John the Baptist

Ancient Scrolling: John Pt. 2 – The Baptist (John 1:19-34)

Thirty years after the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, many different theories and teachings on the nature and identity of Jesus surfaced. Most of these were wrong, and some were blasphemous.

For the Apostle John, these false doctrines being promoted about Jesus were personal. John knew the Lord personally, witnessed the miracles and earthly ministry of Jesus, and was at the foot of the cross while our Lord gave His life to pay the debt for our sin.

John was “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” So, it should come as no surprise that John took on the task of setting the record straight about Who Jesus of Nazareth was, that He was indeed the Christ, the only Begotten Son of God Who would take away the sin of the world.

In John 1, the Apostle John is laying out the case that Jesus of Nazareth was the divine Son of God Who created all things, was all powerful, Who was the Light of the world. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.

He tells us that He became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only Begotten of the Father.

As he continues to make his case in John 1 that Jesus was the Christ, he incorporates the ministry of John the Baptist to prove the divinity and identity of Christ.

Not only did John the Baptist plainly declare that Jesus was the Christ, he proclaimed that Jesus had come to take away the sins of the world.

The Baptist’s statement, “Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world,” may not have a profound meaning to us without some theological training, for the people of John’s day, it was a bold statement.

“The Lamb of God” was a reference to the Old Testament practice of sacrificing lambs as a show of the forgiveness of sin that God offers. In pointing to Jesus as the Lamb of God, John proclaimed that the Lord would sacrifice Himself to take sin from the world once and for all. This, of course, was a prophecy about the coming crucifixion of Christ.

In this episode, we examine the ministry of John the Baptist, and how his ministry support’s the Apostle John’s position that Jesus of Nazareth was the divine Son of God, who would redeem His people by paying for the sins of the world with His very life.

New Series: The Gospel of Jesus Christ as Witnessed by Mark

Of all the men who walked and ministered alongside Jesus, Mark may have been the most overlooked. He was a disciple, yet he was not an apostle. He provided the upper room where Jesus instituted the Lord’s supper, was present at the arrest of Christ, and remained with the apostles after the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.

Mark’s failures are recorded in scripture, and only twice do we see his successes in the faith. The book of Acts records how Mark accompanied Paul and Barnabas on the first missionary journey. However, Mark left the journey prematurely and returned home. His abandonment of the first missionary journey created a rift between he and Paul, and when Barnabas suggested that they take Mark on the second missionary journey, Paul vehemently objected. That conflict led to the breakup of Paul and Barnabas as a missionary team.

When Jesus was arrested, instead of trying to fight the temple guard as Peter did, Mark fled, not even taking the time to collect his garments.

Yet, despite all of this, Mark was a mighty man of God. He provided the upper room for the last supper. He remained with the apostles following the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, taking part of a missionary journey with Paul, and ministering alongside Barnabas after that.

In his final days, the Apostle Paul wrote a letter to Timothy we now know as II Timothy. In it, he asked Timothy to come to Rome, and to bring Mark with him, because as Paul put it, he was profitable in ministry.

The Mark of II Timothy was a man who had grown from his failures in faith and his moments of weakness, and had become a mighty man of the Gospel.

We don’t know what prompted Mark to write his account of the Gospel, aside from the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. There doesn’t seem to be a specific occasion or audience. We do know that his work was an effort to record the crucial actions of Jesus leading up to the cross.

Matthew demonstrated how Christ fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies concerning Christ. Luke put together a comprehensive anthology of the actions and teachings of Christ. John recorded seven key miracles that demonstrated the divinity of Christ.

But Mark focused on an abridged collection of key actions and teachings from Jesus leading up to the Gospel.

Follow our series in the Gospel of Mark on the Point Podcast here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPw_etdddtHqQArOHRsaF1khqHMiVrl0K&si=KRekCbyk_F5dj5NP

Mark’s account of the Gospel is believed to have been the first written, and many scholars believe that Luke referenced his Gospel when writing his own. Mark’s Gospel demonstrates Who Jesus is so we can know Him, and knowing Him we can believe. The ultimate goal of Mark is to build our faith in the Lord.

Please understand, our efforts to provide historical and cultural context to books of the Bible should in no way lead the reader to think that these books are anything less than inspired scripture, thus being the actual word of God. It is through the historical and cultural context of these scriptures that we are able to hone in on what God was actually saying, and get the true message of the Bible.

So, as Mark opens his account of the Gospel, he provides us an introduction to Christ. He begins by showing the fulfillment of the scriptures, particularly pertaining to John the Baptist. John’s status of a prophet was almost universally accepted among the Jews and Judeo-Christian believing gentiles of the day. Mark showed through Old Testament prophecies that John’s ministry was to identify the Christ for us, and to prepare us to meet Him.

Mark then demonstrated that the ministry of John the Baptist was all about Jesus, preparing the people to meet Him and identifying Him as the Christ. He showed how John lived up to that prophetic purpose.

Mark then showed how God Himself witnessed to the identity of Christ at the Baptism of Jesus, saying “This is my Beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased.”

Through these words, and through the rest of the writings in the Gospel of Mark, one must come to the conclusion that Jesus of Nazareth was indeed the Christ, the Savior, the divine Son of God Who gave His life for the sins of the world, so that man could be forgiven, saved from wrath, and redeemed into the Kingdom of God.

People, Get Ready (Luke 3)

The ministry of John the Baptist is a key component of the Gospel story, hence it is included in all four accounts of the Gospel. The ministry of John the Baptist is one more fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy, and John’s ministry demonstrates the divinity of Jesus Christ.

However, if we only make a theological point about John’s ministry, and miss his words, we’ve missed the point altogether. John’s preaching in Luke 3 teaches us three key things. (1) Judgment day is upon us, (2) The way of repentance, and (3) the power of Christ.

John the Baptist said, “The axe is laid to the root of the trees.” In that statement, he warned that Christ was coming, and so the people would need to make a decision regarding their faith. The proper choice, of course, is to repent and believe.

In discussing repentance, John gave clear teachings on what it meant to repent, and what true repentance looks like. The word repent means to turn and never return. It’s very similar to the word “forsake,” which means to turn away and never return.

While the repentant sinner may stumble and fall in the sin again, his life and desires are no longer consumed by the sin. Along those lines, John gave some guidelines by which to evaluate your life.

He said, “Let those who have two coats give to the one who has none. Let the tax collectors collect no more than is due. Let the soldiers no longer extort the civilians.” At the root of these statements are an evaluation. Are we covetous, are we content, are we prideful?

Had John been preaching today, he may have said, “Let the porn addict log off his computer, let the drug addict put down the pipe, and let the thief earn his way.”

The fact is that we often self-medicate with sin. If we are self-medicating, have we repented? And if we are self-medicating, are we really trusting God for healing and salvation?

John’s ministry also points out the power of Christ, who will baptize us with the Holy Ghost and with fire. The Holy Spirit indwells us at the point of salvation, giving us the power to overcome sin and heal. The fire is the adversity God uses to transform and purify us. Our job in life is to trust that process.

Judgment day is closer now than it has ever been, and if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that business as usual can no longer be trusted. Let us all repent and trust the Lord as we move into 2021.