Herald the coming of Christ!

The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

It is written in Isaiah the prophet: "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way" -- "a voice of one calling in the desert, `Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.' "

And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.  The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.  John wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.  And this was his message: "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.  I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit" (Mark 1:1-8).

If John the Baptist were alive today, I wonder how people would react to him?

John was a city boy, the only son of an elderly priest and his wife.  But John was something special; Jesus said, I tell you the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist (Matthew 11:11).  God had appointed John for a very important task—he was to be herald to the Son of God.  A herald does two things.  First, he announces that someone very important is about to arrive.  Then he tells you how to ready yourself to meet this dignitary.  John was given the high honor of introducing Christ to the world.

The first job of a herald is to get peoples’ attention.  John did that in spades.  He abandoned modern fashion and dressed like prophets of long ago—he wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist.  He went miles out into the countryside, away from the distractions of commerce, gossip, and politics.  He did not send runners into the city for fancy food; instead, he ate what was at hand—locusts and wild honey.  John’s appearance and lifestyle made him an oddity, and people were drawn to him out of curiosity. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. 

John told his audience that someone special was coming soon. After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.  This person was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.  He was the one Isaiah described as Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (chapter 9).  He was God’s own Son, come down out of heaven to live among us on earth.  He was the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). 

Such an important person deserves a respectful welcome. John’s second task was to make the people ready for Christ’s arrival.  So John preached about repentance and the forgiveness of sins.  The people confessed their transgressions, and he baptized them in the Jordan River. 

It’s a matter of protocol.  Before you meet a king or president, you are told how to dress and how to behave.  Jesus is not impressed by pride or arrogance.  The Son of God is not interested in hearing lies or excuses.  Our Lord only wants to hear two things from us—that we are sorry for breaking God’s laws, and that we love Him wholeheartedly.  If we humble ourselves before Jesus, He will baptize us with the Holy Spirit, a washing that cleans away our sins and gives us faith in the Savior from heaven.  This is the message of John the Baptist.

Many people flocked to John—the crowds included merchants and farmers, soldiers and bureaucrats.  Some only saw John as a novelty.  Many took his words to heart, begged to be forgiven, and were baptized.  Some even attached themselves to him as disciples. 

But John had his share of enemies, too.  The religious establishment had no love for him; when they came to check him out, John said You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?  Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.  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.  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 (Matthew 3:7-10).  John was the son of a priest, and he knew first hand how much corruption infested the Temple staff.  He knew that many of the church leaders were more concerned with money and popularity and political influence than they were with saving souls from hell.  He knew that their focus was on earthly things, not on things above.  So he called them out—produce fruits in keeping with repentance. But the Pharisees and experts in the law rejected God's purpose for themselves, because they walked away from John’s baptism of repentance (Luke 7:30). 

John was unapologetic—everyone sins, and everyone needs to repent and be forgiven.  And John’s outspokenness got him into trouble.  Herod was the hereditary king of Israel.  Although the Roman Empire ruled the country with an iron fist, they allowed Herod to have a palace and be a figurehead to keep the people happy.  King Herod fell in love with his sister-in-law, Herodias.  They both got divorced and married each other.  John denounced their behavior as sinful, a breaking of God’s marriage laws given through Moses. Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to, because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him. Finally the opportune time came. On his birthday Herod gave a banquet for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee.  When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests.   The king said to the girl, "Ask me for anything you want, and I'll give it to you"…She went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask for?"  "The head of John the Baptist," she answered. At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: "I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter." The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her.  So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John's head. The man went, beheaded John in the prison, and brought back his head on a platter. He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother (Mark chapter six).

A tragic ending to John’s life.  But if he were alive today, I doubt that he would be treated any better.  John said, "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.  I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."  This message makes a lot of people uncomfortable, even angry.  Atheists complain that speaking about Jesus pushes unwanted religion down their throats.  They don’t want schools to have Christmas pageants; they don’t want manger scenes in public parks; they want merchants to sell holiday merchandise, not Christmas presents. 

Jews and Hindus and Muslims don’t like Jesus either.  Christians are persecuted, arrested, even beaten and executed for saying that Jesus is the only way to heaven.  And while America does not allow religious violence, people will call you bigoted, narrow-minded and unloving, if you dare suggest that followers of other religions are condemned unless forgiven by Jesus. 

John said repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near (Matthew 3:2).  But repentance is an unpopular message.  Try telling someone that his behavior needs to change, and see how far you’ll get.  Americans love their freedom, and resent any message that puts limits on their behavior.  People who point out sin for what it is are accused of being hateful and rigid.  Some are even dragged into court and prosecuted.  If you dare to label some behavior as sinful, you can expect retaliation.

The thing is, John’s message is absolutely essential for every human being.  We are all sinners; we anger God in more ways than can be counted.  We waste time.  We twist the truth to meet our needs.  We steal ideas and claim them as our own.  We treat marriage like a business venture.  We get a thrill from seeing people we don’t like getting hurt.  We ignore our parents, disobey our teachers, make fun of our political leaders.  We barely make time for prayer or Bible study or worship.  We act as if God is unimportant in our daily lives. 

We need to confess our sins and repent.  If we don’t, God’s anger will consume us forever.  And so we need Jesus.  He was born among us to die in our place.  He took full responsibility for our trespasses, and suffered the awful penalty that we deserved for them.  That is why Jesus came—to seek and to save what was lost (Luke 19:10).  We all, like sheep, have gone astray, Isaiah wrote in chapter 53; each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.  Forgiveness is only available through the Christ of God; apart from Him, there is no way to achieve inner peace and eternal happiness.

You and I are blessed to know Jesus and have His living touch in every part of our lives.  But many people don’t share this blessing; they follow false gods; they might even think that no god exists at all.  Some of them believe that they can earn access to heaven by trying hard to be good; others don’t think that their lifestyle choices anger God in the slightest.  These folks need to hear the message of John the Baptist—yet sadly, many of them don’t want anything to do with it.

John was not afraid—he spoke loudly and with courage, confident that God’s truth will overcome lies and find a way into stubborn hearts.  After all, God said through Isaiah (chapter 55), The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit.  It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.   Hebrews chapter four says that the word of God is living and active.  The only thing John worried about was speaking God’s word clearly to all who would listen.  He wanted the lost to be saved, and he spoke the truth they needed to hear without hesitation or apology.

John is a model to us all.  Especially at Christmas, we have all sorts of opportunities to invite people to church, send religious Christmas cards, and explain the reason for the season.  John was not afraid to be a herald for Jesus, and we must not be either—there’s far too much at stake for us to only say, “Happy Holidays.”