Recently a friend of mine and I have been studying the book of John and taking a closer look at the life of John the Baptist. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read through the New Testament, but up until now, I’ve never done a deep character study on John the Baptist. As I’ve studied him closer, I’ve found that his distinctive example is incredibly applicable to our lives today, and I’d like to share some things I’ve learned with you.
First, let’s start in John 1:6-7, when we’re introduced to John the Baptist and his mission:
“ 6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe.”
From these two verses and throughout the rest of John, we see that John the Baptist is calling people to repentance and to be baptized. If we hop over to Luke 3:7, we see this ministry in more detail:
“ 7John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?”
In one of the other synoptic gospels, John is actually directing the phrase “brood of vipers” toward religious leaders. This level of boldness is one of the things I love most about John. He often acts counter-culturally, and he isn’t afraid to call people out on their poor character. He’s honestly a bit of a hellion! Let’s keep reading in Luke 3:
“ 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham.”
What the heck does that mean? Essentially, John is telling the Jewish crowd that their spiritual heritage doesn’t make a difference in their repentance. John tells them that regardless of their legacy, they must personally get right with God and have a fruitful repentance. Let’s look at the next verse:
“ 9 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
With this, John tells the crowd that judgment is coming. So far, we can break down his teaching into four parts:
- Repent
- Be baptized
- Produce fruit in keeping with repentance
- Judgement is upon you, so produce good fruit
We can assume from the crowd’s response that they are absorbing and digesting this teaching, and in Luke 3:10, they ask John what they should do. This is his response:
“ 11 Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”
Now, we can add a fifth point to John’s teaching—when you see a need, work to fulfill it. This point really stands out to me; not only does John call people to repentance, but he also calls them to produce good works as evidence of their repentance. John teaches that if you see someone in need, you should work to meet that need. Now, let’s look at all five points of John’s teaching:
- Repent
- Be baptized
- Produce fruit in keeping with repentance
- Judgement is upon you, so produce good fruit
- When you see a need, work to fulfill it
From this list, we can see that John encourages the crowd to begin with self-examination and look at their own relationship with God. If they find that they need to repent and be baptized, they should. Then, John points out that they need to notice their neighbors and fulfill their needs as they work to produce good fruit.
To me, this passage mirrors the Great Commandment in Mark 12:30-31, to love God and to love your neighbors. To go down the rabbit hole a little further, let’s look at some parallels between this passage and a passage in Isaiah 1:16-17, where Isaiah is calling to the Israelites:
“ 16 Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. 17 Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”
Like John the Baptist, Isaiah is calling for self-examination, repentance, and works that prove repentance. Both men understand the importance of getting right with God before you can bear good fruit, and they urge their audiences to act accordingly.
As we consider these passages today, I think there are several important takeaways that apply directly to us:
- We need to repent of our selfish attitudes and get right with God
- We need to learn to do what is right
- We need to be able to see the needs of those around us
Let’s think back to Luke 3—what’s not mentioned is that there were probably obvious needs of others (food, clothing, etc.) that the Jewish people were neglecting. If we don’t practice the first two takeaways and fail to get God’s perspective of the world, we too will never be able to properly notice and fulfill the needs of others.
If you ask God to show you how to apply something like this to your life, you’re asking a dangerous thing. God has used this principle to transform my life over the last several months, showing me many applications that involve housing. God has shown me that housing is a resource that I can use to fulfill the needs of others.
A note here—being in business is great, but it also presents the responsibility to make a difference in the world, especially if you’re a Christian and looking to make a difference for the name of Christ. As God entrusts us with resources, we need to view them as an extension of God’s Kingdom and a way to bless others. In housing, this may look like offering someone discounted or subsidized rent, selling someone a house at what they can afford, or some other tangible fulfillment of needs.
Whatever resources God has entrusted us with, we need to steward them well. Even as we face the temptation to focus on our own lives and overlook the needs of others, we must pursue a path of obedience. Scripture teaches us that if we don’t use our resources to glorify God’s name and Kingdom, He will take them from us and give them to someone who is a good steward.
In Summary:
We can learn a lot from John the Baptist’s teachings and similar passages of scripture. Just like the crowd John spoke to, we must also repent, learn to do what is right, and meet the needs of those around us. As you consider these applications, ask yourself the following questions:
- What is my relationship with God like at the moment? Is he calling me to repent?
- How good am I at assessing the needs of others?
- Am I meeting the needs of others? What resources has God given me that I can use to do so?