Jesus Prays at His Baptism

Luke 3:21, 22: "And it came to pass when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus, having been baptized, was praying, that heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily appearance like a dove upon Him, and there was a voice from heaven, saying, “Thou art My beloved Son; in Thee I am well pleased.”

Although this episode is also reported in Matthew and Mark, the Gospel of Luke is the only one which mentions that Jesus prayed during His baptism. This emphasis upon prayer in Luke is consistent with the premise that a major theme of this gospel is the reformation of our understanding—the part of our mind that is focused on learning truth, having faith, and communing with God in prayer.

The beautiful words, “heaven was opened,” suggest that a revelation took place as Jesus prayed, a revelation which found expression in the divine utterance: “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased” (Luke 3:22).

This episode speaks to each of us of the importance of prayer in our lives. These are the times when we turn inward in search of the Father, listening for guidance, instruction, comfort, inspiration, and revelation. This process of turning inward in search of that which is deeply spiritual is essential. Without it, our efforts to serve others will be based on the weak and crumbling foundation of our own self-hood. We should never let our egos interfere with the great work the Lord wants to do through us. In prayer, we quiet the inner chatter, we enter the stillness, we speak to God and listen for the divine response. As it is written in the Hebrew scriptures, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

“The Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him” (Habakkuk 2:20).

To silence “the earth” is to temporarily put aside the cares of the external world while resting in God. In brief, it is the endeavor to silence the voice of the ego long enough to hear the voice of God. This is at the heart of a contemplative life. ¹

Before beginning any vital work, the first step is to begin with prayer. Jesus’ baptism in Luke captures this idea beautifully. Jesus was about to begin His public ministry. But before the heavens could be opened to Him, before the revelation and the inspiration could come, Jesus needed to take that first crucial step. He needed to pray: “And while He prayed, heaven was opened.” It was only then that He was ready to begin His public ministry. As it is written, “Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age”.

Teachings like these remind us of how important it is to precede action with contemplation, and precede public service with private devotion. While ministry and service are noble ends, they must be filled with the wisdom of spiritual purpose. Behind every successful, worthwhile action is a life grounded in contemplation and prayer. ²

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167. Charity in the case of the Business Man.

If he looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins, and carries on his business honestly, justly, and faithfully, he becomes a charity. He acts with prudence of his own, as it were, though trusting all the while in Divine Providence; consequently he is not depressed in misfortunes, nor is he filled with pride in successes. He thinks of the morrow, and yet he does not think of it. He thinks of what will have to be done on the morrow, and how it should be done; yet he does not think of the morrow, because he attributes the future to Divine Providence and not to his own prudence: even his own prudence he attributes to Divine Providence. He loves transacting business as the principal part of his occupation, and loves money as the instrument of it; and he does not make the money the principal thing, and the business the instrumental, as the majority of the Jews do. Thus he loves the work, which is in itself a good of use, and does not love the means more than the work. He does not indeed make this distinction, but they are nevertheless so distinguished when he looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins. For he shuns avarice, which is an evil, and the root of more evils. He loves the general good while loving his own good; for in this the general good lies, as the root of a tree hiding itself underground, out of which, nevertheless, the tree grows, and blossoms and bears fruit. Not that he gives the general good more, out of his own, than is due; but because the public good is also his fellow-citizen's good having its existence from the latter, and he loves his fellow-citizens from the charity of which he is a form. No one can know the hidden things of charity in himself, because he does not see them: but the Lord sees them.