.The Prophet John: Repentance (Lk. 3:1-14)
We have looked at the early years of John and Jesus. Today we are moving ahead a number of years. Luke chapter 3.
Jesus and John are now about twenty-nine or thirty years old. Something like that.
And the time has come. Tiberius became the Caesar over the Roman empire the same year that John began preaching in the wilderness. (Lk. 3:1) So we know it is about 27 or 28 A.D.
Dark Days for the Jews [0:56]
And it was not going well for the Jews. Judah, Galilee and Perea were not even ruled by Jews. Antipas ruled over Galilee and Perea. Antipas was half Edomite and half Samaritan.
Edomites and Samaritans were enemies with the Jews. And Judea was being ruled by a Roman, Pontius Pilate. Jews are not running the kingdom.
And religiously, even the high priesthood was not what it should be. Luke says the high priest was Annas and Caiaphas. (LK. 3:2) Caiaphas was Annas’ son-in-law. And Caiaphas had been appointed by the Romans! So the Jews continued to recognize Annas. And the Romans recognized Caiaphas. What a mess! Several men became high priests by paying bribes. And some, like Caiaphas were appointed by a foreign government.
And even more than that, these were wicked men. Antipas, or Herod the Tetrarch, would would have John beheaded. The high priests Annas and Caiaphas would take part in Jesus’ trial. And the trials and persecutions of the apostles in Acts. And Pontius Pilate would have Jesus crucified.
No, things were not going well for the Jews. After their return from Babylon they were expecting a kingdom to be ruled by a Jew. A descendent of David. It has been close to 600 years! And this is where they are. This is their situation. They were being ruled by men such as these. And even more, there had not been a prophet in more than 400 years!
Elijah Comes [3:32]
And now the time has come for Elijah to set the ground work for the kingdom promised by the prophets. Not really Elijah the prophet, but a prophet like Elijah: John the Baptist.
Where to begin? What will John do? In the Old Testament Elijah gathered 400 false prophets together and had them killed. Will John gather the rulers and high priests together and have them killed? Will he kill the rulers so Jesus can sit on the throne? Will he kill the high priests so that Jesus can take their place?
No, it will not happen in that way. It will not happen like that because Jesus’ kingdom is not a political kingdom. It is a spiritual kingdom. Neither John nor Jesus put rulers and high priests to death. The rulers and high priests put John and Jesus to death. John by the sword and Jesus by the cross.
And so John begins. Not with an army. Not with a sword. But with preaching. Powerful, powerful preaching. The kind of preaching that draws some men into the kingdom. And drives others away.
John begins preaching in the wilderness. The desert. Not in the temple. Not in Jerusalem. In the wilderness. It has been 400 years since the last prophet. And so people were eager to go out into the desert and listen to John.
I like the way Mark begins his Gospel. The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah is the preaching of John in the wilderness. The beginning. Same word used in Genesis 1:2. In the beginning God created. Same word in John’s Gospel: In the beginning was the word.
This is a new beginning. A new creative act of God. A new creation.
How does this new beginning start? It starts with the spoken word of God. Just like the creation story in Genesis.
It starts with the preaching of John. The preaching of John is the new beginning for mankind. It does not begin with the ministry of Jesus. It begins with the preaching of John.
Is that important for us? It is more important than you may know. We will get back to that.
And oh how the preaching of John has grown! Jesus told a parable about how a very small mustard seed grows into such a large tree. John’s preaching is a mustard seed. A tiny mustard seed. And see how it has grown! today.
John’s Repentance [7:36]
And what did John preach? What was John’s message? John did not preach about the foreign rulers. He did not preach about making Jesus the king.
He did not preach about the corrupt priesthood in Jerusalem. He did not try to make Jesus the high priest in Jerusalem. And don’t forget that John’s father was a priest. Which means John was a priest. A prophet and a priest!
Well, John preached to the people about their sins. That is what prophets do. John preached repentance and baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
First, let’s talk about about the Repentance.
First, let’s talk about the repentance. In all of his preaching in this chapter, John’s concern is about selfishness. The people are asking John what they should do. What do we do? How do we escape this judgment you are telling us about? When people start asking what they need to do, you know they are listening. You know they are concerned. The prophet is making progress.
First they needed to repent. John’s big concern seems to be the sin of selfishness. If you have two shirts share one with someone who needs it. If you have food, share it with someone who needs it. Tax collectors should not make themselves wealthy by charging extra taxes from people. Soldiers should not take money from people. (Lk. 3:11-14)
What is this repentance? I have a very vivid memory of a preacher when I was about eleven years old. Maybe twelve. Preaching in Antioch, TN., where we went to church.
The preacher walked across the auditorium. As he was walking from the right side to the left side, he said repentance means I am walking this way, but now I turn and walk this way. So he changed directions. I have heard that illustration a lot in my life. I have watched a lot of preachers walk a lot of miles illustrating repentance.
Two different words in the Bible. To turn away (apostrepho) and to turn to (epistrepho).
I am walking in this direction, but I turn away from this direction and I turn to this direction.
Turn away from the worship of idols and turn to the worship of God. To turn away from stealing money and turn to working for money. Turn away from being selfish and turn to being generous. Turn away from darkness and turn to the light. Turn away from Satan and turn to God. You get the idea.
It is not a bad illustration. It is a good illustration. But it is incomplete. But it leaves something out. There is a third word for repentance and it is the word John uses in his preaching. He is preaching repentance (metanoia). Literally, the word means “after mind,” or “after thought.” To have a change of mind, a change of thought. A change of heart.
It is not enough to just change directions. There must be the kind of repentance that John demands. A person can change directions without having a change of heart. Like: “OK. I will stop stealing if I have to and get a job. But I am not happy about it! This is ridiculous!”
John demands a change of heart. Not just a change of direction or a change of action.
Great Commission [13:51]
And Jesus talked about repentance in the Great Commission! You ask people what is in the Great Commission and they will say teach all nations, make disciples of all nations, baptized all nations. And that is true. That is what it says in Matthew.
Many people don’t know that the Great Commission is also found at the end of the the Gospel of Luke. (Lk. 24:46-49) Jesus commanded his disciples to begin in Jerusalem and preach repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The word is metanoia. It is about change of heart. It is more than turning from sinful acts. It is more than turning to virtuous living. It is about the heart. It is about a change of mind.
That is why Peter commanded the Jews on the day of Pentecost to repent. Because it was in the Great Commission. And guess what the word is. It is our word. It is metanoia. It is a change of heart or mind.
John preached it. Jesus commanded it in the Great Commission. Peter preached it to the Jews on Pentecost. (Acts 2;38) And Paul told the Gentiles in Athens that God commands everyone to repent. (Acts 17:30) From John. To Jesus. To the Apostles. To the church today.
This is very interesting. In the Soviet era, in Eastern Europe, evangelical Christians were called “repenters.” At he same time, in the Western world, evangelical Christians were called “believers.” In Eastern Europe it was preached that people must repent. In the western world it was preached that people must simply believe in Jesus. What a difference.
Of course we know that salvation requires both belief and repentance. And it also requires a confession of our faith and baptism. All these things go together. But many evangelicals teach people to just believe. They tell people there is nothing they can do to be saved.
Baptism [17:55]
And now, let’s talk about the baptism.
Luke says that some people came to be baptized by John and he refused! He would not baptize them until they repented. Not until they changed their lives. And their sins were forgiven when they were baptized. Immersed.
I know that today the Christian world calls a lot of things baptism. Sprinkling water on the head. Pouring water on the head. As long as it involves water in some way, many call it baptism. But the Greek word only meant immersion. Fully dipping in water. Like a ship sinking in the ocean.
And, John’s baptism was for the forgiveness of sins. That is what it says. And that is what it means. Immersion for the forgiveness of sins.
Luke-Acts Parallels in Preaching [19:23]
Do you see the parallels between the beginning of Luke and the beginning of Acts?
Do you see the parallels between the preaching of John and the preaching of Peter?
· We have John’s preaching.
· John was filled with the Holy Spirit.
· We have the people asking what they need to do.
· We have John telling them to repent—have a change of heart—metanoia.
· And we have them being baptized for the forgiveness of sins.
It sounds to me a lot like the beginning of the preaching of the apostles. Sounds like Acts.
Luke wrote both Luke and Acts, and there are a lot of parallels.
In Acts chapter two.
· We have Peter’s preaching about Jesus. (Acts 2:29-36)
· The Holy Spirit was upon him.
· We have people asking, “What shall we do?” (Acts 2:37)
· We have Peter telling them to repent—have a change of heart—metanoia. (Acts 2:38)
· And, we have them being baptized for the forgiveness of sins. (Acts 2:38)
Very strong parallels.
Preaching Today [21:03]
I said in the beginning of today’s episode that John’s preaching may be more important than you know. Do you see why?
John preached repentance—change of heart. Not just change of actions.
Jesus commanded his apostles to preach what John preached.
The apostle preached what John repentance.
Peter to the Jews and Paul to the Gentiles.
But that is not what is preached today. Today it is all about God’s grace. God’s grace. God’s grace. God’s grace. God is good. God is kind.
But in Romans Paul said that the goodness of God leads men to repentance. (Rom. 2:4)
The word is metanoia. A change of heart.
The preaching of John. The beginning of the good news.
A new beginning for the mankind. The fruits of repentance. A change of heart.
Rick Walker
Vinogradar church of Christ
The Vinekeeper congregation
Kyiv, Ukraine
