Dear Friends,
I think most of us have an angry vision of John the Baptist. He might have been angry at times. But I don’t believe that emotion is the main posture of his ministry.
The main postures of John’s ministry are humility and hope.
John 1:23-28
23John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’ ”
24Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
26“I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
28This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
We hear John’s humility as he insists on pointing to Jesus as the lead character. “Among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
We hear John’s hope in his prophetic identification. “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”
When John the Baptist quotes Isaiah 40 he taps into one of the most hopeful texts in the Bible.
Isaiah is realistic about the frailty of humanity, “All people are like grass and their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
However, this word of reality is not given with anger. The whole prophetic passage begins like this:
“Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem…” (verse 1)
There is “good news” (verse 9) for Jerusalem. The voice calling in the wilderness declares that “the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all the people will see it together.” (verse 5) The emissaries of God are to declare “Here is your God!” “The Sovereign LORD comes with power and he rules with a mighty arm.” (verses 9-10)
But we might ask, “how shall the Sovereign LORD rule?”
Wow look at this. Isaiah says,
“He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.” (verse 11)
That’s a word of hope!
John the Baptist’s ministry is one of humility and hope. He wants people to get ready for the coming of the LORD, for the LORD is coming in His sovereignty as their shepherd.
We can also see John’s humility and hope in his choice of where to post up for ministry. He is not in any religious centre. Instead, he has located himself on the “wilderness” side of the Jordan river. He is in “Bethany East of the Jordan.” Folks are coming to him and are having to cross the Jordan river to get to him. They are figuratively retracing the path of Israel in reverse for a baptism of repentance.
I believe these early adopters where invited by God into a pilgrim’s journey in order to prepare for God’s coming. They were invited into the wilderness so they might see the true wilderness conditions of their souls. With John they were invited by God into postures of humility and hope so that they might know Him.
Isn’t that how all of us come to Jesus?
Let’s pray.
Heavenly Father,
We come to you from the wilderness of our souls; its barrenness, vulnerability, constant striving for security and identity, and its false affections. With humility and hope we lay them down as we come to you. We long for your comfort, your good news, and your Presence with us. As we come to Jesus the Shepherd of our souls, fill us with your Spirit that we may rejoice in you and your mighty power for redeemed relationships.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
Our next reading will be John 1:29-34.