Week 6 October 10, 2012

Matthew 3

In Matthew 3 we see John the Baptist out near the Jordan River, baptising people who came to repent and demonstrate their believe Jesus as the Messiah - the son of God.   John even rebuked the Pharisees and Sadducees when they came to the river because he knew they were hypocrites. As we focus here on the message of John the Baptist, let's look at the importance of repentance.  If we repent, is that all that we have to do?  Does it matter how we live as long as we truly believe that Jesus is the Son of God?  I think that the repent-confess-baptize process is also a reflection of thought AND action.  As Christians we must express our change of heart, but then we must act on that change of heart by the way we live our lives.

I like an article by Billy Graham for two reasons.  One, I like it because it is from Billy Graham. I am so thankful for Billy Graham, and I hate to imagine a world without his evangelistic influence and his wisdom.  I still remember him sharing from the Cox Convention Center at the memorial service for the bombing victims. One of his points was that all of the children were certainly in heaven because they had not reached the age of accountability.

In the article about adults who were questioning their need to do anything more than ‘believe’ in Jesus,  he first said that hopefully all of the adults had accepted Christ as their savior and were saved.  So Billy Graham understands and promotes the significance of repentance -- like we discussed last week.  John the Baptist had called people to Repent and to Confess and to be baptized.  He was saying that people need to repent – admit their sin and then  turn from their evil ways and accept the Messiah and then turn TO Christ and live for him.  All of this turning is action – action that will look like being in an active relationship with Jesus.

This article represents the very real dilemma we might face if someone we know -- often someone we care about very much -- says words of belief in Jesus but doesn't live in relationship with Jesus.  And some people in our lives might have such a philosophy and still be very loving and pleasant to live with.  We might know or experience others who are antagonistic as they live like the devil but claim to believe in Jesus as the Son of God. 

Believe and Repent  and Save are VERBS -- they suggest action.  I would offer to you that we must believe and then live in relationship with our savior.  However, to know how to be patient with those who are pulling against a relationship with Christ and who are challenging what we know to be true will require us to do just as Billy Graham advises.  We must consistently pray - for the person as well as for ourselves.  To know how to live with and be someone we love (or want to love) who rejects what we know to be true will take grace - grace from God.  So BG's advice is good.