, to regard ourselves as dead to sin and to actively crucify our sinful lusts each and every day. It is not fitting that we who have died to sin should walk any longer therein. Change our attitudes and our values. Help us reorder our priorities so that we always put holiness ahead of convenience and your glory ahead of our own pleasure. Amen.