In our last study we learned that John the Baptist had sent messengers to Jesus to ask if He was the One who is to come. Jesus put on a display of healings and miracles that really answers that question for itself. Jesus does send the message back with the messengers to tell John of all that Jesus has been doing which will point to the fact that Jesus is indeed fulfilling messianic prophecy and possesses a power like no one has ever seen. You would think that this display of power continually would convince everyone that is present that He is the Messiah but unfortunately this is not the case.
We will see Jesus speak about the greatness of who John is and what his ministry really meant in this study. This study will lead us to the next section that shows us that not only did the religious leaders reject John and his message but they also have been and will ultimately reject Jesus for good. This rejection has already began towards Jesus but it becomes more and more obvious throughout His ministry. But for now we will look at what Jesus has to say about John the Baptist. Let’s look at our first point.
1.What attracted the people to John?
Look with me at Luke 7:24-25 And when the messengers of John had left, He began to speak to the crowds about John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to behold? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft garments? Behold, those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces! Jesus begins to connect the dots in John’s ministry and who He is by speaking here about John to the crowds. The first thing he asks is “What did you go out into the wilderness to behold? A reed shaken by the wind?
This question sets up really the point the Jesus wants to make concerning the greatness of John. Before He does that He asks these questions to bring back to the mind of those that were there at why they went into the wilderness to listen to John. A reed is a thin flexible stalk that will blow around with any small wind. Jesus uses this metaphor here to basically ask if they expected to go to the wilderness to hear a man that was like any other Rabbi of their time or most popular preachers of our time that will give to the crowd what they want. For the amount of people that went to the wilderness to hear John speak, there must have been a buzz about his style of preaching. So Jesus is basically recalling to the crowd that people did not go into the wilderness to hear someone that was just going to give to the crowd some show or something they wanted.
He continues by asking in Luke 7:25 But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft garments? Behold, those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces!
This reference to soft clothing is to say that a man would dress effeminate in a sense. Unfortunately this has become some type of great accomplishment in our corrupt society. This Greek word for soft is malakos (mal-ak-os’) which is the word used to describe a male prostitute or the passive partner in a homosexual relationship. The idea of this terminology is that this was in fact not what they had heard about John. They did not hear of him being passive or a pushover in a sense but that he was rugged and stern in his message. Jesus tells the people that they did not expect that John would be some dignitary or look as if he just walked out of a palace. Matthew 3:4 says of John that John himself had a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.
His very presence would have triggered in the minds of the people, especially the religious leaders, that this sounded much like a prophet of old. Look with me at the explanation of Elijah’s appearance in 2 Kings 1:8 And they said to him, “He was a hairy man with a leather girdle girded about his loins.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.
John’s appearance and message seemed to be like something the people had not heard for over 400 years and yet John comes on the scene with the message of repentance. It was this that brought the people to go out to see what John was all about. It is no different today, when there is a whisper about some revival or something that attracts people, the crowds will gather. We know even the Pharisees and Scribes went there to see what was going on. This brings Jesus to speak of the truth of who John truly is as we look at our next point.
2.Jesus speaks of John’s greatness.
Look with me at Luke 7:26-28 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and even more than a prophet. 27 This is the one about whom it is written, ‘Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You, Who will prepare Your way before You.’ 28 I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” Jesus goes on into His questioning by leading them to the real reason people went to the wilderness to hear John. The word had got around about John’s appearance and his message. There was no doubt that the things he was speaking was not like the Rabbi’s teaching and his appearance was not normal Rabbi attire. He seemed to be a nomad in a sense with no permanent place and speaking about things they would have been familiar with but not in the way he was speaking of it.
Jesus says again in Luke 7:26a But what did you go out to see? Then He follows this question with A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and even more than a prophet.
The real reason the people went to the wilderness was to see if in fact John was a prophet of God. He dressed like a prophet, he spoke like a prophet and he was not an established teacher in a synagogue so this was what they were wondering concerning John. In fact you can read an account of this in John 1:19-23 And this is the witness of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he *said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” 22 Therefore, they said to him, “Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said, “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”
Again he says in John 3:28 You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent ahead of Him.’
We see that John does not try to bring the attention to himself but only points the people to the Christ who was in their midst. John knew what his ministry was even though John did not understand in full that he was the prophet that was prophesied to be the metaphoric Elijah. Jesus explains this in the Matthew 17 concerning John’s role in redemptive history. Look with me at Matthew 17:10-13 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” 11 And He answered and said, “Elijah is coming and will restore all things; 12 but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.” 13 Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist.
Just as we did earlier in our study in Luke we will see the truth about who John the Baptist is. Understand that he is not a Southern Baptist or a Baptist of any type. The word Baptist in association with John represents his ministry. He proclaimed a baptism of repentance. Baptism is not just a Christian act. Jews would even baptize Gentiles that wanted to turn from their pagan faith to Judaism. But John’s baptism was of a different sort, it would require even the Jew to be baptized in connection to their confession to turn from their way of living to live for God or as we know it they would repent from their way of living. This repentance showed that they understood that they needed to live differently than they had been.
Much of Judaism theology was ritualistic and work based. The rich were considered to be the elite while the diseased were considered cursed by God therefore they were left to their own demise to die in their poor state. This religious and ritualistic attitude only looked good on the surface and when people heard the truth of what following God was really about they would repent of their sins.
In relation to the fact that we see in Luke 7:26b-27 that Jesus says of John A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and even more than a prophet. 27 This is the one about whom it is written, ‘Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You, Who will prepare Your way before You, shows us that he had a role in the redemption story that had been prophesied so many years before.
In fact if we look back at Luke 3:3-6 we see this so clear, it says there: And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, Make His paths straight. 5 Every ravine will be filled, And every mountain and hill will be brought low; The crooked will be straight, And the rough roads smooth. 6 And all flesh will see the salvation of God.’”
This quote from Isaiah 40:3-5 shows us the ministry of the forerunner to the Messiah which we know is John the Baptist. Along with that we see the words of Malachi 3:1 that says Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says Yahweh of hosts.
There is no doubt that John fulfilled this ministry and leads Jesus to say that indeed he is a prophet. If this was the reason the people went into the wilderness, then they got exactly what they were looking for. But then we see in our last verse that Jesus takes John’s ministry a step further by saying in Luke 7:28 I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.
Now understand that Jesus was not elevating John to some status to place him on a pedestal. Instead what we see is Jesus showing that John’s ministry was one of extreme greatness not because of John being some super religious person but because he was the forerunner of the Messiah. John was a great person only in the aspect of his position that God had placed him in. He was a sinner like any other person and yet Jesus says that among those born of women there is no one greater than John. Jesus is not elevating John above Himself because even though Jesus was born from a woman, He is also God making Him the God man that had a unique birth.
So none has been greater in this world than John but then lastly Jesus says yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.
This simply shows us that we will receive the fulfillment of salvation and blessing in Heaven, therefore even the least among the people in Heaven will be greater than John. Here we are all sinful, we live in sin, we die in sin but there we will be without sin, without the pain and torment of this flesh that pulls us away to sin.
Is that your future? I didn’t ask if that is what you want because no person in their right mind will walk in to Hell if they have a view of Heaven. The question is, are you following Jesus in your everyday life? Have you recognized your sinfulness? Do you know you are in need of a Savior and Lord? Today could be that day as you think about the cross, the resurrection and ascension of our Lord Jesus. He died for you so that you can have eternal life. That life starts as you repent, have faith and follow Jesus daily.
Disciple's Direction 