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9. True Repentance

Starting a Journey with Jesus, Day 9  (Matthew 3:7-12)

Brace yourself!  Today’s part of the journey is going to be jolting.

When John saw many religious leaders (Pharisees and Sadducees) were coming to be baptized, he shouted: “Sons of snakes!  Who suggested you should flee the coming wrath? You need to do something that shows you are really changing mind and heart, and don’t think  you can say “Abraham is our father” and that makes everything okay.  Being a child of Abraham is not the point.  God can raise up children of Abraham out of common rocks.  What matters is the tree of your life.  Is it green and producing fruit?  If it’s deadwood, the ax to chop it down is already being swung, and if there’s no fruit of true repentance, down it goes and into the fire!

“I’m baptizing you here in the water, turning your old life in a new direction–for the kingdom.  The one coming after me, the truly great One, who I’m hardly worthy of bowing down to–He will baptize you with God’s Holy Spirit  and fire.  He’s going to make a clean sweep of everything, separating wheat from chaff, and everything empty and false he’ll burn it up with the unquenchable fire.  (Matthew 3:7-12)

John has fierce and tough words for those holding power and influence, who have responsibility for leadership of the community.  (more…)

Continue Reading9. True Repentance

8. John the Prophet

Starting a Journey with Jesus, Day 8  (Matthew 3:1-6)

Our picture of prophets is a little skewed.  Most of us think of prophets more as oracles or fortune-tellers.  The Bible is filled with prophets who boldly proclaim God’s Word to in a timely way to people who need to hear it.  Moses, Elijah, Isaiah and Jeremiah are all great prophets from ancient days who did just that.  Now in our journey we meet another prophet who prepares the way for those who will journey with Jesus.

While Jesus was living in the Galilean hills, John, called “the Baptizer,” was preaching in the desert country of Judea.  His message was simple and austere, like his desert surroundings: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.”

John and his message were authorized by Isaiah’s prophecy:

Thunder in the desert!
  Prepare for God’s arrival!
Make the road smooth and straight!

John dressed in a camel-hair habit tied at the waist by a leather strap.  He lived on a diet of locusts and wild field honey.  People poured out of Jerusalem, Judea, and the Jordanian countryside to hear and see him in action.  There at the Jordan River those who came to confess their sins were baptized into a changed life. (Matthew 3:1-6, MSG)

We have heard about prophetic fulfillment and we have already seen several pretend kings.  Now we hear from a real life prophet. (more…)

Continue Reading8. John the Prophet

7. Back to the Land of Israel

Starting a Journey with Jesus, Day 7 (Matthew 2:19-23)

Today’s journey takes us from Egypt northeast past Judea into Galilee, a distance of about 300 miles (500 kilometers).

When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.  “Get up!” the angel said.  “Take the child and his mother and go back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are themselves dead.”

So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with the child and his mother.  But when he learned that Archelaus was the new king of Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  After being warned in a dream, he left Egypt for the region of Galilee, and the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth.  This fulfilled what the prophets had said:  “He will be called a Nazarene.” (Matthew 2:19-23)

Egypt had a thriving Jewish community in Jesus’ day.  It would not have been difficult for Joseph and his family to find work and live there.  But like Moses many centuries before, Jesus is not (more…)

Continue Reading7. Back to the Land of Israel