C
hapter #6 – John The Baptist – Prophet, and Forerunner

2Cor 11:3 “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from ‘The Simplicity That Is in Christ’”

      After tracing the promises of the Almighty that a Redeemer was coming in the “fulness of times” (Eph. 1:10), it is expedient that a forerunner / preparer begin his work. Matthew states, “For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Mat 3:3). Luke records:

"And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest; for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways; to give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins." Luk. 1:76, 77.

      This is the language of Zacharias as he prophesied by the Spirit when his son John was born. He was to go before the Lord to prepare a people for His reception.

      There was perhaps never a time in the world's history when the world was farther gone in wickedness than at the time when Jesus came. It is believed that there was not a crime mentioned or associated with the whole dark list of wickedness and sin that was not practiced by the Jews in those days. The heart grows sick in contemplating the picture drawn by Paul in his letter to the church at Rome. Had Jesus come without some one going before him to prepare public sentiment and reform the people, it is more than probable that he would have been murdered before his work was complete. Even as it was He often had to get away from the rabble privately to keep them from killing Him before the time for His crucifixion came. We see the Divine wisdom of God in sending John before the Lord to prepare the way before Him.

      Probably in our lifetime the emphasis has been upon the moral teachings demonstrated by Jesus, and then his sacrificial death and resurrection, and no one could minimize the importance of either of these. Again, probably, the majority of lessons for the public today concern that great Pentecost when the Spirit-filled Peter preached the Lordship of Jesus and the need for repentance and forgiveness. But, probably, the good work done by John in preparing many of these people for that great day has not been emphasized as much as is deserved.

John’s Birth

      The conception and birth of John were as miraculous as were those of Jesus the Christ. He was given to his parents when his father was an "old man, and his wife well stricken in years" (Luk 1:18). The angel Gabriel was sent from the presence of God to announce the glad tidings of his birth, the character of his life, and the object of his mission. He was to be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother's womb (Luk 1:15), and was to go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord (Luk 1:17).

      Question? As it was John's God-appointed work to make ready a people prepared for the Lord, did he perform the work assigned him? If so, how did he prepare them? He gave them knowledge of salvation. By the remission of their sins. (Luk 1:77). But how did they get knowledge of salvation? We suppose they got it by compliance with the conditions upon which God authorized John to offer it to them.

      What were the conditions of salvation imposed by John? Let us see. "There was a man sent from God whose name was John. The same came for a witness to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe." (Joh 1:7).

      What were they required to believe? "John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus." (Act 19:4).

      Thus we see they believed on a Christ that was to come. We today believe in a Christ already come; this difference in their faith and ours – no more. Christ was the object of their faith then, and he is the object of our faith to-day.

      But the theory of salvation by faith alone had not been discovered in John's day. "In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Mat 3:1, 2). In preparing a people for the Lord in John's day it was necessary that the wicked should be reformed – turned in heart from disobedience to God and his law, under which, as Jews, they had always lived. John commanded the people to repent of their disobedience to the Law, and so he preached the baptism of repentance; that is, a baptism which belonged to or grew out of repentance; a sorrow for the past, with a determination to reform their life; and so he baptized with water unto repentance ( Mat 3:2). One could say that John's baptism was both preceded by – and followed by – repentance / reformation. The former the emotion and resolve, the latter a life in harmony with that resolve.

      Question? When one today believes in Jesus as the Christ and Son of God, makes a confession of faith, and is baptized into Christ, is this the end? Or, just the beginning of a changing life? (Study the “in Christ,” and “in the Lord” passages in future articles, especially the meaning of “in Christ.”)

      One cannot fail to understand John’s comment to the hypocritical Jewish leaders:

“But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: 9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. 10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit, and with fire: 12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Mat 3:7-12).

 But their repentance was toward God in whom, as Jews, they supposedly had faith, and against whom they had sinned. And having repented for violating God's law under which they had lived, they were admonished to believe also in Him who was to come.

      It may be well to remark here, that while John's mission was confined to the Jews, it was no part of Judaism (i.e., the Law of Moses). His mission was a special one – he was sent from God on a special mission (Joh 1:6). He lived under the law of Moses and complied with it as any other Jew should have, but his preaching and baptizing were done, not in obedience to that law, but by direct authority from God. Concerning Jesus John says, “And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Spirit (Joh 1:33).

      God sent John to baptize with special authority and with a special purpose. It is foolishness to talk of John baptizing in obedience to any Jewish law.

John’s Success

      But what was the result of John's preaching? "And there went out unto him all the land of Judea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins” (Mar 1:5). But for what did John baptize? He "preached the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Mar 1: 4; Luk 3:3). What did he preach for remission of sins? Certainly that baptism that belonged to repentance. Can we not identify the relevant covenant under which the Jew lived by the object of his repentance? Of what did the Jew who was baptized by John repent? Was it not offense against the Law of Moses? Was faith a factor in this repentance? Of course it was. Why would a Jew repent of violating a law in which he did not believe? And what was the important elements in the Law? Was it not love of God and love of brethren? Consider:

“But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Mat 22:34-40).

 It always was, and is today, a matter of love of God. If – note if – any man love God he will strive to keep His commandments. (More of this later.) The Jews had violated many of the nearly 600 commandments of the Law, especially the main ones as stated by Jesus.

John’s Mission

      John's mission was a preparatory one – he came to prepare a people for the Lord. He came from God to bear witness of the Light. Said he, "I saw and bear record that this is the Son of God." Again, "Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world." The object of his testimony was that all men through him might believe – believe in Him who was to come after him. Then faith in Jesus as the promised Messiah was necessary and John preached it. Repentance in heart and life was necessary, and John preached it. Every one who repented of their ignorance and practice of the Law, with all of its prophetic promises of the coming King and Savior, became ready to receive him. The sincere ones would consider the evidences, and then accept Jesus for what he was – the Messiah. Let us consider Luke 7:19-35

And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another? . . . And when the messengers of John were departed, he began to speak unto the people concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness for to see? A reed shaken with the wind? But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they which are gorgeously apparelled, and live delicately, are in kings’ courts. But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and much more than a prophet. This is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he. And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him. And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like? They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept. For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil. The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners! But wisdom is justified of all her children.

 Matthew records that “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (4:17). Jesus seems to have been in Judea when he heard that John was cast into prison, and when he heard it he departed into Galilee. Nazareth had been the home of his childhood, but he now left it and went to dwell in Capernaum and from that time he began to preach the same thing in Galilee that John had preached in the wilderness of Judea, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Mat 3:1, 2).

      When John's preparatory work was ended, and Jesus began to continue the proclamation of the approaching kingdom, it was necessary that his apostles be selected. John came to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. Did he prepare them? Yes, some of them, but certainly not all! Were those that he selected to be his apostles prepared? What about the seventy? (Luk 10:1, 17) What about the 120? (Acts 1:15) The strong evidence is that these disciples of John were ready for followship of Jesus, and when they saw him, they followed him, and became his disciples. Consider:

“Again, the next day after, John stood and two of his disciples, and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he said, Behold the Lamb of God! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. . . . One of the two which heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother” (John 1:35-40).

      Had all these, and many more, not accepted the preaching of John, repented of their sins against the Law under which all were living at that time, and submitted to baptism to indicate their repentance? What about Jesus and John’s baptism. We read of Jesus coming to John to be baptized, and John was resisting:

“Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mat 3:13-17).

      Over many years this writer has heard many discussions by competent students of the Scriptures concerning why Jesus, who committed no sin against the Law or any person, would come to John to be baptized. We will not repeat many of the explanations but simply say, Jesus saw the need to do it, and God the Father approved of it. Therefore, it was a correct action. Whether it was to answer some possible critic who would wonder if Jesus considered himself as never having sinned and therefore not needful of repentance, we will never know. All that the phrase “it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness” essentially means, we may never know.

      Another “interesting” but of no particular “interest” question has been asked , “Were the apostles baptized again, ‘into Christ’?” The 120? Others who had been baptized under John’s baptism? Again, there are different “opinions” to answer this question. However, we do know that the Lord of Heaven commissioned the twelve, after Pentecost and after being empowered with the Holy Spirit as promised, to go everywhere, make disciples, and baptize them for the remission of their sins. The former question is, by my judgment, only academic; the later is a matter of salvation for all mankind today!

      But were not some of John's disciples baptized at and after Pentecost? We answer, no one knows, for the Scriptures do not address this matter. Were there not those baptized by John in the group of 3000 at Pentecost? Were not the disciples found by Paul at Ephesus rebaptized? Yes, the Scriptures so state:

“And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly (Act 18:24-26).

Now, were the disciples made by Apollos believers in the teaching of John that the Kingdom was near? Probably. We may well imagine the correction given by Aquila and Priscilla: "John's baptism was valid in its day (review above), but Jesus was now come, the Kingdom was not “nigh” but present. Jesus had come, proved Himself to be what He claimed to be, and with “all authority,” and now was reigning as King, Lord, Savior. The difference between John’s preaching and that of the apostles could be described as “will come,” and “has come.”

      A second incidence is record in Chapter 19:

1 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Spirit since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Spirit. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. And all the men were about twelve.

       The moment they said they had not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Spirit, Paul knew they had not heard the Gospel, and there was something missing in their knowledge and understanding. The gift of the Holy Spirit was a significant blessing attached to the response of the Gospel of Christ in the New Covenant. When one believed that Jesus was the Christ and Son of God, and, chose to accept Him as Lord and Christ, then being determined to repent of his sins and be immersed “in Christ,” he not only received forgiveness but also the gift of the Holy Spirit Himself.

      It is sad to hear today of a soul being told that his sins are forgiven upon his being “baptized into the Church (of whatever name).” This is not Scriptural teaching, and, even allowing the Lord the right to do what he wills, having all authority, preachers who preach such are false preachers. We will soon study the Scriptures on the subject of “In Christ.”

      We must bear in mind that the teaching of John and Jesus before Pentecost was chiefly preparatory, prospective, hence in parables and figures. We do know that Jesus could, and did, forgive sins while He was alive in the flesh. Is there a single incident where sins were forgiven after Pentecost without the Gospel preached, and the Gospel obeyed? All heard the facts of the Gospel preached and taught by those who had the power to confirm the evidences. Fact, plus report, plus confirmation, produced the faith that saved the soul. Was there a single exception?

      With the world at this moment going through crisis after crisis because of wickedness, do we not need several John’s to arise and preach repentance? This writer says that we do!

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