Ntroducing Jesus Christ Series

Introduction

When the word of God came to John the Baptist in the desert, he went into all the country around the Jordan and began to preach a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Then a large crowd came to John to be baptized. John the Baptist preached to produce fruit in keeping with repentance, and the crowd asked what they should do then. John the Baptist explained to them in detail what they should do in order to produce fruit in keeping with repentance. The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and food should also be distributed. Tax collectors should not collect any more than they are required to, and soldiers should not extort money and not accuse people falsely - be content with their pay.

Since a prophet of God appeared for the first time in nearly 400 years since the prophet Malachi, the Israelites had high expectations for John the Baptist.

I. People’s expectations of John (vv. 15-16a)

Look at verse 15. “The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Christ.” Christ is the Greek word for Messiah. The Jews had been waiting for a Messiah for a long time, and under Roman oppression, fervent anticipation of the Messiah reached its peak among the Jews at that time. They had high hopes that John the Baptist might be the Messiah they had been waiting for, but they could not be sure.

In Chapter 1 of the Gospel of John, they asked John directly, ‘Who are you?’ At that time, John clearly answered, ‘I am not the Christ.’ They thought about the prophet Malachi’s prophecy, ‘I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes’ (Malachi 4:5) and asked, ‘Are you Elijah?’ When John answered, ‘I am not,’ they asked again, ‘Are you the prophet?’ The prophet refers to a prophet like Moses in Deuteronomy 18:15. Even then, John answered ‘No.’ Then they asked, ‘What do you say about yourself?’ At that time, John the Baptist “replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘I am the voice of one calling in the desert, "Make straight the way for the Lord"’” (John 1:23, v. 4). John the Baptist said that he was merely the voice of an errand boy preparing the way for the Lord.

Then the people questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?” (John 1:25). But John the Baptist did not answer the question and turned the people's attention toward him to Christ, who would come later. Look at verse 16. “John answered them all, ‘I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”

I already explained last Sunday that John the Baptist baptized repentance with water. In order to welcome the Messiah, the Son of God, the King, into one's heart, one must repent of all the sins in one's heart and receive baptism by sprinkling water on one's body as a sign that all sins have been washed away, or enter the waters of the Jordan River and be baptized. If they confess the sins in their hearts, cleanse their hearts, and repent, the powerful Messiah will come and baptize them with the Holy Spirit and with fire. At the same time, John the Baptist said that his only job was to prepare people for the amazing work that the Messiah would do when he came, and that he did not even dare to untie the thongs of the Messiah's sandals. In the old days, the lowest servant among servants was responsible for tying and untying the thongs of his master's sandals. However, John the Baptist introduced himself and said that he could not be such a servant.

Would John the Baptist have said something like this simply to humble himself? No. Truly, John the Baptist testified correctly about Jesus, the King. Think about it. Who is Jesus? Jesus is the Son of God. He is God Himself. Jesus is the Christ who is King. On the other hand, John the Baptist is merely a creature created by Jesus, who is God. John the Baptist was only the king's messenger. We have no choice but to completely bow our heads and bow before Jesus.

II. Jesus’ Ministry (vv. 16b-18)

Look at verses 16b and 17. “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” Jesus is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit and with fire. What is the difference between water and fire? Water plays a washing role. If clothes or dishes become dirty, wash them with water. Then they can become clean again. However, the limitations of water do not change the nature of the object itself. Impurities inside an object cannot be washed away with water. Water can only wash away foreign substances stuck to the surface. For example, a person who used to swear a lot will swear less, and a person who used to drink a lot will become more abstinent.