Lesson 3358

 (Lesson 3358)(03-14-21) Luke 3:10-18

    “And the people asked him, saying, What shall we do then? He answereth and saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him do likewise. Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master, what shall we do? And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you. And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages. And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not; John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable. And many other things in his exhortation preached he unto the people.”

    In today’s quote, John the Baptist told his fellow Jews what they must do to set themselves straight before the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

    In the latter part of the quote, John made it clear what the baptism he offered would do. He, very plainly, stated that his baptism, (That definition of his “baptism” that refers to water immersion.), was merely a ritual cleansing that would purify the flesh of those who participated in it and ready them for the coming of the Lord. 

    The “baptism of John” has two distinctly different applications as that term is applied in the New Testament. One application refers to actual, physical immersion into water. The other application refers to the message that John brought to his people. 

    As it is written in Acts 19:3, when Apollos asked “certain disciples”, “Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, unto John’s baptism.”, Apollos’ usage of the term “baptized” was in reference to the lessons that John had taught.

    Conversely, the term “baptized”, as it is applied in Matthew 3:13, “Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.”, is a clear reference to the physical immersion in water that was to be administered by John.

    When studying the New Testament, we should always be aware of the intent of those two seperate applications of the word, baptism or any of it’s grammatical variations.~