The Baptism Site

In this place, past, present and future are interwoven. Here God and man meet in the journey of redemption. The Old and the New Testaments meet, bound together in this redemptive line. Thus, all of time is a single reality, without division, a reality of spirit and faith, which becomes more firmly rooted in the hearts of believers as time passes.

The area of the baptism site is a holy place which has a mysterious “life” of its own, as if it were a haven of the Spirit. Here the Spirit continuously bestows that life and revives those who believe in Christ.

The prophetic periods succeeded uninterrupted, one after another, and generated a tangible history beyond symbols. When the Messiah arose, the shadows of the ancient symbols disappeared. What remained was the reality of God and the reality of revelation in the path of redemption.

Upon Mount Nebo God revealed Himself to Moses, as He had previously revealed Himself at Sinai, and Moses stood and looked over the Promised Land stretched out in front of him. He was allowed to enjoy the vision of this land before he encountered, through death, the celestial promised land. He saw the Jordan River before him, descending from the heights of Mount Hermon into the depths of the Jordan valley. The river would give life to the surrounding trees and vegetation and quench the thirst of men and creatures while it awaited the events that would occur along its banks in the path of redemption.

After Moses passed away, Joshua, the son of Nun, crossed with the Israelites into the Promised Land, and this crossing was a symbol of Christ’s crossing, with all of humanity, from death to life—crossing from the slavery of sin to the freedom of being sons of God.

But soon after their entrance into the Holy Land the people turned from the worship of God and took to worshipping strange gods. God sent to them many prophets to bring them back to true belief in His oneness and observance of His commandments. One of the most famous of these prophets was Elijah, who lived during the time of the rule of King Ahab in Israel. Ahab and his wife oppressed Elijah, and when Elijah grew old, God inspired him to leave and settle in what is today Jordan. So he left with his appointed successor, Elisha, who carried on his spirit and message. When they arrived at the River Jordan, Elijah struck it with his cloak and parted the waters of the river. He and Elisha crossed the dry land, and as they were speaking together upon the other side of the river, a fiery chariot came and carried Elijah into the heavens.

Time passed and the Babylonian armies crossed the river heading toward Jerusalem. They besieged and occupied the city. The Babylonian army transferred the people of the city to Babylon, but after some seventy years, the captives were allowed to return to Jerusalem to rebuild it and worship the one God therein.

Again, hundreds of years passed and John the Baptist appeared at Bethany (Bayt ‘Anya) on the far side of the Jordan River. He continued the path of faith and took the message from Moses – representative of the Holy Law – and from Elijah – representative of the prophets of the Old Testament. John was the last prophet in the manner of the Old Testament prophets and the first prophet of the New Testament. He called the people to repent in preparation for the arrival of Christ, the Redeemer, and began to baptize in the Jordan River and the surrounding springs. The baptism he administered was a symbol of repentance and belief in God. Fleeing the authorities because of his sermons, he made for Bethany. He would sleep and rest in a cave close to the springs of the Valley of Kharrar (what is today known as “Sapsaphas”) and the cave of Elijah. The Bible states that here people from Jerusalem, Judea and the surrounding regions of the Jordan flocked to John for baptism.

Around this time, Jesus left Nazareth, went to Bisan and crossed the Jordan River to the east bank. He slept his first night near Bela (the region of Fahl), then continued his journey on the eastern side of the Jordan valley until he reached Bethany and went to John for baptism. Jesus joined in the line of penitents asking for baptism, yet he was pure, free from all sin. He was the one who would say to the Jews, “Who among you can provide evidence that I have committed a sin.” John knew of Jesus from the revelation and inspiration of the Holy Spirit. John, however, objected to baptizing Jesus saying, “I am the one that needs you to baptize me!” But upon Jesus’ continued insistence, John acquiesced and baptized Jesus in the Jordan River. Therefore, the water of the Jordan became holy and all the waters that flow along the baptism site were purified, reviving the souls of people at every place and time and saving them from the slavery of sin.

As Jesus was coming out of the water, he saw the heavens open up and the Holy Spirit descending like a dove. He heard a voice from above say, “You are My beloved...with whom I am well-pleased.” Then the Spirit took Jesus into the wilderness where he remained for forty days, and where Satan tempted him. In the wilderness Jesus dwelt among the wild beasts, but the angels looked after him.

Then the Jews in Jerusalem sent some of the Scribes and Pharisees to question John, and John said to them, “I am not the Messiah, I am only a voice crying out in the wilderness saying, ‘Follow the path of God and make firm His path.’”

After Jesus came back from the wilderness to Bethany he found John sitting with two of his students. When John saw Jesus he said to his students, “This is the Lamb of God who will take away the sin of the world.” Hearing this, the two students decided to follow Jesus and were in turn followed by three others, among them Peter.

Jesus carried the torch of faith from John the Baptist, the torch that had also been carried by Moses, Elijah and the other prophets. From Bethany Jesus declared the good news of God, saying, “The Hour draws near and the Kingdom of God is at hand! So, repent and have faith in the good news of God!”