Observation

This was a popular question and many candidates were attracted to it and performed greatly in both parts. Candidates gave relevant points to the question and were able to narrate what transpired between Jesus and John the Baptist.  However, in Part a, the challenges most candidates encountered was that they gave a general summary of the narratives of all the synoptic gospels and were unable to give a clear distinction as it was narrated by each of the gospels. In some other instances, candidates wrote about the transfiguration rather than baptism. Points candidates were expected to highlights includes;

1. All the synoptic gospels reported the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist, thus their account were very identical.
2. According to the gospels, Jesus came down from Nazareth of Galilee to be baptised by John the Baptist in the river Jordan.
3. Matthew records that John recognised Jesus as the expected Messiah when he saw Him.
4. He wondered why Jesus should come to him for baptism since Jesus was superior to him.
5. John therefore became hesitant in baptizing Jesus.
6. However, Jesus persuaded John to baptize him saying, let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfil all righteousness.
7. John then agreed and had Jesus baptised.
8. As Jesus came out of the water, the heavens opened and the Spirit of the Lord descended upon Him like a dove.
9. Then a voice was heard from heaven saying “this is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased”.
10. The text above alluded to the baptism of Jesus as an event that marked Jesus’ call into the ministry.
11. The voice quoted confirmed Jesus as the Messiah/ anointed son/ the Christ.
12. Jesus got baptized in order to identify Himself with the sinners He came to redeem.
13. The Holy Spirit which came upon Jesus led and guided Him to do God’s will.
14. Going to John for baptism was a sign of lending support to John’s work.
15. There is disparity among the synoptic gospels about the time the dove descended on Jesus, while Matthew and Mark said that this happened as Jesus was being baptized, Luke said it happened after the baptism.
16. Similarly, only Matthew reported John’s reluctance to baptize Jesus.
17. Luke reported that after He had been baptized, Jesus prayed and the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit in a form of a dove, descended upon him.

In the part b, steps to take to being committed to God include;

1. Obedience to God’s commandments/ trusting and relying on God.
2. Engaging in church duties and activities e.g. worship, seminars, crusades, evangelism etc.
3. Scripture studies and its application to life.
4. Tolerance/respect for other faiths.
5. Knowing more about the beliefs and practices of one’s religion.
6. Caring for the poor and needy.
7. Seeking forgiveness through confession and forgiving one another.
8. Readiness to accept responsibility.