Matthew 3:1-12
Preparing the Way

  1. The Ministry of John the Baptist
    1. His Message
      1. He came preaching "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
        1. Here it is! he cries, the kingdom you have been waiting for
        2. The kingdom of which the prophets spoke has come.
        3. God has come to reign among his people
      2. In this, John the Baptist is in line with Matthew's message
        1. Remember the emphasis on Jesus as a Son of David
        2. Remember that he was born "King of the Jews"
        3. And he, the true king, is contrasted with Herod, the wicked king who has no claim to the throne.
        4. The true king has come, and with him comes the kingdom.
        5. This is an essential part of the message
          1. The kingdom of heaven does not come with armies and trumpets.
          2. It does not come with visible power and splendor.
          3. It comes with the king.
          4. Where the king is, there is the kingdom.
          5. Since the king has come, so has his kingdom
          6. Jesus has come to sit on David's throne and reign over his people from Jerusalem, just as the prophets had said.
      3. Yet John does not say, "Rejoice! Come meet your king."
      4. He says, "Repent!"
        1. Why?
        2. Because he comes to establish a righteous kingdom.
        3. All the prophets were agreed on that.
        4. Is 11.4 - But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, And decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
        5. So if they want a part in this kingdom, they must be cleansed from their sins.
        6. Mal 3:2,3 - "But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire And like launderer's soap. 3He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, And purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the LORD An offering in righteousness.
        7. Therefore, John says, "Repent!"
    2. His Background
      1. Isaiah prophesied that he would come.
      2. For over 500 years the prophets had been silent. God had not spoken to his people.
      3. Through his prophets, God had brought a lawsuit against his people
        1. He had convicted them of breaking the Mosaic Law
        2. And he had exiled them to Babylon.
        3. But from that place in love he brought them back
      4. And now they wait.
      5. What will he do next?
      6. The prophets are silent.
      7. Now suddenly this one arises, John the Baptist
        1. Clothed in camel's hair with a leather belt.
        2. Just like Elijah, the first of the prophets who was once described as "a hairy man wearing a leather belt" 2 Ki 1.8
        3. Elijah began the prophetic ministry, testifying against God's people for they had rejected him.
        4. Now John, a prophet like Elijah, concludes that ministry, calling God's people to repentance.
      8. But John's testimony is not concerning himself.
      9. The last of the prophets, he has come to prepare the way for the king.
      10. He is the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord.
      11. He has come to put an end to the ministry of the prophets by bearing one final witness to the one of whom the prophets spoke.
    3. His Baptism
      1. So Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan heard his call to repentance
        1. They went out to him at the Jordan and he baptized them
        2. And they confessed their sins.
      2. Why? What is this baptism all about?
        1. We know that Gentile converts to Judaism were baptized
        2. They were coming in from the heathen filthy nations and so had to be ritually cleaned before they were acceptable to God.
        3. But now, all of a sudden JEWS are being baptized.
        4. People who thought they already had a relationship with God and were acceptable to him were coming out to have this purification ritual performed.
        5. For a Jew to be baptized was shameful. It was to confess, "I am no better than a Gentile before God. I have no special holiness before God but am filthy."
        6. And that's exactly what they're confessing.
        7. The immanence of the kingdom has made them examine themselves.
        8. And they see that they are sinful and they realize, God cannot include me in this righteous kingdom that he is about to establish.
        9. So they come confessing their sins, confessing that if God is to accept them he must first wash them clean.
        10. They have nothing to boast about in their ancestry. It doesn't matter if they are descended from Abraham. Still they are sinners and need to be cleansed.
        11. And the Lord convicts them of this so they come.
      3. We must understand this. We are all equally guilty before God. And without cleansing, his wrath will come upon us.
  2. The Folly of the Pharisees and Saducees
    1. Their Confidence in the Flesh
      1. They come to the baptism, but not to particpate in it.
      2. THEY do not need to be cleansed, they are good Jews of whom God approves.
      3. They do not need to fear the coming kingdom.
      4. If indeed this fool is right that the kingdom has come, then they will be contacted soon enough to assume their rightful place in it.
        1. At least, the Pharisees think, the PHARISEES will be summoned to their rightful place. The Saducees of course are terribly mistaken and will be punished.
        2. And guess what the Saducees think.
      5. John does not share their lofty opinion of themselves
        1. "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
        2. He treats them as though they, too, have come to be baptized (as though such righteous citizens need this Gentile ritual)
        3. And he calls them a bunch of snakes!
        4. Everyone around them is repenting and fleeing the coming wrath?
        5. Who warned them to do the same?
        6. John doesn't think they know enough of their own sin to know they have a reason to flee. And he's right.
      6. "Bear fruits worthy of repentance"
        1. If you want to escape God's wrath, then repent and bring forth the fruit of repentance.
        2. What is he talking about? Their lives are full of good works. Surely John knows that. After all, they boast in those good works all day long.
        3. THEY do not need to repent, to turn around, to head in a new direction.
        4. They were BORN headed in the right direction.
        5. After all, they are descended from Abraham.
      7. John knows their thoughts
        1. Don't bother saying Abraham is our father.
        2. Don't you know that God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones?
        3. What good is your descent according to the flesh?
        4. If God makes you a son of Abraham through faith, then that's something worth boasting in, for then you aren't boasting in your flesh but in the Lord.
      8. And this is the same principle God uses today, isn't it?
        1. Is it something that you have been baptized? Do not rely on that but let your baptism point you to Christ and rely on him.
        2. Is it something that you are a member of the church? Do not rely on that, but let the church testify to you of Christ and rely on him.
    2. The Coming Judgment
      1. He reminds them that when the kingdom comes, judgment will begin with the household of God.
      2. The axe is at the root of the trees
      3. If they don't start bearing fruit, God will chop them down and throw them into the fire.
      4. Harsh words to those who thought they were BORN with God's approval.
      5. If you don't bear the fruit of repentance, God will set his wrath on you.
  3. The Ministry of Christ
    1. John Baptized with Water
      1. Purely symbolic
      2. No actual cleansing going on
    2. He Will Baptize with the Spirit and with Fire
      1. He will purify his people.
      2. He will burn away what is bad.
      3. Image of a winnowing fan
        1. Farmer throws wheat into air
        2. Because wheat is mixed with chaff (not fruit, not good)
        3. And the wind blows away the chaff (wind=Spirit)
      4. Image is positive and negative
        1. Negative to the Pharisees and Saducees - They are the chaff and will be removed from God's people and burned.
        2. Positive to those who are repenting - the chaff of their wickedness will be removed, but they themselves will be preserved.
      5. This is what your baptism signifies and seals to you

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