The Gospel of LUKE
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene—
during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.
He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth.
And all people will see God’s salvation.’”
John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham.
The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
“What should we do then?” the crowd asked.
John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”
Even tax collectors came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?”
“Don’t collect any more than you are required to,” he told them.
Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely—be content with your pay.”
The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah.
John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
And with many other words John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them.
But when John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of his marriage to Herodias, his brother’s wife, and all the other evil things he had done,
Herod added this to them all: He locked John up in prison.
When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened
and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli,
the son of. Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melki, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,
the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai,
the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josek, the son of Joda,
the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri,
the son of Melki, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,
the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi,
the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim,
the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David,
the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon,
the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,
the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,
the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah,
the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,
the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Kenan,
the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US!!
Content source: New International Version (NIV) of the Holy Bible
Image source: Our media Team
This addresses the major problems we've got in the world today,
We need to keep spreading the word of God for people to realize that:
John the Baptist had the honor of Baptizing Jesus, I imagine that day was glorious for the prophet John. listening to the audible voice of God Saying "this is my son in whom I have complacency"
Hallelujah.
As we know John was the one who prepared the way of the Lord, and had the privilege of baptizing him so that one of the prophecies would be fulfilled.
The rapprochement of the kingdom of God, which confronts people with an inescapable decision, explains the urgency of John's message of repentance, Jesus proclaimed the same message, Isaiah's prophecy compares John to a royal herald who commands to repair the roads as Preparatory for the arrival of the King.
The description of John's vestments relates him to Elijah, and he begins his ministry using the term repentance, this term here means an internal penalty that gives rise to a "turn" in life, the expression of "turn" on the part of the people, the publicans and the soldiers, have concrete and practical implications, each of the three groups is told to change their previous behavior within their sphere of activity.
In response to the people's questions, John insisted that repentance was not an abstract theological term or a matter of form or ceremony, quite the opposite, it was a radical change in a self-centered, ambitious, dishonest and unhappy existence. , towards the practice of new moral and ethical relationships with others. The prophetic ministry of John encouraged the messianic hopes of the people.
The baptism of John is a type of experience...
Why was Christ tempted? To show that you and I have a Savior in whom there is no sin or impurity and who, therefore, can save sinners. He showed that he had all the power, therefore, there is a Man in heaven, a Savior who understands us and can feel sorry for us.
A very nice lesson learnt here. Jesus was baptized to affirmed the law of baptism of christians and also to be fully prepared for the ministry of God. This gives clear indications that to be fully equipped by the Holy Spirit in ministration of God's work you need to be baptized.
John the baptist spoke the truth in the midst of high oppression in the former of Herod but he never gave in till his demise. We shouldn't be afraid of those who can kill the body but can't kill the spirit but we should be afraid of God and do his bidding due to the fact that He is the only person that can kill both the body and the soul
We need preachers like John the Baptist who will look to the face of political leaders and rebuke in line with God's word. John the Baptist was an epitome of courage, focus and purpose. He knew his role in God's kingdom agenda and he did stick to it. HE never tried to assume the role of Christ Jesus..
From this chapter, I see Jesus' launch into ministry at age of 30 as a great challenge to the youths of today. Indeed, the youthful strength should be sunk into the Lord's service to while the cares of marriage, career, family yet not set in.
God help us - Amen
Thank you @reliquary for sharing.
John had the revelation of the holy spirit, and he spoke the truth to them ... so much so, that they came to think that he was the Messiah, but He clarified that there is someone older! the true Messiah! He had the great privilege of baptizing Jesus Christ and seeing closely how the Holy Spirit rested upon Him.
John indeed answered the call of God for his life written long before he was born, disciples of Jesus also answered the call of their purpose, Paul the apostle was sent to the gentiles Acts 13, Peter was to build the church of God, James sent to the twelve tribes of Israel that are scattered abroad. Today many Christians do not know their purpose, many leave their God given assignment for roles different from their callings. It should be our daily pray to understand the calling of God in our lives and function in line with our ordained calling for by this we won't struggle carrying out our divine assignment.
There are too many lessons to pick from here, but i'll choose one.
Jesus lived for 33½ years, his ministry lasted for 3½ years only and he had so much impact. He kept preparing for a ministry of 3½ years for 30 years.
The place of preparation to do anything cannot be overemphasized. If Jesus could prepare that much, we have to do same too so as to avoid poor results.
Peace