Jesus and His Forerunner

Jesus and His Forerunner

(No. 2818)

A SERMON INTENDED FOR READING ON LORD'S-DAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1903.

DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,

AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON, ON LORD'S-DAY EVENING, JUNE
24, 1877.

"Therefore they sought again to take Him: but He escaped out of their
hands, and went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John at
first baptized, and there He abode. And many resorted unto Him and
said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spoke of this Man
were true. And many believed on Him there." John 10:39-42.

THE unbelieving and infuriated Jews again and again took up stones to
cast at our Lord and here they sought to take Him prisoner, but He
escaped from them, apparently with the greatest possible ease. He did
this on several occasions. When the men of Nazareth would have cast Him
down, headlong, from the brow of the hill whereon their city was built,
He passed through the midst of them and went His way. He made His
escape, over and over again, in the same wonderful manner, thus proving
that He was not in the power of any man. He need not, therefore, at the
last, have died unless His death had been in accordance with His own
will. He might have appealed to His Father and He would have given Him
legions of angels for His deliverance. Or He might, as Elijah did, have
called for fire from Heaven to destroy those who sought to arrest Him.
His Divine power would never have been at any loss in providing means
for His own protection. He might, readily enough, have slain those who
came to take Him in the garden–and He might even have come down from
the Cross, if He had pleased thus to prove what power He possessed.

Yet He did not so act, but voluntarily laid down His life, according to
His own words, "I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man
takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it
down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I
received of My Father." Let us, then, bless and praise Him for that
wondrous, voluntary, substitutionary death upon the tree! It was for
our sins that He suffered. There was no reason for His death except
that which was found in our dire necessities and in His own great heart
of love. Whenever we think of the sufferings of Christ upon the Cross,
let us remember how spontaneous was the Sacrifice by which He redeemed
us from sin, death and Hell. Blessed, forever blessed, be the name of
this willing Friend of guilty men! And let us, in similar fashion,
always be ready to serve Him. Let the willingness of Christ bring forth
willingness in us–let us not be as bullocks unaccustomed to the yoke,
but cheerfully let us take His yoke upon us and learn of Him. May the
Lord grant us Grace, not merely to be willing, but even to be eager for
His service, as He was eager to serve us, for He could truly say, "I
have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it is
accomplished!"

Another thought is suggested by our Lord's action. When He was driven
from one place by the unbelief and malice of His adversaries, He did
not, therefore, retire altogether from His service. If He could not
speak to the people in the streets of Jerusalem, He would find a place
of audience in the desert beyond the Jordan, but, somewhere or other,
He would be seeking the welfare of men. He went about doing good. They
could not stop His mouth, whatever they might do. When they, again and
again, in one place, took up stones to stone Him, He saw that His
testimony would be useless to them, for it had already only increased
their condemnation, so He went off to another place, away from those
furious persecutors, that others might listen to the message of mercy
which they had despised and rejected. Jesus was always working, always
teaching, always blessing and, to this day, He is still diligent in His
service on behalf of the sons of men. From the highest Throne of Glory
He scatters down mercies and favors with both hands, by day and by
night, upon us,

His unworthy creatures! As He continues thus to serve us, let us
continue to serve Him. And if He is unwearied, let us be unwearied,
too. If we can do little or nothing for Him in one place, let us find
another spot where we can serve Him, but never let us lay down our
charge till we also lay down our lives–never let us case to work until
we cease to live! May this mind be in us which was also in Christ Jesus
our Lord!

I. Now to come more closely to the subject of this evening's
meditation, the first thing that I see in the text is A FRUITFUL PLACE
OF MINISTRY–"Beyond the Jordan." Our Savior preached in the place
where John at first baptized, "and many believed on Him there."

It is not every place that is fruitful, for there are some portions of
the field, which is the world, that are like the wayside, where the
birds of the air come and take away the seed as soon as it is sown.
There are other parts where the soil is very shallow–and there the
seed springs up only to perish in the heat of the sun. Our Savior had
been in many places where He was unsuccessful as a preacher, where He
was absolutely rejected of men and His message altogether despised. For
when He spoke the Truth of God, they even called it blasphemy and took
up stones that they might stone Him as one unfit to live! Christian
ministers may have to work in such places, yet they are always glad
when they get on the soil that yields a hundred-fold. They are
delighted if their Master bids them cast the net where there are great
shoals of fish. Our Savior was evidently in such a spot when He was
preaching "beyond the Jordan."

Notice about this place, first, that it was a place of retreat from
persecution. I do not think that we should ever look upon the most
violent opposition to the Gospel as anything to be altogether lamented,
for, even in this instance, it is just after the Jews have said that
Christ blasphemed and have sought to stone or to seize Him, that He is
most successful in His preaching! You may regard it as a very safe rule
that when the devil roars, it is because he has been hit pretty hard
and that whenever there is the most rage against the Gospel, it is one
evidence of the Gospel's growing power! To go and preach in a town, or
village, or hamlet and to be scarcely noticed–to deliver your
testimony for Christ and yet to produce no visible effect of any
kind–is horrible. But if all the hosts of Hell are stirred up against
you and men even begin to act despitefully to the preacher, you may
take courage and rest assured that something is being done! Depend upon
it, there would not be all that stir and uproar unless the Lord's power
had gone with His Word to the hearts and consciences of men. We are not
to cease our preaching because of opposition, but we are then to be
more earnest and zealous than ever–possibly, in another place, as it
was in our Lord's case–but still, our testimony for our Lord is to be
given somewhere! After the thunderstorm will often be the very best
time for sowing the good seed of the Kingdom. It was so in our Savior's
experience for He had, there, a most fruitful season after He had met
with the most violent and bitter opposition.

If I am addressing any servant of God who has been passing through a
season of fierce persecution, let him be encouraged! Brother, when the
night is over, the day will be all the brighter because of the
blackness that preceded it. So, be hopeful that after the wearing and
wearying time of opposition that you have had, you will come into
smoother waters and that God will bless you yet more abundantly.

Perhaps another reason why that place was so fruitful was because it
was a retired spot It was "beyond the Jordan." It was away from the
noise and strife of Jerusalem. Those who were there had evidently
traveled a considerable distance with the desire to hear the Savior. In
the streets of Jerusalem, Jesus preached to many who did not want to
hear. And we must do the same, for we are to preach the Gospel to every
creature. But I think we have the best hope of doing good when people
take trouble to come to hear us–when they journey for miles to the
place of preaching–when they are removed from their ordinary
associations and feel that they can, in quiet, listen to the Word.
Chrysostom once preached a sermon upon the last verse of my text,
dwelling especially upon the word, "there"–"many believed on Him
there'" Very singularly he accounts for the larger numbers of women who
are converted, beyond the number of men, from the fact that women are
more at home than men are, and have more quiet times for reflection and
consideration upon the Word. I lay no stress upon that thought, but it
has occurred to me, also, and when I met with it in Chrysostom, I
thought that there might be some force about it, for we do need quiet
times in which we can think of Divine things.

Some of you men are busy all day long–up early in the morning and then
right on till late at night. You are hacking and soaring away about
your worldly business and you do not get time to sit down and calmly
calculate this problem, "What shall it profit a man if he shall gain
the whole world, and lose his own soul?" Let me persuade you to
sometimes go into the desert and rest a while. Surely, Heaven is worth
a little thought if it is to be gained! It must be worth-

while to secure the necessary time for thought about how we are to
escape from Hell and to be delivered from sin. I think that if
you–especially on Sabbath afternoons, between the morning and evening
services–I mean, you unconverted people–would set apart an hour or
even half an hour to really look into your case, to come to close
dealings with yourselves and your God, we would preach in the evening
with very great hope of blessing because such hearers would have come
to us prepared and anxious to learn the way of salvation. Do you not
know that when you go to a place of worship you will generally catch
what you fish for? Some of you come because the preacher is thought to
be eccentric–you will, possibly, hear something which will confirm you
in that idea. But, if you come because you want to hear of Jesus Christ
and to find salvation, you will get what you come for! It is the will
of the Lord that those who seek shall find. I think there is something
very suggestive in the fact that this fruitful place was a quiet spot
away from the crowds and bustle of Jerusalem.

And, again, one reason why our Lord was so successful on this occasion
when many believed on Him was, no doubt, that He had a large
congregation. I t is first said that "many resorted unto Him." And then
that "many believed on Him." It is a self-evident fact that you cannot
have many converts if you do not have many hearers. Hence, we delight
to see the House of Prayer crowded. We are glad that when we cast the
net we cast it among multitudes of fish. If a man can preach the Gospel
to half a dozen people, he ought to do it with all his might–and if
God should give him the souls of that half dozen hearers, it will be an
abundant reward for him. But if there are any means by which half a
dozen thou-sandsof people can be brought to hear the Word, we may hope
that the converts will be multiplied in equal proportion if God the
Holy Spirit is pleased to bless the Word! At any rate, the greater the
number of the preacher's hearers, the greater is the likelihood of
blessing to a large number of people. This puts an end, I think, to the
foolish talk about the finest thought of the age being always delivered
to an elite company of very few special individuals. If you preach with
great thoughtfulness, especially after the style of the modern school
of thought, you cannot expect that the multitude will come to hear you.
Very well, then, let us not preach in that way, for, "the greatest good
to the greatest number" should be the motto of every man who loves his
race and desires its highest well-being. Let us endeavor to so adapt
our style, if we are preachers of the Word, that the multitude will be
willing to hear and will be able to understand–for then we may hope
that with the blessing of God, many will be converted.

But, once more, our Lord had met with a fruitful place because it was a
place of fragrant memories. For what was that spot, "beyond the
Jordan," already noted? It was "the place where John at first
baptized"–where, in fact, Jesus Himself had been baptized by John! We
believe not in the sacredness of places, but, still, where a good man
has labored for the Master, there often lingers a holy fragrance which
is a means of blessing to others. Many of those people had probably
heard John's testimony of his Lord. And the trees by the river's edge,
and the flowing stream would always remind them of the Baptist, who
there urged them to repent of their sins. Now the good man is dead and
buried, but the soil which he had plowed is the better prepared for the
Master's seed-sowing. And the Master knows that He will have all the
greater harvest in that place because John has been there before Him. O
my Brothers and Sisters, it will be a grand thing for us to have so
lived that when we are dead and gone, those who come after us will have
all the easier task because of our service for the Savior! You Sunday
school teachers are often like John the Baptist–you get the youthful
minds ready for the preacher's instruction and you who have, perhaps,
been preaching for years without success, may, nevertheless, be John
the Baptists to others who will come after you and who may be the means
of blessing to those for whom you think you have labored in vain. When
I go to some places to preach, I feel that I am sowing upon stony
ground, but if the preacher before me has wept over his hearers, and
pleaded with them, and prayed for them, I find that they are as ready
to drink in the Word as the thirsty soil drinks in the rain when the
blessed clouds end the long and terrible drought!

II. Now, secondly, in our text you will see A TESTIMONY TO A DEPARTED
MINISTER.

The people said, as they stood where John had preached and baptized,
"John did no miracle: but all things that John spoke of this Man were
true." Oh, how I hope that you will be able to say this of me when I
have gone the way of all flesh! "He did no miracle: but all that he
said concerning Christ was true." There are some preachers of whom
people will say, when they are gone, "They were not very eloquent. They
were not very learned. They were not very refined and they could not do
any miracles, but"–oh, that blessed "but"!–"but all things that they
spoke concerning Christ were

true."

Notice the character which the people gave to John, three years, or
thereabouts, after he was dead. He was still remembered by them and
they bore most satisfactory testimony concerning him. First, they
testified that he spoke concerning Christ It was John's business–it
was allhis business here below, to speak concerning Jesus Christ, and
he did it so thoroughly that this was the one thing that his hearers
recalled after he was gone. He rebuked the Pharisees and Saddu-cees,
but his main work was to testify concerning Him who was to come after
him, whose shoe laces he felt that he was not worthy to unloose. Ah,
Brothers, there is no ministry that will stand the testing on a
sick-bed, or on our death-bed, except that which has been full of
testimony to Christ! When there has been a great deal of philosophy and
only a homoeopathic dose of Christ in the preaching–just enough of the
latter to give it the name of Christian teaching–may God have mercy
upon both preacher and hearer! But to preach Christ first, Christ last,
Christ midst, Christ always–this is what John the Baptist did and this
is what all preachers should do. An American gentleman who was here
many years ago, came again about 14 or 15 years afterwards and he said
to me as he went out, "I see you are still on the old tack." "Yes," I
replied, "I intend to be like Casablanca on the burning ship, where his
father had told him to stand–and where he meant to remain as long as
life should last."

I will preach new doctrine when I find it in the Bible–till then, I
will keep to the old! The State of Massachusetts passed a resolution
declaring that it would be governed by the laws of God until there was
time to make better ones– and I have passed a resolution that I will
preach Christ's Gospel until I have time to find out something
better–and that can never be, for it is the only Gospel that can ever
meet the needs of the human race! There was no bite from any of the
fiery serpents which a look at the bronze serpent could not cure–and
this Gospel of God's Grace is the one remedy for all the spiritual
diseases to which mankind is heir and, therefore, we will cling to it
as long as we live.

John the Baptist spoke concerning Christ and what he said about Christ
was true. That is the important point, for it is possible for Christ to
be preached and yet for the truth about Christ notto be preached. His
Humanity may be left out, or His Deity may be kept in the background,
or there may be lisping and hesitancy with regard to the doctrine of
His atoning Sacrifice. And if this is the case, then the ministry will
be without power. It used to be said of a certain noted preacher that
his doctrine of the Atonement was that Jesus Christ did something or
other, which, in some way or other, was connected with our salvation.
That cloudy sort of teaching is not preaching Christ in truth! But to
declare that He was made a curse for us–that the Lord caused to meet
upon Him the iniquity of all who believe in Him. That He, who knew no
sin, was made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of
God in Him–to clearly preach the definite Substitution of Christ on
our behalf–this is to tell the truth about Christ! And I pray that all
of us, whether preachers or teachers, may not only speak about Christ,
but also, like John the Baptist, speak the truth about Him.

One other thing about John was that all he said about Christ was the
Truth of God." All things that John spoke of this Man were true." Not
merely some things, but "all things." Any part of Christ is precious,
but a whole Christ is what the sinner needs. As far as we know Him, we
are bound honestly to make Him known to others. And even if we have to
do it with but small ability and if, when we die, we have to regret
that we had such slender powers, yet shall it be a sweet thought to us
if we know that those we leave behind will be able to say, "All things
that he spoke concerning this Man were true."

There was one thing which the people did not say, and which they had no
need to say, because it was self-evident– that is that John the
Baptist had so preached Christ that they could not forget it. He had
been dead some years, yet they remembered what he had preached about
while he was with them. They remembered how he preached it, too–that
he preached Christ in truth and that all he said about Christ was the
Truth–so that, when the Messiah Himself stood before them, the savor
of John's ministry was still fresh upon them. Oh, that it might be our
lot, and the lot of all God's servants, to make the Gospel arrows stick
as well as strike–and to cause men to carry with them, for many a
year, the remembrance of the things which we have spoken unto them
while we were yet present with them!

III. Now, thirdly, I am going away from the text in order to notice
WHAT THE DEPARTED MINISTER'S TESTIMONY REALLY WAS. What did John say
concerning Christ?

Well, first of all, John said that Jesus was the Son of God. His
testimony was, "I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God."
John delighted to extol his Lord–he felt that he was not worthy to
take the place of the slave who took off his master's sandals–it was
too great an honor for him to be the body-servant of Christ. How
sweetly did John speak about Jesus as, "the only-begotten Son which is
in the bosom of the Father"! Do you all believe that blessed Truth of

God of the Sonship of Christ? Do you all believe that the Man of
Nazareth was, "very God of very God"? If you do, then trust Him to be
your Savior and, doing so, you shall be saved by Him! Let the testimony
of John be accepted by you, for it is now borne out by the life of
Christ and a thousand proofs besides. Jesus of Nazareth is God in human
flesh–trust yourselves with Him and you shall be eternally saved!

John also bore witness to another grand Truth about his Lord and
Master, namely, that He was the Lamb of God. How plainly he cried to
all the people, and afterwards to his own disciples, "Behold the Lamb
of God!" Had John the paschal lamb in his mind's eye? Very likely he
had. "This," he said, "is the Lamb of God, whose blood is to be shed to
preserve His people, just as the blood of the paschal lamb, when it was
sprinkled upon the lintel and the two side-posts of the houses in
Egypt, saved the Israelites when the destroying angel had unsheathed
his terrible sword." O dear Hearers, I would that you would all receive
Christ as the great Sin-Offering–the only Preserver and Defender
against the destroying angel in the day of God's wrath!

But did John, do you think, have that passage in the 53rd of Isaiah in
his mind, "He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep
before her shearers is dumb, so He opens not His mouth"? When he said,
"Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world," do you
not think that he had in his mind that passage, "The Lord has laid on
Him the iniquity of us all"? It is extremely likely that this was the
case. This was a choice topic for John to dilate upon–and we would
dilate upon it, too, if we had the time. But, as we have only a few
minutes left, we cry to you, "Behold the Lamb of God!" That Jesus, who
is now reigning in Heaven at His Father's right hand, suffered in the
place of all who will believe in Him. Behold Him! Look unto Him and be
you saved. If you trust in Him, you will thereby prove that your sin
was laid upon Him–and if so, all that sin of yours has been put away
by His Sacrifice of Himself. Why do you not trust Him? May the Holy
Spirit bring you to do so, for John's testimony was true when he said
that Jesus was the Lamb of God!

John also bore witness, concerning Christ, as the Baptizer with the Hoy
Spirit and with fire. And this, too, is true. Any of you who have
trusted Christ, know into what sacred fire He plunges your spirit, so
that it refines and purifies your soul and burns up all the dross. He
immerses us into the Holy Spirit, so that we are–

"Plunged in the Godhead's deepest sea, And lost in His immensity."

And, once more, John called Jesus the Bridegroom. That is one of His
sweetest names. John spoke of himself as the Bridegroom's Friend, or
best man. He was that, but nothing more, so his work was done when the
Bridegroom came. O Beloved, the Lord Jesus Christ, by His love to His
Church, has proved Himself to be her true Bridegroom! Out of His side
was she taken when He fell asleep, even as Eve was taken out of the
side of Adam, and to her His love always goes forth, for He says to
her, "You are bone of My bone, and flesh of My flesh." For this purpose
did He leave His Father, that He might cleave unto His Church, that
they two might be one. Truly does Paul write, "Christ also loved the
church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it
with the washing of water by the Word, that He might present it to
Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such
thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." This is another
grand Truth of God for us to talk about–the union of Christ with His
Church–the blessed bonds that bind Him to us, and us to Him, so that
we are able to defy the whole universe to "separate us from the love of
God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

IV. I have thus given you a summary of what John's testimony concerning
Jesus was and of which the people said, "All things that John spoke of
this Man were true." Now, the last thing I have to speak upon is THE
BLESSED RESULT. Our Lord was preaching in a fruitful place. He was
following a man who had left a precious memory behind him and that
memory was all about Himself. What was the result?

First, the people standing on that spot, where John had stood, began to
consider ' 'John said such-and-such about the promised Messiah–this
Man exactly answers to the description that John gave. All men
acknowledge that John was a Prophet, so what he said concerning Jesus
is clearly true and He must, therefore, be the Christ whom God has sent
into the world. He must be the Son of God, the Lamb of God, the One who
is to baptize us with the Hoy Spirit and with fire" and, therefore,
after careful consideration, they believed in Him!

Beloved Hearers, have you ever given due consideration to Divine
things? It would be worthwhile for you, who are unsaved, not to do any
more business until you are saved. You are very "cute" and clever about
worldly things, but I tell

you solemnly, that you are great fools with regard to your immortal
souls. I am certain that if the life of any one of you were, at this
moment, in peril from some very dreadful disease, you would not wait
long before seeking the best advice concerning it that you could
afford. If you were told, while I am preaching, that your house was on
fire, you would not stay till I had finished the sermon–you would be
off to your home at once, so concerned are you, and rightly so, about
your earthly things. Yet your souls are even now abiding under the
wrath of God! You dare not say you do not believe that–yet you do not
really believe it, or you act in a way which implies that you do not!
Suppose your breath were to stop for one minute, where would you be?
Where would you be if you had to ask in vain for a drop of water to
cool your parched tongue? Every instant life is in jeopardy–let only
one of the ten thousand strings of this poor harp but snap– and harp
strings often do snap–and the soul must appear before its
God–unready, unwashed, unclothed, forever lost!

Beloved, do as these people "beyond the Jordan" did–begin to consider,
see whether Christ is not the Son of God, and the Lamb of God–and if
He is, believe in Him! Trust Him with your souls and so find eternal
salvation!

Further, having considered, these people did believe on Jesus. That is
to say, they did accept Him as the Lamb of God and the Son of God. They
did receive Him as the Bridegroom of their hearts, they did believe
that He would baptize them with the Hoy Spirit and with fire–and so
they were saved. Will not the same result follow this service? Will not
some of you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, who is so worthy of
confidence–yes, who demandsthat we believe in Him, for this is what He
says, "He that believes not shall be damned"? It is said, in our text,
"Many believed on Him." I will be thankful if only two or three believe
on Jesus Christ, yet I cannot be content unless manybelieve on Him. He
is so true that it is a grievous crime to doubt Him! He is so
abundantly able to save that it is the greatest folly not to trust Him!

It sometimes puzzles me how God can have such patience with
unbelievers. When He has given His only-begotten Son to bleed and die
for the guilty, and He says, "This is My well-beloved Son, bleeding and
dying for you, only trust Him"–if men say that they will not–what can
be conceived more horrible than that? And what clearer proof can there
be of the desperate malignity of the human heart that it will not even
accept the Son of God, Himself, when He comes dressed in robes of love
to save mankind?

I finish with the last word of my text–"Many believed on Him there,"
that is, on the spot where He then stood and preached. I would to God
that many would believe on Jesus Christ in this Tabernacle–there in
that area, or in that aisle, or up in the galleries. Alas, many say,
"We will go home and think about it." Do not do that! Believe on Him
there.

1 know how apt you are to indulge in idle chat on your way home. I know
how, at the supper table, too often the Word which you have heard is
driven away by the foolish talk which is unfit for the Sabbath. The
devil only wants you to wait, for he knows that he can then come and
steal away the good Seed of the Kingdom. But if the Lord should give
you the Grace to decide for Him at once–if you were to believe on
Jesus now–what joy there would be among the angels and the spirits of
just men made perfect! They would "ring the bells of Heaven" and
rejoice over lost ones found! What peace there would be in your own
heart and what thankfulness and delight there would be among the people
of God when they heard of it! You Christians, try to have a quiet,
earnest talk with the unconverted, if you can, before they get away
from this building. It may be that they will be led by you to believe
on Jesus here and now. God grant that it may be so, for our Lord Jesus
Christ's sake! Amen.

EXPOSITION BY C. H. SPURGEON: MATTHEW3:1-12; JOHN 1:15-37;3:22-36.

We are going to read three passages relating to John the Baptist's
testimony concerning Christ.

Matthew 3:1-4. In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the
wilderness of Judea, andsaying, Repent you: for the Kingdom of Heaven
is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the Prophet Isaiah,
saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare you the way
of the Lord, make his paths straight And the same John had his raiment
of camel's hair, and a leather girdle about his loins; and his food was
locusts and wild honey. Everything connected with John the Baptist was
in harmony with his message. He was the preacher of repentance, so the
place where he preached was most suitable–it was in the wilderness
where there was nothing to distract his hearers' attention, as there
would have been in crowded cities. His dress was striking and
everything about him, even down to the food that he ate, went to show
that he was the rough pioneer preacher preparing the way for his
Master. John did not teach the fullness of joy and

7

peace–that was left for our Lord Jesus to proclaim–but John came to
prepare the way of the Lord by preaching repentance.

5. Then went out to him, Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region
roundabout Jordan, There seems to have been, about that time, a
widespread anticipation of the coming of the Messiah, so, no sooner did
the news come that a Prophet was preaching in the desert, than great
multitudes went out to hear him.

6-8. And were baptized of him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. But
when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sad-ducees come to his baptism,
he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who has warned you to flee
from the wrath to come? Bring forth, therefore, fruits meet for
repentance. Did he not speak after the style of the Prophet Elijah? Yet
those bold speeches of his were not at all stronger than the evils of
the age required. When the self-righteous Pharisees and the skeptical
Sadducees, the Ritualists and the "modern thought" men of that day,
came to him to be baptized, he welcomed them not, but bade them, "bring
forth fruits meet for repentance," evidences of a change of heart and
life.

9. And think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham for our
father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones.–In the
bed of Jordan, where he was baptizing–

9. To raise up children unto Abraham. John bade them boast not of their
descent from Abraham, yet that was the great thing in which they did
glory! They despised the Gentiles as so many do outside the true fold.
Note how John the Baptist really preaches the Gospel to us indirectly
while he is denouncing these people's confidence in their carnal
descent. Regeneration is "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh,
nor of the will of man, but of God."

10. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore
every tree which brings not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into
the fire. Other teachers came, as it were, only to lop and prune the
trees, but the time had come for the felling of those that were
fruitless. John did this and so did our Lord Jesus Christ, for his
preaching dug up the very roots of sin, superstition and evil of every
kind.

11. 12. Iindeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but He that
comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear:
He shall baptize you with the Hoy Spirit, and with fire: whose fan is
in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge His floor, and gather His
wheat into the garner; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable
fire. Now let us turn to the Gospel according to John where we have
another account of the ministry of John the Baptist.

John 1:15. John bore witness of Him, and cried, saying, This was He of
whom I spoke, He that comes after me is preferred before me: for He was
before me. He was not before John in the order of human birth, yet He
was truly before John, for He had an eternal pre-existence, as He was
none other than the uncreated Son of God!

16-21. And of His fullness have all we received, and Grace for Grace.
For the Law was given by Moses, but Grace and Truth came by Jesus
Christ No man has seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, which is
in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him. And this is the record
of John, when the Jews sentpriests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask
him, Who are you? Andhe confessed, and deniednot; but confessed, Iam
not the Christ And they asked him, What then? Are you Elijah? And he
said, Iam not Are you that Prophet? And he answered; No. As they meant,
"Are you, literally, the Prophet Elijah risen from the dead? "John
said," "I am not." "Are you that Prophet of who Moses foretold?" "And
he answered, No." John gave short, sharp answers to these cavilers. He
was not a man of dainty words and polished periods, especially in
dealing with such people as they were.

22, 23. Then said they unto him, who are you that we may give an answer
to them that sent us. What say you of yourself? He said, Iam the voice.
Not, "the Word"–Christ is that, but John was "the voice."

23-37. Of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the
Lord, as said the Prophet Isaiah. And they which were sent were of the
Pharisees. And they asked him, and said unto him, Why do you baptize,
then, if you are not that Christ, nor Elijah, neither that Prophet?
John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there stands One
among you, whom you know not; He it is, who coming after me is
preferred before me, whose shoe laces Iam not worthy to unloose. These
things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was
baptizing. The next day John saw Jesus coming unto him, and said,
Behold, the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world. This is
He of whom I said, After me comes a Man which ispreferred before me:
for He was before me. AndIknewHim not: but that He should be made
manifest to Israel, therefore am I come t3o baptize with water And John
bore record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from Heaven like a
dove, and it abode upon Him. And I knew Him not: but He that sent me to
baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom you shall see the
Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, the same is He

which baptizes with the Hoy Spirit And I saw, and bear record that this
is the Son of God. Again the next day John stood with two of his
disciples, and looking upon Jesus as He walked by, he said, Behold the
lamb of God! And the two disciples heard Him speak, and they followed
Jesus. In the third chapter of the same Gospel, we have yet another
testimony by John the Baptist concerning Christ.

John 3:22-29 After these things came Jesus and His disciples into the
land of Judea, and there He tarried with them, and baptized. And John
was also baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water
there: and they came, and were baptized. For John was not yet cast into
prison. Then there arose a question between some of John's disciples
and the Jews about purification. And they came unto John, and said unto
him, Rabbi, He that was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you bore
witness, behold, the same baptizes, and all men come to Him. John
answered and said, A man can receive nothing except it be given him
from Heaven. You yourselves bare me witness that I said I am not the
Christ, but that I am sent before Him. He that has the bride is the
bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which stands and hears
him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: therefore is
this, my joy, fulfilled.' 'I have introduced the Bridegroom and,
henceforth, it will be my part to gradually disappear from the scene."

30. He must increase, but Imust decrease. As fades the morning star
when the sun itself arises, so was it the joy of the herald of Christ
to lose himself in the supreme radiance of his Lord's appearing!

31-34. He that comes from above is above all: he that is of the earth
is earthly, and speaks of the earth: He that comes from Heaven is above
all And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no man
receives His testimony. He that has received His testimony has set to
his seal that God is true. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of
God: for God gives not the Spirit by measure unto Him. Did not the Holy
Spirit descend and remain upon Him–and that without measure or limit?

35, 36. The Father loves the Son, and hasgiven all things into His
hand. He who believes on the Son has everlasting life. He has it now
and he can never lose it, or else it would not be everlasting. He has a
life that must exist forever and ever.

36. And he that believes not the Son shall not see life. He shall not
even know what spiritual life is! He shall not be able to understand
it, or to form any idea of it. While he is an unbeliever, he is blind
to spiritual things. What a dreadful sentence that is–"He shall not
see life."–

36. But the wrath of God abides on him. God is always angry with him
because he has rejected God's own Son and refuses the great salvation.