JESUS DID IT
By Steve Bietz
Burke County
The phrase, “What would Jesus do?” often abbreviated to WWJD, became popular particularly in the United States in the late 1800s after the widely read book by Charles Sheldon entitled, In His Steps: What Would Jesus Do. The phrase had a resurgence in the US and elsewhere beginning in the 1990s as a motto for Christians who use the phrase as a reminder of their belief in a moral compass to act in a manner that would demonstrate the love, character, and deeds of Jesus. “What would Jesus do” is indeed a good motto to imitate Christ.
However, don’t we have another level of imitating Jesus that should garner our attention? We have the Gospel accounts of scripture at our fingertips that relate to us not what Jesus would do, but what He did!
For example, we see in the gospels that a man named John, nicknamed The Baptist, was preaching at the Jordan River. And what was his appeal? John told his listeners to repent and be baptized. And as this happened, we see Jesus in Nazareth, removing his tool belt and leaving the family carpentry business and He makes His way to the Jordan River where John is preaching.
After we listen in on a brief conversation between Jesus and John as we hear John tell Jesus that he isn’t good enough for Jesus to ask him to baptize Him, John consents. And indeed, Jesus was not getting baptized because He needed cleansing from sin. Not at all! This is why John was reluctant. But as the fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy and as an example for all, Jesus convinces John to perform the valuable and important task.
There in Mark’s Gospel in the 1st chapter and the 10th verse we read: “And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove.” Interesting. Jesus came up out of the water. The form of baptism that Jesus did, is what is known as baptism by immersion. If one wants to do what Jesus did, and I hope we all want to do what Jesus did, then we would be baptized by allowing our bodies to be put under water thus showing the death of the old and the rebirth of the new man.
Jesus, as He concludes His time on earth when for a few weeks following His resurrection, He shares closing instructions to His followers before returning to Heaven. Jesus shares what is often called, The Great Commission. We have it recorded for us in Matthew 28:19, 20. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age.”
I see in many situations in scripture, where we do not need to wonder what Jesus might do. The Bible tells us again and again what Jesus did. And wouldn’t we all agree that it is always best to do what Jesus did?
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Steve Bietz is the pastor at Morganton Seventh Day Adventist Church. You can read more good Christian news from Pastor Steve Bietz HERE.
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Blue Ridge Christian News covers Burke County, McDowell County, Mitchell County, Yancey County, Madison County, in North Carolina, and Christian news from around the country.
