Baptism Then...

“I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be his slave and carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. [Matthew 3.1]

Sometimes I wonder if we have genuinely become followers of Jesus or just of John the Baptist!

John's "preparing the way" is all very interesting. Were the people baptized by John saved? This must have all been very intriguing in the day it occurred too! How did they get from offering sacrifices for their sins to repenting and being baptized? Was John just going through the motions (so to speak) to show what was coming?

It would seem the idea of a coming Messiah was not a secret. There was indeed an expectancy that God's people would have a King. I suppose it would be safe to say they expected the coming King to alter their religious practices as well as their political status.

But what did baptism have to do with this?

John's message was simple enough:

“Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” [Matthew 3.2]

When John preached the people confessed their sins (not unusual up to this point). But then, after confessing their sins, John is said to have baptized them.

In Luke's account of this, the people are on record of asking for direction in conjunction with their baptism:

The crowds asked, “What should we do?” [Luke 3.10]

They were very accustomed to "doing" something in conjunction with their repentance as part of the Law. But John's instructions then veered from what the people would normally have expected. Instead of making offerings to God, John instructed the people to 'make offerings' to people! See John's answer to the question posed in Luke 3.10 above:

John replied, “If you have two shirts, give one to the poor. If you have food, share it with those who are hungry.” [Luke 3.11]

Therein is seen a real problem with the Law and its required sacrifices. It only fulfilled half the Law (the God half)!

Jesus later would strongly confirm John's message in an explanation to His disciples:

“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’ “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ [Matthew 25.31-40]

So, how do we know whether we have only 'repented and been baptized' or, 'repented, been baptized with water, and been baptized with the Holy Spirit and fire'?

There IS a difference - John said there would be.

Father, help us to get real in our devotion to You and Your Word. Help us to tune out our religious dispositions and tune in to Your Word. Help us to ask the question, "What should we do?" and see how our response to You is seen in our response to people! And, help us be real in our salvation -  our baptism in water, and especially in our baptism in Your Holy Spirit and fire!