“And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
Matthew 3:17
The baptism of Jesus is recorded in the Gospels of Mathew, Mark and Luke.
In each of them we hear the words of the Father to the Son as noted above.
Some might be tempted to ask:
What had Jesus done up to that point to please the Father?
After all, His public ministry had not yet begun.
He likely had no marketing plan and, what about a team of disciples?
Well they would follow soon.
Oddly though, His ‘inner circle’ is held to only twelve men.
Surely mailing lists could have been more fruitful in marketing Jesus so that He could gather around Himself more than just the twelve?
How could a man amass the resources to sustain a thriving ministry with only twelve adherents?
Forgive me for my ‘tongue-in-cheek’ assumptions concerning what it takes to please the Father.
I don’t believe it is coincidental that we find the Father’s expression of pleasure with His Son at this very point in the record of Jesus’ life.
The words are spoken before a single act of public ministry is performed.
You see, the Father delighted in His Son, not for what He could or would do, but for who He was.
Maybe you seek God’s ‘approval’ through what you do.
Yet God loves you, not because of how you ‘perform’ for Him, but because of who you are!
He created you and He loves you.
You don’t need to earn His love.
As a matter of fact, you can’t.
His love is given to us apart from what we do.
Maybe you are struggling today because you connect the love of God to your life in a way He does not.
Don’t connect the dots He doesn’t connect.
Let go of all the ‘work’ to earn His love.
You already have it!
Connect the right dots!
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