God of the Valleys – The Valley of Miracles

God of the Valleys – The Valley of Miracles.

The Jordan Valley is the site of the Jordan River as it flows north to south through Israel, from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea, seventy miles away. The width of this river valley varies depending on the section and the type of terrain, from as narrow as one mile wide to as wide as eight miles across. The Jordan Valley has the distinction of being the lowest in elevation of any valley in the world. The Jordan River is now carefully controlled because of its value for irrigation and electric power in the very dry climate of Israel. The River is a very important biblical site, mentioned over 180 times in the Hebrew Bible and several times in the New Testament as well.

Jordan Valley could easily be called the Valley of Miracles because of the number of significant biblical events that occurred there or in its river:

(1.)  In a noble gesture, typical of Abraham, he offered his nephew Lot the first pick as they had to settle in different areas. Lot chose the lush Jordan Valley with its amazing well-watered landscape. Unfortunately, Lot chose to settle down in Sodom near the Dead Sea, a major, life-changing mistake because of its historical wickedness. Abraham ended up in Canaan, later to be the Promised Land. (Genesis 13:10-13).

(2.) The Israelites have finally reached the Promised Land after 40 years of wandering. Moses has died and his disciple Joshua has taken command of the Chosen People. “Joshua was filled with the Spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. The people of Israel listened obediently to Joshua and did the same as when God had commanded Moses.” (Deut. 34:10-12). God had earlier commissioned Joshua to take over the leadership of the Israelites, and now the time has come to take the Land.

The people of Israel came to the banks of the Jordan River, and, because it was the spring season, the water was moving too swiftly and was too high to cross safely. (Joshua 3). Per Yahweh’s instructions, Joshua had the priests carry the Ark of the Covenant into the River and stand there. Immediately the water stopped flowing, and made a bank of water upstream. As the Ark was held by the priests on the water bed, the people all crossed the river on dry ground. There wasn’t a wet foot in the whole company. Joshua then told the leaders to build a stone memorial to signify this historic moment, so the people would not forget this miracle.

(3.)  We read about the astounding ministry of Elijah in 1 Kings 17-21 and 2 Kings 1-2. We don’t know the family background of Elijah, though we do know he was from the other side of the tracks in Gilead. He was a unique personality in Scripture… Sometimes fearful, other times fearless; sometimes weak, other times strong; sometimes discouraged, other times full of confidence; sometimes he ran from trouble, and other times he ran right into the middle of it. Because he was a loner, he often felt isolated and abandoned. We also know he enjoyed an unusual personal relationship with God. He was consistently a man of deep faith and fervent prayer. Elijah was noted for his distinctive wardrobe: a famous cloak made of fur and animal hair stitched together; and a leather loincloth, a homemade piece of underwear that no doubt raised the eyebrows of many. Elijah was a religious reformer and a miracle worker. He was a thorn in King Ahab’s side, who even called Elijah “the troublemaker of Israel.” (1 Kings 18:17). He had a flair for the dramatic and the supernatural. Elijah prayed successfully for a drought, then prayed for a rainfall three years later. He multiplied food and oil for a poverty-stricken widow, and then raised her son from the dead, the first resurrection in the Scripture. He held a divine duel between himself and 850 pagan prophets on Mt. Carmel, and he won. With God on his side, it was no contest. After his prediction of a drought, he was instructed by the Lord to go to the Jordan Valley near the River. While there, He was miraculously fed by ravens in the wilderness, bread and meat for breakfast and the same for dinner! (1 Kings 17:1-7).

(4.)  After a turbulent, faithful life as a single-minded prophet of God, Elijah has come to the end of his life. He evidently has received a vision from the Lord that he will be taken from this earth, and not die. Elijah has already named Elisha as his successor, in obedience to God’s directive (1 Kings 19:16). Elijah is waiting for the end, whatever that might look like. Both men walked toward the Jordan River. Once there, Elijah strikes the Jordan with his famous cloak, the waters miraculously separate, and they both walk to the other side on dry ground. This incident, which was accepted rather casually by Elijah and Elisha, reminds us of the first entry of the Israelites into the land of Canaan. Crossing the Jordan River on dry ground is getting to be a habit for the Israelites! (2 Kings 2:7-9).

(5.)  Elisha was the kindest miracle worker one could hope for. He cared for the practical needs of ordinary people in their daily lives. As he came upon needy people in his journeys, he was used of God to meet those needs. One study Bible mentions that there were at least eighteen encounters between Elisha and people in some type of need, and Elisha each time demonstrated powerful and caring help to those people. Some of his ordinary miracles were… He purified the drinking water for the people of Jericho; He multiplied the amount of a widow’s supply of oil so she could pay her debts and keep her sons from being sold into debtor’s slavery; he purified a poisonous stew so a group of prophets could eat it safely; he found a group of 100 prophets who didn’t have enough food to eat, so he multiplied loaves of bread for them till all were satisfied; he raised a child to life. Elisha’s kindness knew no bounds. Elisha even healed a man with leprosy… There was a powerful man who was the commander of the army of the king of Syria, and he was looked upon with favor by the Lord because of his honorable life. Elisha offered to heal Naaman of his leprosy, asking Naaman to wash in the waters of the Jordan River, dipping seven times. Reluctantly, Naaman did as instructed, and “his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.” (2 Kings 5:14).

(6.) “Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan River went out to him there and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.” (Matthew 3:4-6). John the Baptist was the end of an era. He was the last and greatest prophet in the Old Testament tradition. John, whose name means “Lord is gracious,” was the miracle baby of the aged couple Zechariah and Elizabeth. He was born into a priestly family, since Zechariah was an active priest in the Temple and Elizabeth was in the family line of Aaron. It would be difficult to find another biblical personality, apart from the Messiah, who was the object of so many prophecies.

John was chosen before birth to be the forerunner of the Messiah, the one who would prepare the way for the appearance of the Anointed One in this world. John would not go into this crucial mission empty-handed – he was filled with the Holy Spirit from birth. Despite his lineage, John was not raised in a priestly home. From childhood he lived out in the desert, probably with an ascetic community that were strict members of Judaism. In this wilderness, he grew physically strong, mentally disciplined, and spiritually focused, and well-versed in the Hebrew Scriptures. Much of his childhood was spent in solitude with God, away from the Temple and all its rules, and from society in general. As it turned out, John was well-prepared to have a holy stubbornness as to his calling. He was tough and single-minded and well able to live off locusts and wild honey in a simple existence. Some scholars estimated that John’s ministry was only for a space of six months, but evidently that was all the time that Jesus needed to enter His part in the story of salvation. John got the most out of his spiritual audacity while doing God’s work at the Jordan River.

(7.) “One day Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and John baptized him in the Jordan River. As Jesus came up out of the water, he saw the heavens splitting apart and the Holy Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice from heaven said, “You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy!” (Mark 1:9-11; also refer to Matthew 3:13-17; Luke 3:21-22; and John 1:29-34). The big question is why? Why would Jesus the Sinless One submit to a baptism which is intended for the repentance of sins?

1. To receive the Father’s blessing to begin His ministry. In His words of affirmation, God gave the heavenly seal of approval to inaugurate Jesus’ mission as Messiah. God’s words were, “You are my dearly beloved Son, and you bring me great joy! With you I am well pleased!” These words are a combination of Psalm 2:7, which is messianic, and Isaiah 42:1, which coronates the role of Suffering Servant, and Genesis 22:2, which brings to mind Isaac and the sacrifice and the fact that God is saying that He is the Father who has a Son who will truly die. God’s affirmation to Jesus confirms that the Messiah King would travel the road of the Suffering Servant.
2. To confess the sins of His people, in the tradition of Nehemiah (1:6), Ezra (9:10), Daniel (9:4-6), and others in biblical history who bore the burdens of the sins of the people. In submitting to baptism, Jesus shouldered the responsibility of Israel’s sinfulness, and acknowledged that Israel needs to be purified and forgiven. Jesus’ baptism was an act of repentance, but for His people, not for Him.
3. To identify with all of humanity and their fallen nature. Jesus is giving a nod to His human identity, wanting to be in solidarity with all people. All people need to be purified, He is a fellow human being, therefore He will identify Himself with humanity out of love and humility.
4. To show an example to believers, to be a pioneer in the baptismal way of turning to God. Jesus did nothing that requires repentance, but He wanted to show the way for those followers who are penitent.
5. To show support for John the Baptist, the “greatest prophet,” in his calling of preparing the way for the Lord. Jesus wanted to show the people that John was following a divinely inspired calling, and so He submitted to John’s baptism to affirm John’s prophetic work, and to confirm that John is preparing the way for Jesus the Messiah.
6. To declare publically that He was beginning His mission to the world. Jesus is announcing that He will now begin to bring His message of salvation to His people and to the world. It’s interesting that, “In His first pubic declaration of His ministry, instead of going to Jerusalem and identifying with the established religious leaders, Jesus went to a river and identified with those who are repenting of sin.” (NLT notes).
7. To become ordained in His role as Messianic Savior. Jesus was thirty years old at the time of His baptism, which was when rabbis were dedicated to teach and priests were ordained and declared fit to serve in the Temple. Some scholars believe that His baptism was the established time to receive a formal dedication to serve Yahweh, that John dedicated the temple of Jesus’ body, much like Solomon once dedicated the Temple.
8. To symbolize death and resurrection. When Jesus was immersed in baptism, He was symbolically buried in death. And when He rose out of the water, He gave us a picture of how He would minister in the way of new life in the power of the Holy Spirit. In His baptism, Jesus foreshadowed His own death and Resurrection, and He revealed the meaning behind the future sacrament of Christian baptism.
9. To be recognized as the divine Messiah. In a moment of inspiration at the baptismal site, John the Baptist called Jesus “the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29). John is referencing the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:3) that was slain to save the enslaved people of Israel from certain death. The Baptist is saying that Jesus is the Passover Lamb that is to be sacrificed to save the people from certain spiritual death. One Bible translator suggests that John’s baptizing of Jesus publically washed the sacrificial Lamb and fulfilled the requirements of the Law, confirming to Israel that the Lamb was spotless and without blemish. At the baptism, John confirmed that the untainted Lamb was now ready to be sacrificed for the life of the people. (Dr. Brian Simmons, Passion Translation notes).

The Holy Spirit descended like a dove from the Father to rest on the Son for His coming ministry. The dove is a symbol of peace, of gentleness, of purity, which are all reminders of the work of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit was seen to come in the bodily form of a dove to light on the Lord. This was a spiritual anointing by God for Jesus’ mission as Messiah, the “Anointed One.” Just as the Spirit hovered over the waters at the first creation, the Spirit once again hovered over the waters of Jesus’ baptism, this time for the new creation as brought about by the life and ministry of Jesus.