Bible Study Notes: St Luke’s Gospel
Session 13 : Chapter 3,7-18
When crowds of people came out for baptism because it was
the popular thing to do, John exploded: "Brood of snakes! What do
you think you are doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think
a little water on your snakeskin is going to deflect God's judgment? Your
life must change, not your skin. And don't think you can pull rank by
claiming Abraham as 'father.' Being a child of Abraham is neither here
nor there—children of Abraham are a dime a dozen. God can make children
from stones if he wants. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming?
Because if it's deadwood, it goes on the fire."
The crowd asked him, "Then what are we supposed to do?"
"If you have two coats, give one away," he said. "Do the
same with your food."
Taxmen also came to be baptised and said, "Teacher, what should we
do?"
He told them, "No more extortion - collect only what is required
by law."
Soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He told them, "No
shakedowns, no blackmail - and be content with your rations."
The interest of the people by now was building. They were all beginning
to wonder, "Could this John be the Messiah?"
But John intervened: "I'm baptizing you here in the river. The main
character in this drama, to whom I'm a mere stagehand, will ignite the
kingdom life, a fire, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the
inside out. He's going to clean house - make a clean sweep of your lives.
He'll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything
false he'll put out with the trash to be burned."
© The
Message
I think that this sermon that John preaches is one of the sort that I would like to hear, something that really gets down to the heart of the matter and focuses on what is really important. For John what was most important was conversion. His only objective was the conversion of the whole person, not just the mind. He was not interested in debating disputed religious questions. His passion was the moral and spiritual transformation of a person. He was forceful, but he never compelled his hearers to believe. His line was that the Messiah would come to set people free, buy they must be willing to change. Jesus does not change anyone who is not willing. John approached this in four very precise ways:
- He invited his hearers to a free-willed conversion to the person of Jesus Christ. Some preachers start with the message of Jesus and then move to the person. To john it was important to build on the bonds of affection for Jesus than to establish the ties of doctrine. The personal experience of Jesus leads to a true appreciation of His message.
- He urged his hearers to honestly acknowledge their separation form God through sin. Sins destroy the growth and happiness of the person and erodes the possibility of wholesome friendships. Sin can be harmful and sickening and can undermine true love of God, self and others. Later, the apostles would follow John’s approach, arousing in a person a sense of their separated-ness from God and then offering them the Good News of Christ who offers them Salvation.
- He tried to give them a living feeling of the powerful presence of God, acting in their lives and in the world around them. This is the loving presence of an affectionate, divine person, who wants each of us to be at peace within ourselves. This presence will be embodied for each person in the presence of Jesus. When this divine love is felt and experienced, then the recipient will have a more intense reason for letting og of evil and turning to Love.
- John is strong in asserting the judgement of God. In verse 7 he asks, ‘who warned you to flee from the wrath of God?’ God, he says, will expect us to be accountable. The Lord will offer an abundance of love, and of spiritual gifts. If we fail to avail ourselves of this love or too timid to share these gifts, then we face the judgement of God. John, I suspect, deliberately uses strong language to remind his hearers of God’s anger. He told them the axe was heading for the root of the tree of their lives. If they did not show the signs of moral behaviour, they would be cut down and thrown into the fire.
He continues by explaining to them that there is no good hiding behind their religiosity, that what matters is moral character and spiritual depth.
It is always a fact that those who speak with conviction attract attention and this is so in the case of John. His fiery sermons spoke to their lives and he moved them with a desire to change. “What shall we do?” asks the crowd; John challenges them to acts of charity and social concern. They should feed the hungry and clothe the poor. He takes the extremes of his society and points them in a new direction. How salient these words are for us as our economy teeters on the brink of disaster, food and oil prices escalate and crime soars.
John certainly touched the heart of his listeners; he converts their hearts and watches with joy as they wade into the Jordan for Baptism and receive a new sense of how to live before God.
So challenging, exciting and awesome was John that some questioned if he might not be the Messiah. John quickly disabuses them of this notion and tells them that one mightier than he was on His way; someone who will baptise them with the Holy Spirit.
© Fr Michael Fuller: June 2008