Jesus baptism is the beginning of the adult ministry of Jesus. It is not impossible that he taught and served before that day, but before Jesus' baptism he was probably not the public figure that he must have become after this event. It was not every day that the people saw the heavens open up, and the voice of God come out of the sky. It was never heard of before that the Holy Ghost came down and manifested himself at someone’s baptism. And, mind you, baptism was not something new. It had been around since the beginning.

1 HEAR ye this, O house of Jacob, which are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, which swear by the name of the LORD, and make mention of the God of Israel, [but] not in truth, nor in righteousness. (Isaiah 48:1)

Perhaps there are no verses in holy writ that contains more condensed information than the accounts of the baptism of Jesus. You will be amazed at what you will find in just a few words. Let’s open the seal to the mysteries …

13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.

14 But John forbade him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?

15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer [it to be so] now: for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (Mathew 3:13-16)

21 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,

22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased. (Luke 3:21-22)

Let us list what we can learn from these verses:

1. Jesus Baptism shows that everyone must be baptized to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus didn’t need baptism for the remission of any sins committed, since he never committed any sins. He just had to be baptized because the Father had given a commandment that everyone must be baptized in order to be saved (even though baptism alone saves no-one). After the death and resurrection of Christ all followers of Jesus were baptized also as the rite of initiation into the true Church of Jesus Christ.
2. Jesus Baptism shows that baptism is a voluntary act by a consenting adult. John the Baptist preached repentance and baptism, and those so inclined, turned to him and asked him to baptize them. There is no evidence that John (or anyone else in the scriptures for that matter), baptized people who could not make a conscious decision of their own to be baptized, which of course makes a lot of sense, since little children are incapable of committing sin.
3. Jesus Baptism shows that baptism should done by emersion. “And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water”. If Jesus were not down in the river, he would not need to go straightway out of the water. And it would be a ridiculous thought that John would bring a coffee cup with which he could sprinkle Jesus with water. If sprinkling or splashing would do, John the Baptist wouldn’t need the Jordan River. Sprinkling could easily have been done from the river bank, but the baptism of John required walking out in the water. One would have to be rather stiff-necked not to see how a baptism (Greek =Immersion) in the middle of a river was done!
4. Jesus Baptism shows that a baptizer needs authority from God. The Sea of Galilee would be a great place to be baptized for someone dwelling in Galilee (which Jesus did). It would be a pretty bad place, if nobody in Galilee actually had the authority from God to actually perform this saving ordinance. And Jesus was not the only one traveling from afar to listen to John and to be baptized by him. It was recognized that he had the priesthood power of Aaron, and therefore he could baptize.
5. The voice of God at Jesus Baptism proves that God is the father of Jesus, not the Holy Ghost. ”Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.”  The question is, to whom did the voice belong? Well, it could not have been the Holy Ghost, since at the exact same time; “… the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him”. A voice from way up there claiming to be the father of Jesus. And right where Jesus is, the Holy Ghost appears. This excludes the Holy Ghost as the Father, and God, the Father is the only alternative left. Not strange, then, that Jesus keeps claiming that relationship throughout his life.
6. At Jesus Baptism it becomes clear that the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are separate individuals. Way, way up in the heavens there is a being, whom Jesus calls Father, and who, at Jesus’ baptism, is so filled with pride and joy that he proclaims: “Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.”, or possibly “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Surely Jesus looked heavenward, towards the sound of his Fathers voice. Then, suddenly, as a sign and a witness, the Holy Ghost manifests himself in “a bodily shape”. Up there – the Father, down on earth, walking out of the water – the Son, and descending in a bodily shape, like a dove – the Holy Ghost. Three separate and distinct individuals! Nevertheless, since they are one in purpose and will, they are one, just like in a good marriage a husband and wife are one.
7. From what happened at Jesus Baptism it can be deduced that The Father has a body. Let us look at the known specifics of the Father. He has a Son with a body. But not just in this life. When Jesus was resurrected the body was gone from the tomb. Thomas touched his body, felt the prints of the nails and thrust his hands into his side. He ate fish and bread with the disciples. So, the Father has a Son with a body. The Father has a voice. So, he should have an instrument that creates this voice, such as vocal chords. The father left Jesus on the cross. That means that the Father must have some kind of mass or concentrated being that could distance himself from Jesus. Jesus said to Pilate that he would be seen on the right hand of God. So, both Jesus and the Father would be seen. Jesus is easy, since we know he has a body, and it appears that the father has one as well. But Jesus said that God is Spirit, and must be worshiped in spirit and truth? Is not this a contradiction? No, it is not, but it will not be dealt with on this page.

Is it not amazing how much we could read out of those few verses? The baptism of Jesus is a goldmine of information.