Preach On, Brother John

The Word of God came to John while he was in the wilderness (Luke 3:2). The Word came to John just as it did to other prophets like Jeremiah and Isaiah. John was indeed a prophet whom God called out of the wilderness. He was to go throughout the country telling people to leave their sins and focus their eyes upon God.

John’s message of repentance was good news to those people who would listen and look to God for forgiveness of their sins. On the other hand, John’s message was terribly destructive to those people who did not want to listen. Those who ignored the message lost sight of hope.

John came out of the wilderness preaching a message that had never been heard before. He was preaching a new baptism. The Jews had a ceremony of washing with water to make one clean, so John’s baptism with water was somewhat similar. John’s baptism was repentance for the remission or sins. He wanted the people to be truly sorry for their sins and to make good on what they promised. If they would confess their sins and repent of their sins, God would forgive them. God would not only forgive them but he would give them a new heart and a new life. John was preparing the way for Jesus.

We need to follow the preaching of John. We are sinful. We need to confess our sins, repent of our sins, accept the Lord Jesus as our own personal Lord and Savior and in doing so, our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. We will spend eternity in the Kingdom of God in the presence of the One who said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25).

3. Who gave John the authority to preach this message?

God gave John the authority to preach his message of baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Scripture says, God gave John the Word while he was in the wilderness (Luke 3:2). In fact, God called him out of the wilderness to preach the Word to the people.

When John began to preach he attracted multitudes of people. Some of the people who came to hear John were Pharisees and Sadducees. John did not water down his message for anyone.

Then John said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? (Luke 3:6). That is pretty strong language. What would you think of me if I started my message by calling you a “brood of vipers?”

John said to the multitude, which included the Pharisees and Sadducees, “You are all in the same boat. You are all guilty, corrupt, and poisonous like snakes. You only praise God for your own benefit. You are jealous, envious, and hateful, yet you come here to be baptized so you can escape the punishment you deserve.”

Many people fall into this same category. Too many people are living the way of the world instead of God’s way. Worldly possessions seem to be a top priority. Taking advantage of others seems to be acceptable to society. Do whatever feels good. Look out for yourself because no one else cares about you.

If you want it, buy it using your credit card because you don’t have to pay until next year. If you want what someone else has and they won’t give it to you, figure out a way to get it from them. It doesn’t make any difference who you step on or who you hurt in order to get where you want to be. What we seem to forget is that there is a payday for all these sinful deeds that we do.