“In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”’ He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our father.” For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.’ And the crowds asked him, ‘What then shall we do?’ And he answered them, ‘Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.’ Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, ‘Teacher, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Collect no more than you are authorized to do.’ Soldiers also asked him, ‘And we, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.’ As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, ‘I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’ So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison. Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.’”

Who was the greatest prophet in Scripture? I’m not asking who your favorite is – the heartbroken lamentations of Jeremiah may resonate more strongly with some, and the fire from heaven called down by Elijah more so with others, but all true prophets are faithful to the word of God. Was Ezekiel greater than Daniel? Was the work of the Lord revealed through Jonah greater than the promises given in Obadiah? The men were admirable, but the word belonged to God. God first established His covenant with Abraham, He gave the Law through Moses, He established a king and the Davidic line through Samuel – there is no small word offered up by a prophet because again, the word of the prophet is the word of God. How then are we to say who is the greatest? The simplest, and by far most accurate path would be to look at what Jesus had to say on the matter rather than looking to our own understanding of the matter. Matthew 11:11 He states,

“Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

Now, if all prophets bear the word of God, why does Jesus afford John this station, calling the greatest to rise up among men? Because, simply put, while every other prophet was blessed to point toward the future coming of Jesus, it was John the Baptist who received the privilege of declaring His arrival. It was John who was singularly referred to as “the prophet of the Most High,” signifying the uniqueness of his calling and the work that God had given him compared to those who had come before. We began Luke’s gospel by seeing God give word to Zechariah that John would be born to he and his wife, we saw as John was born, the celebration of the people, and the prophecy given by Zechariah concerning the work that God had done among His people, and boy’s future in the service of the Lord. Now we come face to face with what this service looked like, what John’s mission actually was when God called him from the wilderness to do His work among His people. Today, as Luke continues his orderly account of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we see the way prepared for Jesus’ earthly ministry by the last and greatest of the prophets of God. 

The Work of the Prophet of the Most High

1. The Preparation of God’s Prophet

““In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness.”

To a group of people living roughly two thousand years after these events, this can end up looking like a jumble of names that mean little if anything at all. Because of a lack of familiarity, we can fail to realize that what Luke is giving us here is a treasure trove of historical information and context. Luke, giving an orderly account and providing consistent evidence for his writing provides us with the current ruler of Rome when these things took place, as well as the four local rulers who presided over the region, and then men who held the position of high priest (an overlapping oddity that we’ll discuss later). All this information together allows us to cross-reference their respective timelines and, even after thousands of years, estimate the start of John the Baptist’s ministry to have been in 29 AD, and be accurate within a year in either direction. This list isn’t given as dry fact, but serves as a marker so that again we may have certainty as to how things unfolded. Aside from the fact that Luke’s information gives us historical context, we’re also given a picture of the environment into which God called John the Baptist to begin his ministry. Their general region was held in the sway of four Roman officials, all of differing influences, and the Jews had two men serving as a sort of tandem high priest. Of the Roman Caesars throughout history it seems that Tiberius was one of the more balanced. There aren’t records that point to the profound egomania or borderline insanity that was displayed by some others, driven to maniacal degrees of corruption, manipulation, and violence by the power they wielded. Compared to someone like Nero, who burned Christians like streetlights, Tiberius was exceptionally mild, and even went so far as to limit the worship of himself, seeming to not consider himself a god-man like the vast majority of other kings. That being said, he was still the pagan ruler of a vast empire, and his position shows us that even though a different Caesar is in power from the time when John and Jesus were born, to the time when their respective ministries begin, the general shape of the world has remained unchanged. Rome is still in power, the people are still oppressed, and far worse, dying in their sin. Far beneath Caesar and governing the entire region of Judea, where Jerusalem is located, we see the familiar name of Pontius Pilate. Pilate is an interesting Biblical figure, because people so often interpret him into one of two extremes – he’s either the Satanic monster who savagely condemned Jesus to be crucified, or he’s the pitiable man who was put in a difficult position, who may have (going off of historically unsubstantiated traditions) converted to Christianity before his death. The truth is, if we read what Scripture has to say of the man it’s far less sensational than this, and seems to fall somewhere in between the two views. Jesus’s interaction with Pilate is recorded in all four gospels, and one of the first things we can see is that Pilate didn’t want to crucify Jesus. Both Matthew and Mark record that upon seeing Jesus’ silence before His accusers Pilate was amazed, and that he understood that it was out of envy that the religious rulers were trying to have Him killed. Luke 23:4 quotes Pilate as saying,

“… I find no guilt in this man.”

John’s account, which shows the most discourse between Jesus and Pilate, and also provides the most insight into the governor’s sense of conflict around the matter tells us that he sought to free Jesus. But, before we take all that and walk away with the idea that Pilate was kind of a good guy, we have to take in the rest of the context around this. Matthew 27:22–24 tells us,

“Pilate said to them, ‘Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?’ They all said, ‘Let him be crucified!’ And he said, ‘Why? What evil has he done?’ But they shouted all the more, ‘Let him be crucified!’ So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.’”

Mark 15:15 says,

“So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.”

In Luke 23:13–16 we read,

“Pilate then called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, and said to them, ‘You brought me this man as one who was misleading the people. And after examining him before you, behold, I did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against him. Neither did Herod, for he sent him back to us. Look, nothing deserving death has been done by him. I will therefore punish and release him.’”

We’ll discuss Herod’s involvement in all this later, but from this we read that Pilate, finding no guilt in Jesus, and having this confirmed by Herod, another ruler in the region, still intends to punish a Man he has called innocent before releasing Him. Pilate saw no need to have Jesus put to death, but we are horribly mistaken if we think to assume some kind of compassion on his behalf. Pilate’s initial response to the Jews when they bring Jesus to him shows us a degree of contempt for the Sanhedrin as well as a general lack of regard for what happens to Jesus, saying in John 18:31,

“… Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.”

John 18:36–38 shows us part of the dialog between Jesus and Pilate, and the governor continuing to miss the mark, despite a broadening understanding of the situation,

“Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.’ Then Pilate said to him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.’ Pilate said to him, ‘What is truth?’ After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, ‘I find no guilt in him.’”

Pilate’s question, “What is truth?” is one that is often embellished and romanticized, or it’s disregarded entirely as a cynical taunt. Sometimes it’s treated as an earnest query, like he understands who Jesus is and is actually asking Him for the answer. Other times people read this as something entirely rhetorical, and it’s given a scathing, dismissive tone. But neither of these give proper context to what we’re reading here, or to Pilate’s cultural influence. Pilate understands at this point that there’s something different about Jesus – that doesn’t mean that he’s revering Him as the Son of God, just that he knows the Jews are falsely accusing Him, and that His behavior under persecution is incredibly unique. Bearing this in mind it doesn’t quite fit to take the question as entirely dismissive. But we also have to consider that Pilate was a Roman, a citizen of an empire that was deeply influenced by the Greek Hellenist culture. Within this culture the subject of truth was treated much as it is today, as a philosophical, often subjective matter. There were the teachings of Plato and Socrates, the philosophical paths of the Sophists, the Stoics, and the Epicureans, just to name some broader, more popular stances, all of which had their own approach and understanding around what “truth” was. Pilate has some inkling as to Jesus’ significance, and yet rather than seek to understand, rather than hear the voice of God speaking before him and clinging to it, he takes a path of vague generality – a wondering curiosity around the Truth, but no sincere desire for or adherence to what Jesus alone offers. Further condemning Pilate’s conduct, John 19:1 says,

“Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him.”

The sad and ironic thing is that this takes place between what we just read, where Pilate states that he finds no guilt in Jesus, and John 19:6,

“When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, ‘Crucify him, crucify him!’ Pilate said to them, ‘Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.’”

Between two declarations that he finds Jesus to be blameless, Pilate has Him brutally beaten. Simply put, it would be a mistake to paint Pilate as the villain who was plotting against Jesus, passionately seeking to put Him to death and fulfill the will of Rome, and it’s also a mistake to regard him as a generally good guy who wanted to do the right thing, but was placed in an unwinnable position. What Scripture shows us is that he was calloused, selfish, and cruel, even if he displayed a curiosity and some degree of regard toward Jesus. Further underpinning these characteristics and transitioning us to take a look at Herod, Luke 23:6–12 says,

“When Pilate heard this, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. And when he learned that he belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him over to Herod, who was himself in Jerusalem at that time. When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. So he questioned him at some length, but he made no answer. The chief priests and the scribes stood by, vehemently accusing him. And Herod with his soldiers treated him with contempt and mocked him. Then, arraying him in splendid clothing, he sent him back to Pilate. And Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been at enmity with each other.”

The Herod we see addressed here is one of the sons of Herod the Great, who ruled as “king” under the authority of Rome over Galilee, Samaria, Judea, and the surrounding regions. Herod the Great is the one credited with expanding and reconstructing the temple, and is also the one responsible for the slaughter of the young boys in the region of Bethlehem after meeting with the wise men. These two things give us a clear picture of Herod the Great’s character – a Jew in name alone, acting like a sometimes worshipper of God with a heart that was very far from Him. These same characteristics are seen present in his son, Herod the tetrarch of Galilee, Herod Antipas. Antipas was in many ways captivated by John the Baptist and, as we read from the account in Luke 23, very curious about Jesus. But everything we need to know about Herod Antipas (aside from what we’ve read of him surrounding the crucifixion in John’s gospel) is recorded in Matthew 14:1–12,

“At that time Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus, and he said to his servants, ‘This is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.’ For Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because John had been saying to him, ‘It is not lawful for you to have her.’ And though he wanted to put him to death, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet. But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, ‘Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.’ And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given. He sent and had John beheaded in the prison, and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. And his disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.”

So, in summary, we have Herod Antipas, who’s supposed to be a practicing Jew. He takes his brother Philip’s wife (while Philip is still alive) and marries her, which aside from any general, worldly sense of morality is in blatant defiance of the Law regarding marriage. But, Antipas is the ruler of the region, and he’s in place under Roman authority, so it seems given the context that no one calls him out over this – except John. John the Baptist came before Herod and rebuked him for what he’d done, earning the contempt of Herodias, the woman who’d left Philip for Antipas. It makes sense that Pilate and Herod were at odds with one another – both rulers in neighboring regions but with different cultures and ideologies behind them. But it also makes sense that they became friends, disturbingly bonding through the process of Jesus’ unwarranted condemnation and sentencing to the cross. The two men who both found Jesus innocent, who both had Him beaten without cause, who showed themselves to be perfectly permissible of putting an innocent man to death – Herod with John, and Pilate with Jesus – if it meant saving face before the crowd, found that they had something in common after all. While expressing token interest around the Son of God, neither man displayed any allegiance, devotion, or repentance before Him, only a weak cowardice. Returning to Luke’s opening list from today’s passage, we see mention of Philip, Herod’s brother. Scripture doesn’t tell us much about Philip, we just know that he was another son of Herod the Great, half-brother to Antipas, and, confusingly enough, also the half-brother to Herod Philip, the first husband of Herodias. To be completely transparent, up until researching this I always thought that Philip who was married to Herodias and Philip the tetrarch were the same person, but apparently they were two different people – meaning that Herod the Great had two sons named Philip, which I’m sure never got confusing at family gatherings. Historical accounts seem to indicate that, while both ruled for multiple decades, Philip the tetrarch’s reign was a bit smoother than his brother’s Antipas’, and came to an end when he died of natural causes. Next we see Luke list off the tetrarch Lysanias, this being the only time we see any mention of him in Scripture. But for all the information we’re not given about figures like Philip and Lysanias, their presence helps to round out the image of the political climate that Luke is describing. These aren’t just names on a page, and they’re more than just historical plot points to give us a frame of reference around the place and timing of events. These men were rulers under the empire of Rome, their character and the spirit they served in their leadership all point to the varied struggles and imperfections of a powerful, yet broken and blinded condition of a system that dominated much of the known world. True, the world was broken and blind before Rome rose, and before any of these men came to power, and it remained so after they were all gone, but this helps us see and hopefully appreciate that this was the environment into which the Lord sent the prophet that would herald the coming of His Son. And in this regard we also have to take into consideration the final names on Luke’s list – that all this happened “during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas.” To be high priest is a lifelong appointment, there is no simultaneous holding of the station by two men. And yet we see these two listed together here, and John 18:13 says that after Jesus was arrested,

“First they led him to Annas, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year.”

To add the context of historical records, it seems that Annas held the office of high priest from 6 AD to 15 AD. He was both appointed to the office and removed by Roman officials, and was succeeded by his sons and eventually his son-in-law, Caiaphas. This shows us the level of influence that Rome held concerning the Jewish religious practices, and the degree of corruption that existed within the ruling body of the Sanhedrin. We also see however that despite his removal from the position, Annas’ influence remained incredibly high among the council, with his name popping up here in at the beginning of John’s ministry, at the time of Jesus’ sham trials before His crucifixion, and again in Acts during the persecution of the Apostles. If the wayward condition of the political climate wasn’t disturbing enough, this lets us see just how integrated those who were supposed to be leading and teaching God’s people had become with their Imperial rulers. But God is not blind to the plight of His people, and His arm is not short that He cannot save. So into the midst of this chaos, in a time marked by hardhearted and wicked leadership, both in and outside of the religious institution, God sends John, and the voice crying out in the wilderness begins the preparation for the coming Christ.

“And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”’”

We know from what we’ve read previously in Luke 1:80 where John has been throughout his life,

“And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.”

We addressed this matter before as we closed out Luke 1, that although it often carries a negative connotation in the Old Testament, the wilderness is not automatically a bad place. It is a place of separation and refinement, it’s a place that through its harshness and isolation is meant to draw us closer to God – though in some the trial brings forth rebellion, and the people of Israel displayed repeatedly. For John however, this was the place where God prepared him for the work that was to come. John was not brought up around the temple, not raised as a priest as his father was before him. While we read early on that Zechariah and Elizabeth were both found righteous before God, John’s rearing in the wilderness serves to show us his complete detachment, not from the religion of his fathers, but from the religious institution that had become so corrupt. His message was not one of intense legalism, there was no browbeating the people with rules upon rules, adding to what the Lord had given as though His Law were insufficient. He called the people to repentance, and in doing so he fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 40:3–5,

“A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.’”

Matthew’s gospel records the initial message of John’s ministry and the initial message of Jesus’ ministry as the same, in Matthew 3:2 and 4:17 respectively,

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

And so we can see how, from the positioning of the world, to the nature of his message, John was prepared by the Lord to stand in His name, and declare His coming, that the way might be made, and that the world might begin to see what God had prepared and was sending to rescue them from the clutches of death.

2. The Instruction of God’s Prophet

“He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our father.” For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.’”

Moving from the ways in which God prepared John and orchestrated the timing of his ministry, we begin to see what his teaching and instruction actually looked like. This section, concerning the “brood of vipers” and resting on the laurels of Abrahamic lineage, is repeated verbatim in Matthew 3, the only exception being that there it’s directed toward the Pharisees and Sadducees who are coming to be baptized. Far from creating some kind of contradiction, this helps to harmonize John’s message between the gospels, showing that his rebuke against unrighteousness and hypocrisy wasn’t just aimed at the common man, or at the religious elite, but at all who were lost and dying in their sin. We see here that just as with the call, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” there is another direct overlap between the teaching of John and the teachings of Jesus. In Matthew 12:33–37 we see as Jesus rebukes the Pharisees, saying,

“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Again, the harmony between their messages only serves to reinforce that John’s teaching was not his own, but was from God. Both John and Jesus also strike against the Jewish complacency that they were a special, redeemed people purely because of the covenant made with Abraham concerning his descendants. John rebukes this thinking here, acknowledging that God is not dependent on a specific bloodline or ancestry to make good on His covenant with Abraham. They aren’t special because they have Abraham as an ancestor, but rather because God has blessed them, and in their complacency and sin they risk losing that blessing. What John says here calls forward to the distinction that we see Jesus give in His discourse with the Jews in John 8:34–45,

“Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.’ They answered him, ‘Abraham is our father.’ Jesus said to them, ‘If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. You are doing the works your father did.’ They said to him, ‘We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father—even God.’ Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.”

It is a terrible thing in and of itself to be a slave, but far worse to be a slave and not even realize it. There were many, especially among the religious rulers, who rested upon the covenant given to Abraham, obsessed over their heritage and strict adherence to the Law, and yet were living in the service of Satan. What John teaches, and what Jesus would later deepen and expand upon, is that these are the practices of blind fools. It is not about bloodline or status, but the fruit you bear. As Jesus teaches in Matthew 7:15–20,

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.”

We cannot call ourselves children of God, claim to follow His teachings and adhere to His commandments, and yet walk in the spirit of blasphemy and lies. The fruit will tell, and that of righteousness will lead to eternal life, but the fruit of the flesh will only end in the fire of the second death and eternal separation.

“And the crowds asked him, ‘What then shall we do?’ And he answered them, ‘Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.’ Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, ‘Teacher, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Collect no more than you are authorized to do.’ Soldiers also asked him, ‘And we, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.’”

It merits considering that the counsel that John gives is vast, but not complicated. This came during a time where, as some religious teachers do today, knowledge was often gatekept, veiled behind many layers of complicated doctrine, or lorded over people, as though the common man could only be so righteous, and true sanctity was reserved for the pious elite. John doesn’t teach this way – he doesn’t come with pomp and ceremony, but comes from the wilderness, dressed roughly and speaking candidly. There are no mental gymnastics required to understand what you’re called to do – it’s simple, though not necessarily easy. Matthew 22:34–40 tells us,

“But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?’ And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.’”

Now, that doesn’t mean that you can skip reading the Old Testament because the entirety of its teaching is summed up in these two commandments. It does mean that the entire time you’re reading the Old Testament you should have these two commandments as your guiding touchstone. The Law is often complicated and the words of the prophets can sometimes seem mysterious, but despite the apparent complexity, everything in them points back to loving God above all else, and loving your neighbor who has been made in the image of God. And so what John tells the crowds is of this same spirit. It’s completely life changing, but not life upending. It is simple and honest, and yet nothing at all like what the flesh calls us to do. The first thing we see is to be generous toward others. James 2:14–17 tells us,

“What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”

Faith without works is a false, empty faith. Works without faith are fruitless, empty works. And so John calls the people to be faithful – not to their own detriment. He doesn’t say, “If you have two tunics, give them both away so that you have nothing to wear.” Rather we’re called to give out of the abundance that God has given us to those who are without. Next we see the instructions given to tax collectors and soldiers. This shows just how far reaching John’s ministry was, as these were people who would have been on the outer edge of Jewish society. Tax collectors were seen as traitors and extortionists, selling out their own people to the Roman empire. This wasn’t just a false perception, but was often the reality, as tax collectors were put in a unique position to extort more from people than what was actually due. Likewise soldiers could be seen as sellouts by many, serving the empire, enforcing their rules and power, and fighting on their behalf. It would be a small step to take this power and use it against your own people for your gain. John doesn’t tell the tax collectors and the soldiers to quit their jobs, but rather he tells both parties to do their jobs and conduct themselves rightly. This is so simple, so obvious, yet so hard to adhere to when we’re tempted that many people never consider this path. Combine the simplicity with the fact that the religious establishment seemed to overcomplicate everything that was under their power, and it’s not hard to see why John’s instruction was revolutionary, yet incredibly practical. They could be summed up by simply saying, “Do what is right.” The challenge is that in no way does John teach, “Do what you think is right.” We are not the standard, God is, and it is only by His tender mercy and love that we may know His narrow path and forsake our flesh for a life that is right before Him.

“As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, ‘I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’”

The final thing we see John teach here is the clarifying fact that he is not the Christ. As a parallel passage to this one, John 1:19–23 says,

“And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, ‘I am not the Christ.’ And they asked him, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ And he answered, ‘No.’ So they said to him, ‘Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?’ He said, ‘I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, “Make straight the way of the Lord,” as the prophet Isaiah said.’”

We have to remember in this the general position of the people. Most people were far from happy with being continually under the heel of Rome, having their heritage threatened by Hellenist integration, and forced to pay taxes to Caesar. What was expected was a literal revolution – that the Messiah would come and overthrow the Roman empire, establishing Israel as the dominant power in the world. And so when a figure rose up who stood out among the people there always seemed to be the question as to if this person could be the Christ. We see this expectation subtly in the remark of the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4:25,

“… I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.”

And we see it on a greater, more aggressive display in the intent of the crowd after Jesus feeds the 5,000 in John 6:14–15,

“When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, ‘This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!’ Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.”

We even see reference to past revolutions that were thought to be Messianic before they fell apart, as Gamaliel counsels the Sanhedrin to leave the Apostles alone in Acts 5:36–39,

“For before these days Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. After him Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and drew away some of the people after him. He too perished, and all who followed him were scattered. So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!…”

What’s fascinating and beautiful to see is John’s focus on the mission that God has given him and complete lack of pride. His joy is not in his own success or notoriety, he is not out to sate the fleshly desires of fame or glory – he is the forerunner, the prophet of the Most High, and he has been sent to prepare the way for his Lord, not take any of this glory onto himself. And so again, with great candor, he tells the people that his work, for which there seems to be such regard, is incomparable to the work that the coming Christ will do. These teachings he has given which are so simple, yet have the potential for such impact upon peoples lives are but faint echoes of the revolutionary instruction and clarity surrounding the Law that will come with Jesus’ ministry. At the height of his ministry, when what seems like every eye was upon him, John was the picture of a faithful servant and pointed the people to the coming glory, judgment, and redemption that would be found in Christ.

3. The Testimony of God’s Prophet

“So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison.”

It should be noted that, despite the fact that receiving his teaching comes with soul wrenching conviction concerning their sin, what John is offering the people is great encouragement. So often when we think of repentance we can develop a hyperfixation on how terrible we are. We shouldn’t ignore this, we shouldn’t candy-coat our sin and downplay its severity. But the blessing of repentance is not that we get to mourn the extent of our wickedness, but that we’re delivered from it. It’s the knowledge that you were filthy, corrupt, loathsome, and wicked, and yet you don’t have to be that anymore. To this news there is one of two responses to choose from. You can do what we see many of the people doing, acknowledging their transgressions and repenting of what they’ve done, or, you can do what Herod Antipas did, and doggedly defend your sin. John was raised up by God, trained and refined, not in the institutions of the synagogue or the temple, but in the wilderness. He did not come to appease and placate the religious rulers or governmental authorities, but rather he will raise up those who have been brought low and bring down those who exulted themselves above others. Where it seems that the religious authorities turned a blind eye on Herod’s blatant sin, John rebuked him – not because he didn’t agree with the ruler’s actions or thought that Antipas should conduct himself differently. He brought condemnation against the man and his brother’s wife because of their sin against God. Ecclesiastes 5:8 tells us,

“If you see in a province the oppression of the poor and the violation of justice and righteousness, do not be amazed at the matter, for the high official is watched by a higher, and there are yet higher ones over them.”

Herod is answerable for his conduct to those who rank higher than him – but if you follow the chain of authority all the way up, past those who don’t seem concerned with the sins of this one tetrarch, you eventually arrive at the throne of God, whether those who are ruling under His authority know and recognize this or not. Herod’s actions have been wicked, and the Jews’ acceptance of what he has done is wicked as well. But John is faithful to the word of God, showing no partiality because of someone’s worldly authority and preaching the same rebuke of sin and desperate need for repentance to all. His testimony was in the name of Truth, and that was unchanging and uncompromising regardless of who he stood before. And so, he is imprisoned, and will ultimately be executed for his condemnation against Herod and Herodias – but even unto death, his testimony never departed from the Truth.

“Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.’”

There are three times that we see God audibly speak, testifying to whoever has ears to hear as to the work and identity of His Son. The first occurrence happens here at Jesus’ baptism after the Holy Spirit descends upon Him, recorded in Matthew 3, Mark 1, Luke 3, and John 1. The second time is at the Transfiguration, Matthew 17:1–8 saying,

“And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. And Peter said to Jesus, ‘Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.’ He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.’ When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Rise, and have no fear.’ And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.”

This event is also recorded in Mark 9 and Luke 9, all three showing the same thing, that Jesus is the beloved Son of God. The third time is only recorded in John’s gospel, seen in John 12:27–30,

“‘Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? “Father, save me from this hour”? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven: ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, ‘An angel has spoken to him.’ Jesus answered, ‘This voice has come for your sake, not mine.’”

Three times Scripture records the Lord speaking from heaven, three times His words affirm who Jesus is, and what His purpose is, seen in God’s wholehearted approval of the work of His Son. The first and third times God seems to speak directly to Jesus, but as Jesus says in the passage from John, the voice is audible as it is for those listening, not for Jesus who already knows the words of God, being the Word of God Himself. But in appreciating what God says about Jesus, we have to appreciate what we’ve seen John the Baptist say concerning Him – what has John’s testimony been as prophet of the Most High when compared to the words that we see directly from God? What we see is that his testimony concerning the coming Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, the One who baptizes with the Holy Spirit and fire, who stands ready with His winnowing fork in His hand, is in perfect harmony with what God has said. The thing we have to fully appreciate when considering John’s role and purpose in being the prophet of the Most High, is what it means to be a prophet. When Peter is making an appeal for the message that he and his fellow Apostles share, he writes in 2 Peter 1:19–21,

“And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

No one is a prophet by their own ideas or cleverness, and the words of the man who is a prophet are, on their own, no more significant than the words of any other. It’s the fact that they serve the Lord, that they speak the words given to them by God, that they serve out His will and purposes that make them significant. John was this singularly great prophet, not because he himself was so special, but because of the mission that God had set before him, and his understanding and obedience to this plan. While none of us can be John the Baptist, this obedience, this adherence to the will of our Father is not beyond us today. The question in comparing our own walks and relationship with God to that of the prophet of the Most High comes down to a simple question – is our testimony something that we have taken and molded to our own comfort and designs, or it is the imparted Word and the Truth that comes from God and God alone?

Pastor Chris’ sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esQr2Xa-EGE