The Way of the Lord by Larry Yarrington

 21 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” Luke 3:21-22

Jesus was praying in the middle of His baptism. I wonder how many people are praying as they are being baptized? Mostly it is a time of public celebration of being part of the church and gratitude for what Jesus has done in their lives. I suppose that is a kind of prayer, but I think prayer meant something to Jesus that I have some difficulty grasping. He seemed to be always in touch with the Father, so that He and the Father were always acting as one. There was a love between them that I can get to only partially. There was a relational belonging in the Fathers acknowledgement that Jesus was His Son. There was the affirmation of His love and His pleasure bestowed on the Son. The third part of the trinity descended on Him in the form of a dove. In the presence of many, it was clearly presented Jesus' ministry would be an example that would reshape the world because God came close, in human form.

Later, in Luke's narrative, we will discover what that mission was and why God had to come in Human form to do that which mankind was unable to do for themselves. But at the start of Jesus ministry, it was important to see that all three of the persons in the God head were in one accord. There would be constant communication, lest Jesus stray humanly from the designed path for His time on earth.

There is a lesson for me to learn from this. I am prone to act ahead of prayer and to make decisions within my own sense of what is right. Whenever I do that, it never works out well. And I am reminded that prayer is important. All kinds of prayer are important, but the greatest of prayers is when I am seeking God's direction for my thoughts and actions.

Susan and I lead a Life Group at our church. As Fall approaches, it is time to decide a direction for the year. In my arrogance and pride, I can easily make a decision that is satisfying to me, without getting a lead from the Lord and consensus from members of the life group. And then the conviction comes, in my spirit, that I am doing it again; running ahead of the Lord. It isn't that the ideas I have are great and, even honoring to the Lord. It is my attitude that is wrong. My motive is purely selfish, serving myself alone. It does not serve the mission of Jesus or the group I lead.

So, at the Lord's prompting, I slow down. I present my ideas to the group as discussion starters and then stand back and see what God does. After much prayer, He does show up and guides the discussion in the direction that will best serve me and the members of the group. And I walk away feeling a peace and serenity, instead of anxiety and perhaps, loss of relationship, which is the goal of the group.

Jesus did not come to abolish the law but to give us a better understanding of it. Paul got it when he said that the law kills, not because the law is bad, but it can become a superficial set of rules that takes God out of the equation. We use it against one another rather than, through love, allow it bring unity. The law, applied without love, creates division and disharmony. Applied with love, the law unites us into a formidable force for good. The law applied without love brings punishment rather than correction; control of one sect over another rather than living with one another, looking for solutions which benefit all and build community. God showed us this so clearly at Jesus' baptism. I know I can benefit from emulating God's approach to life's decisions.