When I was young, my home church didn’t talk much about John the Baptist. In fact, we kids found it scandalous that he was, quite plainly, a “Baptist.” It sounded like “John the Presbyterian” to our ears! And some preachers therefore insisted on calling him “John the Baptizer.”
But John’s role was to prepare us for Jesus — which seems to still be a right and proper thing.
(Luk 3:7-14 ESV) 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.”
Notice that John said some truly astonishing things.
1. He demanded repentance — of the Jews. He specifically rejected the notion that inheritance is enough to save.
“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.”
In other words, you may be children of Abraham and heirs of the promises made to him, but if you don’t repent, you’ll still be consumed by the fire of God.
This is a teaching consistent with the prophets of old, who’d warned that God only promised to save the nation — not all people in the nation. After all, the prophets warned Judah that God had allowed the Assyrians to conquer the Northern Kingdom (capital city Samaria) because of their hard hearts.
(Isa 10:10-11 ESV) 10 “As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols, whose carved images were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria, 11 shall I not do to Jerusalem and her idols as I have done to Samaria and her images?”
In fact, the First Century Jews worshiped at a Temple larger and more splendid than Solomon’s. The sacrifices and rituals were conducted in scrupulous compliance with the Law of Moses. Crowds of thousands attended services. And yet repentance was demanded.
2. Repentance was not just agreeing to be immersed. There were clear ethical standards: “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
These are expressed in terms of concern for the needy — those without clothing or food — and vocational ministry. John refuses to let even a soldier* separate his vocation from his commitment to God. If you’re a soldier, you must still live in accordance with Kingdom principles, even in your military career. If you are tax collector — an employee of the government — your commitment to God prohibits you from compartmentalizing your life. The Kingdom changes how you do your job, even if your employer is Augustus Caesar.
Already, we see Luke pointing us toward a holistic, life-filling relationship with God. Everything changes. It’s not just that we repent and are baptized, but also that we enter into a Kingdom in which concern for the less fortunate is of paramount importance. And there are no competing loyalties. We can only serve one master. And so, if Caesar allows us to take bribes, even then, we still take no bribes. Kingdom law is the highest law.
John doesn’t require the hated tax collectors and soldiers to leave their posts and enter the ministry. They keep their jobs, but they perform their jobs as servants of the Most High God. And so, John shows us that the Kingdom won’t be about overthrowing Rome. It’ll be about a radically different way of living in Rome.
So how do we get ready for Jesus?
1. We recognize that Jesus demands repentance — a change in loyalty.
2. We recognize that we aren’t saved by our parents’ choices. We don’t inherit salvation.
3. Repentance has to produce “fruit,” that is, it must produce real change in how we live. We can’t live like the other people around us, even the religious people.
4. Repentance means taking on the heart of God — which includes concern for the needy and acting on that concern.
5. Repentance means refusing to abuse power. God gives the government power for good reason, but that power is subject to God’s principles. Therefore, an officer of the government cannot solicit a bribe or otherwise abuse his power to push people around. The government can be a good thing, but it’s only good to the extent it complies with God’s purposes — to serve the people.
6. Repentance is vocational. It changes how we do our jobs. Even if our employer permits us to violate God’s principles, we answer first to God.
And there is nothing here about how to overthrow Rome. Well, actually, it’s all about how to overthrow Rome.
Finally, to someone familiar with the prophets, there aren’t many surprises in John’s teachings — except —
A. Baptism. Baptism is unprecedented in the scriptures. He introduces a ritual with no historic roots, other than the fact that ritual washings were required to make someone ritually clean. John seems to imply that everyone is unclean and so everyone needs to be washed. The ritual certainly emphasizes the inadequacy of birthright!
Moreover, John’s choice of the Jordan symbolizes a fresh passage from the wildnerness into the Promised Land — the Exile in ending!
He baptizes “into the forgiveness of sins.” The phrase is exactly parallel with Acts 2:38, except John’s baptism does not provide the gift of the Holy Spirit. This is more than a mere ceremonial cleansing ritual!
We considered baptism in great detail in the “Baptism, An Exploration” series, and I’ll not repeat that material here. It’s just that we can’t leave John the Baptizer without mentioning his baptism.
B. Vipers. He calls the crowd “brood of vipers,” literally, “offspring of vipers.” In Matthew, John refers to the Pharisees and Sadducees as vipers, but in Luke, the entire crowd is referred to this way. His phrasing insults their ancestors as well. The Jews claimed salvation by their ancestry — and John insulted their ancestry! This is very harsh language.
(Luk 3:7 ESV) 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?”
“Serpent,” as in the Garden of Eden, refers to any snake, poisonous or not, and was a standard metaphor for Satan. “Viper” refers specifically to poisonous snakes, intensifying the insult. This is very, very harsh language. Their ancestors (and they) were not only Satanic, they were Satanic in a particularly poisonous way — bringing harm to others.
Why use such language? Why tell “the crowds” that they were subject to God’s wrath? Clearly, John was warning them that unless they repent, they will suffer God’s wrath — and richly deserve it. This is not so much “all have sinned and have fallen short” as “you richly deserve the destruction that is coming.” Why?
Well, the soldiers demanded bribes, the tax collectors overcharged, and the people in general cared little for those in need. The people had compartmentalized their lives so that they did the required rituals and said the right words and went to the right assemblies, but they lived down to the same standards as the pagans when it came to how they treated their fellowman.
Yes, the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles would not have taken part in the pagan rituals at the temples of idols, but neither did they hold themselves up to God’s standards. They were not a light of the world. The world was not being blessed through them as God’s covenant with Abraham and the prophets directed.
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* Luke leaves unclear whether John was addressing Roman or Jewish soldiers. A similar word is used in Luke 22:4 of temple guards (and of Roman soldiers in Acts 16:20), and it seems unlikely that the Romans would have had much interest in a Jewish desert prophet. Jews did not serve in the Roman army, although it’s possible a Roman soldier could have become a God fearer, as did Cornelius. Leon Morris suggests in the Tyndale commentary that they were Jewish soldiers who supported tax collection efforts.
John the Baptist is called the First Fore-runner of Christ … Elijah is called the Second Fore-runner of Christ … Although Elijah came first, he is to come again as the Second Fore-runner of Christ in the Second Coming! Not a re-incarnated Elijsh (because he is still living), but as the original Elijah that was taken up in the fiery chariot.