Prepare The Way
Notes
Transcript
FOLLOW THE KING
FOLLOW THE KING
WEEK 3
WEEK 3
MATTHEW 3:1–17
MATTHEW 3:1–17
PREPARE THE WAY
PREPARE THE WAY
Anchor Movement
Anchor Movement
Hear The Voice. Heed The Warning. Behold The King.
Hear The Voice. Heed The Warning. Behold The King.
Big Idea
Big Idea
The arrival of King Jesus exposes every heart and demands a response: repentance for sinners, warning for hypocrites, and faith in the Son whom the Father has revealed.
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
Imagine your phone suddenly received an emergency alert.
Not a weather alert.
Not an Amber Alert.
An alert that said:
"The King is arriving tomorrow."
Everything would change.
Plans would change.
Priorities would change.
Schedules would change.
You wouldn't ignore that announcement.
You would prepare.
That's exactly what Matthew 3 is.
Matthew 1 says:
The King has the right bloodline.
Matthew 2 says:
The King has arrived.
Matthew 3 says:
What will you do now that He's here?
And before Jesus preaches a sermon...
Before He performs a miracle...
Before He calls a disciple...
God sends a messenger.
A wild man in the wilderness.
Camel hair.
Locusts.
Wild honey.
And one message:
REPENT.
Because when the King arrives, He doesn't just comfort people.
He exposes people.
He exposes:
false religion
fake repentance
spiritual pride
self-righteousness
And He reveals who truly belongs to His Kingdom.
Matthew 3 asks every student in this room:
Are you ready for the King?
1. HEAR THE VOICE: The King Is Near Matthew 3:1–6
1. HEAR THE VOICE: The King Is Near Matthew 3:1–6
In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea
"In those days John the Baptist came preaching..."
Four hundred years of silence are suddenly shattered.
No prophets.
No revelation.
No word from heaven.
Then suddenly:
A voice.
Not in Jerusalem.
Not in the Temple.
Not among the religious elite.
In the wilderness, a voice is heard
God Often Speaks From Unexpected Places (v.1)
God Often Speaks From Unexpected Places (v.1)
In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea
The wilderness throughout Scripture is a place of preparation.
Moses met God in the wilderness.
Israel was shaped in the wilderness.
Elijah encountered God in the wilderness.
God often births ministry in barren places because the wilderness strips away self-sufficiency and teaches dependence.
Student Application
Student Application
Sometimes God does His deepest work in:
loneliness
disappointment
confusion
seasons that feel dry
The wilderness may feel empty, but often God is preparing something there.
John's Message Was Radical (v.2)
John's Message Was Radical (v.2)
and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
This is the first sermon recorded in Matthew.
MacArthur points out something fascinating:
The first sermon of John is "Repent."
The first sermon of Jesus in Matthew 4:17 is "Repent."
From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
The King and His herald preach the same message.
Why?
Because repentance is the doorway into the Kingdom.
What Repentance Is Not
What Repentance Is Not
Repentance is not:
feeling guilty
getting emotional
crying at camp
raising your hand
Biblical repentance includes:
confession
contrition
conversion
A changed mind that produces a changed direction.
Illustration
Illustration
Judas felt remorse.
Peter repented.
Both felt bad.
Only one turned back to Christ.
The Kingdom Is Near Because The King Is Here (v.2)
The Kingdom Is Near Because The King Is Here (v.2)
and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
The Kingdom is not merely a place.
The Kingdom is God's rule breaking into human history.
Believers are not merely saved from something; they are brought under the reign of a King. (Mitchell
This is one of Matthew's biggest themes.
Christianity is not:
"Invite Jesus into your life."
It is:
"Bow your life before the King."
John Was A Signpost, Not The Destination (vv.3-6)
John Was A Signpost, Not The Destination (vv.3-6)
This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:
“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.’ ”
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. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
Everything about John screamed Elijah.
Camel hair.
Leather belt.
Wilderness prophet.
Matthew intentionally presents John as the Elijah-like prophet promised in three ways, but first lets look at Malachi 4:5-6
“See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”
Explicitly stating, "he is Elijah who is to come" (Matthew 11:14
And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.
This identification is reinforced in Matthew 17:10-13, where Jesus clarifies that the disciples understood he was speaking of John the Baptist after the Transfiguration.
The disciples asked him, “Why then do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”
Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah comes and will restore all things. But I tell you, Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but have done to him everything they wished. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.” Then the disciples understood that he was talking to them about John the Baptist.
Spiritual Succession:
John fulfilled the prophecy not as a literal reincarnation of the historical Elijah, but by ministering "in the spirit and power of Elijah" (Luke 1:17, cited in Matthew's context)
And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
Visual Parallels
Matthew highlights John’s camel’s hair and leather belt (Matthew 3:4), deliberately mirroring Elijah’s attire (2 Kings 1:8) to signal this prophetic connection to readers
They replied, “He had a garment of hair and had a leather belt around his waist.”
The king said, “That was Elijah the Tishbite.”
Preparation for the Messiah
Just as Malachi predicted Elijah would turn hearts before the "great and awesome day of the LORD," John’s ministry of repentance prepared the way for Jesus’ first coming.
John's entire ministry can be summarized in one sentence:
"Don't look at me. Look at Him."
Transition
Transition
Many people heard the voice.
Crowds came.
But not everyone who came was truly prepared.
Some had religion.
Some had repentance.
John is about to expose the difference.
2. HEED THE WARNING: The King Exposes Every Heart Matthew 3:7–12
2. HEED THE WARNING: The King Exposes Every Heart Matthew 3:7–12
The temperature of the sermon changes immediately.
The crowd is gathered.
The baptisms are happening.
Then the Pharisees and Sadducees arrive.
And John unloads.
Religious Activity Cannot Replace Repentance (v.7)
Religious Activity Cannot Replace Repentance (v.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! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
"You brood of vipers!"
Imagine being called a snake by God's prophet.
Why such harsh language?
Because the greatest threat to the Kingdom wasn't paganism.
It was counterfeit religion.
John immediately discerned their hypocrisy. They came without brokenness. They came without repentance. (MacArthur)
Student Application
Student Application
One of the scariest realities in Scripture:
You can be around spiritual things and still be spiritually dead.
You can:
attend youth group
sing worship songs
serve on a team
know Bible answers
and still not know Jesus.
Tony Evans says:
They wanted information, but not transformation.
That may be the most dangerous place a person can live.
Genuine Repentance Produces Visible Fruit (v.8)
Genuine Repentance Produces Visible Fruit (v.8)
Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.
"Bear fruit worthy of repentance."
Fruit is not the cause of salvation, but the evidence of salvation. (MacArthur)
The root is invisible.
The fruit is visible.
Illustration
Illustration
You can staple apples to a dead tree.
It still isn't alive.
A changed life doesn't produce salvation.
Salvation produces a changed life.
Heritage Cannot Save You (v.9)
Heritage Cannot Save You (v.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.
"We have Abraham as our father."
The Pharisees trusted their ancestry.
Modern students trust:
family history
church membership
baptism certificates
youth camp experiences
John destroys every false refuge.
God has children.
God does not have grandchildren.
Judgment Is Closer Than People Think (vv.10-12)
Judgment Is Closer Than People Think (vv.10-12)
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.
“I baptize you with water for repentance. 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 fire. 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 unquenchable fire.”
Notice the imagery:
Wrath is coming.
The axe is ready.
The fire is burning.
The fork is raised.
The immediate context strongly favors fire as judgment because every surrounding image points to judgment. (MacArthur)
John is saying:
The King is not merely coming as Savior.
The King is also coming as Judge.
The Tension
The Tension
The same Jesus who welcomes sinners will one day separate wheat from chaff.
Matthew wants us to feel that weight.
Transition
Transition
At this point every reader should ask:
Who is this King?
Who has authority to save?
Who has authority to judge?
Matthew answers with one of the most important scenes in the entire Gospel.
3. BEHOLD THE KING: The Father Reveals The Son Matthew 3:13–17
3. BEHOLD THE KING: The Father Reveals The Son Matthew 3:13–17
Everything in the chapter has been building to this moment.
John fades.
Jesus steps forward.
The Sinless King Stands Among Sinners (vv.13-15)
The Sinless King Stands Among Sinners (vv.13-15)
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”
Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented.
John immediately objects.
"I need to be baptized by You."
He understands.
His baptism is for sinners.
Jesus has no sin.
So why is He here?
Jesus is identifying with those He came to save.
Gospel Moment
Gospel Moment
The sinless King enters the water with sinners.
Soon, the sinless King will hang on a cross for sinners.
Matthew is already pointing us toward Calvary.
The Perfect King Succeeds Where Everyone Else Failed (v.15)
The Perfect King Succeeds Where Everyone Else Failed (v.15)
Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented.
"To fulfill all righteousness."
Adam failed.
Israel failed.
The Pharisees failed.
You fail.
I fail.
Jesus does not.
Every act of Christ's life is perfect obedience.
Not merely so He can die for us.
But so He can live for us.
This is the doctrine of Christ's active obedience.
His righteousness becomes ours through faith.
The Spirit Anoints The King (v.16)
The Spirit Anoints The King (v.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 alighting on him.
The heavens open.
The Spirit descends.
This functions as a prophetic commissioning and inauguration.
This is coronation language.
The public ministry begins.
The King has taken His throne in history.
The Father Declares The King's Identity (v.17)
The Father Declares The King's Identity (v.17)
And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
Then heaven speaks.
Not an angel.
Not a prophet.
God Himself.
"This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."
This declaration combines Psalm 2 and Isaiah 42.
I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:
He said to me, “You are my son;
today I have become your father.
“Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him,
and he will bring justice to the nations.
Meaning, Jesus is both:
The Royal King
The Suffering Servant
The One who will reign.
The One who will die.
The One who will save.
The Climax
The Climax
Matthew's answer is clear on Who is Jesus?
Not merely a teacher.
Not merely a prophet.
Not merely a good man.
He is:
The Beloved Son of God.
The King.
The Messiah.
The Savior.
The Judge.
The One worthy of repentance, faith, worship, and obedience.
CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION
Matthew 3 leaves every person standing in one of three groups.
Some hear the voice and ignore it.
Some hear the warning and harden themselves.
Some behold the King and surrender.
The question isn't:
Do you know who John the Baptist is?
The question isn't:
Have you been baptized?
The question isn't:
Do your parents follow Jesus?
The question is:
What will you do with the King?
Because the King is here.
And when the King arrives:
Hear The Voice.
Hear The Voice.
Heed The Warning.
Heed The Warning.
Behold The King.
Behold The King.
And then follow Him.
