Prepared for the King
Matthew 3:1-12
As we continue our study from the Gospel of Matthew, the Gospel of the King and His Kingdom, we come today to Matthew 3. Matthew 1-2 have been concerned with the infancy of King Jesus. In Matthew 1, he presented the human genealogy of the King, that He was the Son of David, the Son of Abraham (Matthew 1:1-17)—and thus the heir of the covenant with Abraham and of the throne of David. Matthew also presented the divine origin of the King—His virgin birth in fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14 (Matthew 1:18-25).
In Matthew 2 we saw the diligent search of the Magi for the King of the Jews and the worship they gave the young child, King Jesus. We also saw how God preserved this Messiah/King, protecting Him from the efforts of King Herod to destroy Him—all according to God’s sovereign plan in fulfillment of scripture. Matthew shows that Jesus is King because He embodies the history and purpose of the nation of Israel as presented and prophesied in the Old Testament. All of this is vital for us to know and understand our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Now in Matthew 3, the author jumps ahead about twenty-eight years. Jesus is now an adult. This new section of Matthew’s Gospel begins at 3:1 and ends at 4:11. Jesus will begin His public ministry in Galilee in Matthew 4:12. But before we get there, Matthew records some important things that immediately proceeded the beginning of His earthly ministry. It begins with an introduction of the one who served as the great ‘herald’ of King Jesus—John the Baptist. Like the genealogy and birth narratives, there is much here that sets the tone for all that will follow in Matthew’s testimony of the earthly ministry of our Messiah/King Jesus.
As I read this morning’s passage to you, please listen closely to what John preaches and what the people do. See if you can detect the theme of John’s preaching. Matthew writes;
1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
Make His paths straight.’ ”
4 Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto 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. 12 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” (Matthew 3:1-12).
Did you notice the great theme in John’s preaching and ministry? In Matthew 3:1 he is called “John the Baptist” or literally, “John the Baptizer” because baptism was an important part of his ministry. But his ministry of baptizing people was only the outward, visible expression of his real theme. You might have said that his theme was Jesus Himself. And of course, the coming of the Messiah was the reason why John’s great theme was being declared. It was all because of “He who is coming after me” (Matt. 3:11).
But what stood out to me, the great theme of John’s message, was “repentance”. John says it explicitly three times in this passage. It’s the summation of his message: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matt. 3:2). In Matthew 3:8 John warned the Pharisees and Sadducees, “. . . Bear fruits worthy of repentance.” He described the purpose of his baptism in this way; “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance . . .” (Matt. 3:11). The whole passage implies the theme of repentance. Matthew describes John as the one mentioned in prophecy who would cry out to sinners, “Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight” (Matt. 3:3). People came to John in the wilderness from everywhere to be baptized by him, “confessing their sins” (Matt. 3:6). John rebuked those who came to him hypocritically, saying, “Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Matt. 3:7).
Matthew presents John to us as the preacher/prophet who immediately proceeded Jesus’ earthly ministry, who served as the herald of the coming King, calling people to “prepare the way“, and to “make His paths straight“. The central theme of that preparation was “repentance”.
The Greek word that’s translated “repentance” (Matt. 3:8) is a combination of two words–“metá“, which means “after” (and which suggests the idea of change), and the second is “nous” – which means “the mind” (that is, the seat of our thoughts and moral reflections). And so, “metánoia” means ‘a change of mind’.[1] “Repentance” certainly involves a change in the way we think and feel but it also involves a change in action, a change in direction. John’s message will demonstrate this aspect of repentance.
John the Baptist came into the world as the forerunner and herald of the Savior, King Jesus. And he came preaching repentance. He was sent by God to announce the Savior to the world; and he called people to prepare the way for Him. Matthew shows us that repentance is an absolutely essential part of welcoming King Jesus into His proper place in our lives.
Let’s look closer at this passage, and first consider . . .
1. The Necessity of Preparation (Matt. 3:1-6)[2]
Matthew tells us, “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea . . .” (Matt. 3:1). John the Baptist came on the scene—and what a scene he made! Suddenly appearing, strangely dressed, strange diet, strong preaching, and calling Jews to be baptized (something that usually was done only for Gentile proselytes). He came far away from the cities and towns and crowds. People had to journey some distance to go out to him.
And go out they did! They came from “Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan” (Matt. 3:5). They all went out to find a bold prophet who was clothed in camel’s hair as a sign of his prophetic ministry (see Zech. 13:4); and who ate locusts and wild honey—the foods of the wilderness—as a sign of his humble lifestyle. As Jesus said, they didn’t come out to see “a man clothed in soft garments“, as those “who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury” and who live “in king’s courts” (Luke 7:25). They came out, instead, to see a man who lived in the humble, self-denying manner that matched the radical demands of his message!
John came preaching. “Preaching” is a word that means to proclaim (publicly) or to herald or act as a public crier. It always carries the suggestion of formality, gravity, and an authority that must be listened to and obeyed.[3] It was John’s ministry to prepare the way for the king and he did it by preaching, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matt. 3:2). Repentance is God’s message to sinners. This is the very same message that the Lord Jesus Himself will preach after John is thrown into prison (Matt. 4:17). The call for repentance is essential to the message of the gospel. Someone has even called it “the first word of the gospel”.[4] “Repent” may have been the first word of both John the Baptist and the Lord Jesus, but it does not take much time listening to Christian preaching today to learn that a message about the sin and guilt of men, their need to repent of their sins, the impending judgment of God, and the absolute necessity of a changed life does not loom large in the contemporary pulpit.[5]
As we are seeing in our study of Acts on Wednesday night, Peter preached repentance; saying to his fellow Jews, “Repent, and let everyone of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins . . .” (Acts 2:38) and “Repent therefore and be converted . . .” (Acts 3:18). Paul also preached at Athens that God, in the past, has overlooked the times of ignorance, “but now commands all men everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30). He testified that God commissioned him to preach to both Jews and Gentiles, “that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance” (Acts 26:20). Paul described his preaching to the Ephesian elders by saying that he testified “to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21).
Repentance is essential to having a relationship with Jesus Christ because He is the Savior from sin (Matt. 1:21). Some people want to come to Jesus and cling to their sins at the same time. But true faith in Jesus Christ includes repentance. We have to “change our mind” about our sin. We have to call our sin what it is and submit to the forgiveness that Christ purchased for us at the cross. It’s impossible to cling to both the Savior from sin and to our sins at the same time.
Matthew shows us that God appointed John for the preaching of the message of repentance as a fulfillment of scripture. Matthew 3:3 says, “For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: …” Matthew says that John is the very one that the prophet Isaiah spoke of in Isaiah 40:3-5. Listen to that prophecy:
The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the LORD; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth; The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken” (Isaiah 40:3-5).
Isaiah was speaking prophetically of how God was going to, one day, cause His exiled people, the Jews, to return to their land. God was going to come and deliver them; and He calls His people to prepare the way – to make the road straight; to fill in the potholes as it were, and straighten out the rough places. It’s a picture of a people preparing their hearts and lives for the coming of the Lord.
Every Jew knew that before Messiah came, there would first come the forerunner. The last prophet in the Old Testament was Malachi, who also prophesied the Lord saying, “Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me” (Mal. 3:1) and “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” (Mal. 4:5-6).
And here, Matthew tells us that John was that voice in the wilderness! He was the messenger who prepared the way for the coming of the Lord. He came crying out to people that their Redeemer was coming; and that they should “prepare the way” by repenting of their sins. This was why they all went out to him to be baptized by him in the Jordan River – “confessing their sins” (Matt. 3:6).
Have you repented of your sin? Many people who claim Jesus as their Lord actually deny His Lordship over their lives by the fact that they continue to embrace the very sins that He died to save them from! Repentance means a change of mind and heart that results in a change of direction—a changed life.
John himself encountered some to were not making that necessary preparation of repentance. So next we see . . .
2. The Hindrances to Preparation (Matt. 3:7-10).
Matthew tells us “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism” (Matt. 3:7). The Pharisees and Sadducees were the religious leaders of the day. They were the ones who taught the Scriptures. They were very careful about their outward religious practices. But plainly, they had not made the proper heart preparation; because John shockingly scolds them as phonies: “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Matt 3:7).
What did John see in them that showed they had not really come to repent? First, they were seeking to come with what we might call “a repentance without fruit”. John told them, “Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance” (Matt. 3:8).
The Pharisees and the Sadducees were willing to make a public show of repentance, in that they were willing to come out to the desert where John was preaching and be baptized by him. But this was just an “outward” show. There wasn’t a genuine willingness in them to live differently. Their “outward” demonstration of repentance was merely a cover for the “inward” corruption of sin in their hearts that they continued to embrace. Jesus, who knew the truth about them, later said,
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness (Matthew 23:27-28).
How many people today also trust in an outward show of religion—being baptized, going to church, praying, giving, serving—but all without a genuine turning away from the sin in their hearts? True repentance is shown by its fruit. John doesn’t just want the people to recognize their sin, he wants them to leave it behind. He doesn’t just want them to agree that they are wrong, he wants them to change so that they will be right.[6]
Another hindrance is suggested in John’s words in Matthew 3:9; “. . . And do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.” These religious men believed that, since they were Jewish – that is, those who claim Abraham as their “father” – they had an edge on everyone else. They were depending on their calling as God’s chosen people. They believed they were uniquely blessed by Him. They were confident in their religious privilege—not realizing that God could just as easily make children for Abraham out of the stones that were around their feet if He so wished.
The apostle Paul – himself a Jew – wrote of this very thing. He wrote in the Book of Romans;
Indeed you are called a Jew and rest on the law, and make your boast in God, and know His will, and approve the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law, and are confident that you yourselves are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having the form of knowledge and truth in the law. You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal? You who say, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who make your boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? For “the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you,” as it is written (Romans 2:17-24).
As we saw when we studied Genesis, God did not choose Israel because they were better than other nations—He chose them by His grace for His own purposes to bring salvation to them and the rest of the world through Christ, the Son of Abraham.
Don’t fall into the trap of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Because of their religious heritage, they thought themselves to be ‘a cut above the rest’ spiritually. They thought they belonged to God but they never made the heart preparation of genuine repentance that is necessary for salvation in Jesus Christ.
A third hindrance is suggested in John’s word to the Pharisees and Sadducees: “And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Matt. 3:10). They had sin in their hearts but they were not moved to repentance. They did not realize the urgency of the matter, that the ax of God’s judgment for their sin was even at that very moment laid—not at the trunk of the tree, somewhere above the roots—but at the very roots themselves. They didn’t realize the desperate situation that they were in even right then. They did not see the seriousness and urgency of preparing themselves through repentance of sin.
Such people are in a similar danger to that of the rich fool in Jesus’ parable, the man who said to his soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink and be merry“; but to whom God said, “Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?” (Luke 12:19-20). Jesus taught this parable to warn against covetousness but it also teaches us the foolishness of thinking that we can bank on having ‘lots of time’ to repent later in life.
We’ve seen the absolute necessity of this heart preparation of repentance, and we’ve also seen the sorts of things that might hinder someone from making it. Finally, let’s see . . .
3. The Reason for Preparation (Matt. 3:11-12).
The reason for repentance is the coming of the King. In expressing this, John points to the righteous King Himself, for whom he is serving as the herald.
John says, “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance . . .” The word “unto” can be understood to mean “with a view to . . .” In other words, John baptized people with a view to their repentance. They came to Him confessing their sins in anticipation of the soon coming King, the One who would “save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). They prepared their hearts for the Savior/King through genuine repentance. And as an outward sign of this, John baptized them in water. This was similar to a practice they were already familiar with; because such a ceremonial “washing” was performed by proselytes who converted to Judaism. But here, we see Jews being “washed” as an outward sign of their repentance from sin in preparation for the coming King.
But John confesses that this “baptism” was not final; because he affirms the superiority of the coming King and says, “. . . But He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.” And then, John testifies to the greatness of His superiority by saying, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matt. 3:11).
When Jesus “baptizes” someone with the Holy Spirit, this marks and seals that person as belonging to Jesus. The Holy Spirit is, as the Scriptures tell us, “the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession” (Eph. 1:14). And when He then baptizes them in “fire“, this then purifies the one He has sealed. As Paul writes to the Corinthian Christians,
Now if anyone builds upon this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work, which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Corinthians 3:12-14).
This fact alone ought to move each of us who are believers to make the heart-preparation of genuine repentance! Do you want to enter heaven with nothing but a pile of ashes to show for the life you lived for the Savior?
John also speaks of this coming King as if He were a thresher of wheat. He pictures Him as using a winnowing fork to throw the stocks of grain up into the air; allowing the good grain to fall onto the threshing floor, while the useless chaff – which is much lighter than the grain – is blown off to the said, separate from the grain and ready to be piled up and burned. John says, “His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Matt. 3:12).
This speaks of the ultimate and final judgment of the unrepentant wicked. And we’re told that this coming King will be thorough in His threshing. Just as He will leave none of His grain on the threshing floor, neither will He leave any of the chaff unburned. This too is the reason for each man and woman to search their hearts and make sure that they have prepared the way for the Savior Jesus Christ through genuine repentance.
John is saying to the Pharisees and Sadducees—and to all who are like them today—”You are in danger and you don’t even know it. One is coming after me who has the power to save or destroy. And when He comes He will be thorough. There is no chance that a lost man might sneak into heaven. There is no chance of a saved man falling into hell. The ax is waiting; the King is coming; the harvest is thorough.”
This morning can I just reiterate that to you? Living in sin is no laughing matter before God. Fruitlessness is no small ordeal to Him. Someday the King will return and the judgment will take place. And those who have not been baptized by the Holy Spirit will most certainly be baptized with fire.
This same Jesus who will judge all of us also desires a deep relationship with you and me today. This relationship is ours by grace – we don’t have to earn it. He desires to abide in us. But we must “prepare the way” for Him by a willing and active repentance from sin. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
This morning I want to offer the baptism of the Holy Spirit to you. It is not some ecstatic experience, nor is it accompanied by wild behavior. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is a spiritual experience that results in holy behavior. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
This baptism comes when you repent of your sin and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 2:37-38 says about those who heard Peter preach Jesus as Lord and Christ who died for sin on the cross and was raised from the dead, “Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
The time is now, the ax is at the root of the tree, do today what the Pharisees and Sadducees would not do. Repent and believe. Receive the Lord Jesus Christ. Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Jesus. He is the One you simply cannot ignore. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
[1] Strongs Concordance. Found at https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g3341/nkjv/tr/0-1/ accessed 06/12/2022
[2] I was helped by the outline and points made by Greg Allen in his sermon from this text at https://www.bethanybible.org/archive/2004/032804.htm accessed 06/12/2022
[3] https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2784/nkjv/tr/0-1/
[4] Richard Owen Roberts, Repentance: The First Word of the Gospel, https://www.amazon.com/Repentance-Gospel-Richard-Owen-Roberts/dp/1581344007
[5] Robert Rayburn, The Coming Kingdom. https://www.faithtacoma.org/matthew/2003-10-05-am accessed 06/12/2022
[6] Bro. Rory in a sermon at FBC Spur, TX https://fbcspur.org/herald-matthew-31-6/ accessed 06/12/2022
