9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” (Mark 1)
As expected, Mark's description of the Baptism of Jesus is more brief than the other gospel writers. Like Matthew, he records Jesus came and was baptized. He doesn't waste any words about the discussion that took place, but moves right to the action: he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove, then the voice from heaven saying: You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” When God has something big to say, especially when it has to do with the coming of His Son, there are visual signs in the heavens. God wanted it made perfectly clear to Jesus in His humanity, John in his position as forerunner, and all the witnesses there that day, that Jesus was His Son, with Whom He was well-pleased. That complex word means God gave great consideration to Who needed to be the One to carry out His plan, and the only One Who would do was His one and only Son. The visualized coming of the Holy Spirit said to Jesus: "We're all in this together"; it marked to John the fulfillment of God's promise to him, and it indicated to the other witnesses there Christ's holy uniqueness and blessing. For us it is all a picture full of meaning, as to what God did through Christ, and what He wants to do in us. He wants us to find cleansing and forgiveness in Christ, the fullness of His Spirit working in us, and fellowship with Him - that incomparable confidence that we are pleasing to Him.
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