seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Luke 3:1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene— 2 during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 4 As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:
“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.
5 Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill made low.
The crooked roads shall become straight,
the rough ways smooth.
6 And all people will see God’s salvation.’”[a]
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.
5 Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill made low.
The crooked roads shall become straight,
the rough ways smooth.
6 And all people will see God’s salvation.’”[a]
7 John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 9 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 “What should we do then?” the crowd asked.
11 John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”
12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?”
13 “Don’t collect any more than you are required to,” he told them.
14 Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?”
He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely—be content with your pay.”
15 The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah. 16 John answered them all, “I baptize you with[b] water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with[c] the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” 18 And with many other words John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them.
19 But when John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of his marriage to Herodias, his brother’s wife, and all the other evil things he had done, 20 Herod added this to them all: He locked John up in prison.
21 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
23 Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph,
the son of Heli, 24 the son of Matthat,
the son of Levi, the son of Melki,
the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,
25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos,
the son of Nahum, the son of Esli,
the son of Naggai, 26 the son of Maath,
the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein,
the son of Josek, the son of Joda,
27 the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa,
the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel,
the son of Neri, 28 the son of Melki,
the son of Addi, the son of Cosam,
the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,
29 the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer,
the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat,
the son of Levi, 30 the son of Simeon,
the son of Judah, the son of Joseph,
the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim,
31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna,
the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan,
the son of David, 32 the son of Jesse,
the son of Obed, the son of Boaz,
the son of Salmon,[d] the son of Nahshon,
33 the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram,[e]
the son of Hezron, the son of Perez,
the son of Judah, 34 the son of Jacob,
the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham,
the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,
35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu,
the son of Peleg, the son of Eber,
the son of Shelah, 36 the son of Cainan,
the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem,
the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,
37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch,
the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel,
the son of Kenan, 38 the son of Enosh,
the son of Seth, the son of Adam,
the son of God.
a. Luke 3:6 Isaiah 40:3-5
b. Luke 3:16 Or in
c. Luke 3:16 Or in
d. Luke 3:32 Some early manuscripts Sala
e. Luke 3:33 Some manuscripts Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni; other manuscripts vary widely
This is from the easy English site.
Tiberius was the emperor of Rome. He became emperor in 14 AD. But he ruled with Augustus for two years before he became the emperor. He ruled in Rome for 23 years and he died in 37 AD. So, the date that the Lord sent John to speak to the people was either about 28 AD or about 26 AD.
Pontius Pilate was Roman, and he governed Judea from 26 AD to 36 AD. Some people accused him of serious crimes. Therefore, he had to return to Rome. But before he arrived there in 37 AD, Tiberius died. Soon after this, Pilate killed himself.
Herod Antipas ruled in Galilee from about 4 BC. The emperor Caligula, who came after Tiberius, removed Herod in 39 AD. Philip ruled in some territories to the north of Israel from about 4 BC until his death in 33 AD or 34 AD. Both Herod and Philip were sons of Herod the Great. We know nothing about Lysanias.
Iturea was to the north of Israel and to the east of the Jordan River. Trachonitis was to the east of Iturea. And Abilene was to the north of Trachonitis.
Annas was the Jewish chief priest from 6 AD to 15 AD . Five (5) of his sons later became chief priests. The first of these sons was Eleazar, who was chief priest in 16 AD to 17 AD. Annas continued to be powerful through the time when Caiaphas was the chief priest. Annas was the father of Caiaphas’ wife. Caiaphas was the chief priest from 18 AD to 36 AD.
Crowds of people came to John for him to baptise them. Among those crowds were Pharisees and Sadducees. These men were the leaders of the Jewish religion. But many of them were not sincere. So John spoke these hard words to them (Matthew 3:7). He said that they were like poisonous snakes. And they could not escape the anger of God by baptism.
The sudden appearance of this prophet from the desert caused people to ask who he was. They knew from the Old Testament that God would send the Christ. At that time, the Jews expected that the Christ would come soon. Maybe John was the Christ whom God had promised to send.
John knew their thoughts. He told the people that he was not the Christ. But he taught them that the Christ would come soon. And he told them something about the nature of the Christ.
The Christ is superior to John in every way. John felt that he was not good enough to do such a small thing as to undo the Christ’s sandals. A servant would do this task for his master. John baptised with water. But the Christ will baptise with the Holy Spirit and fire. This is what happened on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). The disciples of Jesus received power from the Holy Spirit. This was so much greater than John’s baptism with water.
Then John spoke about the work of the Christ. John used the language of agriculture to explain this. The Christ will test people as the farmer tests his grain. The farmer beats his grain to separate the good grain from the husk (the grain’s outer skin). Then he throws it all into the air. The good grain falls straight to the ground. The farmer puts the good grain in a safe store. But the husks blow a bit further away in the wind. The farmer gathers this rubbish and he burns it with fire. So, the Christ will be the judge of all people. He will separate the people who belong to him from other people. His people will go to the safety of heaven. But he will punish the people who oppose him, as with fire.
Herod Antipas divorced his first wife and he married Herodias. She was the wife of one of his brothers. This was one of many sins of Herod. He was an evil man. John the Baptist was bold enough to speak against Herod. So, Herod put John in prison.
Jesus began his special work for God when he was approximately 30 years old.
To the Jews, family history was very important. God had promised to send the Christ who would be from David’s family. It was necessary to show that the Christ was a descendant of David. So, both Matthew and Luke record the family history. Here is an explanation for the two different family lists.
Matthew gives the legal list of names from Abraham to Joseph. In Jewish law, Joseph was the father of Jesus but in fact, he was not. Matthew starts with Abraham and comes forward in time (Matthew 1:2-16). This shows that Jesus as a man comes from the Jewish nation. Jesus was the Christ that God promised to Israel.
Luke shows that Jesus is not in fact a son of Joseph. So, he gives the list of Mary’s ancestors. Joseph was the son of Jacob (Matthew 1:16). Heli was his father-in-law (the father of Joseph’s wife Mary). Mary was the daughter of Heli. Probably Luke used the name of the male, Joseph, as it was the custom of the Jews at that time. The Jews would not usually end or start the family list with a woman. They would give the name of her husband instead.
Luke shows the family list from Joseph and he goes back in time to Adam. This shows the man Jesus as a relative of all people and not just of the Jews. God promised Adam that his descendant would defeat Satan (Genesis 3:15). This descendant was Jesus.
This is from studylight.com.
Only a very few of the proud Jewish leaders submitted to John's baptism, a failure on their part which issued finally in their total rejection of the Lord. Christ brought the rite of baptism over into Christianity, making it mandatory for all who would be saved (Mark 16:15,16); but, the tragic pattern of rejection, as in the case of John's baptism, has been continued under the new covenant; and those who reject it should take note of the consequences in the people who rejected baptism under John.
Because I am called a Baptist.... I feel the need to say that Baptism is only a symbol of acceptance. John didn't check the ID of people he was about to Baptize. John didn't stop and ask... "wait, are you Jewish?" John would Baptize anyone who walked into the river with him. Anyone who accepts Jesus..... even today..... anyone who accepts Jesus's offer to take over..... even today.... is Baptized. It's not a Baptism of water like walking into the Jordan [or a tub or being sprinkled over the head with some special liquid]..... Anyone who accepts Jesus.... even today.... is Baptized by Spirit.
It's been a long time since I walked into that Baptismal pool at the First Baptist Church in New London, Conn. I was only twelve.... but I remember it. I remember little details.... like the towel and the others in the room.... and my mother choking as she came out of the water. My mother.... the daughter of a Lay Ministress out of Front Royal, VA..... was baptized on the same day... in the same pool.... as I.
Most of all.... I remember the feeling..... A warm tremble went down my spine. I felt really happy. I felt different.... it had nothing to do with the water.... the water was room temperature.... only chilly when I first stepped in.... the hand of the preacher on my back had nothing to do with it. The fact my dad and my family were all there.... had nothing to do with it. None of that mattered..... I felt "adopted". I felt part of a bigger family.
Peace.... that's what I felt.... and that is from the Spirit.... stepping in..... upgrading my conscience and my love for others..... I felt peaceful even in the excitement of the day.
Jesus is the Son of God. I am an adopted sister of the Son of God, who has been Baptized in the Spirit. Jesus is the Son of God.... an I am at peace because He sent the Spirit to Baptize me..... giving me peace.... and that's something no one can take from me.
