Most people are religious at some point in their life. They dabble in religion either as a child or perhaps they attend church for a while with a friend during their days in college to explore the fascinating world of religious belief. A coworker dies that is Buddhist and they interact with their religion at their memorial service. One way or another, most of us have had a religious phase in our lives. And our spiritual side is not something that can be analyzed under a microscope as clinical and purely objective. Instead, our spiritual sides are a combination of our mind, heart, and soul. For some, their religious side fades as soon as it arrives. To hear them talk, you would learn their thoughts on some of the newest movies or their thoughts on politics but you would hear little talk of their religion. Their religion faded over time.
Still for others, religion sticks as we develop a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. And the first step inside the doorway to Christianity is repentance. Think of repentance as Ellis Island where all immigrants must first visit before they’re given citizenship papers. Yet, if Christianity is the place where some of us immigrate, many still attempt to straddle the fence between Christianity and an old way of living. In a word, this is hypocrisy. It’s the ugly side of Christianity. And hypocrisy has historically ranked as a major cause for people being turned off by Christianity. We hear, “Jesus, I like, it’s the church I can’t stand.” And it’s this side of our lives that I want to circle in bright red ink for the next few moments. I want to talk to you today about “Jesus Against Hypocrites.”
We continue a series entitled, The Man Who Won’t Go Away, this morning. Anyone who is familiar with the story of Jesus Christ knows of His influence. This one solitary life has done more to inspire hope and love in our world than anyone. And anyone who is familiar with the story of Jesus Christ knows He is anything but an inauthentic life. There is authenticity to the life of Jesus that you can smell on every page of the Bible. Even Jesus’ enemies couldn’t find anything at fault with Him. And while Jesus, The Man Who Won’t Go Away, is unsullied, His followers’ lives have been characterized by a blend of moral chaos and moral purity.
Join me in reading Luke 3:1-20 as we see how God works purity in our live and squeezes out hypocrisy in our lives as you would wring out a cloth.
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea (Et two re a) and Trachonitis (Track o nit tus), and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 4 As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.
5 Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall become straight,
and the rough places shall become level ways,
6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”
7 He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 9 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?” 11 And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” 12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
15 As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, 16 John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
18 So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. 19 But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother's wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, 20 added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison” (Luke 3:1-20).
John the Baptist had been introduced earlier in Luke as his birth was announced alongside the birth of Jesus. Luke has interwoven both of their stories and has now placed John on center stage. But John will not be Luke’s focus for long for we’ll not hear much from John as Luke will focus his narrative on Jesus from this point on. Few things interest us like a good biography. Americans love to read about the events of the day couched in the lives of the people of the day. Seemingly, it’s the story of these lives themselves that we love to reflect. And that’s exactly what Luke does – He tells us the story of the gospel by telling us the story of a man named John.
1. The Gospel Can be Fact Checked
The events Luke records for us happened roughly around the year of A.D. 26-28. We know this because Luke tells us who the government and the religious officials were at the time of the story. It at this time that God’s mouthpiece stepped up to speak God’s Word. “…the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Luke 3:1-3). John was speaking for God as God frequently has prophets speak on His behalf throughout the history of the Old Testament. Indeed, the Old Testament speaks more than 220 times of God’s Word coming to someone. A prophet is God’s mouthpiece to either speak or write God’s words. The prophet articulates God’s message to His people. And the Bible again tells us roughly when this all happened for it. Again, Luke tells us whom the government and the religious officials were at the time when John the Baptist walks out the wilderness with God’s message on his lips. All these names are confusing to our eyes and they are interlocked much like a Russian nested doll. It would be like saying…
Scott Maze became pastor of North Richland Hills when Barack Obama was President, when Rick Perry was governor of Texas, when Betsy Price was mayor of Forth Worth, and when Oscar Trevino was mayor of North Richland Hills and lastly, when Fred Luter was the President of the Southern Baptist Convention, our church’s denomination. So Luke fixes the time and the place for his readers. This is exactly what he promised to do for us: “Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught” (Luke 1:1-4).
Luke is one of four gospels in your Bibles. Each of which tells the stories of Jesus. Each of which operate as theological reporters for the readers. You could start reading any one of these as they tell us the new work God began to do at the start of the new millennium. You can think of the gospels as CNN, NBC, FOX, and ABC as each report on the stories of Jesus’ life but tell it from a unique angle. Luke is writing from the perspective of a investigate reporter. Luke is a second or third generation Christian who was probably a gentile (non-Jew) and a medical doctor. He writes so that you and I might have “certainty” that we would know exactly what happened in Jesus’ life. Nevertheless, he carefully researched the events for your benefit. He researched and complied with tremendous care a well-organized Gospel account that is historically accurate. Luke has fact checked the report for you.
2. Prepare the Road for the King
John the Baptist is introduced to readers in Luke 1 as Luke tells us about John’s birth. Jesus’ birth, that is celebrated each Christmas, is interwoven with the narrative of John the Baptist’s birth. The emergence of the two are linked together for us in the pages of the Bible. John is a transitional figure between the ways things operated in the Old Testament and the new work God will do as described in the New Testament. Very little of Luke’s Gospel will tell John the Baptist’s story, we shouldn’t think he could be relegated to the corner. John’s importance lies in the fact that he is a forerunner for Jesus – John prepares the way for Jesus. This story is found in all four Gospel accounts (Matthew 3:1-6; Mark 1:2-6: John 1-29-23). Matthew, Mark and John’s accounts quote Jesus’ words as Jesus quote the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah.
Now when you compare Luke’s account of this story to Matthew and Mark, you can see Luke’s driving point. Luke has a unique angle he wants you to see and it’s this: Matthew, Mark, and Luke all share the story of Jesus quoting Isaiah 40:3, but only Luke goes on to give Jesus’ fuller quotation of Isaiah 40:4-5. You’ll find these words quoted in Luke 3:4-6: “As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God’’” (Luke 3:4-6). The heart of this quote is drawn from an ancient custom when an emperor or some other eminent person was about to visit a city. Back then, paved roads were very rare, as there will little construction tools available for this. When an emperor was going on a journey, he didn’t just take off. Prior to the emperor visiting the city, the citizens of this city were required to prepare a road. But not just any road but a well-constructed approach road along which the king could advance in pomp and dignity into the city itself. History tells us that the kings heralds and engineers went ahead of him to tell the people of the honor that was coming their way. The king is coming! Prepare the king’s highway! John uses this prophecy to tell the people that Yahweh Himself is coming. And the road Yahweh will travel on is not a highway into the city but a highway of holiness into their lives. Therefore, just the like the emperor, the King requires a smooth road to travel on. When the King comes you must remove the boulders from the road ahead of Him. When the King comes you must level off every valley in front of Him. You cannot have the King coming on an alleyway. He must have a broad, smooth path to arrive. These words are a description of just how God will: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Luke 3:3b).
And it’s important for you to understand something of this particular prophet, named John the Baptist. John was not a part of the established priesthood of his day. He lived in the wilderness. Luke mentions the official priests (Annas and Caiaphas) operating as the leaders in John’s day.
Yet, John’s contribution is precisely because he is not part of the religious establishment. Though the Bible tells us that John’s father was a priest, John didn’t work out of the Temple. The Bible makes sure you understand that John walked out the desert to give his me message. Those that are mentioned in verses one and two are the established and organized society. John came out the desert. Where did the Word of the Lord come? It didn’t come to Jerusalem, where we might have expected it to come. The word God passes the emperor in Rome and the priests in Jerusalem and lighted upon a man of God in the wilderness. It went outside of every symbol of the world’s spiritual and moral powers of the day, to a tract of land that spoke of the times – the desert.
John possesses a boldness that is unique. Indeed, he will “Prepare the way of the Lord.” John’s job is clear and his character is pure. John doesn’t really care what others think of him. How would you describe a “voice of one crying in the wilderness?” How else would you describe a man who looks up to see crowd of interested people in his ministry and begins by saying, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” No, John the Baptist wasn’t your ordinary religious spokesman. The religious establishment detested him for his boldness against their hypocrisy. The people flocked to him as soldiers, government officials, and the common man were all enthralled by his message. John’s boldness is highlighted for us at the of our passage: “But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother's wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison” (Luke 3:19-20).
President Obama kicked up some controversy by announcing that evangelical pastor Louie Giglio would be praying at the inauguration. Sexual liberationist groups quickly identified Giglio, as they did Rick Warren under similar circumstances in 2009, as “anti-gay.” After a couple of days of firestorm from the Left, Giglio announced this morning that he would withdraw. The statement Giglio made that was so controversial is essentially a near-direct quotation from the Christian Scriptures. Unrepentant homosexuals, Giglio said (as with unrepentant sinners of all kinds) “will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10). Giglio went on to say, “it’s not easy to change, but it is possible to change.” The Bible says God “commands all people everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30), the same gospel, Giglio says, “that I say to you and that you would say to me.”
The message of Christianity is unnerving to all of us. The essential message of the Bible calls all of us sinners. In the specific case of the controversy of the inaugural address, we are all sexual sinners. Yet, we shouldn’t seek to trim the hard parts of the Bible’s message to fit our day. We should instead, “Prepare the way of the Lord.” What is crooked is made straight in preparation for the King is coming. Every valley before the King of Kings will be filled in. Every hill of pride before the King of Kings will be leveled. Every rough spot will be smoothed down.
Let’s warm our hands by the fire of John the Baptist’s courage for our day. Let’s remember that true Christianity is rarely popular among the cultural elites and remain courageous in following Christ. Luke has fact checked the report for you. Prepare the Road for the King
3. The Ellis Island for Christianity is Repentance
The first step inside the doorway to Christianity is repentance. Again, think of repentance as Ellis Island where all immigrants must first visit before they’re given citizenship papers. “He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire’’” (Luke 3:8-9).
When you are on the outside of Christianity looking in, you need to know that before the gospel is good news where you are accepted by God the gospel is first bad news where you must repent of your sins. You’re more wicked than you ever believed, but you are more loved and accepted that you can imagine. That’s why I call this Ellis Island. For Ellis Island was the place where all American immigrants would first come to be processed into citizenship… I want to show you how repentance is the Ellis Island where all people must first come to be accepted by Christ.
You see all of our lives are hypocritical. Hypocrisy is when the mason who no sooner than he lays his bricks to form the wall than he tears his wall down. Hypocrisy is when the couple is married where no sooner do they tie the knot that she is out dating. You are not treating Jesus as a King if you don’t repent.
When you think of John the Baptist, you think of this word, “repent.” John is talking about the practical effects of an experience with God. Each of the things John mentions in demonstrable terms. Let me show how John measures repentance in terms of the people listening to him. There were Three Kinds of People in the Crowd when John was speaking: “And the crowds asked him, ‘What then shall we do?’ And he answered them, ‘Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.’ Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, ‘Teacher, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Collect no more than you are authorized to do.’ Soldiers also asked him, ‘And we, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.’” (Luke 3:10-14).
Here’s what he says, in effect: Average People with Two Coats, you should be generous. Tax Collectors should be honest. Soldiers (Policemen), you should be content and be honest. If you say that you have repent by you don’t have changed behavior then you haven’t repented. But John mentions the results of repentance but don’t confuse the results of repentance for the real meaning of it. Repentance isn’t simply an action; repentance is an attitude. Repentance isn’t fundamentally a change of behavior but it’s a change of heart; “Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Luke 3:9). Repenting is at your very root of who you are. It’s changing what you trust in. What’s the axe? John knows his Bible and he knows that people will substitute baptism for the real effects of baptism. The reason John mentions snakes is that he knows that is was a snake that spoke to Adam & Eve and told them, “You can’t trust God. You can’t trust He has your best interest at heart.” And the children of the serpents need to turn from the lie of the viper. You’re real problem is why you do what you do. You’re real problem is that you don’t trust God. You need to repent and that’s an attitude. When you trust God, He will care for you and He has your best at heart.
Luke has fact checked the report for you. Luke has prepared the Road for the King, and The Ellis Island for Christianity is Repentance
4. God is God & You Are Not
For six brief months John was the center attraction in all of Israel. It’s difficult to understand the expectation of the people of day when we read this. That something significant was happening or was going to happen in their day, was palpable. They looked for God to send His messiah to liberate His people, the Jews. And the people quickly thought John was that Man, the Messiah. John quickly disabuses them of this notion. Listen to John’s words: “As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, ‘I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’ So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people’” (Luke 3:15-18).
John says, “I’m not the king. I’m not Yahweh.” John the Baptist isn’t speaking of just Augustus Caesar coming. John is telling that the King of Kings is coming and that you must you prepare. Prepare the highway for the King who is coming. We don’t prepare the King for the road. Instead, we prepare the road for the King. We don’t ask God to travel down our the road of our lives as it is. Instead, we make every crooked path straight as the King changes the road of our lives with His grace. You’re more wicked than you ever believed, but you are more loved and accepted that you can imagine.
