Pisteuomen - πιστευομεν - T. Michael W. Halcomb

The aim of this post is to briefly address the issue of alleged contradictions in the Gospel accounts. I am not going to get into a lot of textual, literary or theological specifics here but rather, I want to look at the stories of the baptism of Jesus in Mark's and John's accounts, and use them as springboards into a discussion on how one should read the Gospels. Let me explain. I want to begin with the texts, so, here are the passages from Mark and John: “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him; and a voice came out of the heavens: 'You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.' Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.” (Mk. 1.9-12) “John tes...

When we read some of the New Testament passages concerning baptism, we find statements such as, “Repent and be baptized” or “be baptized for the forgiveness of sins,” etc. Such remarks suggest that there is some type of relationship between baptism and deliverance from sin. Such remarks also leave us wondering, then, “Why, if Jesus never sinned, was He baptized?” To some, the baptism of Jesus is nothing more than a refutation of His divinity (e.g. “If He was truly divine, He would not have sinned but since He was baptized for the forgiveness of sin, well, He must have been a sinner and He surely was not God.). Others see the baptismal event as the moment when Jesus became divine or when God began to do a new work in and through Jesus. Prior to His baptism, some argue, Jesus, as a mere man, had committed sin. Really, though, remarks such as these are making the texts say something they never intended to. Moreover, these kinds of arguments, which are actually mere “implications” or “sugg...