), a fortress on the southern extremity of Peraea, 9 miles east of the Dead Sea, and here he was beheaded. Christ's baptism was a step of obedience at the beginning of his public ministry to identify himself with John's message of repentance and the revival movement it had begun. John was an end-times prophet. They are supposed to be our role models and inspiration in life, especially during hard times. This leads us to another question, “Why would John need to be baptized?” Let’s read Matthew 3:13-14, “Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. The baptisms John performed had a specific purpose. Answer: The Bible contains no record of who baptized John the Baptist, nor does it say whether John was baptized at all. Article Images Copyright © 2020 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. 29.). It may be that John's vision of the Messiah varied so much from what he heard and saw in Jesus, that he came to question if Jesus were really the Christ ( Matt 11:1-2 ; Luke 7:18 ). (March, A.D. Can there be any greater joy or fulfillment in this life than to know God's pleasure and reward await us in heaven? John fully accepted his subordinate role to Christ. This, in turn, leads to another question, “Why was Jesus baptized since He was sinless and had no sins to confess?” The answer is both humbling and deserving of our praise. Salome, prompted by her abandoned mother, demanded the head of John the Baptist. "As a preacher, John was eminently practical and discriminating. Obviously, John hit the mark, as Jesus called him the greatest of men. Repentance Definition: What Does It Mean to Repent? I don’t believe so, for baptism was simply (as we have seen) the acknowledgement that we are a sinner and deserving of death and God’s judgment against sin. Jesus' baptism was unique. He goes on to allude to Malachi 4:5, which states that Elijah will return "before that great and dreadful day of the Lord." Such belief is also found in the extra biblical accounts of Sirah 48:10 and 2 Esdras 6:2f. And is this not deserving of our praise, for His suffering and death at Calvary has indeed satisfied all of God holy and righteous claims against sin and thus the believer is perfectly forgiven and righteous in God’s sight. The central theme of his ministry was, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near" ( Matt 3:2 ).He was called "The Baptist" because his practice was to baptize those who responded to the message he proclaimed and sincerely repented of their sins ( Matt 3:1 ; Mark 6:14 ; Luke 7:20 ). Bibliography. All of these characteristics portray John as a fiery prophet proclaiming the apocalyptic message of God. During his lifetime he had a following of disciples who shared common practices such as fasting and prayers ( Matt 9:14 ; John 1:35-37 ; 4:1-2 ). He is also referenced several times throughout the book of Acts. Also there appears to have been an early tradition that John had been raised from the dead ( Mark 6:14-16 ). He taught that judgment is at hand. In this sense he too joined in the popular speculations about the identity of Christ. Also, to what extent did John influence the life and ministry of Jesus? At length he came forth into public life, and great multitudes from "every quarter" were attracted to him. Later John was beheaded through a plot devised by Herodias, the illegal wife of Herod and ex-wife of his brother, Philip. After this no more is recorded of him for thirty years than what is mentioned in Luke 1:80 . Copyright © 2020, Bible Study Tools. In verse 15 Jesus went on to say, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” What did Jesus mean by the words “to fulfill all righteousness?” I believe Jesus was referring to the fact that He had come into this world to (as another has said), “fulfill all the righteous claims of God against man’s sin.” When Jesus went down into the waters of the Jordan River it SYMBOLIZED Him being immersed in the waters of God’s holy judgment on the cross of Calvary for sinners. In the spirit of Elijah, he preached a message of repentance and baptism. His father, Zacharias, was a priest of the course of Abia ( 1 Chronicles 24:10 ), and his mother, Elisabeth, was of the daughters of Aaron ( Luke 1:5 ). He was an ascetic living in the wilderness, clothed in camel hair and subsisting on locusts and wild honey ( Matt 3:4 ; Mark 1:6 ). We have already seen that John was willing to admit, “I need to be baptized by You.” In those words he surely was admitting that he was a sinner that qualified him for baptism. The Bible says in Luke 1:41, when the two expectant mothers met, the baby leaped within Elizabeth's womb as she was filled with the Holy Spirit. The fame of John reached the ears of Jesus in Nazareth ( Matthew 3:5 ), and he came from Galilee to Jordan to be baptized of John, on the special ground that it became him to "fulfil all righteousness" ( 3:15 ). John the Baptist (late 1st century BC – AD 28–36) was a Jewish itinerant preacher in the early 1st century AD. So, when Jesus came to John to be baptized John naturally tried to prevent Him from being baptized for JESUS HAD NO SINS TO CONFESS! And even as he attracted the attention of the crowds, he never lost sight of his mission—to point people to Christ. 28.) In this way Jesus acknowledges the central role that John played in God's plan of salvation. The belief that Elijah would return and prepare the way of the Lord can be traced to Malachi 3:1 and 4:5. Nevertheless Jesus affirmed that Elijah must come first and that he had come in the person of John the Baptist ( Matt 17:11-13 ; Mark 9:12-13 ). Sometimes servants of the Lord commit suicide. also John 1:6-9 ; John 3:27-30 ). In approximately 29 AD, Herod Antipas had John the Baptist arrested and put in prison. And the authenticity of repentance was evidenced in very practical terms: share with those in need, eliminate graft, and prohibit extortion ( Luke 3:11-14 ). John's greatest strength was his focused and faithful commitment to the call of God on his life. In daring disregard of the divine laws, Herod Antipas had taken to himself Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip; and when John reproved him for this, as well as for other sins, ( Luke 3:19 ) Herod cast him into prison. The birth of John preceded by six months that of our Lord. A court festival was kept at Machaerus in honor of the kings birthday. But did he really have to be baptized? What possible sources may have given rise to these traditions? He spent his early years in the mountainous tract of Judah lying between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea ( Matthew 3:1-12 ). The mission of John was the subject of prophecy ( Matthew 3:3 ; Isaiah 40:3 ; Malachi 3:1 ). In Isaiah 40:3 and Malachi 4:5, John's coming was foretold. He was of priestly descent. People could not resist the overpowering truth of his words, as they flocked by the hundreds to hear him and be baptized. Apart from Jesus Christ, John the Baptist is probably the most theologically significant figure in the Gospels. His disciples, having consigned the headless body to the grave, went and told Jesus all that had occurred ( Matthew 14:3-12 ). John was ordained to be a Nazarite from his birth. He didn't just talk about repentance from sin. John was that voice crying in the wilderness preparing the way for the coming Messiah ( Isa 40:3 ; Matt 3:3 ; Mark 1:2-3 ; Luke 3:3-6 ). See ( John 3:23 ; 4:1 ; Acts 19:3 ) We gather also that John instructed his disciples in certain moral and religious duties, as fasting, ( Matthew 9:14 ; Luke 5:33 ) and prayer. Jesus himself came from Galilee to Jordan to be baptized of John. John was to become the God-ordained messenger proclaiming the arrival of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. (March, A.D. His heart was ALREADY PREPARED to receive Christ but by calling on Israel to submit to his “baptism unto repentance” he was seeking to PREPARE THEIR HEARTS. He clearly understood that he had been set apart by God for a purpose. Bible Dictionaries - Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - John the Baptist, Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology, Bible Dictionaries - Easton's Bible Dictionary - John the Baptist, Bible Dictionaries - Smith's Bible Dictionary - John the Baptist, California - Do Not Sell My Personal Information.

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