Repentance Part III

Repentance III

 

 

Repentance Part III

Repentance Part III

The Preaching of John the Baptist

Matthew 3:1-12

King James Version (KJV)

3 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,

² And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

³ For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

⁴ And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

⁵ Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,

⁶ And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

⁷ But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

⁸ Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:

⁹ And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.

¹⁰ And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

¹¹ I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

¹² Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

Definition:  Repent: (Gr. Metanoeo) means a change of mind that results in a change of behavior, lifestyle, or conduct. 

Repentance is not just sorrow.  Repentance is complete change of attitude toward sin and complete reverence toward God and his holy character.  Repentance is accompanied by sorrow for one’s sins along with a change in conduct.   Both Jesus and John the Baptist came preaching: Repent.  (Matthew 3:2, 8; Matthew 4:17*)

Verse 3 John the Baptist quotes from the Prophet Isaiah to Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight, which means:  to straighten up one’s life or to prepare one’s life to have a right relationship with God in order to prepare for the coming King: Jesus. John prepares with the preaching of Repentance, Water Baptism and instruction in righteous living.   Verse 4 speaks of John’s clothing.  Today when we read this verse, we may think, John dressed strangely.  John’s clothing was similar to Elijah’s clothing (2 Kings 1:8) and was the usual dress of the prophets.  Locust was an allowable food according to Leviticus 11:22. 

John the Baptist’s ministry was received well according to Matthew 3:5 “Then went out to him Jerusalem (the people of Jerusalem), and all Judea (all the people of Judea), and all the region round about Jordan (all the people of the region around Jordan), 6) And were baptized of him in Jordan, confession their sins. 8) But when he saw Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

No wonder Jesus emphasized John the Baptist ministry, think about all the people that went out to hear John the Baptist preach the Word and to be baptized by him. People were hungry for God.  Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.  (Greek: chortazo) means complete satisfaction.  Psalms 107:9 “He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.”

Pharisees:  A section or party of the Jews prominent during New Testament times, known for their dedication to religion especially matters concerning ritual purity.

Sadducees: An aristocratic, conservative party of the Jews prominent during New Testament times.  As a distinct party they did not survive the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.

The people confessed their sins and were baptized by John in Jordan (vs. 6)

Confessing/confession:

1. Acknowledgment or disclosure of sin or sinfulness
2. An acknowledgment or declaration, esp of one's faults, misdeeds, crimes or weakness by way of revelation of the preaching of the gospel.
3. To declare or acknowledge (one's sins), to God in order to obtain absolution, pardon, remission.
4. An acknowledgment of sins to God (Lev. 16:21; Ezra 9:5-15; Dan. 9:3-12), and to a neighbour whom we have wronged (James 5:16; Matt. 18:15).

James 5:16 (KJV)

¹⁶ Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Matthew 18:15 (KJV)

¹⁵ Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.

Just as we are to confess our sins to God, we are also to confess our sins to those that we have sinned against.  This is vitally important to the Christian.  And remember, if we do not forgive others, God will not forgive us – Matthew 6: 14-15.

To prepare the way of the Lord, we must confess our sins and repent of them in order to be prepared for the kingdom of heaven which is at hand and preparation of our life to live for God. 

Assignment:

Pray for yourself.  Asking God to show you your sins, then confess them.  Ask God to show you who you need to ask forgiveness.  If that person is now deceased, God himself can forgive you for them. Remember, Jesus shed his blood for the remission of your sins.

Questions:

1. Whether you are a Christian or not, as you are studying this Bible Study, what sins have come to your mind that you need to confess to God?
2. What sins have come to your mind that you need to confess to others?
3. Is there anyone you need to forgive?
4. Is there someone you need to ask them to forgive you?
5. If so, confess your sins today. 

 

Announcement:

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In our next lesson, we’ll continue to study the “preaching of John the Baptist” in Matthew 3:1-12, focusing on verses 7-9.  John's ministry was the preaching of “Repentance".   We’ll also take a look at “bringing forth fruit meet for repentance”. (Jesus also began his ministry by preaching "Repent" for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.)  We'll also take a look at some interesting history in this Study on "Repentance".

 

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