WEBVTT 00:00:01.120 --> 00:00:05.280 So this building is really special to me. 00:00:05.919 --> 00:00:13.359 I was a church planter for a few years, and our church plant met downstairs for a year, and really grateful for. 00:00:13.439 --> 00:00:15.599 I don't know if y'all have got to know Jeremy Wright yet. 00:00:15.679 --> 00:00:21.199 He's one of the pastors here, but he's been a really good friend over the years and encourager to me. 00:00:21.359 --> 00:00:24.239 And then Colton's been a great friend over the years too. 00:00:24.399 --> 00:00:28.879 So for y'all to be in this building now, worshiping is really a neat thing for me to see. 00:00:28.960 --> 00:00:36.880 I just love in Memphis, pastors helping each other, sharing buildings, sharing space, sharing encouragement with each other. 00:00:36.960 --> 00:00:39.679 There's a lot of that going on, which always encourages me. 00:00:39.840 --> 00:00:42.880 So it's really cool that you guys are worshiping here now. 00:00:43.759 --> 00:00:49.600 So we're going to look at, we're going to be in Luke chapter 3, if you want to turn there. 00:00:50.719 --> 00:01:00.880 Our church has been going through Luke, and I got to preach on this passage a few weeks ago and thought I would bring it for you guys today as well. 00:01:01.039 --> 00:01:06.480 It's Luke chapter 3, verses, I'm going to read verses 1 through 17. 00:01:06.560 --> 00:01:09.519 It's just a little bit of a section. 00:01:09.680 --> 00:01:11.439 So hang with me. 00:01:11.840 --> 00:01:14.640 We're going to be talking about John the Baptist today. 00:01:16.480 --> 00:01:18.799 So Luke 3, verses 1 through 17. 00:01:18.959 --> 00:01:44.239 In the 15th 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 Aturia, please excuse me with some of these names, and Trachnonidus, and Lysanius, 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. 00:01:44.480 --> 00:01:50.319 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 00:01:50.799 --> 00:02:10.479 As 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 path 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. 00:02:10.960 --> 00:02:18.479 He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, you brood of vipers, who warns you to flee from the wrath to come? 00:02:18.719 --> 00:02:28.639 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. 00:02:28.960 --> 00:02:31.919 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. 00:02:32.319 --> 00:02:36.719 Every tree, therefore, that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 00:02:36.960 --> 00:02:39.439 And the crowds asked him, What then shall we do? 00:02:39.680 --> 00:02:46.000 And he answered them, Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise. 00:02:46.400 --> 00:02:50.719 Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, Teacher, what shall we do? 00:02:50.960 --> 00:02:54.479 And he said to them, Collect no more than you are authorized to do. 00:02:55.120 --> 00:02:58.479 Soldiers also asked him, And we what shall we do? 00:02:58.719 --> 00:03:05.680 And he said to them, Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages. 00:03:06.080 --> 00:03:20.960 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. 00:03:21.439 --> 00:03:24.159 He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 00:03:24.400 --> 00:03:32.560 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. 00:03:32.879 --> 00:03:37.120 So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. 00:03:37.520 --> 00:03:39.919 And this is God's word for today. 00:03:40.560 --> 00:03:41.599 Let me pray for us. 00:03:41.840 --> 00:03:52.240 Father, I'm just grateful to be here with Christ's community this morning, Lord, just seeing the work you're doing in this place among these people. 00:03:54.080 --> 00:04:01.039 Lord, I thank you for your church across our city and across the world, Lord. 00:04:01.599 --> 00:04:06.879 I thank you that we can come together, worship you, knowing that your presence is here with us today. 00:04:07.680 --> 00:04:11.039 God, I pray that this word would encourage us. 00:04:12.240 --> 00:04:14.639 That we will be open to what you have for us today. 00:04:15.280 --> 00:04:16.639 Just lead us with your spirit. 00:04:16.720 --> 00:04:17.759 In Christ's name we pray. 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:18.639 Amen. 00:04:19.439 --> 00:04:27.199 So John the Baptist, John the Baptist is the wild man, one of the Bible's most interesting characters. 00:04:27.439 --> 00:04:31.360 I think Derek may have looked a little like John the Baptist, possibly. 00:04:32.399 --> 00:04:38.800 And Jesus said this about him that there was no one in all of history greater than John. 00:04:39.439 --> 00:04:40.800 So let's find out why. 00:04:40.959 --> 00:04:46.879 Because surely we can learn from and be encouraged by someone that Jesus spoke this way about. 00:04:47.600 --> 00:04:56.480 Now, I'm not going to get too far into the weeds with all the names at the beginning of this passage, the dates, the names, the positions that kicked off these verses. 00:04:56.720 --> 00:04:58.560 But this list is significant. 00:04:58.720 --> 00:05:05.600 It was included to establish the date and the context when John the Baptist came on the scene. 00:05:05.839 --> 00:05:09.839 And Luke is letting us know something was happening during this time. 00:05:10.079 --> 00:05:16.160 That there was deep political and religious darkness at this moment around Jerusalem. 00:05:16.800 --> 00:05:27.279 And all these names reflect either a corrupt priesthood or wicked political leaders, which means at this time, this was a dangerous time and place to be devout. 00:05:27.839 --> 00:05:33.519 It was a scary time to be serious about listening to and following the Lord. 00:05:34.000 --> 00:05:38.959 And while this is happening in Jerusalem, we find John the Baptist out in the wilderness. 00:05:39.120 --> 00:05:49.120 He's setting up out in the desert a few miles outside of town with his band of disciples, very similar to the group that Jesus would put together not too long after this. 00:05:49.759 --> 00:05:58.319 And though John wasn't in the city much, word was getting around about this wild man that was preaching and baptizing out in the Jordan River. 00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:01.839 And Luke wants to convey to us some things here. 00:06:02.240 --> 00:06:10.639 He wants us to see just how heavily the historical odds were stacked against John and Jesus from the very beginning. 00:06:11.279 --> 00:06:16.480 The movement that was born from these two guys' ministry was very unlikely. 00:06:17.279 --> 00:06:26.560 Theologian Trent Butler says it like this He says, In this political and religious setting, God renewed his activity in human history. 00:06:26.879 --> 00:06:30.560 He gave his word to John just as he had to the prophets of old. 00:06:30.800 --> 00:06:33.759 Such word came in the desert where John lived. 00:06:34.240 --> 00:06:42.879 Political and religious activity centered in urban Jerusalem, but God's activity centered in the desolate wilderness of the Jordan River. 00:06:43.199 --> 00:06:48.959 And the remainder of Luke's Gospel shows which activity would prove more effective. 00:06:49.439 --> 00:06:51.279 So why was he out there? 00:06:51.839 --> 00:06:54.800 What was John doing out in the desert? 00:06:55.120 --> 00:06:58.720 Well, this was just a part of a lifelong journey for John. 00:06:58.879 --> 00:07:06.639 It was the culmination of a lifetime spent learning to seek, listen to, and respond to the Lord. 00:07:07.360 --> 00:07:12.800 God was actually preparing John for his prophetic ministry since before he was even born. 00:07:13.279 --> 00:07:18.800 John 1.15 says he was filled with the Holy Spirit even in his mother's womb. 00:07:19.279 --> 00:07:30.160 And so, you may have heard this story, when the pregnant Mary entered Elizabeth's home, the unborn John, still three months from his birth, leapt with joy inside the womb. 00:07:30.399 --> 00:07:36.160 He was just reacting spontaneously to being in the presence of the Messiah for the first time. 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:45.600 And then, as he grew, John took what was called a Nazarite vow, which included never having strong wine or drink. 00:07:45.839 --> 00:07:55.439 But beyond that, it meant taking on a level of spiritual discipline that few other Jewish young men would undertake or pursue. 00:07:55.920 --> 00:08:01.279 Now, that term, spiritual discipline, isn't used as much these days. 00:08:01.439 --> 00:08:03.120 And I understand why. 00:08:03.360 --> 00:08:04.480 I think I know why. 00:08:04.639 --> 00:08:12.560 I think it's because the word discipline in its modern usage leaves little room for joy or happiness, but instead conveys what? 00:08:12.800 --> 00:08:17.279 Duty and drudgery in pursuit of the Lord. 00:08:17.839 --> 00:08:31.519 But the classic spiritual disciplines are now more often called practices, but these are not methods for us to earn our spiritual credentials or collect more points or gold stars from the Lord. 00:08:31.680 --> 00:08:37.919 Though we often use them sometimes to rank and grade ourselves against other believers. 00:08:38.639 --> 00:08:42.240 But that's not God's intention at all. 00:08:42.399 --> 00:08:58.000 No, the spiritual disciplines and practices, is what John was focusing on when he was out in the wilderness, were things like prayer, solitude, silence, meditating on God's word, fasting, all these things. 00:08:58.080 --> 00:09:07.039 These are all necessary for the believer, not in order to climb the ladder to holiness or to reach some kind of spiritual heaven on earth. 00:09:07.360 --> 00:09:12.960 No, the spiritual disciplines or practices are given to us for one purpose. 00:09:13.120 --> 00:09:18.159 And that is to put us in the right place to hear from and be with the Lord. 00:09:19.039 --> 00:09:24.720 They are for us to be in the right place to hear from and be with the Lord. 00:09:25.039 --> 00:09:30.799 So the Lord clearly tells us in his word, if you want to hear my voice, here's how you do it. 00:09:31.440 --> 00:09:37.279 Chapter 3, verse 1, the word of God came to John, the son of Zachariah in the wilderness. 00:09:37.919 --> 00:09:40.720 So it's kind of like a set of walkie-talkies. 00:09:40.879 --> 00:09:48.240 If y'all had these, especially dudes when y'all were young, walkie-talkies are a CB radio, for those that are old enough to remember those. 00:09:48.559 --> 00:09:55.279 If you want to hear the person on the other end, you must both be on the same channel for that to happen. 00:09:55.360 --> 00:10:02.159 Otherwise, they'll just be pressing the button and saying, 10-4, good buddy, or shepherd of lost sheep, and you're not going to hear them. 00:10:03.120 --> 00:10:08.960 Dukes of Hazard fans out there, anybody willing to admit you're old enough to remember the Dukes of Hazard? 00:10:10.320 --> 00:10:17.039 But the spiritual disciplines and practices are how you get on the right channel to hear from the Lord. 00:10:17.519 --> 00:10:25.600 That's what John the Baptist was training himself for his entire life, to be able to hear the word of the Lord. 00:10:25.919 --> 00:10:29.120 So he learned to follow the same pattern that Jesus did. 00:10:29.600 --> 00:10:32.320 It's a pattern of retreat and return. 00:10:32.559 --> 00:10:42.879 He knew how to get away from the crowd, seek silence and solitude, pray, meditate on scripture, listen to the Father, and then return to the world. 00:10:43.120 --> 00:10:50.080 And when he did that, John the Baptist realized who he was and what he was born to do. 00:10:50.320 --> 00:10:52.480 And it works the same way for us. 00:10:53.360 --> 00:10:57.360 But John saw himself in this passage from Isaiah 40. 00:10:57.600 --> 00:11:04.720 It was written 500 years before he was born, was quoted here in chapter 4, I mean chapter 3, verses 4 through 6. 00:11:04.879 --> 00:11:08.480 He saw that he was the one crying in the wilderness. 00:11:09.039 --> 00:11:17.039 John received a word that he was compelled to proclaim because he saw a vision of the Savior who was about to come on the scene. 00:11:17.679 --> 00:11:28.159 And along with that vision of Jesus, he also had an overwhelming desire, a passion for his people to receive the Savior. 00:11:28.960 --> 00:11:33.279 But for that to happen, they would need to prepare their hearts through repentance. 00:11:33.919 --> 00:11:35.279 Through repentance. 00:11:35.679 --> 00:11:41.200 And all of this came to John because he put himself in the right place to hear from the Lord. 00:11:41.519 --> 00:11:47.360 This is what Jesus meant when he gave us these dual commands and promises that you're probably familiar with. 00:11:47.600 --> 00:11:49.759 Seek and you will find. 00:11:50.080 --> 00:11:51.679 Ask and it will be given to you. 00:11:51.840 --> 00:11:54.159 Knock and the door will be open. 00:11:54.879 --> 00:11:59.919 The door being the way to intimacy and communion with him. 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:05.919 Back in Luke 180, it says this about John's trajectory in his life. 00:12:06.399 --> 00:12:14.799 So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel. 00:12:15.279 --> 00:12:20.399 So John received the word because he was waiting and listening. 00:12:22.559 --> 00:12:24.240 How are we doing that? 00:12:24.480 --> 00:12:26.720 It's a good question for us today. 00:12:27.039 --> 00:12:28.080 How are we doing that? 00:12:28.159 --> 00:12:31.279 How are we learning to wait and listen on the Lord? 00:12:31.519 --> 00:12:37.360 With learning the spiritual practices that make it possible to hear from the Lord. 00:12:37.600 --> 00:12:39.440 I want to give you two resources this morning. 00:12:39.600 --> 00:12:41.440 I think they're going to be on the screen here. 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:42.399 Let me see. 00:12:42.559 --> 00:12:43.200 Yes. 00:12:43.840 --> 00:12:45.360 Just a Wilmore early. 00:12:45.519 --> 00:12:47.360 We love this guy around our house. 00:12:47.679 --> 00:12:50.799 Two books, Habits of the Household and the Common Rule. 00:12:50.960 --> 00:12:54.960 Habits of the Household is more about spiritual practices for your entire family. 00:12:55.120 --> 00:12:57.600 The common rule is more personal. 00:12:58.000 --> 00:13:09.279 But if you don't know where to begin the spiritual practices in your personal life, and I know that's might be where some of you are, I highly recommend these two resources for you to look at. 00:13:09.519 --> 00:13:11.279 So just for your consideration. 00:13:11.519 --> 00:13:14.720 Now, let's move on to the content of the message. 00:13:14.960 --> 00:13:21.200 So John got away to be able to hear from the Lord, receive this word. 00:13:21.440 --> 00:13:24.559 What was the content of the message that he was given to proclaim? 00:13:24.799 --> 00:13:26.320 So he comes on the scene. 00:13:26.559 --> 00:13:32.960 He's the first prophet to speak for God to the people since Malachi, 400 years earlier. 00:13:33.360 --> 00:13:34.720 And what is his message? 00:13:34.879 --> 00:13:36.879 Let's read these verses again. 00:13:37.440 --> 00:13:44.159 Verse 3 And John went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 00:13:44.480 --> 00:13:53.600 As 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 path straight. 00:13:53.840 --> 00:14:05.360 Every valley shall be filled, 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. 00:14:06.320 --> 00:14:15.679 So God speaks again after four hundred years, and what is the message John received and felt compelled to go out and share? 00:14:15.919 --> 00:14:19.919 In a nutshell, it was this the Messiah is coming. 00:14:20.159 --> 00:14:27.519 So prepare your hearts, turn away from your sin, turn back to the Lord, and then come mark that repentance. 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:32.320 Come mark your readiness to receive him by being baptized. 00:14:32.559 --> 00:14:33.840 And that was his message. 00:14:34.080 --> 00:14:40.879 Now, what's with all this talk here of paths and rough places, valleys and mountains? 00:14:40.960 --> 00:14:47.039 Well, Isaiah is giving us an expansive metaphor here for preparing our hearts for the Lord. 00:14:47.440 --> 00:14:50.399 Pastor and author Kent Hughes explains it like this. 00:14:50.879 --> 00:15:03.440 He says, The prophecy reflects the widespread custom that when an eminent ruler was about to visit a city, the citizens would construct a smooth, broad road so he could enter the city with pomp and dignity. 00:15:03.679 --> 00:15:08.159 A modern equivalent is the, here comes some French for you, the Champs Elysees. 00:15:08.399 --> 00:15:08.960 Is that good? 00:15:09.120 --> 00:15:10.399 French speakers out there. 00:15:10.720 --> 00:15:15.600 In Paris, first used with great effect by Napoleon and his armies. 00:15:15.840 --> 00:15:18.000 But Isaiah's vision is grander. 00:15:18.240 --> 00:15:24.000 The highway was not simply a grand entrance to a city, but a great thoroughfare through a mountainous wilderness. 00:15:24.240 --> 00:15:32.720 He saw mountains flattened and valleys filled in so that a broad superhighway could be made ready for the Messiah King. 00:15:33.840 --> 00:15:37.440 And Isaiah was doing what Old Testament prophets often did. 00:15:37.759 --> 00:15:43.600 He was sharing a vision for something that was going to happen in the present and the distant future. 00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:53.440 The near fulfillment was God delivering Israel from exile in Babylon and bringing them through the desert, blazing a trail for them to get back to the promised land. 00:15:53.600 --> 00:15:56.240 That was the near fulfillment here. 00:15:56.480 --> 00:16:03.600 But the far fulfillment was stretching out hundreds of years to this moment where Jesus was about to begin his ministry. 00:16:04.320 --> 00:16:16.480 And John here is promising a much greater deliverance, freedom from sin, death, and hell that would be available not only for Israel, but for all the world. 00:16:24.399 --> 00:16:38.320 And starting with this one wild-haired man in the desert who blazed the trail for a carpenter from Nazareth, the gospel has now advanced, and his church has grown to include millions of Christians around the world. 00:16:38.879 --> 00:16:48.320 So all flesh, all tribes, tongues, and nations is actually within reach now as we look around the world and see what the gospel is doing as it advances. 00:16:48.720 --> 00:16:50.559 And we get to be a part of that. 00:16:51.200 --> 00:16:56.799 So this worldwide saving work started with the very simple message. 00:16:57.360 --> 00:17:03.360 Back here in John chapter 3, as Kent Hughes says, a point we must not miss is this. 00:17:08.319 --> 00:17:12.720 The Baptist was saying, mend not your roads, but your lives. 00:17:13.440 --> 00:17:18.160 So the way to the Savior starts with admitting our need for a Savior. 00:17:18.799 --> 00:17:26.720 And that's why John, along with Jesus, spoke so strongly against those whose pride kept them from acknowledging that they had need. 00:17:27.920 --> 00:17:33.359 Now, this next part of the story is pretty jarring, right, when we read this. 00:17:33.680 --> 00:17:38.079 John is doing his thing out in the desert, and people are coming out, they're hearing him speak. 00:17:38.400 --> 00:17:40.000 Many are being baptized. 00:17:40.079 --> 00:17:41.440 So what is he doing? 00:17:41.759 --> 00:17:43.039 How is this working? 00:17:43.279 --> 00:17:48.000 How is he drawing a crowd that keeps expanding out here in the desert? 00:17:48.240 --> 00:17:51.119 What church growth method was he using? 00:17:51.599 --> 00:17:53.440 He's probably smiling and welcoming. 00:17:53.519 --> 00:17:55.440 It must be a little seeker-sensitive, right? 00:17:55.519 --> 00:17:57.440 He must be saying, Welcome, my friends. 00:17:57.599 --> 00:17:59.440 Would you like some fresh baked cookies? 00:17:59.599 --> 00:18:02.000 Have you seen our play area for the kids? 00:18:02.240 --> 00:18:06.000 I mean, people were making this trek all the way out to the wilderness. 00:18:06.079 --> 00:18:08.640 So how was he making it worth the trip? 00:18:09.519 --> 00:18:15.119 Well, I don't think you would describe what some were receiving as a warm welcome. 00:18:15.599 --> 00:18:18.400 As we see, John actually greeted some like this. 00:18:18.640 --> 00:18:21.680 Hello, you offspring or family of vipers. 00:18:22.240 --> 00:18:26.960 Who warns you venomous snakes to come and escape God's wrath? 00:18:27.279 --> 00:18:28.160 Yikes. 00:18:28.400 --> 00:18:29.279 Come on, John. 00:18:29.440 --> 00:18:31.039 Maybe you should chill a little. 00:18:35.680 --> 00:18:42.799 So, why is John so upset that some have come out to hear him and be baptized? 00:18:43.359 --> 00:18:45.039 Look at verses seven through nine again. 00:18:45.200 --> 00:18:52.880 He said, therefore, to the crowds that came out to be baptized, you brood of vipers, who warns you to flee from the wrath to come? 00:18:53.200 --> 00:18:58.640 Bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, We have Abraham as our father. 00:18:58.880 --> 00:19:03.920 For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 00:19:04.400 --> 00:19:07.440 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. 00:19:07.680 --> 00:19:13.440 Every tree, therefore, that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 00:19:13.839 --> 00:19:16.079 Okay, so that's pretty strong. 00:19:16.640 --> 00:19:21.359 So why is John so upset that some have come out to hear him and be baptized? 00:19:21.759 --> 00:19:27.440 Well, it's because many who came out were the religious elites and leaders. 00:19:27.680 --> 00:19:35.279 And there are many other passages in the Gospels that detail why John and then Jesus were so upset with most of these men. 00:19:35.920 --> 00:19:44.400 It was because, by and large, they refused to admit their own need, and they were not interested in helping others with their deepest needs. 00:19:44.880 --> 00:19:47.519 Some in the crowds were full of pride. 00:19:47.759 --> 00:19:50.319 They were happy with their religious position. 00:19:50.559 --> 00:19:55.200 They were eager to hold on to their status and their place on the ladder. 00:19:55.759 --> 00:20:04.079 While at the same time, they were placing huge burdens of rules and regulations on the people that they were not willing to help carry. 00:20:04.559 --> 00:20:09.759 They were offering no relief by way of grace, mercy, or compassion. 00:20:10.799 --> 00:20:17.359 So in the crowds coming out to see John were people like the Pharisee in Jesus' parable from Luke 18. 00:20:17.599 --> 00:20:20.000 This might be my favorite parable of Jesus'. 00:20:20.960 --> 00:20:35.440 In this story, a despised tax collector stands off at a distance from everyone at the temple out of shame, and he has trouble even looking up to heaven, but can only beat his chest and say, God have mercy on me, a sinner. 00:20:36.079 --> 00:20:39.039 So he's comparing himself to God. 00:20:39.920 --> 00:20:50.480 While the Pharisee, the respected religious leader, comes in comparing himself to everyone else, making sure to note how he measures up as he prays, God, thank you. 00:20:50.720 --> 00:20:57.440 That I'm not like other people, robbers, evildoers, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 00:20:57.680 --> 00:21:01.359 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get. 00:21:02.400 --> 00:21:05.680 As you may know, here's Jesus' assessment of these two men. 00:21:05.839 --> 00:21:12.160 He says, I tell you, this man, the tax collector, rather than the Pharisee, went home justified before God. 00:21:12.640 --> 00:21:19.039 For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. 00:21:20.240 --> 00:21:25.839 Author Paul Miller, I don't know if you know him, he's wrote a book called The Praying Life. 00:21:26.160 --> 00:21:27.839 Um, that's amazing. 00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:40.880 But he sums up this parable beautifully when he says, Jesus liked this tax collector better than the Pharisee, because the tax collector sees what he really is a mess. 00:21:41.599 --> 00:21:44.240 While the Pharisee denies his true heart. 00:21:44.559 --> 00:21:46.240 The point of the parable is clear. 00:21:46.400 --> 00:21:48.000 No one really has it all together. 00:21:48.160 --> 00:21:50.400 Everyone's life is a bit of a mess. 00:21:50.640 --> 00:21:52.480 All of us need help. 00:21:52.720 --> 00:21:56.799 Knowing you're a mess means you can stop pretending you have it all together. 00:21:57.200 --> 00:21:59.759 Jesus says to people, relax, you're much worse. 00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:01.119 Than you think. 00:22:02.160 --> 00:22:08.720 It's a little scary to move in this direction because you lose control of your image, of how others see you. 00:22:09.119 --> 00:22:11.440 But did you ever have control anyway? 00:22:12.160 --> 00:22:17.440 Getting in touch with your inner tax collector makes room for God's energy in your life. 00:22:17.759 --> 00:22:18.640 I love that. 00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:24.319 Getting in touch with your inner tax collector makes room for God's energy in your life. 00:22:24.480 --> 00:22:28.480 And God's energy flowing from your life looks like love. 00:22:29.359 --> 00:22:30.559 Let's think about it. 00:22:30.880 --> 00:22:36.079 Is it possible to have compassion for someone when you feel morally superior to them? 00:22:36.720 --> 00:22:38.000 I say no. 00:22:38.240 --> 00:22:40.240 I say that's impossible. 00:22:40.559 --> 00:22:46.480 When you're looking down on someone from your place above them on the spiritual ladder, can you truly love that person? 00:22:47.920 --> 00:22:52.880 Bible teacher Terra Lee Cobble puts it simply, as she's very good at doing. 00:22:53.119 --> 00:22:58.400 She says, John doesn't want them to be baptized because their lives prove they haven't repented. 00:22:58.559 --> 00:23:03.359 And until they do, baptism will be a meaningless act. 00:23:04.000 --> 00:23:10.400 But that doesn't mean that he doesn't want the Pharisees and the religious proud to repent. 00:23:11.039 --> 00:23:15.279 In verse 8, John calls him to bear fruits in keeping with repentance. 00:23:15.759 --> 00:23:18.000 But he knows they haven't. 00:23:18.240 --> 00:23:19.680 How does he know? 00:23:20.160 --> 00:23:28.160 Because they're not bearing the primary fruits that grow from a repentant heart, which are humility and love. 00:23:29.599 --> 00:23:34.720 They may have wanted to make sure they had all their religious bases covered, so that's why they came out. 00:23:34.960 --> 00:23:42.000 Or maybe they just came out to ridicule what John was doing, or to make plans to bring him down, which some were doing. 00:23:42.240 --> 00:23:47.119 Or maybe they were just curious looky-loos, wanting to see what was happening, what everybody was talking about. 00:23:48.079 --> 00:23:54.960 But for whatever reason they came, the invitation, the opportunity was still there for them to repent. 00:23:56.079 --> 00:24:03.839 Trent Butler compares the salvation that Isaiah offered to Israel to what John was now proclaiming with the very same words. 00:24:04.319 --> 00:24:10.319 He says, people did not have to cross the dry desert between Babylon and Palestine anymore. 00:24:10.559 --> 00:24:21.039 They now had to cross the hard line from self-centered religious pride and piety to humble acceptance of baptism based on confession of their sins. 00:24:21.680 --> 00:24:27.279 Then they would be ready to see the salvation God had prepared in Jesus. 00:24:28.160 --> 00:24:34.319 But here's the thing: we cannot, we will not cross that hard line on our own. 00:24:34.640 --> 00:24:36.720 We will not lay down our pride. 00:24:36.960 --> 00:24:44.319 We won't confess and repent before God unless the Spirit softens our hearts and draws us into the Father's love. 00:24:45.519 --> 00:24:56.400 But through the gospel, through the simple message of God's love demonstrated through Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, miracles can happen. 00:24:57.119 --> 00:25:01.279 And even the most prideful, stubborn hearts can be transformed. 00:25:01.680 --> 00:25:03.440 It happens all the time. 00:25:04.319 --> 00:25:07.039 Many of you have seen it happen in your life. 00:25:08.079 --> 00:25:14.000 Now, many Jews at the time were taking for granted where they stood with God because why? 00:25:14.160 --> 00:25:15.519 Because they were Jews. 00:25:15.839 --> 00:25:18.960 They were the chosen people, they were children of Abraham. 00:25:19.519 --> 00:25:20.640 But what does John do? 00:25:20.799 --> 00:25:28.400 He points to some nearby rocks and bluntly tells the crowd, hey guys, you know, God can make children of Abraham out of these stones, right? 00:25:28.720 --> 00:25:30.319 Y'all realize this. 00:25:30.799 --> 00:25:36.319 Or basically he's saying, your lineage is useless to God if he doesn't have your heart. 00:25:37.440 --> 00:25:48.240 And people have continued to make that mistake, the same mistake across the centuries, up until today, assuming that their connection to godly people will make them godly. 00:25:48.880 --> 00:26:03.119 Whether it's their Jesus-loving grandma or their family joining the church when they were 12, or through just being Americans because God loves America, people are making the same mistakes even today. 00:26:04.319 --> 00:26:10.640 But basically, God cares about two things: hearts and fruit. 00:26:11.279 --> 00:26:14.640 In Matthew 15, 8, Jesus said this about the Pharisees. 00:26:14.880 --> 00:26:18.960 These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 00:26:19.920 --> 00:26:30.240 And God is still sharpening the axe he talks about here in this passage and cutting down any trees that are not attached to the true root, which is Jesus. 00:26:30.720 --> 00:26:33.680 Trent Butler sums up John the Baptist like this. 00:26:38.880 --> 00:26:40.880 God is the fruit inspector. 00:26:41.279 --> 00:26:45.359 Trees with good fruit live, others die and burn. 00:26:46.000 --> 00:26:52.880 So, some in the crowd hear all this, and then ask a really good question in verse 10. 00:26:53.119 --> 00:26:54.880 What then shall we do? 00:26:55.920 --> 00:27:00.720 Now, many of the religious leaders in the crowd were already scheming against John. 00:27:01.279 --> 00:27:04.319 And they would soon scheme to have Jesus killed. 00:27:04.880 --> 00:27:09.039 So they were certainly not asking the wild man prophet, what then shall we do? 00:27:09.200 --> 00:27:10.880 That would have been beneath them. 00:27:11.200 --> 00:27:14.799 No, instead they began asking each other, What should we do? 00:27:14.960 --> 00:27:16.000 How do we stop this guy? 00:27:16.160 --> 00:27:17.599 How do we shut him up? 00:27:18.400 --> 00:27:22.640 But some in the crowd were truly open to the Lord. 00:27:23.599 --> 00:27:26.319 Some in the crowd were deeply troubled. 00:27:26.559 --> 00:27:34.799 And because they saw the disconnect between their desires and actions and what they professed to believe, they asked, What should we do next? 00:27:36.319 --> 00:27:37.680 So they asked John. 00:27:38.240 --> 00:27:39.759 And he answered them. 00:27:40.079 --> 00:27:42.160 Let's look at verses 10 through 14 again. 00:27:42.240 --> 00:27:48.880 He answered them, Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise. 00:27:49.200 --> 00:27:53.759 Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, Teacher, what shall we do? 00:27:54.000 --> 00:27:57.119 And he said to them, Collect no more than you're authorized to do. 00:27:57.279 --> 00:28:00.319 Soldiers also ask him, And we, what shall we do? 00:28:00.559 --> 00:28:08.400 And he said to them, Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages. 00:28:09.039 --> 00:28:11.279 So what does John tell him to do? 00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:21.519 He says, Be content with what God's given you, stop hoarding your stuff, give generously, and stop taking advantage of others. 00:28:22.319 --> 00:28:32.480 So, confronted with the fact that being born children of Abraham wasn't enough to make them right with God, many in the crowd wanted to know what they should do. 00:28:32.880 --> 00:28:37.759 And John turns the spotlight on their hearts instead of their bloodlines. 00:28:38.559 --> 00:28:42.880 And he identifies what will be the true fruit of repentance. 00:28:43.039 --> 00:28:46.720 You will love other people and you'll treat them accordingly. 00:28:47.599 --> 00:28:52.960 You see, repentance at its core is turning away from your alternative hopes. 00:28:54.559 --> 00:29:02.319 It means you stop leaning on your false gods and instead turn to God alone for salvation, for security, for life. 00:29:03.359 --> 00:29:11.839 And it seems that for much of the crowd John is preaching to on this day, their God is their stuff, or having more than enough. 00:29:12.079 --> 00:29:21.519 And they will do whatever it takes to feed that God, including cheating and extorting others, or just ignoring the needs of the people around them. 00:29:22.480 --> 00:29:29.759 So just like the Old Testament prophets, John was calling for justice and mercy as the fruit of repentance. 00:29:30.480 --> 00:29:36.240 And Scripture returns again and again to this heart test for us as God's people. 00:29:37.519 --> 00:29:40.240 Am I content with what God has given me? 00:29:41.279 --> 00:29:45.839 Do I care enough about my neighbors to happily give some of it away? 00:29:46.319 --> 00:29:50.640 And do I trust God enough to obey his commands to give sacrificially? 00:29:51.119 --> 00:29:58.720 Again and again, Old Testament, New Testament, that heart test is given for us as people. 00:29:58.960 --> 00:30:04.400 In short, generosity is a simple way to assess whether we are abiding in Christ. 00:30:05.680 --> 00:30:13.279 His Irish missionary Amy Carmichael said, you can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving. 00:30:14.880 --> 00:30:20.720 Now, to finish up this morning, let's take a closer look at John the Baptist. 00:30:20.880 --> 00:30:25.119 We've seen how he got to his message, we've seen his message. 00:30:25.440 --> 00:30:28.720 Now let's look at him, verses 15 through 17. 00:30:28.880 --> 00:30:46.079 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. 00:30:46.880 --> 00:30:49.920 He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit in fire. 00:30:50.160 --> 00:30:59.440 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. 00:31:02.000 --> 00:31:07.759 So John was out there preaching the word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit. 00:31:08.319 --> 00:31:11.680 He was out there preaching the word in the power of the Spirit. 00:31:11.839 --> 00:31:16.640 So, of course, people were affected in a way that they had never experienced before. 00:31:17.119 --> 00:31:20.720 I know some of you have experienced that maybe at C3 for the first time. 00:31:20.960 --> 00:31:25.119 When the word is preached in the power of the Spirit, God does some amazing things. 00:31:25.359 --> 00:31:32.000 But through John's preaching, people were deeply impacted and returning to the Lord by the hundreds. 00:31:32.880 --> 00:31:35.279 This man and his ministry were different. 00:31:35.519 --> 00:31:37.599 So the whispering begins. 00:31:38.000 --> 00:31:39.039 Could it be? 00:31:39.599 --> 00:31:42.240 Could this be the Messiah we've been waiting for? 00:31:42.480 --> 00:31:44.720 Should we put our hope in this guy? 00:31:45.039 --> 00:31:47.839 And so John begins to hear this speculation. 00:31:48.079 --> 00:31:49.200 It gets back to him. 00:31:49.440 --> 00:31:52.559 And his response reveals much about the man. 00:31:53.039 --> 00:31:54.559 What was he all about? 00:31:55.359 --> 00:31:57.920 What was his goal out there in the wilderness? 00:31:58.079 --> 00:31:59.759 What was his all-consuming passion? 00:31:59.920 --> 00:32:03.599 Well, we see here that it was not to exalt himself. 00:32:04.799 --> 00:32:08.079 It was not to build his own platform or his own following. 00:32:08.240 --> 00:32:11.519 Now, of course, this was surely a temptation for him. 00:32:11.680 --> 00:32:14.240 I mean, let's not make John into something superhuman. 00:32:14.319 --> 00:32:15.599 He was just a man. 00:32:15.920 --> 00:32:17.759 So surely he was tempted. 00:32:18.000 --> 00:32:22.640 All these people coming out to start to build his own following. 00:32:22.880 --> 00:32:27.359 But all that time in the wilderness with the Lord did something to John. 00:32:27.519 --> 00:32:34.640 It gave him a love for the Father, the Son, and the Spirit that ultimately trumped and overshadowed every other desire. 00:32:35.599 --> 00:32:40.079 Even the most human of all desires to elevate himself. 00:32:41.039 --> 00:32:45.359 I mean, this is the same guy who leapt in his mother's womb at the presence of Jesus. 00:32:45.519 --> 00:32:54.000 And later at the sight of Jesus, he would declare, Behold, or everybody look, there's the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. 00:32:54.400 --> 00:33:07.680 And when his guise begin to feel jealous that Jesus was gaining more followers than him, John would say, He must become more, he must increase, I must become less, I must decrease. 00:33:07.839 --> 00:33:12.160 And he gladly sent his disciples to follow Jesus. 00:33:12.960 --> 00:33:24.960 And though he had his doubts, as all of Jesus' followers did at some point, he went to jail and was finally beheaded for not backing off on the word that the Lord had given him to proclaim. 00:33:25.200 --> 00:33:27.839 Repent and prepare the way for the Lord. 00:33:28.799 --> 00:33:33.680 So here in Luke 3, John says some things about the person of Jesus. 00:33:33.839 --> 00:33:37.039 He said the person of Jesus was superior to him. 00:33:38.400 --> 00:33:48.960 And Jewish disciples would voluntarily serve their rabbis as a slave would serve their masters in every way but one. 00:33:49.359 --> 00:33:52.240 They would not untie their teacher's sandals. 00:33:52.720 --> 00:33:54.160 This was a bridge too far. 00:33:54.240 --> 00:33:59.519 It was just too much to ask a good Jew to do, even for their rabbi. 00:34:00.319 --> 00:34:13.119 But John says, not only would it be appropriate to do this for the coming Messiah, he says, I am unworthy of doing this even most degrading task for him. 00:34:14.559 --> 00:34:22.320 So John was doing his best to prepare the people for the transcendent greatness of the Son of God who would soon be on the scene. 00:34:23.119 --> 00:34:26.320 So, the person of Jesus. 00:34:26.559 --> 00:34:29.199 He says, the person of Jesus is greater than I. 00:34:29.440 --> 00:34:35.199 He also says that the Savior's baptism that he was going to offer would be superior to his. 00:34:36.159 --> 00:34:36.800 Why? 00:34:37.519 --> 00:34:42.559 Because Jesus would baptize every believer with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 00:34:42.960 --> 00:34:48.880 John's baptism was just a washing of the body with water, signifying a person's repentance. 00:34:49.039 --> 00:34:50.559 So it was external. 00:34:50.880 --> 00:34:55.679 But Jesus' baptism would be a washing and regeneration of the soul. 00:34:55.840 --> 00:34:57.280 It would be internal. 00:34:58.639 --> 00:34:59.599 What about the fire? 00:34:59.760 --> 00:35:05.840 Well, throughout the Bible, fire represents the Spirit's ongoing work of cleansing and purification. 00:35:06.480 --> 00:35:10.079 And the analogy of the refiner is often used in Scripture. 00:35:10.320 --> 00:35:17.519 Because this is what the Spirit does: refining our hearts like gold is refined to make it pure. 00:35:18.320 --> 00:35:30.000 As Kent Hughes puts it, he melts our hearts, skims away the dross, the impurities, allows us to cool into Christ's likeness, and then turns up the heat again. 00:35:31.199 --> 00:35:40.000 Sanctifying us, changing us from the inside out, making us more like Jesus day by day, year by year. 00:35:40.639 --> 00:35:46.559 Jesus' baptism is internal, it's transformative, and it's ongoing. 00:35:46.639 --> 00:35:50.000 It's an eternal work of the Holy Spirit. 00:35:50.800 --> 00:35:55.840 And lastly, Jesus' judgment is superior to John's. 00:35:56.239 --> 00:36:08.719 Now, he has some more strong talk here for the brood of vipers, but John makes it clear that he is not the one with the authority or the power to judge anyone or to administer justice. 00:36:09.440 --> 00:36:13.039 But Jesus will come in holiness and judgment one day. 00:36:13.440 --> 00:36:17.119 His first appearing was to save the world, not to judge it. 00:36:17.280 --> 00:36:18.559 That was his words. 00:36:18.800 --> 00:36:23.119 But next time he will come as judge to make everything right. 00:36:24.079 --> 00:36:27.280 And who are the wheat and the chaff here in this passage? 00:36:27.360 --> 00:36:29.199 What's the dividing line? 00:36:29.599 --> 00:36:30.880 Well, it's pretty clear. 00:36:31.039 --> 00:36:31.840 It's pretty simple. 00:36:32.000 --> 00:36:39.280 The wheat are those who respond to the call to repentance and to the good news of Jesus with that question: what then shall we do? 00:36:40.079 --> 00:36:46.639 This is those who look to Jesus as their hope and salvation, those who humble themselves before the Messiah. 00:36:46.719 --> 00:36:53.440 And these will be gathered into God's barn and brought into his eternal family to be with him forever. 00:36:54.320 --> 00:36:55.599 What about the chaff? 00:36:56.400 --> 00:37:08.559