Luke 7:30 But the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.
The Scribes and Pharisees had elevated themselves into such a position whereby they were rejecting God’s teachings in favour of their own!
“Shocking!” you may say, but how many of us do exactly that every day by saying what we say is right and not allowing God’s Word to show us the correct and righteous way!
They refused to be baptised because that would mean they would have to follow God’s ways. Our baptism should be the outward sign of the inner willingness to follow God!