Jesus’s command joins faith and baptism to salvation and the Church’s mission. John Paul II explains that the early Church therefore preaches conversion accompanied by baptism for the forgiveness of sins: the sacrament is not merely an inward change but entry into the Christian community and into Christ’s Mystical Body. Though sinless, Jesus accepts John’s baptism in solidarity with sinners, revealing his mission as the Lamb of God; he also calls his coming passion a baptism into suffering for the salvation of all.

At the Jordan, the Father declares Jesus his beloved Son and the Holy Spirit rests upon him, prefiguring the Spirit’s gift in Christian baptism. Saint Paul’s image of participation in Christ’s death and resurrection shows baptism as renunciation of sin and rebirth into new life. Unlike symbolic purification rites, it is an effective sign that truly forgives, cleanses the conscience, clothes believers in Christ, and makes them adopted children of God.