John the Baptist
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Walking Through the Life of John the Baptist
Walking Through the Life of John the Baptist
Not the Apostle
Illustration: Setting up for events
We delegate without explaining
No time to do that!
Our time is short! Production is soon!
John the Baptist goes into this mode as well
No time, repent! Kingdom of God is at hand!
Getting ready for Easter, preparing the way...
The Birth of John
The Birth of John
11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
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Muhammad Ali claimed to be the greatest, but Jesus said its John
This is coming from Jesus! Elaborate…
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, 8 and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah,
5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.
5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph,
Paint the picture – a marriage serving God, but they don’t have what they want.
Paint the picture – a marriage serving God, but they don’t have what they want.
Have you been in that state?
It won’t change your relationship with God…
But you really want it!
Illustration: Tasha jumped out of the closet
Angel does that to Zacharias
Zacharias is burning incense alone, an angel appears
13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
Illustration: Have you ever prayed a long time for something?
I’ve had prayers answered instantly (headache)
Some take a little more time (job at church)
Some take a very long time (leaving the mill)
No matter what, isn’t it exciting when God answers?
The angel continues:
15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
John’s purpose was spelled out from the get go
He was meant to be a funnel for Jesus
Illustration: Watching the skimmer in my pool
Are you living your purpose? Are you serving God?
John the B’s dad didn’t believe the angel
He ends up mute, which is a huge blessing!
When Tash was pregnant I said lots of dumb stuff
I wish God would have just shut me up…
Fast forward – Pregnant Mary visits pregnant Elizabeth
Explain relationship
41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
Even in the womb, John had an attachment to Jesus
People wonder why the church is pro-life
Elizabeth was 6 months pregnant, Mary was less
Already there’s relationship & purpose in their lives
Instead of thinking politically, think about this:
5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
This was about Jeremiah, but apparently true of John
And true of Paul:
15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace,
Do you find comfort there?
God already knows where you’re going
When God formed me, He was thinking:
Oh Dan, you’re gonna tell people all about Me
You’re gonna have this wonderful wife
You’re gonna love your awesome kids
You’re gonna eat so much Del Taco…
13 For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
God just poured Himself into making you…
Each of us has this amazing purpose for Him
Illustration: Basketball boys wearing their gear…
They should be worried about the game!
We’re supposed to be focused on God
But we grab onto distractions…
John didn’t, he stayed focused on his mission
Preparing the Way
Preparing the Way
1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
make his paths straight.’ ”
Isaiah promised that John would come
And what is he going to do?
Repent, because Jesus is almost here?
So? Why do you need to do that John?
Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.
Again, why do you need to do that?
Illustration: Seven years to complete the transcontinental railroad
Seven years to complete the transcontinental railroad
Took four months from NY to SF
It took the first train 83 hours
That’s more than 35 times faster!
Why? Because they “prepared the way”
Jesus’ way was prepared by repentance and baptism
The question is, what kind of road are you on?
We have paved roads for cars and trucks
And we have rails for trains
You don’t take a train on pavement
You don’t take a car on tracks (usually)
John the B built up a rail system of repentance
Satan built up the pavement of damnation
We want to get on the Jesus train!
John is in the wilderness, encouraging repentance
He’s wearing his camels’ hair and a leather belt
And he’s eating grasshoppers and honey
Mmm… delicious!
It’s urgent, we gotta lay these rails! Hurry!
Then these guys come out to him:
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
I’ve always found that interesting…
These men are coming, why is John so harsh?
Illustration:
They were easy to recognize
Just like a Jesus movie
There were 18 parts to their garments
Phylacteries
They would pray very loud and long
Problem is, that’s all on the outside
Now they want to “repent” before the Messiah
That was outward too!!
They believed that the law made you righteous
Pharisees and Sadducees believed they were good!
They’re probably thinking John is excited to see them
Maybe even ask them to help…
Nope! You brood of vipers!
We can still make that same mistake today
Been baptized 7 times, altar boy, pastor of 5,000
Doesn’t mean anything if your heart isn’t right…
I beg you, don’t let yourself believe you are holy
Believe me, I know what it means to need Jesus
We ALL need Jesus!!
Our BEST works are filthy rags…
Billy Graham’s best sermon is a filthy rag…
Then John the B goes on:
8 Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume 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. 10 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.
Let’s go all the way back to Isaiah and the tree…
Israel was going to be the tree
But God chopped it down to purify it
A new root would grow from the stem of Jesse
Israel didn’t get that! They thought, we’re good!
I’m from Abraham, God’s on my side!
John says “No He’s not!”
Parents say, “I brought you in this world, and I’ll take you out! And it won’t make a difference because I’ll make another that looks just like you!”
God is saying the same thing!
He could make a new generation from rocks!
So don’t come walking out here all holy, REPENT!
John reminds me a lot of my wife
He has 2 traits like her: honesty and humility
My wife is honest… sometimes too honest!
In her view, she must speak the truth
When my wife says, I do a good job, I believe her
Because she sure wouldn’t say it was if it wasn’t!
John calls sin, sin. He doesn’t beat around the bush
It’s actually what ends up killing him…
But he’s humble too.
Let’s look at John the Apostle’s version of the story
They want to know who he is:
The Christ?
No way!
Elijah?
Nope!
The prophet?
Nuh uh…
Then who?!
I’m that little voice in the wilderness. That’s all.
Look at this next verse:
26 John answered them, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, 27 even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”
You show up with robes and stuff? I got camels hair…
You think I’m Christ? I can’t even untie His shoes…
Then what?!
I’m just here to build tracks… because He’s coming!
Illustration: When guests come to your house…
You try to hurry and clean, and the doorbell rings
Well, here they are!
Ding dong! Here’s Jesus!
Baptizing Jesus
Baptizing Jesus
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’
That’s pretty heavy language!
The lamb of God? Taking away sin?
That’s not a small statement…
Notice he doesn’t say sins, but singular sin
Means all sin in one mass entanglement at once
It’s clear he understood the magnitude of Jesus
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented.
Can you imagine baptizing Jesus?!
I can’t imagine making a hot pocket for Tom Hanks
Let alone BAPTIZING JESUS!
More than that, John’s thinking: you’re spotless…
Why would you even need to be baptized?
He didn’t, but Jesus came to stand with man
He was sinless but represented the sinful at the cross
Jesus was NOT repenting
But making a righteous identification with sinners
Look at the Father’s reaction here:
16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
I think this event shows Jesus wasn’t on the same plane
This isn’t a changing moment for Jesus
Jesus wasn’t changed into the Son
Instead, the Trinity was revealed (Father, Spirit, Son)
I wonder why people often ask if they must be baptized
Ask: Do you have to be baptized to be saved?
NO! But let me ask another question…
Do you have to be baptized?
Of course, you do! Why wouldn’t you want to?!
We always want to take the easy way out…
Instead of the minimum, why don’t we try obedience?
The great commission says
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Jesus says “Go!! And BAPTIZE!” Do it!
And were like: do I have to? What’s in it for me?
I Must Decrease
I Must Decrease
After Jesus departs, a bunch of guys go with him
John keeps doing his thing and he lands in Aenon
John’s disciples see everyone going toward Jesus
They complain, “everyone is going to that guy?!”
Illustration: We still do that in churches today
That church has waterslides and pony rides…
Maybe you don’t know… we’re all on the same team!
That’s not how John responds…
28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”
Wow, if the church could just live that out…
Think of what we could let go of!
It’s not about me, or you, or this church…
It’s about Him! He must increase, not me…
But John was not perfect!
Put in Prison
Put in Prison
He ends up in jail for some 2 years
Come to find out
…Living for Jesus isn’t all sunshine and roses
He’s rotting in jail, alone, wondering about Jesus
Isn’t He the guy? I was pretty sure, but…
Man, I don’t know…
Interesting how trials make us forget our purpose
Or worse, we start to doubt Him
I know I’ve been there…
Questioning my calling, whether God cares, whether He can care… Can you hear me God? You listening?
He sends some messengers to Jesus:
2 Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples 3 and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”
Isn’t this John?!
Preparing the way, The Kingdom of God is at hand, Behold the Lamb of God?! The greatest prophet?!
What should that tell us?
If John the B can doubt, I’m probably going to doubt
Interesting how trials make us forget our purpose
Or worse, we start to doubt Him
Look at what Jesus says:
4 And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. 6 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
Without saying He says, yes John. You know I’m the guy
Jesus says pull your head out and look big picture
I think that’s a good lesson for today
My job, my family, my friends…
Jesus says pull your head out and look big picture
There’s problems yes, but I love you
Your food, clothing, yes, yes, yes I know
I love you…
More than the birds who eat
The flowers who are beautiful
I made you. I died for you. I was resurrected for you.
I love you.
Big picture.
The Death of John
The Death of John
John’s in prison, because he angered Herod
Married his brother’s wife, and John called him out
(Remember I said his honesty would get him killed)
Herod’s new wife Herodias really hated John for that
Herodias’ daughter came in and danced for Herod
He was so happy, he said he’s give her anything
Up to half of his kingdom even!
She runs out and asks her mom what to get
She could have anything! But she asks for this:
25 And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”
Apparently Herodias is not the type you want to anger
The king didn’t want to, but was obliged by his oath
That’s a pretty sick thing to do, a head on a platter
Mommy, you’re scaring me!
Disciples buried the body, and brought news to Jesus
Jesus then gets on a boat and goes off by Himself
Obviously heartbroken…
John was His cousin, His way-maker, and His friend
Like many prophets before him, John was murdered
But he died doing what was right!
Honestly preaching and working for Christ!
John’s Life and Mission
John’s Life and Mission
Here’s what we learn from John’s life as a prophet:
After John’s disciples ask if Jesus is the one, they leave
Then Jesus talks about John:
7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. 9 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is he of whom it is written,
“ ‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who will prepare your way before you.’
11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
John’s honesty and humility made him the best prophet …EVER!
But then Jesus adds this:
…but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
John died before the New Covenant was established!
So with as great as John was, even the lowest in Christ’s kingdom beats the best from the old way!
Christ’s kingdom beats the best from the old way!
That’s great news!
Closing: What is YOUR mission?