A Father's love in baptism

A father's love is more than just words.  What does it look like? A father provides the best prenatal care and hospital for the birth that the family and insurance can afford.  A father takes his turn changing diapers, cleaning up messes and singing midnight lullabies.  A father reads books to his child, gushes over scribbled artwork hanging on the fridge, carts kids to basketball practice, and always has time for questions, games, bumps and bruises.  A father helps with homework, saves for college, pays attention to grades and meets with teachers.  A father trains young minds and makes sure souls are well fed.  Just saying, "I love you" won't mean much if this type of protection is not provided.  Even if we recognize our failures at times as parents we know what this love is supposed to look like.

But in Mark 1:4-11, paternal love doesn't look like this.  The love of God is much bigger than that.  The Father’s love didn't end with his Son.  It included every one of us as well.  And it is stranger than that too.  This Father planned for his Son to suffer and die. It is a love for unlovable sinners who were willing to withhold protection and even punish the Son he loved for sins he did not commit.  In a way that is unimaginable to the fathers of this world, God the Father took his love for Jesus and designed a plan that would extend that Fatherly love to every human being.


At Jesus' baptism the voice of the Father rang out, "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."  And so Jesus' work began.  Every moment of Jesus' life and ministry in this world was designed by his Father's love - work designed by the Father to show his love for all.

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