John the Forerunner is a singular voice crying in the wilderness. "The person disappears in the glory of his calling, receding before the contents of his cry. The cry sounds like the long, drawn-out trumpet blast of a herald." - Delitzsch in Lenski. "The whole man was a sermon. The message was more than the messenger, and hence the messenger is regarded as mainly a voice." - Plumer
"the wilderness," and its scenery, symbolize "the moral obstacles which have to be removed by the repentance baptism of John, in order to prepare the people for the reception of the Messiah, or (as some prefer) of Jehovah, Isa. 35:8-10. -- Just as Oriental monarchs, when making a royal progress, send a courier before them to exhort the population to prepare roads, so the Messiah sends His herald to exhort His own people, Jn. I: II, to prepare their hearts for His coming." - Plummer. Again, it must be emphasized, the wilderness and its obstacles are found in the hearts of the people.
Original Title
1994 Issue 2 - Sermon on Luke 3:1-22 - The Ministry of John the Baptist Part 2 - Counsel of Chalcedon
John the Forerunner is a singular voice crying in the wilderness. "The person disappears in the glory of his calling, receding before the contents of his cry. The cry sounds like the long, drawn-out trumpet blast of a herald." - Delitzsch in Lenski. "The whole man was a sermon. The message was more than the messenger, and hence the messenger is regarded as mainly a voice." - Plumer
"the wilderness," and its scenery, symbolize "the moral obstacles which have to be removed by the repentance baptism of John, in order to prepare the people for the reception of the Messiah, or (as some prefer) of Jehovah, Isa. 35:8-10. -- Just as Oriental monarchs, when making a royal progress, send a courier before them to exhort the population to prepare roads, so the Messiah sends His herald to exhort His own people, Jn. I: II, to prepare their hearts for His coming." - Plummer. Again, it must be emphasized, the wilderness and its obstacles are found in the hearts of the people.
John the Forerunner is a singular voice crying in the wilderness. "The person disappears in the glory of his calling, receding before the contents of his cry. The cry sounds like the long, drawn-out trumpet blast of a herald." - Delitzsch in Lenski. "The whole man was a sermon. The message was more than the messenger, and hence the messenger is regarded as mainly a voice." - Plumer
"the wilderness," and its scenery, symbolize "the moral obstacles which have to be removed by the repentance baptism of John, in order to prepare the people for the reception of the Messiah, or (as some prefer) of Jehovah, Isa. 35:8-10. -- Just as Oriental monarchs, when making a royal progress, send a courier before them to exhort the population to prepare roads, so the Messiah sends His herald to exhort His own people, Jn. I: II, to prepare their hearts for His coming." - Plummer. Again, it must be emphasized, the wilderness and its obstacles are found in the hearts of the people.
"the voice of aile crying in the wilderness" John the Forerunner is a singular voice crying in the wilderness. "The person disappears in the glory of his calling, receding before the contents ofhiscry. The cry sounds like the long, drawn-out trumpet blast of a herald."- Delitzsch in LenskL "The whole man was a sennon. The message was more than the messenger, and hence the messenger is regarded as mainly a voice." - Plumer "the wilde- rness," and its scenery, symbolize "the moral obstacles which have to be removed by the repentance baptism of John, in order to prepare the people for the reception of the Messiah, or (as some prefer) ofJehovah, Isa. 35:8-10. -- Just as Oriental monarchs, when making a royal progress, send a courier before them to exhort the popUlation to prepare roads, so the Messiah sends His herald to exhort His own people, In. I: II, to prepare their hearts for His coJTling. - Plummer. Again, it must be emphasized, the wilderness and its obstacles are found in the hearts of the people, (3:4b-6) TIlE NATURE AND PURPOSE OF JOHN'S MINISTRY TIlE ROOTS OF JOHN'S MINISTRY: . TIlE FULFIllMENT OF ISAIAH 40:3-5 While Matthew, Mark and John apply Isaiah 40:3 to John the Baptist, only Luke spedfically applies !saiah 40:4,5, so as to highlight a motif in prepared is the way along which He Luke of the universality of the gaspe\. desires to come in order to bring In their context Isaiah 40:3-5 reveal redemption. Accordingly the the wondrous, all-embracing change prepaling of the way refers to the fact that the coming of the Lord incarnate that the inclination and life of the produces in the heans and societies of people have to be changed to such an mankind. "In Isaiah's language there extent that they will be ready to receive is a strange mystery as the speaker is His redemption. What is crooked kept in the background and only his must be made straight---where man magnificent message sounds forth. has deviated fyom thewell-beaten ways Nevertheless, it is an effective voice, as of God as revealed in His Word and though resounding over all the country thus followed crooked ways, he has to where God's people are. To this voice return to the straight paths. Along the all men must give ear and hearken."- roadoflowlyhumiliation, repentance, E.]. Young, The Book of Isaiah. Luke identifies this "voice" for us as J olm the Baptist, and the coming Lord, asJesus ChlEt, who is Jehovah incarnate. TIlE NATURE OF JOHN'S MINISTRY: TIlE MAKING READY OF THE WAY OF TIlE LORD John was to make ready the way of the Lord and to prepare the people to receive the Lord incarnate, Le., "by grace and power to effect a complete change of mind and heart" in the heam of the covenant people, so that they will receive the coming Lord "with a ready access into their heam and lives." He must "make straight" what is crooked, not in accord with God's holy will. 'The way of the Lord that has to be confession and calling upon God man will receive His salvation."- Geldenhuys 0 TIlE PURPOSE OF JOHN'S MINISTRY: TIlE UNIVERSAL RECEPTION OF THE SALVATION OF GOD The Gospel of Mark identifies "the beginning of the gospel of] esus Christ" with the preaching of] ohn the Baptist,Mk.I:I, because by means of John's preaChing, and the continual preaching of the gospel thereafter, "all mankind shall see the salvation of God," Lk. 2:6; !sa. 40:5. And, notice the certainty of the text: "Every ravine SHALL be filled up.... Every mountain and hill SHALL be bmught low.... the croohed SHALL become straight.. .. All flesh SHALL see the salvation of God." Nothing will prevent Christ from coming in triumph with salvation. His people SHALL see and experience His salvation throughout all the earth and the entire human race. Because of verses like these, the Confederate Presbyterian Leighton Wilson could speak of "The Certainty of the World's Conversion." The comprehensive view March, 1994 t THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon t 9 ofIsaiah is that the incarnate Lord will manifest His saving power over the world's nations, so that the deliverance from sin which He accomplishes will be global in its effect. It is interesting to notice that Luke takes his quotation from Isaiah 40:5 from the Septuagint and not from the Hebrew Old Testament. The Hebrew O.T.says, "The glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together." The Septuagint, as quoted by Luke, says, "All flesh shall see the salvation of God." The Septuagint's translation is interpretative of the Hebrew, teaching us that 3:7. In fact "Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea, and all the district around the Jordan; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins," Mat. 3:5-6. As John faithfully carried out his mission of preparing the heans of the people fonhe Messiah and of pointing them to the Messiah whose coming was close at hand, God blessed his preaching, and caused ''multitudes'' ofjewish people to repent and submit to his baptism. By God's grace John was being successful in "turning back MANY of the sons of preaching. "There is an astonishing pertinaciry in hypocrites; and, until they have been Oayedby violence, they obstinately keep their skin."- Calvin. john boldly, directly and plainly confronted his hearers with their sins, for he knew that to lead them to true repentance, they had to face themselves before GOd and be convicted in their hearts about their sin, expertenc!ngthe godly sorrow that produces repentance, The phrase in Luke 3: I, "Therefore he began saying," or "was saying," or "used to say," indicates that these verses are a summary of what john was thegioryofGodisrevealed in the saving act of God. "The glory of the WRD consists of all his attributes shining forth in supreme radiance for men to see; and the central part of this glory is, of course, his saving work in Christ Jesus:- Lenski Isaiah's purpose, (and Luke's), in this prophecy is "to present the uncommon excellence of the salvation which was to ''John boldly, directly and plainly confronted his hearers with their sins, for he knew that to lead them to true repentance, they had to face themselves before God and be convicted in their hearts about their sin, experiencing the godly sorrow that produces repentance." in the habit of preaching to the multitudes who came to hear him. This severe rebuke is not simply something John happened to say to .them on a particular day, what Luke is doing is giving us the substance of his preaching on any day. "You. brood of vipers, who warned you. to flee from the wrath to come?" John spoke so sternly and pointedly to be manifested, in contrast with God's former benefits, and thus to inform believers, that the dispensations of God toward His Church had never been so remarkable, nor His power so illustriously displayed in their deliverance." - Calvin (3:7-14) THE PREACHING OF REPENTANCE INjOHN'S PREACHING THE CONFRONTATION OF SIN IN JOHN'S PREACHING THE MULIllUDES WHO WERE COMING TO BE BAPIlZED BY JOHN MattheW tells us that "many of the Pharisees and Sadducees" were coming to] ohn the Baptist, Mat. 3: 7; and Luke tells us that "the multitudes" kept coming alit to be baptized by him, Lk. Israel to the Lord their God," and in "turning the hearts oj the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous; so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord, Lk. 1:16-17. However, by John's response to some of those who came to him, we see that he was fully aware that not aU of the candidates for baptism weresincere,Lk.3:7! Lenskiestimates that during]ohn's pUblic ministry of a little over a year, he baptized between 200,000 and 500,000 people. If he immersed all these people, instead of sprinkling them, to use Lenski's words, "he must have lived an aquatic life. ' THE CONFRONTATION OF EXTERNALISM AND HYPOCRISY john went "for the jugular" in his 10 f . THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon f March, 199+ drive any away from his baptism whowerenotwillingtorepent of their sins. Furthermore, "it is probable that john publicly attacked the Pharisees, for the benefit of the whole church of God, that they might no longer dazzle the eyes of simple men by empty show, or hold the body of the people underappression by wicked tyranny: - Calvin. , I . THE REASON FOR CAWNG HIS HEARERS A "BROOD Of VIPERS" john was stern with hypocrites and hardened apostates, as was Jesus, because the impenitent cannot escape the judgment of God, 3:7-9. It was, especially the Pharisees and the Sadducees in the multitudes that he called a "brood of vip.ers," Mat. 3:7. "In these words he draws attention to their tortuous, (i.e., winding, convoluted and serpentine), behavior----they live in self-satisfaction and sin and now they desire, without true conversion, and by a merely external participation in the baptism, to protect themselves against the impending judgment. He summons the people to whole-hearted repentance, after which they must have themselves baptized as an outward sign of their aclmowledgment of their spiritual impurity, so that the baptism may be to them a sign and seal of the forgiveness granted by God to the meek. But when he notices that they fix . their eyes only on the outward ceremony with no inward contlition on account of their sins and no deep change of heart, he calls them: 'You oJJspring oj vipers, who has warned you to flee Jrom the wrath to come?,---like snakes hastening to escape when the grass which sheltered them has been seton fire behind them."- Geldenhuys "The situation is thus dramatic in the highest degree. The address is like a blow in the face. Here comes the proud leaders of the people to capture this movement of the people themselves. Them and all others who are as scheming and as superficial as they are the Baptist addresses as 'offspring of vipers' and in one expression exposes the great and fatal sin that stamped their character. -- What quality the figure of the viper intends to expressisevident, viz. deadly hypocrisy, base treachery, and the fatal deceptions in which they lived. -- The conscience is struck with a directness that almost takes one's breath." - Lenski John uses metaphors from the wilderness in which he preached to describe the hearts and characters of many of his hearers---vipers, stones, barren trees. The sting in the phrase, "brood or offspring of vipers, "refemng to the Pharisees and Saducees, is that these people took great pride and based their hopes for exemption from judgment on the fact that they were the "offspring of Abraham;" when in fact John identifies them correctly as "the offspring of snakes or serpents." Jesus said it even more plainly and pointedly when he told the Phalisees-- "You are oj your Jather the devil," (In. 8:44), that old serpent. mE APPllCATION BY JOHN CALVIN "If John, the organ of the Holy Spirit, employed such severity of language in his opening address to those who voluntarily came to be baptized, and to make a public profession of the gospel; how ought we now to act towards the avowed enemies of Christ, who not only reject obstinately all that belongs to sound doctrine, but whose efforts to extinguish the name of Christ are violently maintained by fire and sword? Most certainly, if you compare the Pope, and his abominable clergy, with the Pharisees and Sadducees, the mildest possible way of dealing with them will be, to throw them all into one bundle. Those, whose ears are so delicate, that they cannot endure to have any bitter things said against the Pope, must argue, not with us, but with the Spirit of God. Yet let godly teachers beware, lest, while they are influenced by holy zeal against the tyrants of the Church, they mingle with it the affections of the flesh. And as no vehemence, which is not regulated by the wisdom of the Spirit, can obtain the divine approbation, let them not only restrain their feelings, but surrender themselves to the Holy Spirit, and implore his guidance, that nothing may escape them through inadvertency." THE MEANING OF "WHO WARNED YOU TO FLEE FROM THE WRATH TO COME?" THE IDENrrTY OF THE ONE WHO wARNED THEM What did Jesus mean by this stunning question? Somebodysecredy and in an underhanded way told them this to deceive them. "John leaves this somebody unnamed since only the devil prompts a man to try to flee from God's wrath bymere outward religious acts. Note the aorist PHUGEIN, (to flee), by which the devil suggests that these hypoclites can actually escape God's wrath by adding another act. By this tense the Baptist' exposes the devil's trick of making these men think that they will really escape when by such an action as theirs (getting John's baptism without repentance) they will run only the more directly into the coming wrath. -- There are two points in John'squestion: first, that nobody can . escape by insincere outward use ofthe means of grace; secondly, that the real way of escape is still open, even for hypoctites .... - Lenski TIiE NATURE OF THE WRATH TO COME The wrath or anger of God is a terlible reality that is mentioned hundreds of times in the O.T and the N.T.,Rom.l:18. It is "the onslaught of the holy God asserting and establishing his absolute claim to dominion."- Stahlin. God's wrath is "the holy revulsion of God's being against that which is the contradiction of His holiness." - Murray. The wrath of God is not some irrational outburst, it is God's "burning zeal for the right coupled with a perfect hatred for everything that is evil." - Morris. This is not concrary to His love, for God's love is not empty sentimentality, it is "a love which is so jealous for the good of the loved ones that it blazes out in fiery wrath against everything that is evil."- Monis. The wrath of God is always active. It is not simply poured out on the wicked at the end of the world; but it is poured out repeatedly and continually in judgment on God's enemies throughout history. Its final manifestation will come on the Day of Judgment, when the wicked are cast into eternal hell. The connection of March, 1994 l' THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon l' 11 the manifestation of God's anger on the apostate and the reprobate with the incarnation of the Messiah is emphasized in Joel 2:31;Zech. 1:15; 2:2; Mal. 3:2; 4:1; 15a. 13:9. The Jews were sadly mistaken who thought that God's wrath would fall only on non-Jews. "The coming wrath" refers to the judgment of God on apostate Israel in the destruction 0 f Jerusalem and banishment of the Jews which took place in A.D. 70, and which was prophesied in the O.T. and by Jesus in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. By this phrase, we are also to think of the judgment to be inflicted on the wicked and impenitent on the Last Day, Rom. 1:18; 2:5,8; 3:5; 5:9. "Salvation is for all who prepare their hearts to receive the MeSsiah; judgment, for all who harden their heans and reject Him." - Plummer THE PURPOSE IN ASKING TInS QUESTION "In this way, he Oohn) summons them to the inward tribunal of consdence, that they may thoroughly examine themselves, and, laying aside all flattery, may institute a severe investigation into their crimes," (-Calvin), and be brought to true repentance. Lenski also points out thatlohn spokeas sternly as he did to drive away from baptism any who would not repent. THE DEMAND TO BRING FORTH FR1JfIS IN KEEPING WITH YOUR REPENTANCE" "Therefore," i.e. since the way Satan has suggested bywhich one can escape the wrath of God, (externalism and sacerdotalism), is false and deceptive, John presents his hearers with the one and only way of salvation from God's wrath on sin: "bring forth fruits in keeping with your repentance." He is saying to his hearers, "If you desire to escape the wrath of God on sin, receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, repent of your sins, and act at once, (aorist imperative) , as those who repent. Begin now living a life day in and day out that is consistent with your repentance and which flows out of your faith." Compare Luke 20:24; Acts3:4; 7:33; 9:11; 16:9; 21:39; 22:13. ''Fruits" (plurnl) treats the series of acts as a collective unit. See also Acts 26:20. True repentanceshowsitselfin daily life, thought and behavior. It bears fruit. A desire to be baptized with water or make a public profession of faith or confession of sin is not suffident. "There must be that inward change which expresses itself outwardly in God-glorifying conduct, fruit-bearing IN KEEPING WITH conversion."- Hendriksen. In Luke 3: 10-14 we see that those "fruits" include generosity, fairness , thoughtfulness and contentment. In Matthew 23:23 they include justice, mercy and faith. On fruit-bearing see Mat 5:20-24; 7:16-19; 12:33; 13:8,23; 16:6, 11, 12; Lk. 13:6-9; In. 15:1-16; Gal. 5:22,23; Eph. 5:9; Phil. 1:22; 4:17; Col. 1:6; Heb. 12:11; 13: 15;Jarn. 3:18. THE ANTICIPATION AND REFUTATION OF THE SIN OF PRESUMPTION Anticipating the argument the Pharisees and Sadducees would give to keep from repenting of their sins, John says to them: "Do not even begin 12 THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon March, 1994 to have this thought in your minds: 'We have Abrahamforourfather:forI say to you that God is able from these stones to raiseup children to Abraham" Outward ceremonies and familyre1atlons will not save a person from the coming wrath of Godagainst sin. John is telling the Pharisees that all lsrael is not Israel , that unless one has Abraham's faith he is not a child of Abraham, Gal. 3:7. Unless a person is a true "seed of Abraham," Le., one whO belongs to Christ by faith regardless of ethnic origin, Gal. 3:28-29, his physical descent from Abraham will be of no value to him; in fact, it will be used against him, Dt. 28. "The reason why these people were headed for damnation was that for their eternal security they were relying on their descent from Abraham. -- The God who was able to create Adam out of the dust of the ground was also able to make true sons of Abraham out of the desen stones." - Hendriksen "r say to you" confronts the multitudes with John's full prophetic authority. He is the mouthpiece of Jehovah, the promised Forerunner of the Messiah. He speaks truth dedsively---God is able to make stones into children of Abrahain, "to fill the place these Jews leave vacant by being false children of Abraham. This figure is tremendous---to tum common, lifeless stones such as were lying there in the wilderness into spiritual children of Abraham! The figure describes the creative power of God's grace most drastically." - Lenski B.THE IMMINENCE OF DIVINE JUDGMENT IN JOHN'S PREACHING "THE AXE 15 AlREADY LAID AT THE ROOT OF THE TREES" To those who refuse to repent and believe in Jesus as the Messiah,] ohn says in the clearest of tenns: Judgment is at hand. It has already begun. The axe is right now striking at the root of the trees, ready to cut down one tree after another. Right now, therefore, is the time to repent and believe, Psa. 95:7,8; !sa. 55:6; Ue 13:7, 9; 17:32; In. 15:6; Rom. 13: 11; II Cor. 6:2; IJn. 2: 18; Rev. 1:3. "When repentance is refused, nothing is left for impenitence but wrath and judgment."-Lenski The Axe ofDivine Judgment is at the "root" of the tree, signifying that the judgment will completely destroy the tree, not even a stump will be left. What is this "axe," this imminent judgment about which]ohn warns his hearers? FIRST, because the Jewish people continued in their apostasy and refused to receiveJesus as the Messiah, In. 1:11-12, God would pour out His wrath onJerusalem to destroy her and end theJewishstate, as He had warned them time and again in the O.T. And the destruction of Jerusalem, 70, A.D. by the Roman Annies was drawing pelilously near. (Remember John's public career began about 27, A.DJ SECOND, "impenitence has a tendency of hardening a person, so that often he is left in his present lost condition. Without genUine repentance death and the judgment are for him irrevocable and 'at the door,''' - Hendriksen (Read Rom. 1: 18!). THIRD, "he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God," In. 3: 18. God is angry with the wicked every day. His settled indignation rests upon rebellious and unbelieving people, and it will eventually be poured out on them, Rom. 1:18. THE DESTRUCTION OF THE TREES THAT DO NOT BEAR GOOD FRUIT The plural, "trees, now becomes the Singular, "tree"---"Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." God's judgment is inflexibly just: it strikes only those who do not "bear good fruit," and it strikes everyone of those! THE MEANING OF "GOOD FRUIT" By God's grace through faith and repentance a person is made a "good tree," capableofproducing"good fruit," because that is the (new) nature of the tree. This "good fruit" follows as a matter of course. No axe will ever be laid at the root of these trees. In the Sennon on the Mount,] esus expanded on John's figure, when He said: "You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thombushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? Even so every good tree bears good fruit; but the rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits," Mat. 7: 15ff. See also Mat. 12:33; Lk 6:44; James 3: 12;1ohn 15:lff. These "good fruits" produced by "good trees", do not refer to other people convened through the witness of the "good trees", but to the righteousness and faithfulness of life and thought which always flow from true faith in Christ, Eph. 2:8-10; In. 15:lff; Gal. 5:22f. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF "FIRE" The '}ire" into which the fruitless trees are "thrown" is obviously a symbol of the final outpouring of God's holy anger upon the wicked in eternal hell, "where there is weeping and wailing; and gnashing of teeth," "where the worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched." The Bible frequently uses the figure of fire to describe God's judgment, Mal. 4:1; In. 15:6; Mat. 13:40; Mk. 9:43; Mat. 18:8,9. "The Sadducees of all ages have tlied to quencll this fire by maldng sport of it but thereby only prepare themselves the more for it and hasten its coming for themselves."- Lenski THE TIMELESSNESS OF THE PRESENT TENSE VERBS "Is already laid at the root," "that does not bear good fruit," "is cut down," and "thrown" are verbs in the present tense. "The velY timelessness of these present tenses lends them additional power. This is what is done. WHEN it is done makes no difference; keep your mind on these terrible acts and use the day of grace NOW."- Lenski THE APPLICATION OF JOHN CALVIN "God has already displayed his power for pUrifying the Church. The grace of God is never manifested for the salvation of the godly, till his judgment first appears for the destruction of the world: and for two reasons; because God then separates his own people from the reprobate, and because his wrath is kindled anew by the ingratitude of the world. So that we have no reason to wonder, if the preaching of the gospel and the coming of Christ laid the axe for cutting down barren trees, orif the same causes daily advance the wl'ath of God against the wicked." C. THE PRACTICAL DEMANDS OF LOVE IN JOHN'S PREACHING (3:10-14) THE POINT OF THESE DEMANDS THE NATURE OF TRUE REFENTANCE In this section, 3: 10-14, Luke defines the "good fruit" which flows from true faith and repentance, in answer to his hearer's question, "What, then shall we do? What are the fruits worthy of repentance?" Being Jewish, they had li\e Old Testament, they should have known the answer to their own question. John's answer is so simple. Their question reveals the abysmal ignorance of these people because of their long-standing apostasy. "No new, strange laws are laid down; nor does John require of others the mode oflife that he led as part of his peculiar calling. It is the March, 1994 THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon t- 13 old law and will of God that are done with a converted heart in the power of God's grace:" LeIl$ki. John requires of them love, which is the fulfilling of the law of God. Each of the three categories of inquirers is called upon to repent of its own particular sins, its besetting sins, and to treat others with neighborly love. These questions from the crowd, the tax"collectors and the soldiers reveal that all of them were oppressed with a sense of guilt. John's preaching was convicting them of their sins, much as Peter's preaching did in Acts 2:37. Manyofjohn's hearers were beginning to realize that "trlie conversion implies sorrow . , ' for sm, repentance and forsaking the old way of life."" Hendriksen Calvin's point is a wise one: "We must particu" larly observe, that the ' duties of charity are here mentioned, not because they are of higher value than the worship of God, but because they testify the piety of men, so as to detect the hypocrisy of those who boast with the mouth what is far distant from the heart." THE ENFORONG OF THE lAws OF THE COMING KING Jesus ChriSt came as Messiah and King to declare afresh the validity of His Law and to declare His purpose to put that Law in effect, for Christ's Law is Diankind. "The faCt that the King was coming to enforce His kingship and His law was very blundy stated by John the Baptist. He spoke of 'the wrath to come,' (Lk. 3:7; Mat. 3:7), Le., the judgment of the King. (Mat. 3:10;Lk.3:9) - The King intended to judge and'tborougblypurge' His realm, Mat. 3: 12. When the unbelieving people asked John, 'What shall we do then?' (Lk. 3:1O),John answered that they should do two things: first, obey the law, and second, manifest charity towards thoseinneed,Lk. 3:11"14)."" Rushdoony, Institutes of Biblical Law, pg.699. THE DEMAND ON THE MAN WITH TWO TUNICS A was a piece of clothing worn close to the skin under a robe or jacket. An average person might have two or three "tunics." To those who have more than they need, both in clothing and in food, John demands that they lovingly and unselfishly share with those who had neither sufficient clothing or food. John's answer is a figure of speech called a "synecdoche," Le., a figure of speech in which a part or individual case is used for a whole or class. These two examples, tunics and food, contain the general rule: "each person should give out of his abundance to supply the needs of the poor."" Calvin. See II Cor. 8:14 Notice that John does not tell his hearers that the state should come in and deprive the "rich" of his property so as to redistribute the wealth equally, nor does he tell the man without a tunic that he may help himself to the property of his neighbor by whatever 14 '1' THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon ;: March, 1994 means are made available to him, nor does he condone the refusal to work so as to be on welfare, and receive something for nothing. What John is encouraging is voluntary sharing. "Those who lay it down as a law, that no man must have any property ofhis own, not only make cortsciences to tremble, but overwhelm them with despair. With fanatiCS of this sort, who obstinately adhere to the literal meaning" it is not necessary that we should 'spend much time in refutation. If we are not allowed to have 'two coats: the same rule will apply to dishes, salt "cellars, shirts, and, in short, to all the furniture of a house. But the context makes it evident, thatnothingwas farther from John's intention than to overthrow, the order of a state. Hence we infer, that all that he enjoined on the tich was, that they should bestow on the poor, according to their own ability, whattheirnecessity required, 'Consider to what extent the necessities of life, which you enjoy abundantly,are wanted by (lacking in) yourneighbor, that your abundance may be a supply for their want," IT Cor. 8: 14. But the more liberty that God allows us, we ought to be the more careful not to allow ourselves undue liberty. Let the necessity of our brethren affect us powerfully, and let the bounty of God, which is in our hands, stimulate us to acts ofkindrtess and generosity."" Calvin THE DEMAND ON THE TAX" COLLEctOR "Publicarts," ortax"coUectors, were a despised lot, because they were Jews who,asagentsofthepagangovemment of Caesaror Herod, collected theurtjilst and hated taxes the tyrannical state imposed on the Jewish people. Moreover, they would increase the amount required by the state, so as to make a profit off the people at the people's expense. "These tax-collectors were detested everywhere, because of their oppressiveness and fraud, and were classed with the vilest of mankind.... The Jews especially abhorred them as bloodsuckers for a heathen conqueror. For aJew to enter such a service was the most utter degradation. Hewasexcommunicated, and his whole mmily was regarded as disgraced."- Plummer Some of these publicans, convicted of their sins and turning to Christ because of the preaching of John, inquire of John, "Teacher, what shall we do? Whatis God's will forus now?" John's answer is definite and uncompromising-- "Collect no more than what you have been ordered to." "There must be immediate, complete, wholehearted obedience. Dillydallying is deadly. Halfway measures work havoc. Sin, being a destructive force, must not be pampered. The right action must be substituted at once for the wrong." - Hendriksen Jesus did not require them to give up their jobs, but to collect taxes with honesty and integrity. 111eywere mced with their sin of extortion, because conversion, (lmerepemance), ishonesty in our callings for the glory of God. THE DEMAND ON THE SOLDIER AmongJohn's hearers who desired repentance-baptism were Jewish soldiers serving in the army of some branch of government, (under Pilate'S, Herod's or Caesar'sauthority), perhaps acting as police in support of the tax-collectors, who were accustomed to intimidating, bullying and taking advantage ofthe citizenry. The people were helpless to defend themselves or to remedy the situation. True repentance in soldiers does not mean leaving their position in the military. It means repenting of asoldier's specific sins, avoiding the temptalionscommon to the life of the soldier, and submitting to the authority of Christ the King, as superior to all other authorities. Christiansoldiersmustnotintimidate, terrorize, bully, falsely accuse or take advantage of their position to defraud the people they are supposed to protect. Furthermore, they are to be content with their wages. Refusal to submit to the Messiah's kingly authority in these areas is proof of a counterfeit conversion. "It is especially hard in any profession to oppose its common (sinful) practices, which always elicits ridicule, perhaps even persecution by the impenitent. Hence the avoidance of these sins is a good test of real repentance." - Lensld (3:15-17) THE WITNESS OF JOHN THE FORERUNNER m JESUS THE MESSIAH (3: 15) THE STATE OF EXPECTATION AND CONFUSION IN JOHN'S AUDIENCE John's powerful preaching was causing intense excitement among his hearers. Many of them were in a state of anticipation of the imminent appearance of the Messiah, His salvation, and His judgment. At the same time, some in the crowd wondered and debated whether John Hirnselfwas the "Christ"whose coming was near, John 1:20. This is an inexcusably false assumption because, John did not in any way profess to be "the Coming One;" he specifically distinguished Himself from the Messiah in his preaching; he had none of "the insignia of royalty," not even descent from King David. There is no way he could have been the Messiah. He knew it. And the crowds should have known it, had they not been confused by their long-standing apostasy, which produced in them apparently abysmal ignorance concerning the Bible's gospel. (3: 16a) THE MESSIAH AS INFINITELY SUPERIOR TO JOHN THE UNEQUNOCAL ANSWER OF JOHN TO THE SPECULATION OF THE CROWDS As soon as the question of the possible messianic identity of John arises, John himself expressly and unconditionally places himself in the background and points the crowds to Jesus, Who is the Coming One, the promised Savior. John makes unmistakably clear to them that regardless how important and necessary his preaching and his baptism were, they were of far lesser importance and value than the ministry of the coming Messiah. THE SUPERIORITY OF JESUS CHRIST TO JOHN THE BAPTIST John's low view of himself and his high view of Christ come out in his statement: "As Jor me, I baptize you with water; but He who is mightier than I is coming, and I am not fit to untie the thong oj His sandals; He Himself will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." THE EMPHATIC CONrRAST EXPRESSED IN "As for me, 1.. .. " "I" is the emphatic form for "I" in Greek, (EGO). With this emphatic "I" John places himself over against the MeSSiah, who, by contrast, he calls, "One Who is Mightier than I." In other words, he is saying to his audience, in order to take their attention off him and to place it on Christ, "If you think I am great and important, the MesSiah Whose Coming is here, is infinitely greater and more important. THE COMING ONE WHO IS "MIGHTIER" THAN JOHN TIiE MESSIAH AS "THE COMING ONE" John calls Jesus "the Coming One," which in Greek emphasizes that He is on the way, He is coming right now, His coming is upon us. "He Who Comes" is a Messianic title ofJesus used often of Him in the Bible, Lk. March, 1994 THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon 'i' 15 7:19f;Mat.11:3;Lk.13:35;Mat.23:39; Psa. 118:26; Mk. 11:9; In. US, 27; 6:14; 11:27; Act. 19:4; Heb. 10:37; Hab.2:3. This title of Jesus, probably originating with John the Baptist, Mk. 1: 7; Lk. 3: 16, is tide ofDeityaccording to Revelation 1:4, 8; 4:8. It is also important to note that it is in the present tense denoting continuous action. Christ is the Coming One in thatHecametoeanhintheincarnation, tomes throughout histol'Y ' by providence, His Word and His Spirit to judge and to save, and He will come at the end of history to finish what He has begun. Hence,the Bible ends with the prayer, "Even so, keep on coming Lordjesus!" lHE MESSIAH AS II M1GHI1ER " mAN JOHN TIlE BAP'IlST John declares that Christ is vastly superior in power and rank than he. "He Who is mightier" in Greek refers to the personal possession of strength. "Power belongs to Lord." By using the comparative, umightier," John is implying that he too isstrong, but only because He who personally possesses all power has given him strength through the divine strength of the Word of God. John has no false humility, but a clear understanding of the facts. THE UNFITNESS OF JOHN TO UNTIE JESUS' SANDALS John considers hirrtself inferior to Jesus, not only because Jesus possesses total power, but because Jesus as our Great Kingis ofinlinitelY greaterwonh thanJohn, forJohn,asimpottaotashe is in the gospel story, is not fit or wor- thy "to untie the thong of His sandals." John considers hirrtselfnot even wonby to be Christ's slave, for a slave's duties included unloosing his master's shoe-laces and carrying his shoes to him, Mat. 3: 11. In saying that he is "not fit" to unlace Christ's sandals, John is "not debasing himself in' extravagant Oriental language; he was speaking as God's pro phet who was fined with the Spirit and told the literal truth by explaining the greamess and the exaltation of the Messiah. -- If John is not fit to handle the sandals which only the feet of the Messiah have touched, how great, then,must this Messiah be? The answer is; , HE IS GOD'S OWN SON."- Lenski THE INFERIORITY OF JOHN'S BAPTISM 'COMPARED TO BAPTISM Besides John's inferiority to Jesus in terrrts of power and in terms of worth, he is also inferior to Jesus in terms of baptism: , "r baptize you with water; but He who is,mightier than r ... He Himself will baptize, you with the Holy Spirit and fire. " mE POINT OF THE: CONTRASf . Jesus Christ, the Master, is the Originator of Spiritual baptism, while ] ohn, the unworthy slave, is the minister of the sacrament of baptism. The COntrast is not between water-baptism and Spirit-baptism, as , if they were two entirely separate things, and as if John's baptism was not a real means of Spiritual grace, The contrast is between baptism by the Master and baptism by the unworthy slave. The contrast is between what is done in baptism by men and what is done in baptism by Christ the Lord. "to men has been committed nothing more than the administration of an outward and visible sign: the reality dwelli with Christ alone. -- Christ alone bestows all the grace which is figuratively represented by outward baptism, because it is He who 'sprinkles the consdence' with His blood. It is He also who mortifies the old man, and bestows the Spirit of regeneration."- Calvin John perfOTrrts the visible sigu by employing water, ("with water"). ' Water in Greek, HUDATI, is a dative of means, denoting instrumentality of 16 THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon f March, 1!194 things. "God'sSon willcro,wnHis grea( redemptive work by baptizing . 'in connection with th!! Holy Spiritan<;! fire. m _ Lenski. "With" iuthe phrase "with the Holy Spirit" is the Greek preposition EN, also denoting instrumentality of persons. "A divinely appointed man may use water in the sacrament; only the Son of God can pour out the Holy Spirit, and even He only after completing His redemptive worl< and then ascending to heaven. "Jdhnisdescribinghisownstrength when he says that he is engaged in baptizing 'with water.' This was the powerthathad been put into !tis hands by God. -- It is unwarranted to stress 'HUDATI' (''with water") so thatJohn's baptism becomes noth,ing but a symbolical sprinkling with water or, as some claim, immersion in water (against which the darive rebels). To claim that because Jesus baptized in connection with the Holy Spirit,] ohn's baptism was devoid ofthe Spirit, is,to draw an unwarranted conclnsion. "The distinCtion is not: before Pentecost NO Spirit; after Pentecost the Spirit, If this were true, no soul could have been saved before Pentecost. The true distinction is: before the actually completed work of redemption the limited preparatory work of the Spirit; after Pentecost the superabounding fnllness of the Spirit Lenski The idea that water-baptism is a mere and empty symbol without conveying the Spirit to qod's people, and that Spitit -bapti,Sin is something unconnected with the ,sacrament, "a second blessing" to use charismatic terminology, "is a fanatical outgrowth which casts aspersions upon the very means of grace by which the Spirit does come to us and for these means substitutes human emotions, imaginings, and dreams by which the Holy Spirit never comes." - Lenski (3: 16b) THE MESSIAH AS TJ-IE BAPTIZER W1TJ-1 THE HOLY SPIRIT The Christ John preached is The Baptizer with the Holy Spirit and Fire. WHEN DID THE BAPTISM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT TAKE PLACE? The resurrected Christ gives His own commentary on the meaning of Jobn's prophecy about Chlist's Baptism with the Spirit in Acts 1 :4-5, 8---"And gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait Jorwhatthe Fatherhadpromised, 'Which,' He said, 'you heard oj Jrom Me;for John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit NOT MANY DAYS FROM NOW: (i.e., The Day of Pentecost, Acts 2) -- ... but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotestpartoJ the earth. TheApostle Peter also explains how the Holy Spirit came upon Cornelius and the Gentiles ~ u s t as He did upon us at the beginning," ( Acts 11:15), i.e., on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2. Then he continues in Acts 11: 16---"And I remembered the word oj the Lord, how Heused to say, John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'" "The miraculous outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost is the supreme work and thus the final great mark of the Messiah. None but the Son, who had gone to the Father, In. 16:7, after completing redemption, could thus send the Comforter. This stronger One, Who was to show His strength by thus sending the Spirit miraculously, was also miraculously pointed out to John the Baptist, (Ue 3:22;Jn. 1:32-34) .... "- Lenski WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THE BAPTISM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT? John was sent to administer the visible sign of baptism. Christ came to pour forth His Spirit on His Church to bring about her inward purification from sin and renewal to new life in Him. Christ administers the Baptism with the Holy Spirit, "a baptism which gives inwardly what is outwardly symbolized by the baptism with water. Just as fire consumes what is destructible and thus works in a pUrifying and cleansing manner; so the Messiah will through the Holy Spitit consume sin and the sinners in so far as they cling to sin. In this way those who persist in sin will be destroyed, but those who sincerely confess their sins and flee to Him for refuge will be purified from sin to their own salvation, and delivered from its penalty and power."- Geldenhuys For more on the meaning of the baptism with the Holy Spirit see Appendix: "The Fire and the Wind: The Holy Spiritin the Book oJ Acts," pgs. 4lf. WHAT IS THE MODE OF THE BAPTISM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT Luke uses the preposition "EN" meaning in connection with, or with, in the phrase "baptize with the Holy Spirit," in 3:16, while in speaking of John's baptism he simply uses the dative of means, "with water," HUDATI in Greek. Matthew uses EN with both "water" and "the Holy Spirit" in his account. "The simple fact is that in Luke HUDATI is the dative of means, and EN used with the Holy Spirit and fire in Luke as well as the two EN in Matthew has just its Oliginal meaning 'in connection with.' So Matthew says that John baptized in connection with water, and Luke says with water as, of course, everybody saw; and both say that Christ would do a baptizing 'in connection with the Holy Spirit and fire' as everybody would also see when the time came. The nature of the connections with EN lies, not in the prepositions, but in the nouns that follow. Luke says that in the case of Jobn the water was only a means and not a place."- Lenski The point is that just as the Holy Spirit CAME DOWN uponJesus at His baptism in the form of a dove, and just as the Holy Spirit was POURED OUT on the Church from above on the Day of Pentecost, the visible sign of baptism which represents this spititual reality must be coordinate with that reality; therefore, water-baptism should be by pouring or sprinkling, (affusion from above), and not by immersion, for never is the believer said to be immersed in the Holy Spirit. "One may admire the courage of those who find immersion in EN HUDATI, "with water," but not in EN PNEUMATI HAGIO KAI PURl, "with the Holy Spititand fire." Could Luke's simple dative also mean immersion? That makes EN HUDATI locative, (denoting location), and translates Luke's dative 'in water'; but the locative is inept when it comes to the parallel phrase EN with a person, the Holy Spitit, and with fire."- Lenski THE MEANING OF "BAPTIZE YOU WlTH .... FlRE" This phrase has been interpreted in two senses: [IJ. "Fire" is an apposition for "Spirit," hence, the baptism with the Spiritisa baptism with fire, referting to the illuminating, kindling, and pUlifying power of the Holy Spirit given by Christ through baptism. (An apposition is a grammatical construction in which a noun is followed by another that explains it.) For the biblical use of the figure of fire as an image of purification see Zech. 13:9; Isa. 6:6,7; IPet.l:7. In Isaiah 4:4 the Holy Spirit is refened to as the "Spirit of burning." FUlthermore, on the Day of Pentecost, when the Baptism with the Spilit took place tongues of fire appeared over the disciples heads as the visible manifestation of the outpoUling of the Holy Spirit, Acts 2. Therefore the hymn-writers sing: "Come, Holy Spilit, from above with Thy celestial fire; Come and with flames March, 1994 t- THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon l' 17 of zeal and love our hearts and tongues inspire." - Cotterill. "Come as the fire and purge our hearts like sacrificial flame." - Reede. [2]. "Fire" symbolizes the fiery judgment which Christ will pour out on all impenitent apostates and reprobates. This fits in well with the context since the very next verse deals explicitly with the subject ' of imminentandcompletejudgment; and in which verse "fire" is dearly used 'to denote the judgment of God on the impenitent. On the Day of Pentecost Christ baptized His church with the Holy Spirit and in 70, A.D. Christ baptized apostate Israel with the lire of destructive judgment by means of the Roman armies. However, Leon Morris makes the point, that while the context favors the interpretation of fire as judgment, "it is the same people who are baptized with the Holy Spirit as with fire (and the two are governedbyoneEN, ('with') in the Greek). ItseemsbesttoseeJohn as thinking of positive and negative aspects of Messiah's message. Those who accept Him will be purified as by fire, Mal. 3: 1, and strengthened by the Holy Spirit. Geldenhuys, as we have seen, unites the ideas of purification and judgment in his interpretation of the "lire" ---'1ust as fire consumes what is destructible and thus works in a pUrifYing and deansing manner, so the Messiah will through the Holy Spirit consume sin and the sinners in so far as they ding to sin. In this way those who persist in sin will be destroyed, but those who sincerely confess their sins and flee to Him for refuge will be purified from sin to their own salvation ... ." (3: 1. 7) THE MESSIAH AS THE INESCAPABLE JUDGE John preached Christ not only as the Mighty Baptizer with the Holy Spirit, but also as the Mighty and InescapableJudge,VVhose"winnavnng fork is in His hand to clean out His threshing:fioor, and to gather the wheat into His bam; but He will bum up the chaff with unquenchable fire." THE MEANING OF CHRIST'S "CliANING OUT fIlS THRESHING-FLOOR" THE POlARIZATION OF THE HUMAN RACE BY JESUS CHRISr The winnower would take his winnOWing-fork and toss the threshed-out wheat off the threshing-tloorinto the air, separating the valuable wheat from the useless chaff, as the grains of wheat feU to the floor in one heap, and as the breeze blew away the chaff, which would be gathered and burned. Thewheatwould be taken to the barn and stored for future use. In like manner, the coming Messiah would sift and polarize mankind, byseparatingmankind into WHEATandCHAFF,thepenitentand the impenitent, those who submitted to His Kingly rule and those who persisted in theirrebellionagainst Him, the saved and the lost, the righteous and the wicked, the elect and the reprobate, those on the "inside" and. those on the "outside: See Jesus' explanation as to why He taught in parables in Matthew l.3:l.l. andJohn 12:37f. THE SUPERIOR POWER AND POSITION OFJESUSCHRISr John continues to impress us with the superior might and worth ofJesus Christ, because onlyGodHimself could do what John says Jesus will do in verses 1.6-17--baptize with the Spirit and fire, clean out the threshing-tloor, gather the wheat, and bum up the chaff with unquenchable fire. These statements demand that Christ be nothing less that the Son of God, the Lord Himself in our humanity. THE TWO PARTS OF CHRIST'S JUDGMENT This judgment of Christ is pictured as in two parts: [II. the separation of the wheat and the chaff, Mat. 25:32; and [21. the disposal of the wheat and 18 THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon March, 1994 the chaff, Mat. 25:34. Christbegins the separation in this life by regenerating depraved sinners, who are "chafP'bynature,into "wheat,"te., true believers, and then by causing the believers and the unbelievers to be utterly distinct from each other, Psa. 89:6; 149:1; Psa. 26:5; Psa. 1:1; although in this llfe the separation is never complete nor made fully visible as long as we live in a world in which "it does not yet appear what we, shall be: butwe know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him;forwe shall see Him as He Is: Un. 3:2. However, once the separation is complete and final, the wheat and the chaff, (or tares), will never be mixed again, for the threshing-floor will be cU:ansed "thoroughly" and completely. THE MEANS BY WInCH CHRISf WIll. POLARIZE MANKIND John Calvin points out that Christ will accomplish this Sifting and separating of the human race by means of His Gospel, for "the preaching ofthe Gospe!, then, is the Wintwwing1ork. Before the Lord SIFTS us, the whole world is involved in confusion, every one flatters himself, and the good are mixed with the bad: inshon,itis only necessary that the CHAFF be blown. BUt when Christ comes forward with His Gospel,--'-when He reproves the consciences and summons them to the tribunal of God, the CHAFF is sifted out, which formerly occupied a great part of the THRASHING-FLOOR. Itis true that, in the case ofindividual.s, the Gospel effects a separation from the CHAFF: but in this passage, John compares the reprohate to CHAFF, and believers to WHEAT: THE MEANING OF CHRIST "GATHERING THE WHEAT INTO HIS BARN" Christ disposes of His wheat, after separating it from the chaff, by "gathering the wheat into His bam. The infinitive of purpose in connection with the wlieat, SUNAGAGEIN, teaches us that it has always been God's eternal purpose to gather His valuable and highly treasured wheat into His storehouse, and to bum up the worthless chaff, which is just waste. Moreover, it has always been God's eternal purpose to accomplish these two objectives through Jesus Christ, Who personally" gathers" the elect inte the Church, (the Christian 'synagogue'), and Who "burns up" the reprobate. "This work was begun wicked signifying only a long age of time; but then 'etemal' in connection with the blessedness of the saints in heaven, (Matthew 25:46), would also mean a blessedness that finally ends. 'UNQUENCHABLE' blocks all such views. It shuts out both annihilation and final restitution, (i.e., the idea that someday everybodywithout exception will be saved)." This "unquenchable fire" that burns up the impenitent unbeliever is the infinite azure of etemity; a spot on the sun. Hell is ouly a comer of the univeIse. -- (Hell) is 'bottomless' but not boundless. -- The Bible teaches that there will always be some sin, and some death, in the universe. Some angels and men will forever be the enemies of God. But their number, compared with that of unfallen angels and redeemed men, is small. They are not desclibed in the glowing language and metaphors bywhich the immensity of the holy and blessed is by Christ, and is daily going forward: but the full accomplishment of it will not be seen till the last day. But let us remember, that believers even now enter, by hope, into the GRANARY of God, in which they will actually have their everlasting abode; while the reprobate experience, in their convictions of guilt, the "The strongest support of the doctrine of endless punishment is the teaching of Christ, the Redeemer of man .. , He is the Being with whom all opponents of this theological tenet are in conflict, Neither the Christian Church, nor the Christian ministry are delineated, Psa. 68: 17; Pt. 22:2; Psa. 103:21; Mat. 6: 13; I Cor. 15:25; Rev. 21:16, 24, 25."- w.G.T. Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, Vol. II, pg. 746f, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, Tenn. IllE AUTHOR OF THE DOCTRINES OF HELL AND ENDLESS PUNISHMENT FOR THE IMPENITENT the authors of it," w.G, T. Shedd heat of that FIRE, the actual BURNING of which they will feel at the last day." The ultimate fulfillment of this gracious disposal of the wheat, precious to God, is described in Revelation 21-22. THE MEANING OF CHRIST'S "BURNING UP THE CHAFF WITH UNQUENCHABlE FIRE" The impenitent unbeliever, the reprobate, the worthless chalf will be "burned up' by Jesus Christ "with unquenchable fire.' This buming up with fire does not denote the annihilation of the wicked at death. John the Baptist slams the door to that empty theOlY with the dative of means "with UNQUENCHABLE fire." As Lenski says, "if the wicked were to be annihilated, the fire would bum itself out; instead it will never be quenched, it simply cannot be, it will bum on eternally as an eternal punishment for the wicked. Some have 'etemal' as it is used in the Scriptures, (as in Matthew 25:46), as it is applied to the fate of the eternal punishment by which the reprobate will be tormented, physically and spiritually, after the Final Judgment, in Hell, "where the worm does not die and where the fire is not quenched: "where there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth." (Mark 8:44,46,48; Rev. 14:9-11). This figure of "fire" is used to describe a reality, "a dreadful tennent, which no man can now comprehend and no language can express."- Calvin THE EXTENT AND SCOPE OF HELL "A single remark remains to be made respecting the extent and scope of hell. It is only a spot in the universe of God. Compared with heaven, hell is narrow and limited. The kingdom of Satan is insignificant in contrast with the Kingdom of Christ. In the immense range of God's dominion, good is the rule, and evil is the exception. Sin is a speck upon the "The strongest support of the doctrine of Endless Punishment is the teaching of Chlist, the Redeemer of man, Mat. 25:31-33, 41, 46; Mk. 9:43-48; 8:36; Lk. 9:25; Lk. 16:22,23; Mat. 10:28; Mat. 13:41,42; 7:22,23; Lk. 12:9, 10; Mat. 23:16, 33; Mat. 26:24; Lk. 12:46; Mk. 16: 16; Mat. 11:23; 13:49,50; In. 8:21; 5:28,29; Mat. 3:12; 13:30, 47; 25:19-20. -- Jesus Christ is the Person who is responsible for the doctline of Eternal Perdition. He is the Being with whom all opponents of this theological tenet are in conllict. Neither the Christian Church, northe Christian ministry are the authors of it." - Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, vol. Ill, pg. 675ff. THE IMMINENCE OF CHRIST'S JUDGMENT John has repetitively tried to impress his hearers with the urgency of repentance because of the imminence of judgment. ", .. flee that approaching wrath," vs. 7. " ... the axe is already laid at the root of the trees," Marcil, 1994 ~ THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon 19 vs. 9. "His winnowing fork is in His hand .. .. ,"vs.17. (3:18-20) THE PERSECUTION OF JOHN BY HEROD (3:1B-19) THE BOLD AND POWERFUL PREACHING OF JOHN THE FORERUNNER TJ:IE PREACHING OF JUDGMENT AS THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL The preaching of the gospel includes the preaching of judgment Luke suddenly and briefly concludes his history of John the Forerunner by introducing, immediately before the account of the baptism of] esuS, a short paragraph on Herod's imprisonment of John, 3:19,20. The other synoptic gospels do not refer to this event until mucth later in their accounts, in connection with John's execution by Herod, Mat. 14:1-12; Mk. 6:14-29. Since Luke mentions John's imprisonment prior of the stupendous event represented by the birth of Christ and His presence in the world."- Stonehouse, pg. 63. THE PERSECUTION AND EXECUTION OF JOHN LukepresentsJohn'sarrestas being the climax of all Herod's crimes. It was this because Herod laid hands on God's prophet, Christ's forerunner, and silenced his gospel preaching, an act that was worse than his adultery with ontheimpenitent,whichis Herodias. - Lenski. Notice how verse 20 an integral part of the gospel: "Unless we can be sure that in the end evil will be decisively overthrown there is no ultimate good news." - L Morris "Luke alone of the synoptilsts fails to reads, speaking of tel/the story of the death of John. Herod's sin of THE ELEMENTS OF TRUE PREACHING OF THE Gospel " , imprisoning John: ... he This silence. flke that concerning John's added this also to them all, baptism of Jesus, provides eloquent (l.e. ,all ofHerod'swicked tee . tlmonv that John I,s not introduced deeds), thathe lockedJohn OJ up in prison. On top of for his own sake. We see. therefore, all his others sins, Herod that John the Baptist ... owes his place added the imprisonment Three words in verses and death of John the 18 and 19 define three basic in the early chapters of Luke to the Forerunner, which was ingredients of true light that his testimony casts upon the most revolting, preaching of the gospel, as theslt2nificance of Jesus Christ." disgusting, loathsome well as the three main::> wicked deed of all, functions of John: [11. l!.===============;;;;;;:==;;;;;!J because it was a crime PARAKALON, (with many other toJesus'baptism,itisobviousthathe against John the Forerunner, the exhortations"), [2]. EUAGGEL- is anticipating a later incident. Luke Gospel of Christ he preached, the IDZETO, ("he preached the gospel"), also presupposes that John lived for people who believed and needed the [3). ELEGCHOMENOS, ("Herod the some time after the beginnings of the preaching ofjohn, and above all it was tetrarch was reproved by him"). True lilinistryofjesus,7: lB. But Luke alone a crime against God, Who sent the preaching involves exhorting of the synoptists fails to tell the story of Forerunner. everybody to obey God's Word, the death of John. This silence, like John was a fearless preacher. He preaching the good news of salvation thatconcerningjohn'sbaptismofjesus, did not even shrink back from in Christ to penitent believers, and provideseloquerittestimonythat]ohn reproving Herod Antipas, the civil reproving the 1m penitent unbelievers. is not introduced for his own sake. We governor of Galilee and Perea, for his John "exhorted" the people "in regard to see, therefore, that John the Baptist, adultery and from calling him to many other things, much and in many than whom there was no greater born repentance. He did not jUst reprove ways." He continued bringing the among women, 7:2B, as well as the h' h dhim dl good news" of the gospel to the people. 1m once, e reprove repeate y obscure Simeon, owes his place in the until Herod, who had hardened his And He "repeatedly reproved" Herod for "all the evil things" He had done. early chapters of Luke to the light that heart to the preaching of the gospel, his testimony casts upon the finallythrew]ohninto prison and later (3:20) THE PERsECUTION Significance of Jesus Christ. The had him beheaded according to his OF JOHN BY HEROD THE POINT LUKE IS MAKING BY INTERJECTING THE RECORD OF nIls EVENT AT THIS POINT IN HIS NARRATIVE contacts of these two men with the wife, Herodias, Lk. 9:7-9. Herodias originandearlyhistory ofjesus provide wasangrywithJohnbecausewhenever occasions for disclosures which he reproved Herod, he was always by interpret authoritatively the meaning implication denouncing her. 20 :; THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon :; March, 1994 CONCLUSION God sent John to point people to Jesus Christ, by explaining to them their dire need of Ch11st and the greatness of Christ to meet their need; by exhorting them to repent of their sin and believe in Jesus Christ. "This preaching of repentance must always be an inherent element in the Gospel-preaching of the church. Firstly, the sinfulness of sin should be pointed out, as well as God's wrath against it, followed by the inexorable, (Le., adamant and inflexible), demand for true repentance, and then there should be a summons to have faith in Jesus, the Savior. Without the preaching of the need for repentance the message of the church would degenerate into sentiment."- Geldenhuys To make sure we understand the full meaning of !epentance and faith in Christ, I am adding this excellent definition of repentance and saving faith from the Wesoninster Confession of Faith, chapters XN and XII: "TIIEGRACE OF FAITH, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls, is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts, and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word.... By this faith a Christian believes to be true whatsoever is revealed in the Word, for the authority of God Himself speaking therein; and acts differently upon that which each particular passage thereof contains; yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life and that which is to come. But the principal aCts of saving faith are, accepting, receiving, and resting upon Christ alone for justification, (Le., salvation from the gUilt and punishment of sin) ,sanctification, (Le., salvation from the tyranny and power of sin), and eternallife,(Le., salvation from the presence of sin), by vinue of the covenant of grace." "REPENTANCE unto life is an evangelical grace.... By it a sinner, out of the sight and sense, not only of the danger, but also of the filthiness and odiousness of his sins, as contrary to the holy nature and righteous law of God, and upon the apprehension of His mercy in Christ to such as are penitent, so glieves' for and hates his sins, as to tum from them all unto God, purposing and endeavoring to walk with Him in all the ways of His commandments ... The following foomotes relate to The Mlntstry ofJohn the Baptist Part I, found on page 9 in the January/Feb- ruaryissue of The Counsel oj Chalcedon. IJ ohn Murray has wlitten, in his book, ChrutianBaptism, pg. 22: "There are so many instances of sprinkling in the ritual of the Mosaic economy that it is not necessary to give the citations. In connection with the blood of the sacrifices no action of the priest was more prominent than the sprinkling with blood. And the significance of sprinkling is shown by nothing more than by the fact that when the high pliest went into the holiest of all once a year on the great day of atonement he sprinkled the blood ofthesin-offeirngs seven times before the mercy-seat and upon the mercy-seat, Lev. 16:14,15. That this sprinkling had reference to cleansing appears from Leviticus 16: 19 .... --- Ezekie136:25 indicates as clearly as any text in the O.T. the putificatory significance of sprinkling and the adequacy of sprinkling as a mode of purification .... " 'George Armsuong, in his book, The Sacraments oj the New Testament as Instituted by Christ, pg. 22f, has shown convincingly that not only is there "no evidence that personal purifications (in the O. T.) were ever by immersion;" but that "the SCriptures give us good reason to believe that immersion was never resoned to for such a purpose." His gives three reasons for his conclusion: (1). the words used in the Hebrew OT. and in the Greek O.T., and translated in our English versions by the words bathe and wash are words having no reference to mode. For instance in Lev. 15: 5 the words "wash" and "bathe" are used, withoutreference to how the washing and bathing was performed. (2). The oriental manner of washing the hands and feet was not by putting them into water, but by pouring water over them, II Kings 3: 11. (3). A fundamental principle in the Mosaic law of purification, i.e., the principle of defilement by contact; forbids washing or bathing by immersion, when performed for purposes of purification, Lev. 11:33,34, 36. Armstrong writes, "Upon the Mosaic prinCiple of defilement by contact, had a perwn bathed by immersion, or washed his hands by dipping them in any ordinary household water-vessel or bath, or even Cistern, he would thereby have defiled the whole body of water , and the vessel which contained it; and these, in their tum, unless first purified, would have defiled any water which might subsequently have been put in them." Armstrong does concede that, perhaps, the only instance in which immersion may have been resorted to was in the case of Leviticus 11:32; but he immediately adds: "The quantity of water defiled in immersing such things would be small, and the Mosaic Law, in its principles, might be observed without great inconvenience." '"The dipping denoted by TABAL and BAPTOis not always to be equated with inlmersion. This fact that dipping is not eqUivalent to immersion needs to be stressed at the outset. Far too often in anti-baptist discussions this fact is overlooked and a good deal of unnecessary argumentation arises from the oversight." -JohnMurray, Chrutian Baptism, pg. 10-1l.Q March, 1994 THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon;' II
(Cambridge Historical Studies in American Law and Society) Michael Grossberg-A Judgment For Solomon - The D'hauteville Case and Legal Experience in Antebellum America-Cambridge University P PDF
True Gospel 1: WHAT IS THE TRUE GOSPEL? The True Gospel is the Gospel of Christ, which is God's Messianic Kabbalah Wisdom. This is Not the False "Another Gospel" Preached by the Churches! Only the True Gospel of Messianic Kabbalah Wisdom is "The Power of God that Gives Salvation to Everyone that Believes!"