Matthew 3:1-12
Points:
1. The herald preaches the message he is given. He
doesn't have to be create the message.
2. The wilderness is a place that has been abandoned
by people. In John's case it was both a physical place where the Essenes had
fled from the corruption in the city and at the temple. The theological place
or the wilderness was John's message of repentance and of the kingdom of
heaven.
3. Two key components of John's message were picked
up by Jesus in his first messages and handed to the disciples. These two words
are the essence of Christianity:
a.
Repent - change your mind from evil to God's truth
b.
4. The voice belonged to the herald who had the
message. The message is the focus. Not the voice or the messenger.
5. Confession of sin is basic to fellowship with God
and with his kingdom (Psalm 32:1-5; Daniel 9:4, 20)
6. Repenting (changing of the mind) will
"produce" works that are in line with that change. Repentance comes
first, deeds are produced second.
3:1
Isaiah 40:3
Luke uses same verse but
quotes more
Mark adds words from Malachi
3:1
John came predicting doom
from the hand of God
"in those days" =
"in those crucial days", "in that critical time"
"Preaching" is the
Greek work "kerusso" which means "to proclaim, to make known by
a hearld". The emphasis would be on the message not the man or messenger.
It is not important who brought the message. What was important was:
a. The message
b. Who sent the message
·
"wilderness"
of Judea includes a sandy dessert, but also remote places with steep hills,
rocks, and includes the
Herod Antipas controlled
Perea just to the east of the
3:2
We see in this verse the key
focus of the Christian message:
1.
Repent
2.
·
"Repent"
is the first word.
·
Mark and Luke
record "preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
·
This was Jesus'
first word. (Matthew 4:17)
·
The disciples
were sent out to call people to repent (Mark 6;12)
·
Matthew uses
"repent" in the imperative with no theology attached to it.
·
"Repent"
("metanoeo") means "to change one's thinking, to change one's
mind, to turn around"
·
The Greek use of
the word "repent" means to change one's mind, but it could be from
good to bad opinion or from bad to good. It is not an ethical change but it
simply speaks of the mind or opinion. The Greek writings do not make the word
"repent" (metanoeo) an ethical one.
The reason John tells them
to repent is "the kingdom of heaven is coming.
3:3
John's message was a pattern
from Isaiah 40:3
"Voice" is the first word in the verse. It
is emphatic. Again, the focus is on the message.
"Wilderness" is not in the city where sin
and the world system dominates
"Prepare" means to get it ready
"Way" is the Greek word "hodos"
and means a road, a highway.
3:4-5
Camel's hair was coarse and
cheap
Leather belt was not a
designer belt but dried animal skin
John's dress and simple life
resembled Elijah
Locust was eaten by poor.
Wild honey would be what was available and not the refined honey in the city.
John's father, Zechariah,
was a priest. John, then, was also a priest.
Many priest had left to live outside the city and
appeared to have settle at
3:6
Baptism means "dip,
plunge"; As a passive verb it means "to drown".
3:7
Pharisees were the seperated
ones dedicated to the law
Saducees originally were the descendents of Zadok,
the high priest of David's day. The term Zadokites is the source of the word
Saducee