His Mighty Strength (Randy Frazee)Sample

When John baptized Jesus, something dramatic happened—something that hadn’t happen to anyone else John had baptized. 

God the Father, the first person of the Trinity, declared his association with and his approval of Jesus, and the mission Jesus formally began that day. 

Did you catch the clue that answers the question about where Jesus got his power to do miracles? It happens when the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus like a dove. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. The Spirit is fully God, endowed with all the traits of God—omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence.

Why might God part the heavens and make a dramatic public statement about Jesus in this way? It is certainly a ceremonial anointing and commissioning for ministry (Acts 10:38), but there is more. The Spirit wasn’t making a cameo appearance at the Jordan, walking across the stage of Jesus’ life only to exit again on the other side. 

 The Holy Spirit didn’t return to the heavens after the baptism, nor did the Spirit come and go on an as-needed basis. The Holy Spirit remained with Jesus to guide him and empower him—day by day, hour by hour, moment by moment. Jesus didn’t lead himself into the wilderness; the Spirit did. Why? To complete an essential component in God’s master plan of salvation. 

For most of my Christian life, I assumed Jesus just had an advantage. He was God and therefore had the power to do whatever he wanted or needed. Now, I realize that this was not the case. Jesus emptied himself of these amazing powers because he didn’t want to have the advantage. He voluntarily put himself in a place of extreme vulnerability so he would have to rely on the Father’s will to guide his steps and on the Holy Spirit for the power he needed to pull it all off.

Jesus was limited, just like you and me, and yet he performed amazing miracles. Not only that, he also taught that we have access to that same power and more.