Title: The First Baptists/Luke 3:1-22
Content The person with whom Baptists feel most familiar is John the Baptist after Jesus. The biblical figure that makes Baptists proud is undoubtedly John the Baptist. In the Korean version of the Bible, he is translated as John the Baptist, but in the English Bible, he is referred to as "John the Baptist". Baptists are called Baptists in English, and Baptists are called Baptist Churches. So, by name, John the Baptist and the Baptist have the same roots.
Before Jesus began teaching when he was about 30 years old, he came to John in the Jordan River to be baptized. John baptized people as a sign of repentance. In the case of Jesus, because he knew by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that he was without the slightest sin, John refused at first. But Jesus said, "Allow it now, for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness" (Matthew 3:15). There are several reasons why Jesus was baptized. It can be seen as a ceremonial meaning to officially carry out the office of the Messiah, or it can be seen as a way to become one with sinners. And what is often overlooked is that it may be seen as an acknowledgment of the message and ministry of John the Baptist.
First, by being baptized by John, Jesus acknowledged the message of John.
John delivered the message of repentance. This repentance was not just contrition for sin. It was repentance to receive the Messiah Christ with the coming heaven and God's judgment in mind. He was preparing people to receive Christ through his messages and ministry.
It is the same with the Baptists that John pointed out sin poignantly. John was not a weak preacher who spoke only words that were pleasing to the people. He did not hesitate to call the Pharisees and Sadducees "children of vipers". Herod, the tetrarch of Galilee and Berea, did not remain silent about the sin of divorce from his wife, the daughter of Arethas IV of Arabia, and seducing Herodias, the wife of her half-brother Philip, in marriage.
Second, Jesus acknowledged the baptism of John.
The baptism that John gave to people was not baptism, but immersion of the whole body in water. John deliberately chose the Jordan River, which has a lot of water (John 3:23). And although it is not mentioned in the text of Luke, the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, both of which record the same event, mention that Jesus was baptized and “came up out of the water” (Matthew 3:16; Mark 1:10). All biblical scholars acknowledge that Jesus' ordinance was baptism.
The Pharisees and lawyers were proud to not be baptized by John. What does the Bible say about them?
“But the Pharisees and the lawyers were not baptized, and they rejected the will of God themselves” (Luke 7:30).
Baptists emphasize baptism over baptism, not because it is a means of salvation, but because it is the will of God and because they believe that God wants obedience.
Third, Jesus highly praised John (Luke 7:24-28).
John was the son of a priest, and he had to serve in the temple as a priest, but he chose the wilderness rather than the temple. He spoke alone in the wilderness, not belonging to the corrupt priesthood and formal religion of that time. I couldn't do it if I expected people to acknowledge it. After all, he was a preacher outside the system. He could not remain one with them. He was a true separatist. The history of the Baptists is the history of separatism. The only way to prevent belief and truth from being corrupted is ultimately to be separated from untruth.
Nevertheless, Jesus called John "better than the prophets" and even said, "Among those born of women there is no greater than John." Will he not commend the Baptists who follow in the footsteps of John the Baptist?