Part Six begins.
We begin in Lecture Two with John the Baptist. (The photo to the left is Titan's painting, 1542.)
I used to begin this lecture by asking collegians who, in their opinion, was the greatest prophet of the Old Testament. For those who had some exposure—and that was not many—I would hear of Jeremiah, Daniel or Isaiah. There was little to no discussion since those answering were rather tepid offerings and the students sensed that there was something up my sleeve.
Actually, there was something I was getting at.
When the New Testament period opens, all the procedures of religious ritual and of the Old Covenant were in place. While there was no Davidic king, there were priests, an High Priest, Temple, sacrifices, and Abrahamic and Davidic believers...elect then, as now.
The Old Testament context was present up to and including the period of John the Baptist. He was the son of a priest, Zecharias.
The answer to the question of who was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament is answered by Jesus. Here's His answer from Matthew 11.7-15.
As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken in the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man clothes in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. But what did you go out to see? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. For this was he of whom it is written: `Behold I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.’ Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is lest in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
John the Baptist belongs to the Old Testament period of prophecy and preparation for the kingdom, the pleroma of which we spoke in early lectures. All the prophets testified to Christ Jesus’s coming. They all were preparing for the breakthrough of the Promise of salvation announced through the centuries.
Jesus say, Assurely, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist. This may include Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and the long host of prophets throughout Israel's history.
Perhaps John the Baptist has been under-rated and under-estimated. It is not clear why this might be so, but every Gospel includes John’s pre-eminent role.
St. Mark’s and St. John’s Gospel mention nothing about Mary the mother of Jesus by way of nativity, but all four Gospels, even the ever-concise Gospel of Mark, notes the Baptist’s critical preparatory ministry.
Both Mark and John mention nothing about the birth of Jesus, yet in all four, John the Baptist warrants inclusion.
John the Baptist was the immediate forerunner, the predicted forerunner, of those earlier prophets, testifying to the same Advent. He himself--John the Baptist--is the object of predictive prophecy and is the messenger of the covenant vis a vis Malachi 3.1.
The Baptist is also the fulfillment of the prophecy of the Elijah to come, Malachi 4.5-6, the herald of the Servant of the LORD (Isaiah 40.3). This indeed breathes of the immediacy of the Spirit’s operation in redemptive history and points with power to the Promised Savior. The silence of 400 years was shattered.
We turn to the briefest and perhaps the first Gospel.[1]
Mark 1.1-5: The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the Prophets: `Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.’ The voice of one crying in the wilderness: `Prepare the way of the LORD; Make his paths straight.’ John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem.
Mark compresses Malachi 3.1 and Isaiah 40.3 into the start of the Gospel, or the new administration of the older covenant. In the interests of a Survey Course, we must bypass the profound element for exegesis here. Assuredly, there is intra-Trinitarian language involved and the assertion of the divinity and deity of Christ, the Son of God.
We’ll have more to say on that when we deal with varied other passages, as well as the names of Christ.
What follows is a brief account and description of the ministry of John the Baptist, baptizing followers and those accepting his witness, Behold! The Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world! (John 1.29)
Our point here is that it is significant that St. Mark begins the Gospel with John the Baptist.
Luke affords a wider history in the nativity narratives of Luke 1 and 2 with the annunciation of the Baptist’s advent, ministry and purpose as well as the traumatic situation with his priestly father, Zecharias.
After 400 years of prophetic silence, the silence is shatterend by a figure of national pre-eminence and prominence, a figure who will garner more attention than his contemporaries, [2] a figure of whom our Saviour said, amongst men, there was none greater than the Baptist.
We’ll continue our survey-observations on John the Baptist for the next post.
We offer this in closing postscript. Calvin said somewhere that if we but settled for half-a-Christ, we could sue for peace with Rome. The same could be said for our times; if we had but a half-Christ, we could settle with the liberals, Rome, and secularists.
The New Testament will not allow to halfing and quartering the Messiah. When we speak of salvation later, this will be important to remember; it affects the issues of the atonement, justification, and every other aspect of our lives, including praise, prayer, worship, sacraments, and our daily duties.
There was a word that would emerge in the Baptist’s baptism of Jesus: Hear Him! (said of Jesus) It was not a divine suggestion.
From Handel’s Messiah, “The Hallelujah Chorus.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbNdrqTwV18&feature=PlayList&p=EFDC841695562ED1&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=32
Footnotes:
We begin in Lecture Two with John the Baptist. (The photo to the left is Titan's painting, 1542.)
I used to begin this lecture by asking collegians who, in their opinion, was the greatest prophet of the Old Testament. For those who had some exposure—and that was not many—I would hear of Jeremiah, Daniel or Isaiah. There was little to no discussion since those answering were rather tepid offerings and the students sensed that there was something up my sleeve.
Actually, there was something I was getting at.
When the New Testament period opens, all the procedures of religious ritual and of the Old Covenant were in place. While there was no Davidic king, there were priests, an High Priest, Temple, sacrifices, and Abrahamic and Davidic believers...elect then, as now.
The Old Testament context was present up to and including the period of John the Baptist. He was the son of a priest, Zecharias.
The answer to the question of who was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament is answered by Jesus. Here's His answer from Matthew 11.7-15.
As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken in the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man clothes in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. But what did you go out to see? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. For this was he of whom it is written: `Behold I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.’ Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is lest in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
John the Baptist belongs to the Old Testament period of prophecy and preparation for the kingdom, the pleroma of which we spoke in early lectures. All the prophets testified to Christ Jesus’s coming. They all were preparing for the breakthrough of the Promise of salvation announced through the centuries.
Jesus say, Assurely, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist. This may include Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and the long host of prophets throughout Israel's history.
Perhaps John the Baptist has been under-rated and under-estimated. It is not clear why this might be so, but every Gospel includes John’s pre-eminent role.
St. Mark’s and St. John’s Gospel mention nothing about Mary the mother of Jesus by way of nativity, but all four Gospels, even the ever-concise Gospel of Mark, notes the Baptist’s critical preparatory ministry.
Both Mark and John mention nothing about the birth of Jesus, yet in all four, John the Baptist warrants inclusion.
John the Baptist was the immediate forerunner, the predicted forerunner, of those earlier prophets, testifying to the same Advent. He himself--John the Baptist--is the object of predictive prophecy and is the messenger of the covenant vis a vis Malachi 3.1.
The Baptist is also the fulfillment of the prophecy of the Elijah to come, Malachi 4.5-6, the herald of the Servant of the LORD (Isaiah 40.3). This indeed breathes of the immediacy of the Spirit’s operation in redemptive history and points with power to the Promised Savior. The silence of 400 years was shattered.
We turn to the briefest and perhaps the first Gospel.[1]
Mark 1.1-5: The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the Prophets: `Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.’ The voice of one crying in the wilderness: `Prepare the way of the LORD; Make his paths straight.’ John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem.
Mark compresses Malachi 3.1 and Isaiah 40.3 into the start of the Gospel, or the new administration of the older covenant. In the interests of a Survey Course, we must bypass the profound element for exegesis here. Assuredly, there is intra-Trinitarian language involved and the assertion of the divinity and deity of Christ, the Son of God.
We’ll have more to say on that when we deal with varied other passages, as well as the names of Christ.
What follows is a brief account and description of the ministry of John the Baptist, baptizing followers and those accepting his witness, Behold! The Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world! (John 1.29)
Our point here is that it is significant that St. Mark begins the Gospel with John the Baptist.
Luke affords a wider history in the nativity narratives of Luke 1 and 2 with the annunciation of the Baptist’s advent, ministry and purpose as well as the traumatic situation with his priestly father, Zecharias.
After 400 years of prophetic silence, the silence is shatterend by a figure of national pre-eminence and prominence, a figure who will garner more attention than his contemporaries, [2] a figure of whom our Saviour said, amongst men, there was none greater than the Baptist.
We’ll continue our survey-observations on John the Baptist for the next post.
We offer this in closing postscript. Calvin said somewhere that if we but settled for half-a-Christ, we could sue for peace with Rome. The same could be said for our times; if we had but a half-Christ, we could settle with the liberals, Rome, and secularists.
The New Testament will not allow to halfing and quartering the Messiah. When we speak of salvation later, this will be important to remember; it affects the issues of the atonement, justification, and every other aspect of our lives, including praise, prayer, worship, sacraments, and our daily duties.
There was a word that would emerge in the Baptist’s baptism of Jesus: Hear Him! (said of Jesus) It was not a divine suggestion.
From Handel’s Messiah, “The Hallelujah Chorus.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbNdrqTwV18&feature=PlayList&p=EFDC841695562ED1&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=32
Footnotes:
[1] We will suspend judgment about Marcan priority. It would appear that Eusebius believed in Matthean priority and this scribe is open to that viewpoint. For our purposes here, given its brevity, Mark surely points to the messenger of the covenant, the herald, the forerunner and the Elijah to precede the day of the LORD.
[2] We refer the student to excellent articles in The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia on John the Baptist, Baptism, Elizabeth and Zecharias. We may suggest I. Howard Marshall’s commentary on Luke although we hesitate on the point.
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