Men of the Bible Series: John the Baptist

Men of the Bible Series: John the Baptist (John 1:27-29)

John 1:27-29, “He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose. These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing. The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”

John grew up in a Hebrew home. He was blessed with godly parents who would have instructed him in the Word of God. John was born to be a priest, for both his father, Zacharias, and his mother, Elisabeth, came from an ancient priestly family. In Israel, the priesthood was not an open profession. It was the exclusive preserve of members of a single clan and of a single family within that clan. A man had to be of the family of Aaron of the tribe of Levi in order to be a priest. John met the criterion. John, however, made a decision. Long before he expected to embark on his career as a Hebrew priest, long before he would have performed the ceremonial functions that comprised much of the ministry, John arrived at a decision. John decided that what Israel needed was not another priest after the order of Aaron; what Israel needed was another prophet after the order of Elijah.

John the Baptist was the first cousin of Jesus. No man knew Jesus better. He was to announce to the Hebrew people the imminent coming of Christ. When John began his earthly ministry, his singular message was, “Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). John did not beat around the bush when the people started coming. He painstakingly pointed out their sins. He went, as we would say today, straight for the jugular. His one main word was "Repent!". It rang out like a peal of thunder across the wilderness. The Holy Spirit's great appeal, after all, is not to the intellect or the emotions, but to the conscience and the will. His first word to the sinner is "Repent!" The Spirit of God cannot be fooled for He knows us. He knows what we have done, where we have been, what we have said, and with whom we have been involved. He knows the time, place, circumstance, and consequence of every act. Uninterested in our excuses and explanations, He pounds away at a single word: "Repent!".

John's place in the New Testament is unique. He is the last of the Old Testament prophets and a man completely in touch with God. Jesus said of John in Matthew 11:11, “Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” Now that covers a lot of territory. Noah, Abraham, Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Elisha all join the list of lesser men when Jesus mentions the name John the Baptist. And yet, there is a peculiar note about him. Listen to the words of Jesus' cousin, John the Baptist, who undoubtedly knew Jesus very well in John 1:27, “He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose.” John 1:30, “This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.” John 3:30, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Herod's fear of John the Baptist was a fear of righteous character and a continual reminder of his own unrighteousness. What a man John was! He was willing to face the corrupt, immoral and powerful Herod in his palace, denounce him publicly for his immorality, endure the rage of Herodias, and face the ax. Above all, John was willing to fade into the background when the Christ appeared, as the moon fades before the rising sun. John the Baptist was beheaded because of what he knew Jesus to be. Men will not die for that in which they do not believe. Scrutinizing the impeccable character of Jesus brought John the Baptist to a willingness to die a martyr's death for Him. He was beheaded in prison for the sake of the Gospel.

America's bookstores are filled with self-help books promising great achievement through personal power. They counsel us to reach deep inside ourselves, however, the key essential to powerful personality is godly character, and godly character comes by God's presence within. John the Baptist was such a man. In his devotional book, My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers writes, "The final stage in the life of faith is character. We have to learn to maintain character up to the last notch revealed in the vision of Jesus Christ." Only by doing so will we impact our world for Christ.

John's great burden was to awaken the conscience of the people so that when Christ came knocking at the doors of their hearts, they would be open to Him and let Him in. Our age is the age of grace. Christ has come, and the great division of the human race into those who have accepted Him and those who are rejecting Him is under way. There is still time and opportunity to accept Christ and escape God's wrath.

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