Our Gospel reading for this week continues to look at John the Baptist’s message that he proclaimed to the people, heralding the imminent coming of the Messiah. John was not afraid, nor hesitant to call out sin when he saw it, whether in crowds of wealthy, religiously, or politically prominent people. He was not worried about stepping on anyone’s toes. John did not just call out sin, though. He also gave encouragement of what to do in one’s life to live the way the Lord wants. Let’s take a look today at John the Baptist’s message in our Scripture passage.
One thing that the Lord dislikes, and that John the Baptist had strong words against, is religious hypocrisy, especially among the religious leaders (vs. 7-9). God values true repentance over religious rituals. The religious leaders who heard John preach were shocked when they heard him say that being Abraham’s physical descendants was not enough for God. They relied more on their family line than on their faith for salvation. Abraham’s true children are not merely physical descendents, but those who follow his faith, believing God’s Word (Galatians 3; Romans 4). God can raise up children of Abraham from the stones if He wishes, and from the Gentiles. These leaders believed that spiritual standing with God was inherited. A personal relationship with God, however, is not handed down from parent to child. Just because someone has Christian parents doesn’t automatically make one a Christian. Everyone must come to Jesus for salvation on their own. We must never rely on someone else’s faith for our own salvation.
Confession of sin and a changed life are inseparable. Repentance must be tied to action or it is not real. It is more than just saying words. We must act on what Jesus says. Genuine love for the Lord will move a person to perform real acts of love towards others (James 2:15-17; I John 3:17-18). John the Baptist admonished people to put action to their claims of repentance and faith. He urged the people to share their belongings with those who had none (vs. 11). John also reproved the tax collectors from wrongly taking more money from the people than they were supposed to, which was a very common practice (vs. 12-13). John also challenged the soldiers to treat the people right and fairly, and be satisfied with their salary (vs. 14).
When John the Baptist came upon the scene, it had been over 400 years since the last prophets had brought a message from Yahweh. Now, suddenly, John the Baptist appears. Some wondered if perhaps he might possibly be the Messiah, promised by God ages ago (vs. 15). John knew that he was not the Messiah. He knew that he had been called to herald the Messiah’s coming, to be His forerunner, and to admonish and urge people to get their lives straightened out and in order for when He would arrive. One thing that John did was perform for people the baptism of repentance. John the Baptist’s baptism with water symbolized the washing away of sin. It coordinated with his message of repentance and a change in one’s life. Jesus’s baptism with fire includes the power needed to do God’s will (vs. 16). The baptism with the Holy Spirit was fulfilled at Pentecost. Baptism with fire also symbolized the work of the Holy Spirit in bringing God’s judgment on those who refuse to repent.
John the Baptist also told that when Jesus, the Messiah, comes, He will separate the chaff from the wheat (vs. 17). Chaff is the useless outer husk of the kernel of grain. People who refuse God are like that. Those who repent and turn to God are like the nourishing grain. The people who are the chaff are discarded, while those whose life shows they are wheat are of great value to God.
Just as Jesus would later, John the Baptist showed that God had harsh words for the self-righteous religious hypocrites among the people. God accepts a truly repentant person, even among the despised tax collectors and the occupying army. He will pour out mercy on those who confess, and will give strength to live a changed life. Let’s take a good look at our life and be sure that we come to the Lord God with a truly repentant heart, willing to have Him make any necessary changes in our lives. Let’s make sure that we are the grain of wheat, and not the chaff.
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