Anchor My Faith

John and His Words of Conviction

Scripture: Matthew 3:4-6

In our previous lesson we looked at how John the Baptist fulfilled prophecy by being the voice of one crying out in the wilderness. His ministry was to prepare the people to hear and receive Jesus when he arrived on the scene. He was to encourage the proud to humble themselves and to lift up the humble and the lowly of heart. In this lesson we will look at what John wore and ate and the effect he had on the people who came to hear him.

“Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey” (Matthew 3:4 ESV). Looking back to 2 Kings 1:8, we find that Elijah wore a garment of hair, with a belt of leather about his waist and so this description of John would evoke images of prophecies about Elijah, who was to return to prepare the way for God’s wrathful appearance (Malachi 3:1; 4:5-6). The clothing that John wore was common dress for nomadic desert dwellers and thus placed him in a class of poor people. For people living in desert places, John’s diet was not unusual. The locust living in the desert was a large grasshopper that is still eaten by poorer people in the Middle East and Africa. For us living in the west, this is a very strange diet. This different diet was something I had to adjust to when I served Him in Asia. There I ate things I wouldn’t think of eating here.

John being a poor person, emerging from the wilderness area, had things to say and apparently in a way that drew people. He didn’t go to where the people were; they came to him: “Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him” (Matthew 3:5 ESV). John’s message that the kingdom of God was near, drew people from the cities and towns out into the wilderness to hear what he had to say. The message was strong and convicting “and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins” (Matthew 3:6 ESV).

At that time John baptized the people by immersing them into the water of the Jordan river. By going under the water and then coming back out, two things were symbolized: the going under the water symbolized the washing away of sin and the coming out of the water symbolized passing safely through the waters of judgment and death. Over time, some groups of people have questioned the need to submerse and simply pour or sprinkle. For me, submersion is more meaningful.

The response to the message resulted in two things happening: baptism and confession. I find the order interesting; which is really first? I believe conviction was first and then the desire to be baptized to publicly display and confess their sin. The baptism and confession were not separate acts, but a combined act of doing and saying. When I was baptized, I entered the water and gave a public witness of my faith and then was baptized. I entered the water, spoke, was submerged, and returned from the water.

Prayer

Father, John spoke words that cut deep and the people responded with baptism and confession. That is a very rare occurrence today, especially here in the west. There are so many believers today that haven’t made a public confession through being baptized. I wonder if there is any connection with putting off being baptized and sharing their faith. Father, one thing that is clearly lacking today is preaching that cuts deep into our worldly lifestyle. But I guess attendance is more important to some than conviction and holy living.