Currently, in traditional Christianity, misleading concepts and doctrines about the Gospel of salvation have been circulating for centuries, confusing and preventing many believers from finding true freedom from sin and inner transformation to become a new creation in Christ Jesus and adopted children of God.
However, Jesus himself lived and showed us the three steps to fulfill the will and righteous requirements of God his Father. Let's read first in the Scriptures what happened the day He was baptized by John the Baptist and received the fullness of the holy Spirit of his Father:
Matthew 3:13-17 NIV
[13] Then Jesus came from Galilee 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 now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented. [16] As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. [17] And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
Why did Jesus have to be baptized in water?
Jesus was also baptized in water. But why did He have to be baptized in water? Was it simply to set an example for us as a witness to others? He did it for a deeper and more profound reason: to show us the path of total surrender and consecration to fulfilling God's righteous requirements. In fact, just before being baptized by John the Baptist in order to start his ministry on Earth, He had to “REPENT” something. Of course He did not have to repent of any sin, since he had been born without sin.
But the word REPENTANCE does not only mean that one turns away from any sinful action, but also that one surrenders and consecrates himself entirely to doing the will of God the Father. In fact, the original biblical word of repentance in Greek is METANOIA, which means: a complete change of direction or trajectory.
So when God's time came, Jesus was ready to dedicate himself and leave behind his former life as an extraordinary man of good reputation in the eyes of men. He had been a person of integrity, an excellent carpenter, a Jew very well versed in the Holy Scriptures, and a faithful practitioner of the Mosaic Law. But He was willing to pay the price of making the decision to give up his good reputation in front of everyone, including his own family. (Luke 2:45-52; Matthew 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6)
Jesus went all the way to see John the Baptist in order to be immersed in water by him, as a sign of full repentance. In that moment, Jesus completely renounced being simply the son of Joseph and Mary. He renounced being a carpenter respected by his relatives, acquaintances and fellow citizens. He pledged then to reveal his true identity as the Son and Lamb of God his Father openly. And right after He was baptized, his Father in Heaven honoured him by sending him the fullness and power of the Holy Spirit. He also honoured him by declaring with an audible voice to everyone out there that Jesus was in fact his beloved Son. From that moment, John the Baptist was openly declaring that Jesus was in fact the Lamb of God that takes the sin of the world! (Matthew 3:13-17; John 1:29-34; 1John 5:6-8)
Jesus had to be baptized in water to show his Father that He was willing to fulfill his role of revealing his true identity, by proclaiming the Good News of God's kingdom and by demonstrating the power of healing and miracles. He had to do it to show openly that He was in fact the Messiah and Son of the One who had sent him—God his Father. He knew that He was going to suffer great and constant persecution, and even to die cruelly on the cross, for declaring that He was in fact the Truth, the Life, and the Way to have access to God the Father. (Luke 4:1-30; John 5:16-30; 14:6-11)
Jesus consecrated himself in water baptism to obey and fulfill the will of his Father, accepting the challenge of suffering and feeling anguish for us, since He had to be martyred and die cruelly three years and a half later to end his ministry and life on Earth. What an example He gave us of giving everything unconditionally out of love for his Father and for us! (Hebrews 5:7-10; 10:3-10)
Why did Jesus receive God's holy Spirit after being baptized in water?
Just after Jesus was baptized in water, his Father sent him his own holy Spirit to receive the anointing and power to carry out his mission and ministry of preaching the Kingdom of God, healing the sick, performing miracles, making disciples, and dying for our sins. The Father completely filled him with his Spirit and power for having dedicated himself to revealing the truth of the Word and will of God, and being willing to suffer and die for humanity. (Matthew 3:16-17; Luke 4:14-22; Acts 10:38)
This is the price Jesus had to pay in order to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit: complete repentance, death to self in water baptism, and total submission and complete obedience to serve God his Father and do his will until death.
What did Jesus say about fulfilling God's plan of salvation?
Jesus said the following about how we can enter God's Kingdom:
John 3:5-8 NIV
[5] Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. [6] Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. [7] You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ [8] The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
In other words, if we want to be saved from sin and enter God's Kingdom, we must be born again through repenting to God the Father, getting immersed in water into him, and getting filled with the very life-giving power of God's holy Spirit. (Matthew 3:11; Romans 8:1-4; Titus 3:3-7; Jeremiah 31:33-34; Ezekiel 36:25-27)
However, not many understand what the word REPENTANCE truly means. As Jesus taught and showed us by example, we must not only turn away from all sinful and worldly ways, but turn towards God in full submission and surrender in order to follow his holy and heavenly ways and obey his will, even if this means to suffer physically to spread the Good News of God's Kingdom:
Mark 8:34-38 NIV
[34] Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. [35] For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. [36] What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? [37] Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? [38] If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
Jesus said that if we want to follow him and be reconciled to God, we must be willing to go out of our comfort zone and change our way of life (including abandoning wealth and unfruitful relative ties), and be ready to suffer mockery and persecution with him, even physical death, for faithfully proclaiming his name and the biblical Gospel to everyone. This is in fact the real meaning of full repentance towards God and immersion in water into Jesus.
God provided our redemption through Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection
From the beginning of his ministry, Jesus suffered intense and constant persecution, primarily from Jewish religious leaders. About three years later He was arrested by the same Jewish persecutors who handed him over to the Roman authorities to be tortured and crucified. On the cross, He shed his blood and died. Right after He was buried, but on the third day God rose him from the dead.
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NIV
[3] For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, [4] that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.
Out of love for us, God provided human redemption by giving us his beloved Son. Jesus paid the heavy price of dying for the sins of all humanity and God's wrath was satisfied. Now redemption from our sins and from the dominion of sin over us that we inherited at birth, because of the disobedience of the first man, is provided for every human being. (John 3:16-17; Galatians 3:13-14; Hebrews 2:14-18; 1Peter 3:18)
Our response to Jesus' redemption and call
The disciples of Jesus gave themselves completely and were willing to suffer persecution and even die as martyrs for proclaiming his name and the Gospel. And because of this, they received the infilling of the power of God's Spirit to be able to be witnesses of Jesus, and thus continue the work and ministry that He had begun. (Acts 1:4-5,8; 2:1-21,37-41; chapters 9 and 10; 19:1-7)
After preaching God's Good News that Jesus is Lord and Messiah, and after the crowd asked him what they should do to be saved, the apostle Peter said the following:
Acts 2:38-39 NIV
[38] Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. [39] The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
Jesus and the apostles made it clear that if we want to be freed from sin and reconciled to God, we must repent and be baptized in water into Jesus to wash away our sins, and receive the glorious nature, holy presence, and miraculous power of God's Spirit. The reason why we must receive the holy Spirit is so that we can have a personal, sonship-like relationship with God and be disciples of Jesus who obey his great commission to proclaim the Gospel, heal the sick, cast out evil spirits, and make disciples of all nations at every opportunity. (John 4:23-24; Mark 16:15-18; Matthew 28:18-20)
Here are a couple of very sober passages of God's Word confirming that those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did on Earth:
John 14:12 NLT
[12] “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.
1 John 2:3-6 NLT
[3] And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. [4] If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. [5] But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. [6] Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.
.jpeg)

.jpeg)
.jpeg)
