1. Preparing for the Kingdom (Matthew 3:1-17; 4:17)
by Dr. Ralph F. Wilson
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James J. Tissot, "The Voice in the Desert" (1886-1896), watercolor,
Brooklyn Museum, New York.
Larger image. |
The person who introduces the Kingdom of God in Matthew and Mark is an
incongruous spokesman. Instead of a polished speaker with a university degree in
communications, he is a recluse, a hermit, who lives in the hot Judean desert
and subsists on the food available in that barren wilderness.
He dresses strangely, has few manners that ingratiate himself to those who
come to hear him. Rather, his message is blunt and uncompromising. But contained
in this message is the first key to understanding the Kingdom of God.
An Angel Announces John's Birth and Mission (Luke 1:14-17)
If you've read Luke's Gospel you've heard the back story on John. He is, in
fact, Jesus' cousin. The angel who announces Mary's pregnancy with Jesus also
tells Mary that her cousin Elizabeth is already six months pregnant -- with the
baby who will become known as John the Baptist.
His father Zechariah is a priest, and his mother, too, comes from a priestly
family. They are pious, God-fearing folk. Their son is born with a special
mission from God. The angel that announced John's birth declared:
"He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from
birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God.
And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn
the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of
the righteous -- to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." (Luke 1:14-17)
He is a prophet, one filled with the Holy Spirit to speak for God. The angel
outlines his mission:
- Means: He is to bring Israel back to the Lord, evidenced by
actual changes of heart in his hearers. For example, fathers will become
sensitive once more to the needs of their children and those who have been
disobeying God will learn wisdom and change their ways.
- End: Prepare a people for the Lord's coming.
John the Baptist's Message (Matthew 3:1-2)
Let's look at this man who introduces us to the Kingdom of God.
"1 In those days John the Baptist
came, preaching in the Desert of Judea 2 and saying, 'Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is near.'" (Matthew 3:1-2)
John is clearly different. His message is: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven
is near." (3:2). The verb "repent" is metanoeō, from meta-,
"change, exchange, transfer" + noeō, "to perceive with the mind, to
understand." Literally, metanoeō means "to change one's mind," then "feel
remorse, repent, be converted."1
John's call is for people to change their mind about the way they were living,
to recognize their sins and turn away from them. Repentance is John's command.
One of the chief problems with Christians around the world is that they claim
the name of Christ, but are unrepentant in heart. They -- follow their own ways
and desires in direct contradiction to the teachings and commands of the Lord
Jesus Christ. If we would follow Jesus, we must be disciples who are quick to
repent when the Spirit of God speaks to our hearts. Repent!
But there is a reason for the command: "... for the kingdom of heaven is
near." As you recall from the introduction, "kingdom of heaven" was the Jewish
way of saying "kingdom of God," since the Jews tried to avoid using God's name
for fear of blaspheming God and breaking the Second Commandment. We'll use
"kingdom of God" and "kingdom of heaven" interchangeably in our study.
The reason for repentance was that "the kingdom of heaven is near" (NIV), "at
hand" (KJV). The word is engizō, "draw near, come near, approach" in
either a spatial sense or in a temporal sense.2
Here it's referring to time: The time of the coming of God's kingdom is soon!
Get ready for the King!
Have you ever been in an office when suddenly you hear that the boss will be
coming in a few minutes? What do you do? You get your act together and stop
doing the things that you shouldn't.
The King is coming, John is saying, and you must repent of what you are doing
or you will be found as condemned sinners when he comes. Repent! Now is the
time!
"This is he who was spoken of through the prophet
Isaiah: 'A voice of one calling in the desert, "Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him."'" (Matthew 3:3)
The narrator in Matthew explains John's role in God's plan, but this was
John's self-understanding as well. In John's Gospel, he is asked who he is. He
answered:
"I am the voice of one calling in the desert,
'Make straight the way for the Lord.'" (John 1:23)
John the Baptist, son of a priest, knew the Scriptures. God had told him that
he was the spokesman mentioned in Isaiah's prophecy:
"A voice of one calling:
'In the desert prepare the way for the LORD;
make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.
And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all mankind together will see it.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.'" (Isaiah 40:3-5)
John came in the Judean desert, as the prophecy had said. And his task was to
"prepare the way of the Lord," that is, construct a straight highway that the
King would use to enter his kingdom. This would involve change of heart. Isaiah
uses the analogy of valley's being filled and cuts being made in hills so the
road might be level. He speaks of rough ground and rugged places being smoothed.
Those dips and hills, those rough and rugged places, dear friends, are in our
hearts. Only the conviction of the Holy Spirit followed by repentance can make
them smooth, fit for the King.
The Greek word used in the Gospels for "prepare" is hetoimazō, "to
cause to be ready, put/keep in readiness, prepare."3
What about your life? Is it ready? Are you keeping your heart in readiness, or
are you experiencing a gradual decline in your relationship to God?
John the Prophet (Matthew 3:4)
John even looked like a prophet.
"John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he
had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey."
(Matthew 3:4)
One of Israel's most famous prophets had been Elijah. The Jews would have
been familiar with the passage describing him:
"The king asked them, 'What kind of man was
it who came to meet you and told you this?' They replied, 'He was a man with a
garment of hair and with a leather belt around his waist.' The king said, 'That
was Elijah the Tishbite.'" (2 Kings 1:7-8)
John was a rough man, suited to wilderness food, not kings palaces. Like
Elijah, he wore "a prophet's garment of hair" (Zechariah 13:4). Instead of fine
food, he dined on "locusts and wild honey," food that he could find in the
desert. Locusts are the only type of insect permitted as food in the Mosaic Law
(Leviticus 11:20-23) and are still eaten today in lands where they are
plentiful.4
Later, Jesus praises John:
"What did you go out into the desert to see? ... A
man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear expensive clothes and indulge in
luxury are in palaces. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell
you, and more than a prophet.... I tell you, among those born of women there is
no one greater than John." (Luke 7:24-26, 28)
Still later, Jesus identifies John the Baptist, who had come "in the spirit
and power of Elijah" (Luke 1:17), as the Elijah who was expected to come before
the Messiah appeared (Malachi 4:5-6; Matthew 17:10-13).
The nation's response to John the Baptist's ministry was remarkable.
"5 People went out to him from
Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6
Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River." (Matthew
3:5-6)
Our word "baptize" is a transliteration of the Greek word baptizō,
which means "dip, immerse, submerge, baptize."5
It's important to understand this basic meaning, regardless of our own church's
practice of baptism, or how much water our church may use. John was baptizing in
the Jordan River, and probably assisted penitents by either dipping them into
the water himself, or perhaps by assisting them to dip themselves. Jesus did not
annul this form of water baptism but continued it, having his own disciples
baptize believers in his name (see Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:16; John 3:22, 26;
4:1-2; Acts 2:38, 41).
The origins of John's baptism are difficult to discern precisely. We know
that the Community at Qumran (in John's desert "territory," certainly) practiced
repeated ritual washings,6
but John's baptism seems different -- an act of purification and forgiveness that
can be looked back upon as a single event (Acts 19:3-4). Probably, the
antecedent for John's baptism is the first century practice of Jewish proselyte
baptism, a ritual bath by which a Gentile convert to Judaism was cleansed from
moral and religious impurity.7
,8
If this baptism indeed was compared to proselyte baptism, then it must have
taken a great deal of humility for a Jew to repent of his sins and be baptized
publically just like a non-Jew. After all, they claimed Abraham as their father
(Matthew 3:9). The Jewish leaders refused to admit they were sinners in this
way. Luke says, "The Pharisees and experts in the law rejected God's purpose for
themselves, because they had not been baptized by John" (Luke 7:30).
James J. Tissot, detail of "St. John the Baptist and the Pharisees"
(1886-1896), watercolor, Brooklyn Museum, New York.
Full image. |
John the Baptist, of course, was well aware of his opponents' presence in the
crowds and their resistance to his ministry.
"7 But when he saw many of the
Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You
brood of vipers!9 Who
warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping
with repentance.
9 And do not think you can say to
yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones
God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The ax is already at the
root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut
down and thrown into the fire." (Matthew 3:7-10)
When exposed, a nest of snakes would slither away. "Who warned you," John is
asking, "that judgment fire is coming so that you scurry forth?"
John compares the coming judgment to the cutting down and burning of a fruit
tree because it no longer produces good fruit. "The ax is already at the root of
the trees," thunders the prophet. Judgment is about to begin and will come soon
if we do not repent of our sins.
What a hard message! John pulled no punches. John's message to the leaders'
hard hearts is the same as it is to us: "Produce fruit in keeping with
repentance" and "every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire" (Matthew 3:8, 10). Decades later, Jesus' brother James
put it another way, "Faith without works is dead" (James 2:17, 26).
I fear that Christians today preach grace without repentance, which is a
travesty of the true Gospel. We are to repent the best we are able, and then
-- and only then -- rely on the grace of God through Jesus Christ to save us. Dear
friends, if we are to be disciples of the Kingdom, we must repent and thereafter
live lives submitted to Jesus our King.
Now John's message points to the One for whom he is preparing: the Messiah,
the coming King.
"I baptize you with water for repentance. But
after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit
to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." (Matthew
3:11)
The point of comparison between John the Baptist and the Messiah is the act
of immersing or overwhelming. But the medium in which or with which the baptism
takes place differs. John immerses his disciples in water, while the Messiah
will immerse his followers in the Holy Spirit.
The biggest question in this passage is what it means to "baptize with the
Holy Spirit." Church doctrines aside, the basic meaning is to immerse or dip a
person in the Holy Spirit; to flood a person with the Holy Spirit. Water is a
symbol of cleansing. The Holy Spirit, on the other hand, is the actual
agent of cleansing and empowerment.
To study the meaning a bit further, let's look at two closely related
passages:
"I am going to send you what my Father has
promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed (enduō) with
power (dunamis) from on high." (Luke 24:49)
"Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my
Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with
water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.... But you
will receive power (dunamis) when the Holy Spirit comes on (epiechomai)
you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:4, 5, 8; see 11:15-16)
Examine some of the words with me as we expand our understanding a bit:
"Clothe (KJV 'endue') with power." The verb is enduō, "dress,
clothe"10 This may be
similar to the analogy of baptism, the idea of covering completely with. The
word translated "power" is Greek dunamis, from which we get our word
"dynamite." To cover with power. What a thought!
"Receive power." The verb here is the extremely common Greek word
lambanō, "to receive." The emphasis is not on voluntary acceptance here but
upon possessing it. It's your turn to take an action. What would you do if you
were given a package of high explosives or a grant of limitless hydroelectric
power from a dam high in the mountains? Think what you could do with it! You've
received power.
"Come upon." The Greek verb is eperchomai, a compound word that
means "come over or upon." It can refer to unpleasant happenings or to an enemy
attack. But here it is used of the Holy Spirit coming upon the disciples.11
The word suggests something out of our control that happens to us. Spirit
baptism is wholly in God's power and at his time and pleasure.
"Pour out." The Spirit is "poured out" upon believers (Acts 2:17-18,
2:33, 10:45). Similar to the water baptism analogy, in pouring, the water, which
is in a vessel above the believer, saturates the believer with the Holy Spirit.
The "baptism of the Holy Spirit" involves being covered with, immersed in,
and empowered by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the very basis of our life
in Christ and our connection to God. Jesus floods us with the Holy Spirit. What
a wonderful thought and promise!12
| Q3. (Matthew 3:11) What is the point of comparison between John's
action and the Messiah's action? What is the point of difference? Do you
really long to be overwhelmed by the Holy Spirit? What might prevent
this in your life? What might encourage it?
http://www.joyfulheart.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=995
|
"His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will
clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the
chaff with unquenchable13
fire." (Matthew 3:12)
The process of preparing grain involved (1) threshing, that is, crushing,
beating or thrashing the grain heads in order to loosen the grain kernels from
the surrounding stems and husks; and (2) winnowing, using a kind of wooden pitch
fork (a winnowing fork) to throw the threshed grain heads into the breeze, so
the lighter chaff will blow downwind, and the heavier grain kernels will fall
back to the ground, separating the two. The floor would be "cleared" by
threshing and then winnowing all the grain heads until the chaff and grain had
been completely separated. The grain was then gathered into baskets and stored
in the barn, but the remaining stems and husks piled together and set ablaze.
The verb translated "clear" (NIV, NRSV) "purge" (KJV) is Greek diakathairō,
"clean out, cleanse thoroughly."14
The idea of thoroughness and complete cleaning is contained in this compound
verb. John the Baptist isn't talking about just regular fire here that would
burn itself out when the chaff is consumed, but a kind of eternal, unquenchable
fire.
So what is this fire baptism? There are three possibilities:
- A figure of purification of sin as the Holy Spirit does his
cleansing work in us as part of the process of sanctification. Indeed, the
Spirit's cleansing in us is sometimes painful, but nothing in the context
suggests that this is what John had in mind.
- A symbol of the tongues of fire that appeared over the heads of
the 120 disciples in the upper room on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:3).
This, too, is a stretch for John the Baptist. In the Pentecost passage, the
fire probably represents the Shekinah, that is, the glory of God rather than
fires of purification.
- A prophecy of the eschatological separation of the righteous from the
unrighteous, and judgment by the Messiah at the end of the age. This
fits contemporary expectations of the Messiah, as well as the words "cleanse
thoroughly" and "unquenchable fire" contained in the passage. Jesus' parable
of the Wheat and the Tares (Matthew 13:30, 41-42) includes this kind of
analogy of separation and final judgment. We see this in Henry Alford's
well-known Thanksgiving Hymn, "Come Ye Thankful People, Come."
"For the Lord our God shall come, And shall
take His harvest home.
From His field shall in that day All offenses purge away;
Give His angels charge at last In the fire the tares to cast,
But the fruitful ears to store In His garner evermore."
So John is prophesying of Jesus that he will (1) flood his followers with the
Holy Spirit, and (2) judge the unrighteous at the End of the Age. When Christ
returns, he will come in judgment. The first time he came in mercy, but when he
returns at the End of the Age it will be with final, terrible judgment.
What should disciples learn from this? First, we need to get off the fence
and determine whose side we are on. We need to learn a healthy fear of God.
Sometimes people talk about Jesus as if he's their buddy. Jesus is no one's
buddy. Peter learned quickly that even those close to him cannot presume upon
his will without meriting a sharp rebuke (Matthew 16:23). He is our Friend, but
not our buddy. He is always our Master.
Second, we need to consider our friends and loved ones, and pray for their
salvation. Jesus will surely come in terrible judgment, and unless people repent
of their sins, they will perish and experience eternal punishment. There is the
exhilarating promise of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, but the sobering warning
of judgment for those who do not welcome the Messiah.
This passage urges some personal reflection. Have you acknowledged Jesus'
power and authority over you as John the Baptist did? Have you been baptized?
Have you repented of your sins and submitted yourself to public Christian
baptism? If not, why don't you talk with your pastor about it this week? We are
disciples! We're not going to put off until a later time the lessons about which
Christ is dealing with us now!
Have you been immersed in the Holy Spirit? If you've repented of your sins
and asked Christ to be your Master, then He responds with the gift of the Holy
Spirit and the resulting new birth. What's going on in your life? Are you
swimming in the Spirit or just sipping occasionally? Are you spiritually dry? Do
you long for God with a deep thirst? The Messiah wants you flooded with his
Spirit, and anything less isn't enough.
John the Baptist is the local phenomenon. People are streaming to the Jordan
by the hundreds, by the thousands, to be baptized. Then, all of a sudden, comes
Jesus.
"13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the
Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him,
saying, 'I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?' 15
Jesus replied, 'Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all
righteousness.' Then John consented." (Matthew 3:13-15)
Why should Jesus be baptized? Even John the Baptist wondered the
same. Though he probably knew Jesus from times when their families met at
Passover in Jerusalem each year, John had spiritual eyes. He knew now that his
cousin Jesus was the sinless Lamb of God who would take away the world's sin
(John 1:29, 36). In Jesus' presence, John the Baptizer realizes his own
unworthiness: "I need to be baptized by you" (Matthew 3:14).
So why did Jesus insist upon being baptized? Theologians have pondered this
mystery for centuries. Jesus' answer is, "to fulfill all righteousness."
"Fulfill" is plēroō, "to make full, fill (full)," then, "to bring to a
designed end, fulfill" a prophecy, an obligation, a promise, a law, a request, a
purpose, a desire, a hope, a duty, a fate, a destiny, etc.15
"Righteousness" (dikaiosynē) might be considered speaking of specific
action, "righteousness in the sense of fulfilling divine expectation, not
specifically expressed in ordinances."16
It might refer to solidarity with John's call for repentance to prepare for the
kingdom.
But more likely it is Jesus' identification with all those who are being
baptized, having responded to John's call for repentance. Jesus is becoming one
with them, with us, for he is our brother (Hebrews 2:11). Jesus' words probably
contain a reference to Isaiah's prophecy which Jesus knew well: "My righteous
servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities" (Isaiah 53:11).
16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he
went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the
Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. 17 And a
voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well
pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17)
The One who will baptize with the Spirit is now anointed by the Spirit for
his ministry. We see echoes of this event in both Luke and Acts. Now Jesus goes
"full of the Holy Spirit" (Luke 4:1), "in the power of the Spirit" (Luke 4:14).
Peter declares,
"... How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the
Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who
were under the power of the devil, because God was with him." (Acts 10:38)
This is also a God-given sign to John the Baptist:
"Then John gave this testimony: 'I saw the Spirit
come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. I would not have known him,
except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, "The man on whom
you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy
Spirit." I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.'" (John 1:32-34)
Following his baptism, Jesus returns to Galilee, and after John is
imprisoned, Jesus takes up his cousin's message:
"From that time on Jesus began to preach, 'Repent,
for the kingdom of heaven is near.'" (Matthew 4:17)
Sometimes we see Jesus as the gentle Teacher. But he is also the Prophet who
calls to repentance. "The Kingdom, the Reign of God, is at hand," Jesus says.
"You must repent." Zacchaeus understood it and repented (Luke 19:1-10). To the
woman discovered in adultery, he didn't speak condemnation, but a call to
repentance: "Go now and leave your life of sin." (John 8:11)
He speaks the same word to his disciples today. Follow me, but as you follow,
you must repent. We cannot be serious about the Reign of Christ if we don't turn
from our sins. To pretend to follow Jesus while we are still living in
unrepented sin is an affront to his Kingship over us. We begin our study of
Jesus and the Kingdom with this word: "Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is
near" (Matthew 4:17).
Prayer
Father, too often we have heard your word but gone our own way. Help us, we
pray, to be a repentant people so that we might be true disciples of the
Kingdom. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
Key Verses
"They were baptized by him in the river Jordan,
confessing their sins." (Matthew 3:6, NIV)
"Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is near."
(Matthew 4:17, NIV)
Discipleship Lessons
on Jesus and the Kingdom Bible Study
Copyright © 1985-2012, Ralph F. Wilson. <pastor
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