Introduction:
Our Gospel reading today begins with a cry from the wilderness—not the voice of a king, nor the voice of someone celebrated or important, but the bold, lonely voice of John the Baptist declaring, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”
1. A Voice in the Wilderness
A lonely voice, yes—but not without purpose. John was a wild man by every measure: eating locusts and wild honey, wrapped in a camel’s-hair coat, standing in the heat and dust of the desert, raving out about a coming Messiah… and by all appearances, he should have been dismissed as a madman. And yet… the people came. Crowds came, and hundreds off them and they didn’t just listen; they were moved to action. They were convicted, and they were baptized—by the dozen … by the score.
Clearly, something more was at work. John was a man profoundly touched by God—so much so that Jesus Himself would call him the greatest figure of the Old Testament, and personally, I find John one of the most complex figures in the entire Bible—and, if I’m honest, someone I’ve always struggled to connect with and by all appearances, John is the kind of person most of us would instinctively avoid. And yet … God uses him to prepare the way.
John had a simple message, “Repent! And turn back to God!”, and what happens? … People come — they flock to him from Jerusalem, from Judea, from all around the Jordan. … They walk miles through the heat, to hear this strange man in the desert … and why?
Because deep down, they were hungry — hungry for something real. Something in their lives was missing, something that made everything else feel incomplete. They were hungry for God Himself, for a presence that could satisfy the deepest longings of the heart — to know that He, God cares for them and that He is at work in their lives.
Now, John’s message may have sounded sharp, but when we look closely, we discover it is full of hope and full of mercy. He is really saying, “Just turn your lives around! The kingdom of heaven is near, and it’s waiting for you!”.
Now, the word repent doesn’t mean they were to “feel bad” or ashamed. … It simply means to think about the direction your life is taking, and to admit when it’s going in the wrong direction. … These are not words of despair or shame, but words of hope — hope for a new and brighter future.
2. The Wilderness: God’s Classroom
As you know, John preached in the wilderness … we certainly don’t associate him with any town or city, or synagogue … just the desert, amongst the rocks and sand and wind … because … the wilderness has always been God’s classroom.
When Moses met God, it was in the wilderness. … God spoke to Moses through a burning bush and later at the top of a mountain, which is also … a form of wilderness. … When the Israelites escaped from Egypt, they learned who God was … in their 40 years in wandering the wilderness. … When Elijah ran from fear, God met him in the wilderness; in a still, small voice … and there are many other wilderness examples in the bible.
And we all know that wilderness feeling. It’s that dry season — (or the wet season, in our case) — it’s that time when everything seems to go wrong… when prayer feels empty and life feels uncertain. But take heart, because it is often in this wilderness that God does His best work. This is where He finally has our undivided attention.
When things go wrong, or begin to unravel, we suddenly realise how much we need Him … and hear His voice. … And so, we make time to seek Him, to listen for His guidance, to discern what He wants us to do, and how He wants us to move forward.
If we are wise, we use those wilderness experiences to draw closer to God, trusting that we are neither forgotten nor ignored. … It’s like that familiar poem, Footprints in the Sand — in the moments we feel most alone, God is actually carrying us, if only we knew. … The wilderness is where we feel low, isolated, and overlooked. Yet it is precisely in those seasons, that God does His best work in us and through us. And it is in those very moments that He is preparing us for the next stage of our lives journey.
3. “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven Is Near”
John’s message carried a sense of urgency — or rather, a sense of focus. He wanted the people to grasp this simple but profound truth: that the “The kingdom of heaven is near.” He was saying, “It’s not far off… God Himself is drawing close. Heaven is coming to earth.” And he was right — because not long after, Jesus appeared on that very same riverbank.
So, when John said “repent,” he wasn’t scolding the people. He was inviting them. He was drawing the crowd closer with the expectation that “God is coming near… so don’t miss Him. Prepare your hearts to meet Him.”
Another way of looking at it, is this is to imagine a king or a very important person were to come to our home, and where we would naturally tidy and prepare, clearing away whatever doesn’t belong, all the rubbish. … That, in essence, is repentance. It’s not about brushes or mops, but open hearts — clearing the clutter within so we can welcome our Lord. … Repentance isn’t about guilt; it’s about grace. It’s the simple, hopeful act of preparing ourselves, to be made anew.
4. The People Came
This was John’s message … and the people came, crowds of them … all confessing their sins, stepping into the Jordan River and being baptized, and all of them ready to meet with the Lord.
They were looking for renewal. And that is where revival begins — when people become honest with God. When someone says, “Lord, I can’t keep going this way. I need You,” that is when God listens. And when we say, (with a true and humble heart), “Forgive me, Lord… I have done wrong,”, —that is when we meet with God… and that is when everything begins to change.
Other the other hand … God resists the proud. He even resists us when we become full of ourselves — and we all do at times; it’s part of being human. … But for God to truly commune with us, He often has to bring us to our knees. He needs us to recognize our limitations and our failures, so that He can pour out His grace on the lowly, the meek, and the humble — on all those who acknowledge Him as Lord … and are ready to listen.
I know I’m preaching to the converted again, but John’s message was directed at people who were at a turning point in their lives — people who needed something new. And yet, his message is just as relevant for those of us who are older and more mature in the Lord. … When things begin to go wrong, we too need to pause, take stock, and be willing to admit, “I’m doing something wrong.”
You have no idea how many people cannot—or simply refuse to—take that one simple step, and admit they are wrong. … To them, repentance and saying “sorry” is a sign of weakness, something they will never do. And our society, along with much of our media, only reinforces this hardened attitude. But God doesn’t. God welcomes our honesty, because He can work through our repentance, in ways we can scarcely imagine.
And so, the baptism in the river was a symbol of cleansing — an outward sign of an inward change. It was a way of saying, “My old life isn’t working… what I’ve been doing isn’t working… and I am ready for something new”, and I love the modern expression of this idea, the one that says, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” It captures perfectly the need to step out of the old patterns and into God’s transforming grace.
5. The Axe and the Fruit
Verse 10, John says, “The axe is already laid to the root of the trees. Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down.” … Again, this sounds stern, but it is still about truth and grace and growth.
In God’s orchard, He isn’t looking for perfect trees — He is looking for fruitful ones. We all carry scars, cracks, and a history … yet when we repent, we are somehow made right with God. But the deeper question is this: Are we bearing fruit? Are we producing love, joy, peace, patience, kindness — you know the fruit of the Spirit? … It’s a difficult question, one only we can answer in the quiet of our own hearts, but when we do, we soon realise something important: that it is impossible to bear that kind of fruit, without repentance and forgiveness somewhere along the way. … Think about that.
6. John Points to Jesus
Moving on, John says in verse 11, “I baptize you with water, but after me comes One who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”
Clearly John knows who Jesus is, even though he has never met Him. John understands that John is only a messenger — one who points the way. He knew that water could wash only the outside, but Jesus would bring a baptism that cleanses the inside.
John could prepare the way for Jesus — because Jesus is the Way — the One who fills us with the Holy Spirit and with fire, a holy fire that burns away the old and fills us with new life.
7. A Message of Hope
So let us not forget — John’s message, though fiery, it was full of hope. After four hundred silent years, the people of Israel finally heard from a true prophet again, and his message wasn’t one of doom and gloom. It was a message of expectation — that God is near, and that we must prepare our hearts to meet Him.
Maybe that preparation means forgiving someone we’ve struggled with. Maybe it means letting go of bitterness and resentment. … We all at times have carried something detrimental to our wellbeing, something that only forgiveness in our hearts can release us from … sparing us further hurt somewhere down the line.
Whatever it is — and we are all different, we are all walking our own paths, and facing our own challenges. — Each of us has our own road that we need to clear, because Jesus our King is near, and with him, is life and joy and a hope for our future.
Amen. 1836 words
