Matthew 3:1-6
3 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” 3 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.’ ”
4 Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.
We’re not quite done with John the Baptist; not yet. In fact, he will occupy our thoughts for the next couple of days.
When John cries out, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” he is saying nothing less than this: Jesus Himself is at hand, for Jesus is the very embodiment of the kingdom of heaven. And very soon Jesus will take His place in the overall scheme of God’s plan of salvation and make His adult appearance known for three amazing and stunning years of words and actions – all of which was foretold by the OT prophets, John himself being the last of them.
Scripture proclaims John as the forerunner of Christ. John runs before Christ. John is Christ’s set-up man. John is very much like those coming attractions you see at the beginning of a movie which are intended to grab your interest in future movies and plant in your brain a desire to come back for more – including spending a small fortune on buttered popcorn, watered-down soda, and a few boxes of DOTS.
And we know that John’s ministry was laser-focused on one thing, one person: Christ. John pointed to Christ as the One who would take people’s sins away. This is epitomized in Jn 1:29 where he says of Christ and we sing in the Divine Liturgy, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”
John’s message is simple: “Repent,” which is what we as God’s people get to do. Repentance glorifies God. We confess our sins, then Christ forgives us by speaking through our faithful pastor the words of Holy Absolution “as from God Himself.” And John’s work of pointing us to Christ comes to fruition.
Continue to feast on Christ’s Word and Sacraments where the fulfillment of John’s work – Christ – comes to you for forgiveness and strength.
Let us pray: Hosanna to the living Lord! Hosanna to th’Incarnate Word! To Christ, Creator, Savior, King let earth, let heav’n, hosanna sing. Amen.
