John’s baptism was one of Preparation - Note from Wednesday Bible study Mtg...2-24-21
We hear about many famous or infamous people in history with the title “the great”.. Like Alexander the great.. Like Herod the great… I found over a hundred characters with the title The Great after their name.. Many were actually not so great.. Alexander for example did some great things but considering him morally, personally he was not so great.. Herod was definitely not so great.. Greatness is excelling beyond the normal standard of excellence… to be unique, to be singular or Being or accomplishing what is a cut above.. this is the measure of greatness .. I found out that of all baseball players that secure contracts 92% will never play a major baseball game… Only 8% will ever play in the major league at all and of course .5 % or less will ever become a household name or superstar… Only .5% will ever be truly great…..
When it comes to John the Baptist Jesus Christ said he was a great man.. He said of all of those born of women none is greater than John the Baptist…What made him great.. well, it wasn’t because he lived a long life.. He died at a relatively young age being imprisoned and executed.. It wasn’t because he had a long ministry.. He had a very short one…But he was great because his life counted.. What he did with what God gave him he made it count for the glory of the Lord…
We believe that John was the 2nd cousin of Jesus.. John was destined to become a priest from birth. He came from a priestly line. His father a priest…. Zachariah, his mother Elizabeth. John would have been destined to follow that priestly line like his father before him and would have had a wonderful life… All the ducks were in a row for him…He was from the right tribe , the right family and he would have naturally inherited from his father his position…
I found that a priest must be in training , in those days beginning at age 20, but would not go into ministry until his age 30..John and Jesus were only a few months apart. But John being a priest kid was one who went rouge…He didn’t follow the protocol, ..He didn’t get trained in the temple… He went down into the desert.. to the wilderness as we find him in chapter 3…Its possible he may have hung out with a nomadic tribe there..But it was all because that’s what the Lord wanted him to do. It was for a very special purpose ..He was the forerunner of the messiah in a very unusual manner… Placed in the desert, near the Dead Sea, at more than 1000 ft below sea level, in Judea, In the middle of nowhere.
I often marvel at God’s ways ..how he calls people and what he sets them up to do and where he sends them or how He places them ..Often it is counterintuitive.. It just doesn’t make sense… so that when you get to John the Baptist you have to smile…He was a very unusual guy for sure.. the decisions he made, what he looked like, the things he ate, the things he said and how he said them…..Its as if he steps out of the pages of the old testament and steps right into the first page of the new testament….If fact he was the last old testament prophet.. After 400 hundred years of silence in the old testament here came John and he was very much like the old testament prophets of antiquity. Very much “Elijah like” in his presentation. He was a fire and brimstone prophet from the ancient world and steps into the pages of the new testament…The way Luke writes about John the Baptist is somewhat important to understand…He sets the historical background for John and here’s why.. the coming or introduction of John was in Luke’s mind a hinge of history…It was so monumental that he want to make sure that the readers understood the dates that underscored what it all happened…He sets the scene internationally, he sets the scene nationally and he sets the scene spiritually… As described by Luke at the chosen moment in time the word of God came to the son of Zachariah , in the wilderness….Now John the Baptist comes on the scene to pave the road for the messiah…. HE IS GOING TO DO SO By WHAT HE DOES AND WHAT HE SAYS. What he does is baptise people ..What he says is pretty scathing….The baptism that John was performing was the baptism of “preparation”..
John baptised people while he was pointing his finger forward to someone who was going to baptise them in the holy spirit… It was not the same baptism as that of Jesus…
John’s baptism was one of preparation ( for the coming of Christ) not one of transformation like being baptised in the name of Jesus…
Act 19..paul…Paul asked the converts if they had received the holy spirit since they believed. They said well..we have not even heard if there “is” a holy spirit.. Paul said them into what then were you baptised? They said into John’s Baptism.. Immediately Paul said… Truly John’s baptism was a baptism unto repentance but he spoke of one that was to come that was Jesus Christ and he re-baptised them in the name of Jesus…because one was preparation ..the other was transformation….
The baptism of the Holy spirit is one where the Holy spirit enters the life and totally regenerates that life.. It is a moment in time when one becomes a part of the holy spirit and the holy spirit becomes a part of that life… In this way a new life is created from that point forward. This was not the baptism of John. John’s baptism was preparatory… It was a baptism unto repentance….
So that’s John’s baptism..
It is different…..
This wilderness of Judea where John’s ministry was is the lowest spot on the earth..nothing grows there. It is one of the most desolate places on earth…Maybe the most desolate of the ancient world.. It is amazing to me the whole principle of God placing John in a place where there is nothing to start a ministry… He doesn’t go to Jerusalem where there is a bigger population and people need to hear his word.. He goes into the middle of nowhere and makes the people come to him….Its unusual…
Every PR firm on the planet would say John..thats the wrong way to start a ministry.. You need to be conveniently located and a place where people can get to you…. One might ask can anything good come out of that plan and that place? Well.. The greatest man who ever lived can and did…But the rationale is so counterintuitive to human nature that giving it thought could just make one shake their head in amazement…or disbelief….He went to all the regions around the Jordon river preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sin as it was written by Isaiah the prophet…
Contrary to common belief baptism did not originate with Christianity.. Baptism originated in Judaism..If you wanted to become a Jew You had to go through a 3 part procedure. Instruction by a scribe #2 Male circumcision ( if you’re a male ) and #3 baptism in water. Also if you were Jewish you would baptise yourself for a variety of reasons…Whenever you wanted to go up to the temple to worship.. Or if you were defiled by touching a dead body or made unclean by blood you would emerge yourself in a pool not far from the temple , cleanse yourself and then go worship… so if you were a gentile you had to have baptism done to you..If you were Jewish you did it to yourself if you wanted to get ritually purified to go worship….Whats interesting here is that John was doing it to Jews and Gentiles alike..It must have been quite shocking…No mater who you were John is telling them the same thing. Delivering the same message.. You could be Jewish or a Roman soldier or whoever but John said that you must repent and be baptized accordingly..
He said to the multitude that travelled great distances to see him in a sermon he calls them “a brood of vipers” A bunch of snakes…. Which begs the question..what attracted people to go hear John? It wasn’t his feel good sermons… John wasn’t even proclaiming a gospel.. His words are scathing…One of the reasons I believe was that John was a man of conviction…I don’t think John cared about his popularity…There is something to be said for someone who has deeply held conviction..Man or woman…If a man is set on fire people will come to watch him burn and John was on fire with the word of God.. He said bear fruits worthy of repentance and do not even think of making excuses.. these are hard messages but John was paving the way for the Messiah.. For Jesus Christ…He was stripping away the religious veneer that people carry to deflect the hard stuff and hide behind… He was insistent on personal responsibility… You have to know the bad news to appreciate the Good News…
Matthew 3:1-17 ESV / 101 helpful votes Helpful Not Helpful
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’” Now John wore a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the regions about the Jordan were going out to him, ... imagine that !
In essence John says…The bad news is that you are a bunch of snakes and you will face the wrath of God as a result.. The good news is that I’m going to point to Jesus who will come and take all that for you.. But in Luke 3 we have not got there yet… He’s just getting their attention…He says to them bear fruits worthy of repentance… no excuses…Repentance signifies a change.. John was requiring people to turn their minds around. When you change your mind your behaviour follows.. and you will bear fruit worthy of repentance… This is the essence of John’s message in Luke three… The Messiah is coming get your act together now because you don’t have much time… John was bold ,committed, and very tough… His vision was tunnelled to exclude all that would distract from his mission… and he went forth not as a great prophet but as a self-described voice crying in the wilderness… and as a result became great.
Repentance and belief are 2 sides of the same coin. Repentance is often spoken about with belief..Repentance means to turn from something.. Belief means to turn toward something…So you leave one thing and turn toward another.. You leave the old life..You say no to sin and I’m turning and believing in our heavenly Father..Same coin..2 different sides…
So when the people came to the place that they desired a change they asked John” what shall we do”… ?? They needed tangible information ...John answer was full of wisdom.. 11 He answereth and saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him do likewise. 12 Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master, what shall we do? 13 And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you. 14 And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages. So becoming “other centred”, unselfish, sharing was the beginning of repentance manifesting in works and belief..This John offered to the people that day. Starting somewhere you can take care of your brothers…
It is significant to note that John met the people where they were at. For example he didn’t say tax collectors are dishonest so you need to quit your job. He said it doesn’t matter what you are doing in life you can effect a change.. If you are a tax collector be a good one, If you’re a soldier just be a good and compassionate one… If you are a person of means just share to those who have little.. He is saying be who you are just be the best version of that you can be…
We can show the change in our lives right where we are at…. Right now in our lives.. We can chose to be the best versions of who we are no matter where we come from, what is our station in life , having wealth or in our poverty. What is asked of us is that we be the best most righteous versions of who we are…
If you’re wondering on some level why you are in the place that you are today be assured that we are all in a perfect place at just the right time in our lives today; because God put us here. We may not fully understand why and we may have regrets about some things, but through it all our decisions lead us down the pathway to where we are today… It is God’s will.. we have a mission before us and we must have faith that this is so. He has given us gifts so that we may also carry out his mission, like John, and pave the way for the 2nd coming of the messiah… Will we ignore that call or will we rise to the occasion, with the single-mindedness of John to carry out God’s will using our many gifts from Him to do it?
Remember we can do this by being the best and most righteous versions of ourselves.
We are thankful for the records of Luke that we are studying. Help us Lord to glean from these pages the things that we need most in our lives, each week. Help us Lord to see your word with clarity so that not only can we apply it in our own lives but we can assist our brothers and sisters who are in need.. Help us Lord to rid ourselves of pride, exceptionalism and haughtiness and teach us the true measure of humility…We pray for others near and far tonight who are suffering or in need either naturally or spiritually and ask that your mercy be extended toward them. Let your light shine through us daily.. Bless this humble ministry and all who come this way..
We ask these things in Jesus’ name
Amen
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