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Bible Study Class 101 - Matthew Chapter 3
Posted : 12 Apr, 2011 08:29 AM
Bible Study Class 101 - Matthew Chapter 3- by David Guzik
The Ministry of John the Baptist
A. The public ministry of John the Baptist.
1. (Verses 1-2) The message of John the Baptist.
In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
a. Repent: John's message was a call to repentance. Some people think that repentance is mostly about feelings, especially feeling sorry for your sin. It is wonderful to feel sorry about your sin, but repent isn't a "feelings" word. It is an action word. Jesus told us to make a change of the mind, not merely to feel sorry for what we have done. Repentance speaks of a change of direction, not a sorrow in the heart.
i. Is repentance something we must do before we can come to God? Yes and no; repentance does not describe something we must do before we come to God, it describes what coming to God is like. If you are in New York, and I tell you to come to Los Angeles, I don't really need to say "Leave New York and come to Los Angeles." To come to Los Angeles is to leave New York, and if I haven't left New York, I certainly haven't come to Los Angeles. We can't come to the kingdom of heaven unless we leave our sin and the self-life.
b. For the kingdom of heaven is at hand: John wanted people to know that the kingdom of heaven was near - as close as your hand. It wasn't as distant or as dreamy as they had imagined. This is why John was so urgent in his call to repentance. If the kingdom of heaven is at hand, then we must get ready now.
2. (Verses 3-4) The identity of John the Baptist.
For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight.'" And John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.
a. Prepare the way of the Lord: Matthew uses this passage from Isaiah 40:3 to identify John the Baptist as the prophesied forerunner of the Messiah. In this role, John's purpose was to prepare hearts for the Messiah, and to bring an awareness of sin among Israel so they could received the salvation from sin offered by the Messiah (Matthew 1:12).
b. Make His paths straight: The passage Mark quotes from (Isaiah 40:3) has in mind building up a great road for the arrival of a majestic king. The idea is to fill in the holes, and knock down the hills that are in the way.
i. The idea of preparing the way of the Lord is a word picture, because the real preparation must take place in our hearts. Building a road is very much like the preparation God must do in our hearts. They are both expensive, they both must deal with many different problems and environments, and they both take an expert engineer.
ii. Jesus was the coming Messiah and King, and John the Baptist was the one crying in the wilderness, and through his message of repentance, he worked to prepare the way of the Lord. We often fail to appreciate how important the preparing work of the Lord is. Any great work of God begins with great preparation.
c. Clothed with camel's hair, with a leather belt: In his personality and ministry, John the Baptist was patterned after the bold Elijah (2 Kings 1:8), who fearlessly called Israel to repentance.
i. In the spirit of today's age, John's ministry would have been very different. He wouldn't start in the wilderness. He wouldn't dress funny. He wouldn't preach such a straightforward message. He would use marketing surveys and focus groups to hone his message and presentation. John wasn't motivated by the spirit of today's age, but by the Spirit of God.
3. (Verses 5-6) The success of John's ministry.
Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.
a. Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him: John's ministry met with wonderful response. There were many people who recognized their sinfulness, their need to get ready for the Messiah, and were willing to do something about it.
i. John's main message wasn't "You're a sinner, you need to repent." John's main message was "The Messiah is coming." The call to repentance was the response to the news that the Messiah was coming.
b. And were baptized by him: With baptism, John offered a ceremonial washing that confessed sin and did something to demonstrate repentance. Before we can gain the kingdom of heaven, we must recognize our poverty of spirit (Matthew 5:3). This type of awareness of sin is the foundation for most revivals and awakenings.
i. Baptism simply means to "immerse or overwhelm." John didn't sprinkle when he came baptizing. As was the custom in some other Jewish ceremonial washings, John completely immersed those he baptized. "Naturally, therefore, the baptism was not a mere sprinkling with water, but a bath in which his whole body was bathed." (Barclay)
ii. Baptism was practiced in the Jewish community already in the form of ceremonial immersions; but typically, it was only among Gentiles who wished to become Jews. For a Jew in John's day to submit to baptism was essentially to say, "I confess that I am as far away from God as a Gentile and I need to get right with Him." This was a real work of the Holy Spirit.
iii. John's baptism might have been related to the Jewish practice of baptizing Gentile converts, or to some of the ceremonial washings practiced by the Jews of that day. Though it may have some links, at the same time is was unique - so unique that John simply became known as "the Baptizer." If there were a lot of people doing that, it wouldn't be a unique title.
iv. Is Christian baptism - the baptism we do today - just like John's? Christian baptism is like John's in the sense that it demonstrates repentance, but it is also more. It is being baptized into Christ, that is, into His death and resurrection (Romans 6:3).
4. (Verses 7-12) John's confrontation with the Pharisees and Saducees.
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
a. Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? John accuses them of wanting to appear anxious for the Messiah, but not truly repenting and preparing their hearts; John will demand fruits worthy of repentance.
i. Real repentance will show itself in life. It has to be a matter of living repentance, not just talking repentance.
b. Do not think to say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father." John warns them to stop trusting in their Jewish heritage because they must truly repent, not simply trust in Abraham's merits.
i. It was widely taught in that day that Abraham's merits were plenty for any Jew's salvation, that a Jewish person couldn't go to hell. John points out that these Pharisees and Scribes are of a different family; they are a brood of vipers - meaning a family associated with serpents!
c. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: John's baptism was one of repentance. In this regard, it was not identical to Christian baptism or baptism into Christ (Romans 6:3), which includes a demonstration of repentance and cleansing, but also recognizes the believer's identification with Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection (Romans 6:3-4).
d. Whose sandals I am not worthy to carry: John recognizes his own place before Jesus. He is one not worthy to carry the sandals of Jesus, and he does not consider himself far above those whom he is calling to repentance, and he knows where he stands in relation to Jesus (instead of getting a big head because of the crowds he is drawing).
e. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor: John warns them to prepare for the Messiah's coming, because He is coming with judgment.
i. Baptize you with the Holy Spirit: This is the promised out-pouring of the Holy Spirit promised with the New Covenant (Ezekiel 37:14).
ii. And fire: To baptize with fire means to bring the fires of judgment, which will purify the pure, but destroy the wicked like chaff. Chaff is the worthless residue of a wheat stalk after the kernel of grain has been removed. These proud and unrepentant leaders are just as useless to God.
iii. The Jewish leaders thought that the Messiah would come with judgment, but only against Israel's enemies. They were blind in their self-righteous confidence that only others needed to get right with God.
B. John's ministry in baptizing Jesus.
1. (Verses 13-14) Jesus comes to John for baptism.
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?"
a. Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized: This is a significant emergence of Jesus from his many years of obscurity. These first works in His public ministry carry great meaning in understanding the rest of His ministry.
b. Jesus came: No one compelled Jesus to be baptized. He came to John of His own accord.
c. I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me? John recognized the inherent irony in this situation. Jesus had nothing to repent of, and it would be more appropriate for Jesus to baptize John!
2. (Verse 15) Jesus allows Himself to be baptized by John.
But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he allowed Him.
a. Permit it to be so for now: Why did Jesus need to be baptized? The words it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness imply that it was necessary for the plan of God, but why?
b. The purpose was for Jesus to completely identify Himself with sinful man. This is exactly what He did in His birth, His upbringing, and His death. So here, as John allowed Him to be, here is Jesus, standing again in the place of sinful man.
3. (Verses 16-17) The Divine witness to Jesus' status as the Son of God.
When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
a. The heavens were opened: It was important for God the Father to publicly demonstrate that Jesus' baptism was not just like anyone else's, in the sense of being a display of repentance. It was not a display of repentance, but instead it was a righteous identification with sinners, motivated by love, was well pleasing to the Father.
b. The Spirit of God descending like a dove: Significantly, this is an occasion when the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all manifested at the same time.
c. This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: When this voice of God the Father spoke from heaven, everyone knew that Jesus was not just another man being baptized. They knew Jesus was the perfect (in whom I am well pleased) Son of God, identifying with sinful man. By this, everyone knew that Jesus was different. Jesus was baptized to be identified with sinful man, but He was also baptized to be identified to sinful man.
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