21-22 When all the people were being baptised, Jesus was baptised too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” 23 Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son - so it was thought - of Joseph. (Luke 3:21-23)

Luke tells us that Jesus chose to be baptised and, right from the start, God allowed some to see and hear who Jesus really was. (vs 21-22) Luke then goes on to give one of those long Bible lists of names most of us usually want to skip over. But this family tree business was important to the Jews and shows us that the Bible is about people who really lived throughout history. I've given Luke's list here and have bold printed the names we've probably heard more often than the others. Luke says:

24 -38 Joseph was the son of Heli, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melki, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josek, the son of Joda, the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel (who lived some 500 years before Jesus was born).

Zerubbabel was the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, the son of Melki, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz. (Who lived about 1,300 years before Jesus was born).

Boaz was the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Kenan, the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. Luke 3:21-38 New International Version

Wow! Are all those names really important? Well, Dr Luke was obviously very careful about facts and wanted his readers to know that Jesus Christ descended from a long line of Jewish ancestors which included people such as David, Abraham, Noah and even Adam – the man who God created to start the human race. Luke calls Adam 'son of God' because he wasn't born to a mom and dad like the rest of the family tree. But there's an important difference in Adam being called ‘son of God’, and Jesus, who God declared to be His son whom He loved and was well pleased with. Can you spot that difference from what vs 23 says?

Jesus existed before he came into the world through Mary – he was not conceived in the normal way which the others had been conceived. Adam was created - but Jesus wasn't. Other parts of the Bible tell us that everything came into existence through Jesus. So Jesus is the unique son of God.

But even though Jesus is special and wasn't tainted by the sin Adam had brought into the world, what did he choose to do (vs 21) and why do you think he did that?

Baptism was linked to repenting of sin and seeking forgiveness, so Jesus didn't NEED to do be baptized. When John the Baptist asked him why, Jesus replied: “Because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” (Matthew 3:15) Obedience is a very important part of being a child of God. Adam was a son, but disobeyed, and what disaster it brought. Jesus obeyed his Father perfectly, and what wonderful results it led to. It was through his perfect obedience that he was able to be the perfect sacrifice that makes imperfect sinners perfectly clean in God's sight.