GOD'S PLEASURE

16 After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; 
and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the 
Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him,
17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, 
"This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased."

Such glorious words!  I hear them and immediately imagine myself standing on the banks of the Jordan.  John's wild hair and camel skins are flapping in the breeze.  Maybe he has a bit of honey and locust still stuck to a corner of his mouth.  Jesus, simple and humble and pulsating with the power of heaven has just addressed John's concerns regarding the appropriateness of water baptizing the "Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world."  Freshly soaked seekers mingle with skeptics and spies on the shore, honored, curious, and plotting, respectively.

Jesus stands there, now, dripping wet.  Face glistening in the sunshine as the unforgettable phenomena occur.  The very Presence of God, shimmering in the form of a large, gentle dove alights the body of the Christ - an unmistakable symbol of the peace that is being extended to all mankind, now embodied in this One, Son of Man.  Then, the unthinkable happens - Father speaks.  Not the still, small voice of intimate prayer; but, the loudspeaker of heaven booms out the official, celestial announcement:  "Here stands before you, My very own Son - perfectly intimate with, approved and enjoyed by me in every and any way possible!  And all that pleases Me is found in Him." Talk about your epic OMG moment!  Can you place yourself there?  Can you imagine witnessing such an event?  Now, take it a step further - can you picture yourself standing where Jesus was, in the very place He was, when this was said?

Well, according to God, you were and are.  I know, such love and favor are too much to grasp - too wonderful to comprehend!  But it's true.  Our lives have been hidden in Christ Jesus.  We are seated with Him in heavenly realms.  When the Father, Holy and Beautiful, Wise and Majestic, Perfect and Powerful, looks at us, He sees who we are in Christ, not what we were before Him.  Jesus, the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world, is our Hiding Place.  And when Papa God, nearly two thousand years ago, looked at Jesus and said, "IN HIM I AM WELL-PLEASED," He knew we were there.  You and I, blood-bought and born-again, have become the very pleasure of God, wrapped up, safe and secure in the Person of Jesus Christ, our friend and older brother.  Now, go back to that moment at the Jordan.  Listen to the words of your Daddy, as He says of you, "In this child of mine, I am well pleased;" and then join me in weeping for the joy and gratitude of such a truth.