This sermon is from the Rev. Charles G. Dennison sermon archive, part of “The Holy Spirit” series, and was preached at Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Sewickley, PA, during a worship service on Sunday, April 9, 1995.

Tonight we begin our scripture reading with Colossians 2, beginning at verse 8. Give your complete attention to the reading of God’s word. See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception. according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.

For in him all the fullness of deity dwells in bodily form, and in him you have been made full, and he is the head over all rule and authority. And in him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hand. in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with him through faith in the working of God who raised him from the dead. And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he made you alive together with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having cancelled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, and which was hostile to us, and he has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. When he had disarmed the rulers and authorities, he made public display of them, having triumphed over them through him.”

And then turning to Matthew chapter three, verse thirteen, Then Jesus arrived from Galilee at the Jordan, coming to John to be baptized by him. But John tried to prevent him, saying, I have need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me? But Jesus answering said to him, Permitted at this time, for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he permitted them.

And after being baptized, Jesus went up immediately from the water, and behold, The heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and coming upon him. And behold, a voice out of heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Our God bless us with your encouragement as we would gather around your word, even to sit at the feet of our Savior to be instructed by him. For we know that the one who taught so many years ago in this world continues to teach from heaven by the word and in the Spirit. So, O Lord, may we be thus congregated, and, Lord, may we be instructed for our good and for your glory. This we pray through Christ, the very one who instructs us still. Amen.

In our last message on the Holy Spirit, we dealt with the baptism of Jesus, you may recall, and concerned ourselves with the Old Testament background and connections for this event. Tonight we look once more at this event, of the baptism of Christ, with interest in its specific message about the connection between Christ and His Church. Now, let me point out, first of all, and that’s giving us our orientation for this evening’s message, that the baptism story carries within it a certain sense of finality. There is a certain conclusiveness to the story of the baptism of Jesus. It is almost as if, with the baptism, there is that sense in which we have arrived at the end of the story. there is a completeness to it. By this, I mean that there is that sense in which the baptism of Jesus puts before us, in a certain way, a complete story with respect to the life of our Lord. at least a complete story with respect to the accomplishment of his mission. There is that sense, then, in looking at the story of the baptism of Jesus, you have it all here. The ministry of Jesus is worked out in all of its details. We have his career set before us in miniature, in capsule. We may look, therefore, at the baptism of our Savior and see the features of his saving ministry.

Jesus responds to John. You note when John tries to prevent Jesus from being baptized. Verse 14. But note the way in which John’s protest leads into a protest that we hear later on in the Gospel. For John’s protest is not totally unlike another protest that comes before us in this Gospel of Matthew, in the 16th chapter of this Gospel.

You will recall that Peter takes Jesus aside because Jesus has just told his disciples that he will go to Jerusalem and there undergo supreme, severe humiliation and even death. Peter rebukes Jesus because the thought of humiliation in connection with Jesus is just far beyond what he is able to comprehend and accept. But as Jesus instructed Peter on that occasion, so here he gives John the Baptist instruction. And the point of the instruction is the same.

The Messiah must undergo humiliation. The Messiah must undergo humiliation. Now, in Matthew 3, that humiliation is such an identification with the people of God, that just as they are in need of and must submit to baptism for cleansing, so also the Son of God must submit Himself, even being in need of that baptism for the accomplishment and the perfecting of righteousness.

Jesus then will undergo a baptism, he tells John, in order that all righteousness might be fulfilled. In order that all righteousness might be fulfilled in the Christ, on behalf of John’s ministry itself, and for the sake of the people of God. Now, we all understand, do we not, that it is not Jesus who is in need of baptism? And in that, it seems we agree with John the Baptist. Jesus is exempt. We are not. But in order that righteousness might be fulfilled, And yes, that that righteousness might be fulfilled for us and in us, it is necessary for Jesus to be baptized. I think then that you understand what is going on here.

The baptism becomes a picture of the coming death for Christ. In another gospel, Jesus will speak about his death as a baptism. So here, as he undergoes baptism, there is that picture set before us before the time, before the time of the actual death, there is that picture set before us of the coming death of the Messiah, his humiliation. Jesus will underscore his identification with us, his people, and the fact that he is taking to himself our nature, and that completely. But in doing that, he is subjecting himself to the process of cleansing that is necessary for you and for me. He needs no cleansing. We do.

In the dynamics of this arrangement then, He will receive our uncleanness and undergo a cleansing for us. telegraphed to us in the baptism and accomplished at the cross. You see how it all hangs together. The vicarious nature, the substitutionary character of Christ’s sacrifice for us upon the cross is already being communicated to us in a vicariousness to the baptism. wonderfully, magnificently, the fabric of the gospel, being of a peace, proclaiming to us that all righteousness is being fulfilled in Him and for us. But if the baptism of Christ now, here in Matthew 3, is like the vicarious, substitutionary that is, atoning death of Christ, then the coming up from the water, what will we make of that? Well, in that we must see, must we not, the resurrection. It is plain to us.

Now, there is an interesting point for us to consider here, for often the 16th verse set before us here in Matthew 3, and the actions mentioned in it, in the text, are associated with the baptism itself. Read that 16th verse, I implore you, once more. Look at it again. And after being baptized, Jesus went up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened, etc. I’ll stress it again for you. Oftentimes, this sixteenth verse is read in such a way that it is associated with the baptism itself.

Now, my interest tonight is not to engage in an argument with you about the mode of baptism, about immersion versus sprinkling, or effusion, pouring. I mean only to state to you that this sixteenth verse has absolutely nothing to do with the mode. And don’t let anyone tell you that it does. Matthew is not telling us about Jesus coming up out of the water as part of the baptism ceremony.

Rather, he is telling us about Jesus moving away from the water after the baptism had been completed. Look at that 16th verse once more. It states emphatically, after being baptized, the baptism is over. And now Jesus is moving away from the waters of the Jordan. So the coming up that is mentioned in that 16th verse is not Jesus coming up out of the water after having been submerged.

That isn’t being commented on in any way, shape, or form. What Matthew is speaking about is Jesus moving away from the waters of the Jordan, distancing himself from the baptism rite, distancing himself from the humiliation imbued. He is moving from humiliation to exaltation. That’s what’s being stated here.

After being baptized, Jesus went up from the water. That is, he moved away from the Jordan waters, the river. The distance from the Jordan parallels the distance between the crucifixion and the resurrection. Verses 16 and 17 then of this third chapter in Matthew anticipate the resurrection. just as the baptism earlier anticipated the crucifixion.

And it is now in this context—grab hold of this, if you will, we are going beyond what we said the last time we were together on this text—it is in this context, in this resurrection context, that the Holy Spirit is introduced. Now we have already looked at the appearance of the Holy Spirit as he descends dove-like, and that in relationship to Old Testament connections, and most specifically in relationship to the themes of creation and recreation. Remember how we linked up this text to the story of Noah and his Ark and descending out of the dove across the face of the waters? Remember how we connected it with the bird-like appearance of the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters in Genesis 1 verse 2. How here then as the Spirit comes, God-like, He is descending and alighting upon Christ as Christ is the new creation of God.

And as there was the benediction of God in the old creation and God pronounced all things good, even blessing that creation, so now God’s benediction rests upon his Son. And to dwell in the Son is to be a part of the new creation of God. If any man is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things become new. You know that verse, and you love it, and you also understand it. Well, the Spirit, therefore, is the agent of the new creation that summons in Christ Jesus.

This we have said before. Jesus Christ has in himself the benediction of the Father resting upon him. These considerations which we have observed previously in their own way contribute to the overall sense of the finality communicated by this passage, that finality we are concentrating on this evening. But the introduction of the Holy Spirit in this context now moves us along another line. beyond that which we have considered previously to this point.

You see, by introducing the Holy Spirit in the context of resurrection, this text sets before us the precise nature of the inheritance into which the Messiah comes. Hang on to that. This text is setting before you, beautifully and compellingly, Yes, as it communicates to you even something of the finality that you are seeing with respect to the ministry and mission of Jesus Christ, it is communicating to you something of the precise nature of that inheritance into which the Messiah himself comes, and that by resurrection. It is in the context of the resurrection that the Spirit comes to him. By virtue of his work in his vicarious death, the Son, in his resurrection, now comes into the possession of the Spirit. To him, the Spirit has been given, and from this perspective, then, the Spirit must be viewed as the reward given to the Son By and through his resurrection, the Spirit comes as the goal to which the Messiah pressed. That Spirit carrying within him the wealth of heavenly blessings, and communicating well that the crown of the inheritance is the full and blessed presence of God as God gives himself for the appropriation of his Son.

You ask me what the reward is. You ask me what the goal is. The reward and the goal are communicated to us in the person of the Spirit. He is the inheritance. Spirit, therefore, is not adequately treated when he is merely thought of as equipment. Do you understand my reference there? Well, the spirit must be given to the Christ because he needs the equipment of the spirit in order to accomplish his mission. Now, I’m not completely game-saying that approach. There is truth there, and we will be dealing with that in time.

But the spirit must not be thought of merely as equipment to the Messiah. as instrument for the accomplishment of mission.” Indeed, the story goes on to communicate to us, Matthew 4, verse 1, that the spirit as endowment for accomplishment of mission is indispensable. At the same time, it is not adequate for us to say, that the Spirit is the down payment on the inheritance. I know that you realize where that language comes from. To be sure, the Holy Spirit is endowment for empowerment for the accomplishment of mission. The Holy Spirit is also down payment upon the inheritance, and Paul uses that very language in a number of texts.

For instance, 2 Corinthians 1.22, Ephesians 1.14. The Holy Spirit is a pledge of down payment upon our inheritance. But even though that language is legitimate, and the Spirit, yes, functions in these ways, Insofar as the baptism story of Jesus is meant to communicate finality, conclusiveness, completeness to the story, it is a story in which we are able to see the end of the matter. To that extent, we are compelled to see the Spirit as the reward, not merely as down payment on the inheritance, but the inheritance itself. Paul has another way of speaking about the inheritance of the Spirit.

He calls it the fullness of God. That’s why I read for you this evening from the Colossians chapter 2, particularly verse 9. He calls the inheritance, which the Spirit is, the fullness of God. Now, note in that ninth verse of chapter two in Colossians. Jesus as our mediator, as the Christ, as our representative, as the second Adam, in death and resurrection, receives the fullness of God. That’s the proper exegesis of that text. That’s what that verse is all about.

He receives the fullness of God in bodily form. What body is Paul talking about? He’s talking about his resurrection body, friends. But we press on. For as radical as that way of expression is for the Apostle Paul, he has an even more radical way of stating the case. In 2 Corinthians 3 verse 17, Paul makes a most astounding statement. He says, Now the Lord He is the Spirit. Now the Lord is the Spirit. It sounds as if Paul is having trouble keeping the Trinity straight. He doesn’t have it quite worked out yet. He’s a little confused on this matter. We know, do we not, that the Lord is not the Spirit, don’t we?

The Paul doesn’t just say it once. You move on to the 18th verse, the concluding words of that 18th verse, and he says it again. He calls the Lord the Spirit, just as the Lord the Spirit. That’s the way it reads in the New American Standard. Now, Paul, in these verses in 2 Corinthians chapter 3, is not commenting on the inner dynamics of the Trinity.

He is commenting upon the reward that has come to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and so close is the bond between the Lord Jesus Christ and the reward he has received, namely the Spirit, that the Lord now is identified thoroughly with the reward. that has come into his possession. He lives to communicate the rewards. He lives to communicate the Spirit. Jesus, at what time, made comments with regard to his Father and himself. with respect to their common intention and objective.

Now Paul makes reference to the connectedness between the Lord and the Spirit on the background of the concept of reward and But of course, the point of this message is not just that Christ’s baptism and reception of the Spirit anticipates his death and resurrection, but that they anticipate the baptism and reception of the Holy Spirit by his Church, by us.

Jesus’ baptism is not just for us, it is before us, with us then following after it. On the day of Pentecost, Peter instructs the multitude, check it out, Acts 2 verse 38, that they must be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. Yes, here is a death for them with the promise of the subsequent bestowal of the Spirit. Yes, here is resurrection for them, even anticipating the finality of their death and resurrection in the economy and plan of God. as the one who bears within himself the new creation, and he comes, yes, as endowment for the Church in her calling. He comes to the Church as down payment to be sure on the inheritance, but he also comes to the Church, to you and to me, as the inheritance itself, the reward to which we were destined, being given to us already, presently, in our circumstances.

If there are any measurements for the joy of the Apostle Paul, if there are any measurements that you can put to the joy and the expressiveness of the people of God as they receive the Holy Spirit, realizing that they have in the Holy Spirit the end of the mass, they have been given the eternal reward in Him and they are in possession of it now. You cannot hold back. The restraints that are in you must give way, for God himself in his Spirit is now yours.

To be sure, there is so much in the New Testament that makes it clear that we are in a not-yet situation. And thus the down-payment language of the Apostle Paul, down-payment upon the inheritance, because the inheritance in full is not ours yet, because we as yet lack our resurrection bodies. At the same time, The testimony of the scriptures of the New Testament makes it abundantly clear to us, and that in a sublime sense, that the reward to which we press is already given us by Christ in the Spirit. Did you notice the flow in Colossians 2? I know I preach this about once a year, and I do it for a reason. The flow in Colossians 2 as you move from verse 9 to verse 10.

In verse 9, Jesus comes into the possession of the fullness of God in bodily form in his resurrection state. The fullness of God, expansive language from the Apostle Paul with respect to the reward, Speaking about the Spirit, but then go on to verse 10.

In him you have been made full. Already, past tense, you have been made full. With what? The fullness of God. The Spirit. the reward, the inheritance. And if you’re up to it, closing out at 2 Corinthians 3, 17 and 18. At 17th verse, telling us, yes, the Lord is the Spirit, but where the Spirit is, There is liberty, freedom. The reward already working its blessedness for you and in you. Where the Spirit is, there is liberty, freedom. There is no freedom like this. This is the liberty of heaven. No government, no establishment on earth can give it to you or take it from you.

And it’s in this reward, this blessedness of the Spirit, according to that 18th verse at the end of 2nd Corinthians 3, that is presently at work in you, transforming you from glory to glory, even as the Lord was transformed from his estate of humiliation to exaltation.”

Well, are we not all benefited? And are we not amazingly blessed? Even with all of our problems and difficulties, aren’t we immeasurably happy in the Lord? Lord, we would not shortchange the absolute wonder and glory of your saving work in Christ. Therefore, while being appreciative of the various nuances of meaning attached to the coming of the Spirit for your people, we would not miss out on that line of truth that is communicated in the revelation, that the Spirit himself is the end of the matter, and the reward and the inheritance to which we pray. O Lord, may we glow in the blessedness of the Spirit given to us presently and the light in him. We ask this in Jesus name, amen.

The sermon text provided above is derived from the sermon audio recording making use of generative tools. It has not been manually edited. While transcription tools have a high degree of accuracy, the output may include generative textual, punctuation, and/or formatting errors.