Chapter 14—Angels at Christ’s Baptism and in the
Wilderness
Christ’s Baptism
When Jesus came to be baptized, John recognized in Him a purity
of character that he had never before perceived in any man.... As Jesus
asked for baptism, John drew back exclaiming, “I have need to be bap-
tized of Thee, and comest Thou to me?” With firm yet gentle authority,
Jesus answered, “Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to
fulfill all righteousness.” And John, yielding, led the Saviour down
into the Jordan, and buried Him beneath the water. “And straightway
coming up out of the water,” Jesus “saw the heavens opened, and the
Spirit like a dove descending upon Him.”—
The Desire of Ages, 110,
111
.
Heavenly angels were looking with intense interest upon the scene
of the Saviour’s baptism, and could the eyes of those who were look-
ing on, have been opened, they would have seen the heavenly host
surrounding the Son of God as He bowed on the banks of the Jordan.—
The Youth’s Instructor, June 23, 1892
.
[169]
The Saviour’s glance seems to penetrate heaven as He pours out
His soul in prayer. Well He knows how sin has hardened the hearts
of men, and how difficult it will be for them to discern His mission,
and accept the gift of salvation. He pleads with the Father for power
to overcome their unbelief, to break the fetters with which Satan has
enthralled them, and in their behalf to conquer the destroyer. He asks
for the witness that God accepts humanity in the person of His Son.
Never before have the angels listened to such a prayer. They are
eager to bear to their loved Commander a message of assurance and
comfort. But no; the Father Himself will answer the petition of His
Son. Direct from the throne issue the beams of His glory. The heavens
are opened, and upon the Saviour’s head descends a dovelike form of
purest light—fit emblem of Him, the meek and lowly One....
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