Sermons
Vipers (Matthew 3:13-17) (Matthew 3:13-17)
Pastor Brady Bush, September 27, 2009Part of the Matthew series, preached at a Sunday Afternoon service
What are the Pharisees doing here? They’re not just raining on John’s parade… Luke says that John called the whole crowd a brood of vipers, and that crowd was coming to be baptized. They were there to participate! So why does John reject them?
The first words from God to his people in 400 years are intense. John sets the standard of salvation at an impossible level, which Jesus will reaffirm in the Sermon on the Mount. John comes to say: there’s only one way to salvation, and nobody’s got it.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Download| Earlier: | Later: |
|---|---|
| « The Nazarene (Matthew 3:1-12) | By Every Word of God, Part 1 (Matthew 4:1-11) » |
Matthew 3:13-17
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” (ESV)