Who is your
favorite character of the Scriptures? I have several. In the Old Testament,
there is Joshua, Gideon, King David, Daniel and the Prophets. In the New
Testament, we have the 12 Apostles, The Apostle Paul, and of course, Jesus
Christ. One of my favorites is the first cousin of Jesus Christ, the man known
as John the Baptist. What is it about John the Baptist that makes him relevant
to today? After all, he was an odd individual. He wore odd clothes, ate odd food
and preached an odd message and was fearless in his message. What can we learn
from this very important man in Scripture and apply to our lives of today.
First of all,
let us take a look at the message John the Baptist preached to all people. He
preached a message of repentance from sin, that we must be prepared for the
coming of the Messiah and confess sin. In Matthew 3:1-2, the Scripture says,
“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,
“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (ESV) He preached that in order
for men to be prepared and ready for the coming of the Messiah, they must
repent from sin. What does it mean to repent? Does it mean to simply feel sorry
for our sin? To repent means to “turn from sin.” In other words, you realize
that your sin is leading you to destruction and you make a conscious decision
to turn from your sin and turn to the Gospel of the finished work of Jesus
Christ. To be prepared for the coming of the Messiah means to live a life in preparation
for the second return of Christ. Acts 1:10-11 says, “And while they looked
stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white
apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into
heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come
in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” Are you prepared for the
second coming of Christ? What does it mean to confess sin? The word “confess”
means to be in complete agreement with God that your sin is an offense to Him. What
does all of this mean? It means that you have come to a point through the
drawing of God unto Himself the need for repentance of sin in order to be
prepared for the second coming of His son and be in constant confession of sin
in your life.
Secondly,
there was the intended audience of John’s message-the religious establishment.
In Matthew 3:7-10, he is speaking to the Pharisees and Sadducees’. In today’s
society, they would be the religious professionals. John’s message was
fourfold: First, Flee from the wrath to come. (John 3:36) Secondly, repent
from verbal
repentance. A Change of conduct is needed. Thirdly Spiritual heritage
means nothing. Fourthly, Judgment is coming.
Thirdly, John
preached Christ. This is noted in Matthew 3:11-12. He emphasized Christ is to
be exalted
above all names. Christ shall baptize and Christ shall judge and purge.
In
conclusion, let’s look at three very important questions: Are you prepared for
the coming Kingdom? Are you truly converted? Is Christ being exalted in your
life?
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