While baptizing people, John the Baptist had been proclaiming that the Baptism of the coming Messiah Jesus’ would be even more significant than his.

Matthew 3:11 (NIV)

11. “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

However, when Jesus later came to him and had asked to be baptized; John felt unqualified. He instead, wanted Jesus to baptize him. So why did Jesus end up taking baptism?

Firstly, John’s baptism was a call to repentance for all people; however, Jesus did not perform this act for the repentance of sins because He never sinned.

Rather, through His baptism, Christ identified with us sinners as He would ultimately bear our sins, and His perfect righteousness would be imputed to us.

Jesus was baptized for the following reasons:

• It pictures His death and resurrection; 
• It records Jesus’ initial public identification with those whose sins He would bear;
• it asserted His messiahship publicly by the testimony of the  Father received directly from heaven 
• To begin His public ministry that is the mission to bring the message of salvation to all people;
• He was confessing the sins on behalf of the nations, as Nehemiah, Ezra, Moses, and Daniel had done in the Old Testament;
• He was showing support for John’s Ministry;
• He was identifying with the contrite people of God, and not with the critical Pharisees who were only watching; and
• To give us an example to follow in obeying the act of baptism.

Jesus, the perfect man, did not need baptism for the repentance of sin, but He accepted the act of baptism in obedience and as a service to the Father who showed His approval and favor upon Him.