The Coronation of the King

Sunday, May 18th, 2025

Today we have the great pleasure of hearing the testimonies of several young people who wish to share details of how they came to receive Jesus as Savior and Lord and then to submit to the ordinance of baptism, an outward symbol of the change that has taken place within their hearts. The Scripture used to guide this study is the baptism of Jesus as described in Mark 1. An exegesis of Christ’s baptism will help us gain a better understanding of the ordinance we practice today.

Our study of the book of Habakkuk showed us that Judah had turned from worshipping Yahweh, the God who speaks, to idols which were mute. He said through Habakkuk, woe to you who create speechless idols. Yehweh has spoken clearly and openly since the Creation. He demonstrated His power by creating the heavens and the earth by simply speaking things into existence. The ultimate form of His communication is the Person of Jesus Christ, the Living Word of God. God speaks to us today through the canon of Scripture mediated by the Holy Spirit. Our mission as individuals and as a church is to make disciples, to baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and to teach them to obey all that Jesus commanded His disciples (Matthew 28:19). Two key elements of the things we take into the world are 1) the Word of God, and 2) our personal testimony of the things God has done for us. By the testimony of a changed life accompanied by Scripture, God speaks today as He calls people to salvation. The testimonies we will hear today testify to this truth.

First we look into the person of Mark. The Gospel of Mark, written primarily to gentiles, contains a concise account of Jesus’s baptism, with an emphasis on His humanity. Barnabas and John Mark, his cousin, attended Paul on his first missionary journey. However, John Mark abandoned them and returned to Jerusalem. On Paul’s second missionary journey Barnabas wanted to take John Mark but Paul refused; so, a sharp disagreement resulted between them, and Barnabas took Mark to Cyprus, while Paul took Silas with him. Later we read that Paul and John Mark had reconciled because Paul, writing to Timothy from prison in Rome, asked that he bring John Mark saying that he was very useful in ministry (2 Timothy 4:11). By writing this Gospel with a gentile focus, John Mark has proven to be very useful to us as well.

We understand that gospel means good news. We understand that Jesus is God (John 1:1) and that He is the perfect sacrifice required by God to satisfy the debt we owe for our rebellion against Him. A second, but equally important aspect is that Jesus lived a perfect life, in complete obedience to God, earning a righteousness that is credited to all who repent of sin and trust Jesus as Savior and Lord. By grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, we are saved -- and this is indeed good news!

There is an aspect of the gospel that crystalizes what we understand the gospel to be, what we understand the ministry of God to be, and helps us understand why baptism is important today. We gain an understanding of this from Isaiah 52:7, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ’Your God reigns.’" The Hebrew word for good news means coronation. Thus, Christ’s baptism was the coronation of the King and the inauguration of Jesus’s public ministry. 

I. Curiosity (Mark 1:9)

The movement of the narrative through Mark 1 verses 9 to 13 can be summarized by curiosity, confirmation and clarity. Seeing the structure in this manner helps us better understand our own walk of salvation. The ministry of John the Baptizer was a call for Israel to repent of their sin and place their faith in the Messiah. People were saved in Old Testament times by placing their faith in the coming Messiah; now it is by placing their faith in the already come Messiah. John was calling people to salvation and to be baptized as evidence of that faith.

John was curious why Jesus would come to him to be baptized, and he objected knowing that Jesus was more righteous than he. The need for the perfectly holy Jesus to be baptized has been a source of curiosity in the church two millennia. Jesus explained why it was appropriate in Matthew 3:15, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Even though Jesus and John were relatives, John had only heard about Jesus. He only knew that Jesus was a prophet sent by God and, thus, more holy than he. John ceased to argue when Jesus convinced John that He had to obey His Father. When the Holy Spirit descend on Jesus as He came out of the Jordan River, John then understood that Jesus is the Messiah.

Christ’s active obedience is reflected in His perfect obedience to the Father. We understand that it is the active obedience of Christ that grants us righteousness. The passive obedience of Christ was demonstrated when He allowed Himself to be sacrificed on the cross at Calvary. His passive obedience is also shadowed in His baptism, where, going under the water, represents Him becoming united with us in death, and bearing the penalty for our sin. His going under the water symbolizes having our sins washed away and our dying to sin; His coming up out of the water represents us being raised to newness of life. It is by Christ’s active and passive obedience that we stand justified before God. The theology here is summarized by the verse posted on the wall in the foyer: “For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) Those who follow Christ are identified with Him by their baptism.

II. Confirmation (Mark 1:10-11)

Christ being baptized affirms John’s ministry and confirms Jesus as the Messiah. Both ministries were affirmed by man and by God. Later when the Pharisees tried to trap Jesus, demanding that He reveal the source of His authority for the undeniable miracles that they witnessed, Jesus asked them whether John’s baptism was from man or from God. When they refused to answer, He refused to yield to their demands (Matthew 21:23ff). Jesus knew that the Pharisees could not deny either one – that is the reason why Jesus’ baptism would fulfill all righteousness. When John understood what Jesus meant by fulfilling all righteousness, his curiosity was satisfied, and he baptized Jesus.

Verse ten of Mark 1 tells us that when Jesus “came up out of the water, immediately He saw the heavens opening and the Spirit descending on Him like a dove.” By this symbol, God was confirming the ministry of Jesus. This is significant in that it shows again God injecting Himself into human history. God created the world then set up His theocracy, while mediating through various men. He established His law and His throne – the tabernacle first, then the temple. God led the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. Even when the people demanded a king, God continued to rule in His theocracy.

The Holy Spirit descending on Christ at His baptism represents a change in God’s rule from the temple to Christ Himself. Jesus was anointed by God as the perfect Prophet, the perfect Priest and the perfect King. God now rules in the heart of man through Christ Himself. Romans 12:3 tells us that we receive a limited measure of the Spirit, whereas John 3:34 says that Christ was given the Spirit without measure. The Spirit mediates what Christ has done in His humanity and in His divinity. We see the ministry of the Spirit in verse twelve when He drove Christ into the wilderness. After the confirmation of Jesus, we have the clarity from God.

III. Clarity (Mark 1:12-13)

Through a voice from heaven, God said “You are my beloved Son; with You I am well pleased.” God affirmed that He was transferring His rule to Jesus, so that He would rule in the hearts of men. Hebrews 1:3 says that Christ is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature. Jesus is God Himself and that is the gospel. Christ now moves into His public ministry knowing that God is well pleased with all that He had done. Our ministry is to take the gospel into the world based on the Word of God which says that Christ is ruling now, and that He will rule forever. We let people know that Jesus is God, that He is Savior, that He rules in our heart, and there was a time when we went through a ceremony that reflected the change that had occurred within our heart. There was a change in theocracy from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light, from the kingdom of evil to the kingdom of good, from the kingdom of self to the kingdom of God ruling in our heart. We know this is true because of the fruit of our labors, and the first proof is baptism. Baptism was also the first proof of Christ’s obedience.

The persons being baptized today will share how they were living in kingdom of darkness and evil and self into the kingdom of light and good and the kingdom of God. We as a congregation are to hold them accountable to their public ministry of the gospel. When God established the church, He commanded us to celebrate the Lord’s Supper and to baptize new believers. These ordinances help us remember who is reigning as King, what is the gospel and what is the purpose of God’s words. Then we go into the world to proclaim the gospel to those around us. As people see our transformed life, hear the gospel and believe, the angels in heaven rejoice as people are saved (Luke 15:10). We take very seriously the coronation of Jesus in a person’s heart. Baptism does not save but it is an indication that a person has been saved. Baptism should not be administered to young children with the hope that someday they will believe. Baptism is a solemn yet joyful celebration as we see God working in the world. We will see God continuing to work through His people in this way until Jesus returns.

Selah:

1. If you have been baptized as a believer, what led up to you making this decision?

2. What confirmation do you see in your life that Christ is your King?

3. What keeps you from being a more faithful disciple maker? What will you do to help rectify this?