January 5
“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!’ For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying; ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight.’ Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins,” Matthew 3:1-6.
John the Baptist was called by God to be the forerunner for the ministry of Jesus. He is identified as the one of whom the prophet Isaiah had written 750 years earlier. John was the voice crying in the wilderness calling people to repentance and faith in the promised Redeemer who was about to appear on the scene. The evangelist Luke, who records historical details, wrote that it was, “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,” Luke 3:1, when, “The word of the God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness,” Luke 3:2. This would place the beginning of the ministry of John in 26 A.D., when Jesus was 30 years old. We are not told how the Lord indicated to John the Baptist that the time had come for him to fulfill the words of the prophet Isaiah and begin his ministry. Whether John had a vision or a dream, we do not know. The fact remains that John had a divine call – a call from God to teach, preach, and baptize.
Today, God also calls pastors to teach and preach and to administer the Sacrament of Holy Baptism and the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. Today, God calls through a Christian congregation. The biblical position is that those who occupy the public office as pastor in the church should have a Call from a Christian congregation to teach or preach or administer the Sacraments.
John the Baptist was fulfilling his call from God when he went into the wilderness to teach, preach, and baptize. Outwardly, John was not dressed in fancy clothing, but what he did wear got the attention of the people. His diet was the edible species of locusts and the honey deposited by the bees in the trees and holes in the rocks.
John’s message is summarized with the words, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” John called for a complete change of heart and mind. He called for true sorrow for sin and for a true reliance upon the grace and mercy of God to be proclaimed through the promised Messiah and Savior who would soon appear on the scene. In Old Testament times, for salvation and entrance in the kingdom of God, people were directed to the Messiah and Savior who would come according to God’s promise.
You and I are directed to the same Savior, Jesus Christ, who has come. The angel announced to the shepherds at Bethlehem that He has come: “Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord,” Luke 2:11. This is the message that we proclaim, not just at Christmastime, but at all times: Christ the Savior has come! The Lord Jesus came and lived the perfect life to fulfill the Commandments in our place. He suffered and died to take away our sins. He rose from the grave to conquer death and the devil for us. We are invited to believe that He accomplished for us what we could never do for ourselves. The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heaven is open for you and me! Don’t ever doubt it! Trust God’s promises; repent, believe, be baptized, and be saved!
Then, out of thankfulness to Him for what He has done for you, tell others that they, too, have a Savior!
Can we whose souls are lighted, with wisdom from on high,
Can we to men benighted, the lamp of life deny?
Salvation! Oh, salvation! The joyful sound proclaim,
Till each remotest nation, has learned Messiah’s name. Amen.