Matthew wrote by THE SPIRIT in chapter 3:
16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.
17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
It please FATHER for the Spirit to come upon Jesus just as it pleases FATHER for us to receive the Holy Spirit… HE is well pleased. We must never forget the importance of The Holy Spirit in our lives. This event is described in all four Gospels so there would be four difference inspired witnesses to this event. John The Baptist was the current authentic priest under the Old Covenant and performed his duties accordingly. He had not been compromised as others had been thus he could conduct the baptism in its purity.
FATHER allowed HIS Voice to be audibly heard by those who were to witness the event so there would be no question of the validity of Jesus’ ministry. What a Holy moment for all in attendance! There would be no question of Jesus being led by THE SPIRIT as He was to be tested and tempted in the wilderness by the wicked one. There would be attempts to re-interpret the Word but Jesus would see through those attempts and quote the appropriate Word backed by its Divine Intent.
More about John the Baptist being the priest under the Old Covenant. By THE SPIRIT it is recorded in Luke chapter 1:
8 So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division,
9 according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.
10 And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense.
11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.
15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.
16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.
17 He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
John was the only priest in history whose birth was announced by an angel in the sanctuary of priests. The highest ministry of the priesthood was to cleanse the people of their sins and that is exactly what John’s ministry was fulfilling in the Jordan river. John represented the Aaronic priesthood and the ending of that priesthood occurred in the Jordan that day as the High Priest of the New Covenant was ordained. The Aaronic priesthood bore witness of the New when FATHER proclaimed “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
John acknowledged Jesus’ superior priesthood in Matthew 3:
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.
14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”
15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.
The Blessing was spoken and the priesthood was passed from the Old to the New. Everything was done lawfully and in proper sequence. This became the focal point in the beginning of the new priesthood and we should take our calling by FATHER with the same seriousness as that fateful day when the priesthood was transferred to our High Priest.