Jesus’ public ministry

In the context of Jesus’ Baptism, the Bible states: “Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry” (Luke 3:23). The 40 days of temptation by Satan followed Jesus’ Baptism (Luke 4:1-2).

While Jesus’ public ministry began with his Baptism, we do not want to minimize the first three decades of his life. Prior to his Baptism, Jesus had been leading a quiet, holy life because he was “born under law, to redeem those under law” (Galatians 4:4-5). Jesus acted as our substitute in life, keeping the law of God perfectly in our place. That holy life, along with his sacrifice on the cross as our substitute, won our forgiveness of sins.