24by7Article.com | Biblical Baptism - Putting Baptism into Context through the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 3

This current scripture is the earliest direct mention of baptism within the entire Bible. By utilising the expression “In those days”, the author Matthew is placing his writing into it’s chronological framework. He is in addition recounting to the reader about time that had since passed, and was most likely giving his account to his audience a long while after the actions that he reports. In order to learn those days Matthew is telling his audience about, we have to consider the earlier chapters.

In the beginning of his gospel, the Aposple Matthew calls it “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ” (Matthew 1v1). At this point Matthew tells us his ambition - to let somebody see Jesus as a authentic person who lived at a definite time, was born to particular mother and father, and had the ministry and standing of “Christ”, the anointed Messiah or Saviour. The rest of the first chapter tells us about the genealogy of Jesus, and moreover a succinct report of how Mary became pregnant: “she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.” (Matthew 1v18)

It is within chapter 2 that we start to catch sight of the detailed events that Matthew uses so that we can locate his gospel into it's historical timeframe. The historical events here include:
· Jesus was given birth to in Bethlehem (King David’s historical home) “in the days of Herod the king” (Matthew 2v1)
· Wise men came from the east toward Jerusalem, wondering “Where is he that is born King of the Jews?” (Matthew 2v1-2)
· The wise men travelled since, in their words, “we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him” (Matthew 2v2)
· Herod the king asked the wise men at what instance the star had appeared (Matthew 2v7) and discovered that it was up to 2 years earlier (Matthew 2v16). It is probable however that he overestimated in an attempt to ensure that the newborn child was murdered, thinking that the heavenly body had in actual fact appeared at His conception roughly 9 months earlier.
· King Herod sent out an order with the intention of every single one of the children below the age of 2 in Bethlehem as well as all of the surrounding rural area will be slaughtered. This was his attempt to make certain that solely one infant, the baby Jesus, was additionally murdered. (Matthew 2v16)
· After the call of the wise men, Joseph escorted Mary as well as the newborn child to Egypt in a hurry, because he had been warned regarding Herod the king's strategy via an angel. (Matthew 2v13-14)
· While Joseph, Mary and Jesus had been living in Egypt, King Herod died so Joseph was advised to go back to Israel with “the young child”. (Matthew 2v19-20)
· When King Herod died, his son Archelaus ruled Judaea as the new king. (Matthew 2v22)

Noticeably, the aposple Matthew places the events in the time of the Lord Jesus Christ within the background of who was king of Judaea, as well as several of their actions. This would most probably place the birth of the newborn child within a few days or weeks from the directive that Herod the king had made to have him in addition to all additional babies in and round about Bethlehem murdered. It is possible that several of Matthew’s readers had lost a baby, brother or sister throughout this instance and may perhaps associate the writings of Matthew immediately to dealings within their own family unit. It was into these time in the reader's past that John the Baptist had arrived, preaching in addition to baptising.

John the Baptist was not ministering in the temple or synagogues, but in the wasteland. Conceivably he was not welcome within the temple for some reason - the most probable grounds was the message that he contributed. To see added confirmation of this, notice additionally v7 3.

Shall we consider the message that he preached, as found in a few scriptures that go after the present one:

· Repentance was commanded to each and every one (v2)
· The “kingdom of heaven” was at hand - almost to be revealed (v2)
· John the Baptist appreciated his personal ministry in the role of preparing the way intended for the ministry of the Lord, sowing the land, getting everything ready, and making His route a small amount easier. (v3)

Plainly, precisely from the opening of the scriptural writings of baptism, repentance from sinful conduct was caught up within the meaning of baptism. This idea of repentance and baptism was laying the groundwork for each person that received the teaching for the upcoming ministry of the Lord Jesus.