Preparing the Way

Date: 2022-01-16

Audience: Grass Valley Corps (ONLINE)

Title: Preparing the Way

Text: Matthew 3 (all)

Proposition: John was important to demonstrating the identity of Jesus

Purpose: Recognize Jesus was God-approved

Grace and peace

Story of Jesus in the biography written by Matthew.

Matthew – one of the Twelve Apostles – key disciples of Jesus

How many disciples? At times, followed by thousands. Needed central group of lieutenants to hear him and carry his message.

Matthew was one of these guys.

He was educated and wealthy when Jesus met him. Matthew was a tax collector. I’ve mentioned Matthew’s emphasis on the way of Jesus being open for everyone who chooses to accept it. Tax collectors were hated, treated as traitors. They worked for Rome, collecting taxes that kept the legions paid, which kept the troops strong, which kept Israel oppressed by and subject to Rome. Matthew was someone who voluntarily worked to keep his own people poor and controlled by the enemy who ruled over them. Not very popular.

A group called the Zealots had quietly come into existence. They were trying to raise underground support for Israeli independence. One of the things they were known for was finding tax collectors who got separated from their security details or who got too close to a dark alleyway. They would knife them and leave the body as an example of what they believed should happen to all who worked for Rome.

One of the other eleven members of Jesus’ inner circle was Simon the Zealot. I bet these guys had some interesting dinner discussions. And yet, both Matthew and Simon became disciples of Jesus. Why? Because they recognized that Jesus was promised by, sent by, and approved by God.

How did they come to that conclusion? Because of things like we see in Matthew Chapter 3.

Matthew chapter 3 centers on a man who was called John.

In those days John the Baptist came to the Judean wilderness and began preaching. His message was, 2 “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”[1]

The Judean wilderness was an area of baren desert hills west of the Dead Sea. The hillsides were scarred with furrows, called wadis, which were dry and rocky most of the time, but would fill with floodwaters rushing downhill during the rainy season, scouring away anything in their path. It was largely uninhabited because it was largely uninhabitable. Being there was a test and sometimes people would go out into the wilderness because the history of God’s people included times where they were lost or set adrift in far reaches where they had to learn to rely on God to survive. For pilgrims, passing through wilderness was a way of retracing the steps of their ancestors in hope of meeting the God who gave them refuge and renewal in the harsh places of their lives.

The prophets spoke about returning to the wilderness as a part of bringing the people back to God. Hosea describes the LORD’s plan this way:

14 “But then I will win her back once again.

I will lead her into the desert

and speak tenderly to her there.

15 I will return her vineyards to her

and transform the Valley of Trouble into a gateway of hope.

She will give herself to me there,

as she did long ago when she was young,

when I freed her from her captivity in Egypt. [2]

It was to be a new Exodus to a new promise, foretold by prophets and executed by the long-awaited Messiah who would be declared by one final, great prophet.

Isaiah brought this message to the people in his day:

9 O Zion, messenger of good news,

shout from the mountaintops!

Shout it louder, O Jerusalem.

Shout, and do not be afraid.

Tell the towns of Judah,

“Your God is coming!” [3]

What we are reading in Matthew reflects a belief that this time has come. Because that’s exactly what John is preaching from his place in the wilds outside of Jerusalem:

2 “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”[4]

We’ve talked about sin and repentance before. Let me remind you that neither of these are intended as angry words. They are both directions.

To sin is literally to miss the mark. Think of it as being given directions to a certain place, but choosing to go elsewhere instead, be that somewhere close or somewhere far away. Either way, you have missed the mark.

To repent is a turning back to where you were supposed to be heading – it’s not a change of mind or thinking, though that might be part of it. To repent is to actually move back onto the route you should be traveling.

What John is preaching in the wilderness is that the time of God is coming and that we need to make sure we are heading towards life in his kingdom instead of heading away from it.

All four gospel writers link John’s message to the passage I just read part of from Isaiah 40. They quote a piece from the beginning of that passage. Matthew put it this way:

3 The prophet Isaiah was speaking about John when he said,

“He is a voice shouting in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming!

Clear the road for him!’ ” [5]

John sounded like a prophet and spoke in a place God was known to send his prophets, but the wilderness was also a place for exiles and outcasts. There were those who came for spiritual renewal and those who came to escape spiritual renewal. Matthew wants us to understand which kind John was.

4 John’s clothes were woven from coarse camel hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food he ate locusts and wild honey.[6]

John’s location, his clothing, and his food all spoke to his identity. His clothing was the same as that worn by the prophet Elijah – made of hair with a leather belt holding it in place. His food was kosher, natural, and entirely supplied by God. His subsistence on these things would have carried great weight, demonstrating John to be a man living a simple life focused on the LORD, not on the things of the world.

And, recognizing him as a prophet, the people came to hear and respond to what John said.

5 People from Jerusalem and from all of Judea and all over the Jordan Valley went out to see and hear John. 6 And when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River. [7]

John’s call wasn’t just for people to apologize for a single sin or a handful of them. It was a call to change the way of life people were living in – turn from the old and embrace the new.

The baptism he was doing was a symbol used when Gentiles would convert to Judaism. It was the last step in a process of embracing a whole new way of life obedient to the LORD, turning away from everything else.

It wasn’t just wading into the river to get dunked.

It was an intentional turning away from the place someone was at and giving themselves over to living as if they were waiting for the Kingdom of God to appear and establish something new.

John was telling people that entry into the true Kingdom was by choosing to repent and pledge themselves to God and NOT by being born into or becoming one of the family descended from Abraham.

He was telling them that true acceptance into the family of God was a matter of your choice or acceptance of God’s gift of salvation, not one of destiny or birthright.

This would have been shocking to many of the people in his day, just as it will be to many in our time.

When the religious leaders came to see what was going on with John in the wilderness, this is how John welcomed them.

7 But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to watch him baptize, he denounced them. “You brood of snakes!” he exclaimed. “Who warned you to flee the coming wrath? 8 Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. 9 Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones. 10 Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire. [8]

We always want to think the best, but so often I hear people speak about someone who has died, saying something like, “Well, they’re at peace in heaven now.” And I’m usually too polite to ask why you might think that about someone who never walked the path of God a day in their life. Do you think we die and then say, “Well, I guess I should turn my back on all the things I lived for and start to do things God’s way now”?

In old rabbinic tradition, when you repented of a thing – whatever that is – that repentance was said to suspend judgment. Your declaration of a change in your life and walk would put that judgment on hold. Then, on the Day of Atonement which occurred once per year, any of those suspended judgments would be cleared, if you had truly walked away from the sin and stayed on the path of God.

The sages would also warn against making a plan to sin and then repent, pointing out that this kind of duplicity was nothing more than a bigger sin, not doing anything to walk God’s path.

Salvation isn’t destined – it’s a gift we either accept or don’t. To say, “I’ll get it later,” is definitely saying, “No thanks, I don’t want it now.” But you never know if you’ll have the chance again! John is warning them that the day is at hand for God to appear and for the fruit our lives produce to be evaluated.

John wanted everyone to know that he was simply there to prepare them for what was coming.

11 “I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be his slave and carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12 He is ready to separate the chaff from the wheat with his winnowing fork. Then he will clean up the threshing area, gathering the wheat into his barn but burning the chaff with never-ending fire.” [9]

The one who is coming will baptize with the Holy Spirit.

Who is John telling us is coming?

No mortal and no ordinary supernatural being. There is only one who pours the Holy Spirit out on anyone.

Isaiah 44:2 tells us:

2 The Lord who made you and helps you says:

Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant,

O dear Israel, my chosen one.

3 For I will pour out water to quench your thirst

and to irrigate your parched fields.

And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants,

and my blessing on your children. [10]

And Ezekiel says, in chapter 36:

23 I will show how holy my great name is—the name on which you brought shame among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will know that I am the Lord. 24 For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land.

25 “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. 26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.[11]

And through the prophet Joel, in the second chapter of his book, the LORD says:

29 In those days I will pour out my Spirit

even on servants—men and women alike. [12]

The Holy Spirit is used by God to baptize those whom he will. It is his gift to those who are his people. All in his family. It doesn’t matter if they are kings or slaves or something in between. It also doesn’t matter who or what they were before. The promise is that God will cleanse shame, disgrace, filth, and a past of self-centered sin and replace it with his Spirit to help us live the way we were created to. A way where we stay on track and don’t miss the mark. A life lived in true repentance.

This is who and what John is declaring is at hand!

This is who and what Matthew is trying to get us to see and understand!

So who is it?

Matthew 3:13:

13 Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John.[13]

This is what we’ve been building up to for three chapters. This is the WHO Matthew wants us to meet.

This is the Messiah he is proposing we should listen to, believe in, and act to follow.

The God he wants us to worship.

Jesus.

And he’s giving us three witnesses in these next few verses who will attest to the truth of what he says.

13 Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?”

15 But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So John agreed to baptize him. [14]

Why didn’t John want to baptize Jesus?

1) Baptism is an outward symbol of washing away the shame of past misdeeds. John recognized that this wasn’t something Jesus needed for himself.

2) Baptism was done by one leading another through a spiritual experience. John is well aware that his status is below that of Jesus! But the humility of Christ is visible in his willingness to have John lead him in this.

3) John thought Jesus should be baptizing him! I don’t think John’s saying, “At last! You’re here! Bring the fire of the Day of the LORD!” But I do think he may be hoping Jesus is about to initiate the end times or at least some great revolution. Which he is, though not at all in the way John expects.

Jesus overcomes John’s objection by telling him that this baptism is God’s will. So John is obedient to Jesus and Jesus is obedient to God.

We have, so far, the witness of scripture to the person of Jesus, and the witness of a prophet, John, a servant of God, to the person of Jesus. John dunks him, and we get our third witness.

16 After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” [15]

This witness is God, whose Spirit and voice both attest to Jesus. He is the Messiah in the line of David and God in human form. He is the joy of the LORD. He is marked for the path he is about to embark on.

He’s God-approved to act as savior and is now prepared to face the greatest enemy of the world.

But that’s a story for another day.

For today, I want you to consider John’s warning that we need to be prepared. What does it mean to us, today?

Have you missed the mark?

Paul said we all have sinned, and I believe him. But that doesn’t need to hold us back. God’s grace, his gift to each of us, is the ability to repent. When we end up somewhere off the path, he calls for us to turn back, to return to the path we are meant to be on, to work to become all that we were created to be.

Head forward towards the LORD, knowing that we live in his Kingdom and that there is a baptism of fire coming, but the Spirit he pours out on all those who accept it will lead us to a place where we have nothing to burn.

If you aren’t sure you’re there, or if you’re not sure you’ve ever truly repented for your tendency to wander away, let me give you two steps to take.

First, say this prayer with me:

LORD-God, I’ve gone my own way, away from where you want me to go. I’m sorry. Please help point me back to where I am supposed to be going and teach me to listen to your Spirit so I can be led to the right destination. Show me how to follow Jesus, our guide. Amen.

Second, that can’t be lip-service. You need to live out trust in Jesus while you can. Learn about him and his ways and put them into practice in your life. Strive to live so the tree of your life can produce fruit, and produce it abundantly. Because it matters.

The good news? Wherever you go, God is already there, so you have nothing to fear. Listen to the Spirit and follow where it leads, employing the teachings of Jesus to keep on track, while you work to come before the throne of God.

Grace and peace.

[1] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:1–2). Tyndale House Publishers. [2] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Ho 2:14–15). Tyndale House Publishers. [3] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Is 40:9). Tyndale House Publishers. [4] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:2). Tyndale House Publishers. [5] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:3). Tyndale House Publishers. [6] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:4). Tyndale House Publishers. [7] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:5–6). Tyndale House Publishers. [8] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:7–10). Tyndale House Publishers. [9] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:11–12). Tyndale House Publishers. [10] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Is 44:2–3). Tyndale House Publishers. [11] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Eze 36:23–27). Tyndale House Publishers. [12] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Joe 2:29). Tyndale House Publishers. [13] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:13). Tyndale House Publishers. [14] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:13–15). Tyndale House Publishers. [15] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Mt 3:16–17). Tyndale House Publishers.