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Luke 3:21-38 English Standard Version (ESV)
21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” The Genealogy of Jesus Christ 23 Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, 24 the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, 25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, 26 the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, 27 the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel,[c]the son of Neri, 28 the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, 29 the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, 30 the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, 31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, 32 the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon, 33 the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, 34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, 35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah,36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, 37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. |
In these verses, we have recorded Jesus’ baptism and then a long list of members of His family tree. His baptism was of course significant in that He was identifying with the sinners that He came to save. It was also the official start of His ministry. But perhaps most significant was what happened next – v 22 ..’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.”
Here we see the three members of the Trinity coming together effectively commissioning Jesus for His service. This was the Son of God – Manhood and Deity. But notice that this is not the only place that this title stated in this section. The phrase ‘the Son of God’ is also recorded at the end of verse 38 – ‘the Son of Adam, the Son of God’.
Through the recorded generations, we see the first Adam, God’s perfect creation, yet one through whom sin entered the world. We trace through the generations – Adam, Noah, Abraham, David, and Zerubbabel and find all the boxes ticked in terms of Jesus’ qualifications to be the Messiah and critically, to be our Saviour. He was the Son of God, but he was also the Son of Man. The Christmas hymn captures these truths well;
Meekness and majesty, Manhood and Deity
In perfect harmony, the Man who is God
Lord of eternity, dwells in humanity
Kneels in humility and washes our feet
CHORUS:
O what a mystery
Meekness and majesty
Bow down and worship
For this is your God
This is your God
Alan P