Mark 1:9-11 Jesus arrives!

Jesus of Nazareth - a real name and place. The Son of God is real! He travels to the Jordan and "was baptised by John". He lives a normal sort of life and did what many other normal people did at the time.

In contrast to what Mark and John have told us about the LORD, He appears not as a powerful, super man ... but as one of us, doing what we should do. And he even submits to the "baptism of repentance for the remission of sins" !

He is humble, just like John. So God Almighty is also humble. Maybe I should be too.

But His baptism is gatecrashed. A little bit anyway. "He saw" the dove representing the Spirit., maybe others didn't. He saw heaven parting. Maybe he was the only one who needed to. He needed confirmation that He really is the Son of God.

Maybe this happens at every baptism, but we just don't see it.

In any case the Spirit "descends on Him". No doubt this is power and guidance from heaven for his ministry. But more than this, the Spirit is obviously another part of divinity. The Spirit is separate from Jesus as it comes down on Him.

Then the third part of divinity is present, not by visual symbol but by a "voice". John's voice has been active preparing for the coming LORD but now a voice comes from heaven affirming Him.

This must be the Father as he calls Jesus "My ... Son". And the Father loves Him and approves of Him. There is no jealousy here. Pretty good stuff. Am I that kind of father? The kind who loves and expresses that love.

Is this the first time that the Father speaks in Scripture. If Jesus really is LORD of the Old Testament, then when God spoke then it was really the Son.

The Father is pleased with humility and submission, which are the characteristics shown so far in Mark's account of Jesus. Am I that kind of son? The kind that pleases my father (and Father ) well?