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John the Baptist Prepares the Way for Jesus

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John the Baptist Prepares the Way for Jesus Cole Community Church Growth Groups Leader’s Guide for Luke 3:1-38 Week of April 4, 2021 John the Baptist Prepares the Way for Jesus Read Chapter 3:1-23. This chapter begins with: “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar”. Here, Luke is giving us a general timeframe for the events that occurred. The best estimates set it anywhere from A.D. 27 to 29. Luke listed the political leaders of the region where Jesus lived to give us the timeframe and the political climate of the scene. Tiberius Caesar was an emperor known for his cruelty. Pontius Pilate was also renowned for his brutal massacres of the Jewish people in Judea, and his insensitivity towards the Jews. The rulers from the family of Herod the Great (Herod, Philip, and Lysanias) were also known for their corruption and cruelty. When Herod the Great died, he divided his kingdom among his three sons Herod, Philip, and Lysanias. Caiaphas and Annas were the religious leaders of Judea in the period of Jesus’ ministry. Caiaphas was the High Priest, but his father-in-law Annas (the patriarch of the family) was the real influence among the priestly class. 1. Why would Luke give us such an in-depth introduction of the time and place that both Jesus and John were stepping into? (Luke 1:3-4) (Luke 1:3-4) With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. To historically show the background of the corrupt and cruel era they were living in and the names of those who were in power at the time. When we read the bible, we want to know that it is historically correct and not a work of fiction. John and Jesus would be about 29-30 years old. 1 2. Verses 4-6 take us back to the book of Isaiah the prophet. Luke connected John the Baptist with the one prophesied in Isaiah 40:3-5. What do we learn about John’s ministry from this passage? How did John know what his purpose was? (Luke 1:76-80, Luke 1:15-17, Isaiah 40:3-5) John would be the forerunner for the Christ. John is the one who will prepare a way for the Lord. The “voice” preparing the way would come out of the wilderness just as John had come out of the wilderness. Jesus has come for all mankind. Jews and Gentiles alike. John had been told by his parents what his purpose would be. See Luke 1:76-80. Isaiah 40:3-5 A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” 3. How does John address his audience? (verses 7-9) Is this the way we tell people about Jesus today? What is his message to the people? (verses 10-14, Matthew 23:33) He calls them a Brood of vipers. A “brood of vipers” is a “family of snakes.” Because vipers are venomous, John was essentially calling the religious leaders “deadly sons of serpents.” It’s quite a bold denunciation—and one Jesus repeated to the Pharisees in Matthew 12:34. The Pharisees and Sadducees were the religious leaders in Israel during the time of John the Baptist and Jesus. The Pharisees were the Law- keepers and promoters of tradition, and the Sadducees comprised the 2 wealthier ruling class. Over the centuries, these well-meaning groups had become corrupt, legalistic, and hypocritical and would eventually be responsible for crucifying the Son of God. They earned their label “brood of vipers,” a sobriquet with deeper meaning than is obvious at first glance. Another fascinating detail is found in Jesus’ use of the epithet “brood of vipers” to describe the Pharisees. In Matthew 23:33, He says, “You brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?” Farmers, then as now, often burned the stubble of their fields to get the land ready for the next planting season. As the fires neared the vipers’ dens, the snakes would slither away from the flames, but they often did not escape being consumed. Snakes fleeing the fire was a common sight, and Jesus’ words to the Pharisees would likely have called it to their minds. How could they think they would escape the fire of God’s judgment by relying on their own works, which were not at all honest or good? John’s and Jesus’ calling them a brood of vipers was meant to make them aware of their own wickedness and call them to repent. Today when we talk about Jesus, we want to talk about his love and saving grace. We are careful not to insult or cause division. We even have a hard time telling people that if they don’t repent, they will go to Hell. He tells them to bear good fruit. Then specifically to: • To be generous. (to share with the poor) • Collect no more than you are authorized to do. • Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation. • To be content with your wages. 3 4. What was the difference in the baptism John offered and the baptism Jesus offers? See also Matthew 3:11-12 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. John’s baptism is the baptism of repentance. Jesus’s baptism is the baptism of fire and the Holy Spirit. John’s baptism cleansed the outside, but only Jesus’s fiery baptism will cleanse the heart. To baptize with fire means to bring the fires of judgment, which will purify the pure, but destroy the wicked like chaff. Chaff is the worthless residue of a wheat stalk after the kernel of grain has been removed. These proud and unrepentant leaders were just as useless to God. “Purification by fire was also a prophetic hope (Isaiah 4:4; Zechariah 13:9; Malachi 3:2; cf. Isaiah 1:25). John therefore predicts a real cleansing, in contrast with his own merely outward token.” (France) 5. Why did Jesus submit to the baptism of redemption when He had committed no sin to be redeemed from? Isaiah 53:5-6 Jesus submits to John’s baptism of repentance to identify with Israel’s sin, foreshadowing the judgement he will endure at the cross. He did it all for us! Isaiah 53:5-6 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—everyone—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 4 6. Read again verses 21 and 22 to let these words wash over you. How do you feel knowing that the Father sees us through the redemptive work of His Son? In us He is well pleased! Because of Him, we have the Holy Spirit living in us! Because of Him we have eternal life! Luke 3:24-38 The Genealogy of Jesus Being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph: According to ancient custom, genealogies were almost always traced through the father, not the mother. This was a problem in the unique situation of a virgin birth. Luke differs in the account of Matthew from David onward, but they both end their genealogies with Joseph. The best explanation for this seems to be that Luke followed Mary’s line (Jesus’ actual lineage) while Matthew followed Joseph’s line (His legal lineage by adoption). This was Luke’s point in his important phrase “being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph.” Luke began with Joseph because he followed proper form and included no women in his genealogy. The son of… the son of: The fact that Luke could give Jesus’ genealogical history was not unusual. Josephus traced his own genealogy from “the public records”. The son of Adam, the son of God: Luke traced his genealogy all the way back to Adam, to show that Jesus belonged to all mankind, not only to the Jewish people. A genealogy may not seem like much, but it exactly established Jesus’ credentials as a member of the human race. A Bible translator to a distant tribe saved the genealogies for last because he thought them the least important part of the gospels. But when he finally finished them last of all, the tribesmen were astounded – they told the translator, “You mean to tell us that this Jesus was a real person, with real ancestors? We had no idea!” Enduring Word commentary. kks 5 .
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