Strange Preacher . . . Strong Proclamation, Part 3

Today on Insight for Living. About every sermon I ever preach, I will say you really are not ready to live until you're ready to die. And when you're ready to die, you really are ready to live. Death is no fear.

You're believing in the one who takes you beyond death and lives waiting for you on the other side. When John the Baptist appeared on the scene, he didn't offer conciliatory words of peace and grace. In fact, John scolded the hypocrites for their duplicity.

It wasn't exactly a picture of sunshine and rainbows. He boldly declared the awful consequences of their sin. Well today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll recreates this colorful scene in Matthew chapter 3 in which John the Baptist declared the deadly penalty of rebellion and the wisdom of facing our mortality.

As Chuck often says, we're not ready to live until we're ready to die. Today's message is titled Strange Preacher, Strong Proclamation. When you see yourself in the scriptures, something happens that puts a permanent chill up your back.

John never lost the chill. When he realized Isaiah wrote of him seven centuries before he ever existed, it gave strength to his voice, took away all resistance, all reluctance, all tendency to compromise his message. Back to Matthew 3, his voice shouting in the wilderness, prepare the way for the Lord.

John comes on the scene suddenly. He preached where he was trained, in the wilderness. And interestingly, the word got out that there was this preacher out in the wilderness wearing camel's hair and a leather belt with a strange diet. But his message is like no other message we've ever heard.

What is this proclamation that was so strong? Verse 2, repent and turn to God. You who are so proud of your own accomplishment, change your mind. Everything starts there, right in the mind. Change your mind regarding the truth and move in a new direction regarding life itself.

You've been going in this direction all your life. I challenge you now to repent, turn in the other direction, leave that lifestyle behind. The kingdom of heaven is near. Turn from your sinful ways and know that when you do, you're moving toward that kind of righteousness that will one day fill the earth. Some of them believed in those he baptized. Look at this. Verse 6, when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River.

Who knows how many? By the time Jesus comes on the scene, he has quite a following. But you know what? It never went to his head. John wasn't about increasing himself. In fact, his great words were, he, that's Jesus, must increase, I must decrease. It's all about him. He's the word. I'm just the voice. He's the light. I'm just the lamp. He's the living God on earth in human flesh.

I'm just a man. What a servant at heart. So he baptized those who repented. But look at verse 7.

Look at this. When he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to watch, why would they come? Out of curiosity. They come in to look at this weird guy that's out there in the wilderness and please observe his response to them. He denounced them.

Look at his opening line. You brood of snakes. Who would talk to us like that? Don't you realize that the Pharisees and Sadducees took delight in intimidating people? And here they are standing in front of this strange wilderness preacher, calling them snakes. Who warned you to flee God's coming wrath? Now, he says it further, prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. Don't just say to each other we're safe, for we are descendants of Abraham. Quit hiding behind the shadow of Abraham. No one had ever talked to them like that before.

Thumbs under their suspenders, they bragged about the fact that they were of their father, Abraham. And John has the audacity to say, you're not safe because of that. You're safe because you repent and you turn to the living God.

Normally I save the gospel to the end of my message, but I'm going to give it right now. You may have been around religion much of your life. You may even be attracted to this church. You may like the way ministry is done. You may love the music.

Who wouldn't? You may have been around long enough to learn some of the songs we sing, and there are great songs. You may have a few friends here or elsewhere who know the Lord Jesus Christ. None of that means you are anywhere near a relationship with God.

None of it. You build a relationship with God by coming through his Son, the one who is the truth, he is the way, he is the life. The one who himself said, no one comes to the Father but through me. If you hope to die and stand before God, clothed in the righteousness of Jesus, you'll need to know Jesus during your lifetime. If you wait until you die, it is too late. There is no purgatory. That's heresy. There is no opportunity after death for you to believe.

It's in life. That's why I say with passion just what the wilderness preacher said. Change your mind concerning Christ, concerning religion, concerning church.

Turn in the direction of your own personal faith in the one who died on the cross, paying the complete payment for your sins. When you do that, you'll be marvelously born again, and you'll be ready for life as well as for death. About every sermon I ever preach, I will say you really are not ready to live until you're ready to die. And when you're ready to die, you really are ready to live. Death is no fear. You're believing in the one who takes you beyond death and lives waiting for you on the other side. But I urge you to take the message personally and don't think you're safe because you've learned the trappings of religion. You say, well, you know, Chuck, pretty strong words. I think maybe he was stronger than Jesus.

Really? Turn to John chapter 8. Let's just see. Leave here.

We'll come back for a few moments. But look at John chapter 8. John is now gone. He's beheaded.

He's out of the picture. Jesus is in full swing in his ministry. And he has encountered these same Pharisees and Sadducees again, and they are standing toe to toe against him for his message. They see him as an illegitimate child, probably sired by some Roman swine in Nazareth. Mary lied about it and told people it was of God. He's just a hometown boy that claims to be Messiah.

No, no, he's not. But they say to him, we're of our father, Abraham. That's all in chapter 8.

When you get toward the end, the heat rises. Look at verse 36. Jesus says, so if the sun sets you free, you're truly free.

He's the sun, by the way. Yes, I realize you're descendants of Abraham, and yet some of you are trying to kill me because there's no room in your hearts for my message. They're sons of Abraham in birth only. They're Jewish.

In that sense, Abraham is their physical father, if you go far enough back. Some of you are trying to kill me. There's no room in your heart for my message. I'm telling you what I saw when I was with my father. Now look closely. When you're following the advice of your father, look at their response. You think they weren't hateful? Our father is Abraham, they declared. Jesus replied, if you really were the children of Abraham, you'd follow his example. Instead, you're trying to kill me because I told you the truth, which I heard from God. Abraham never did such a thing. No, you're imitating your real father.

Look at their response. We aren't illegitimate children. What's the implication? You are. We have a word for it that's not appropriate for a pulpit.

But as it washes around in your mind, that's what they were thinking. We're not illegitimate like you are. God himself is our true father. Look at Jesus. Jesus doesn't back down.

I love this. He told him, if God were your father, you would love me because I have come to you from God. I'm not here on my own, but he sent me. Why can't you understand what I'm saying? It's because you can't even hear me. You're the children of your father, the devil.

He finally just says it. It's like John saying, you brood of vipers. And you love to do the evil things he does.

He was a murderer from the beginning. By the way, they're the ones ultimately among the Jews responsible for nailing him to a cross. This is prophetic.

And they go back and forth and back and forth. They keep saying, we're of our father, Abraham. Look at Jesus in verse 58. He answers and says to them, I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I am. Meaning what? I was in existence before Abraham was even conceived and born in Ur of the Chaldeans.

I'm eternal. Their response? At that point, they picked up stones to throw at him.

Jesus was hidden from them and left the temple. I'll never forget years ago when I was a student out of seminary, Jimmy Williams and Sweet Anderson and I, they were with Crusade, and I went along to be with them as we went to the University of Texas campus. Our goal, my invitation, was to speak in the athletic dorm to the football team, University of Texas. Very unusual opportunity.

Probably would never be granted today, but back then, in the very early 60s, it was. So there we were, trying to take different angles and different approaches to interest these ball players who were sitting in front of us, trying to make sense of what we were saying. And I had the audacity to use John 8 as my passage of scripture. Not a really great choice for people who don't know a thing about the Bible. And I said, look at that.

Listen. Before Abraham was, I am, said Jesus. Not I was, not I will be, but I am.

How great is that? And in the back, a great big old linebacker stood up. He said, hey, Chuck. I said, yeah, he says, I got a question. Who is this guy, Abraham?

Isn't that amazing? You can think people are clued in when you're way over their head. I thought everybody would know of Abraham. No, he didn't know. I had the privilege of making it known that Abraham or no Abraham, what's important is his relationship with the Savior.

That's the point here. It took courage to say that to religious people. Trust me, the most difficult people to reach are those steeped in their own self-righteousness, their own religion. You could talk to sinful people and you won't get much pushback.

You could talk to people that are self-righteous. Why are you talking to us? Do you realize our background?

We trace our roots back to Brigham Young. Or we can go all the way back to our religion's father, whatever the cult may be that they're a part of or religion or whatever. Jesus, that's the turning point. So John says to them, you must repent even now the acts of God's judgment is poised. You're closer to the end than you realize.

You are hiding behind him. He says to them later through the lips of Jesus, you are of your father, the devil. You know what my hope is as a result of this message? That you who are without Christ would realize how guilty you are. That this message, if nothing else, will shred all self-righteousness from you. And you'll realize no matter how morally upright you may have lived, no matter how many companies you may have started, no matter what your salary may be, no matter how important your name may be in your circles, without Christ you are lost. And until you change your mind and move from guilt to righteousness, you will live lost and you will die in that condition. And great will be the condemnation of that. Carl Mininger a number of years ago wrote a book with a fascinating title, Whatever Became of Sin?

You may have read it. He begins this chapter, on a sunny day in summer 1972, a stern-faced, plainly dressed man could be seen standing still on a street corner in the busy Chicago Loop. As pedestrians hurried by on their way to lunch or business, he would solemnly lift his right arm, and pointing to some individual walking by, he would intone loudly the single word, Guilty! Guilty! Then without any change of expression, he would resume his still stance, his stiff stance for a few moments before repeating the gesture. Then again, the inexorable raising of his arm, and the pointing of the solemn pronouncement in one word, Guilty!

Guilty! The effect of this strange pantomime on the passing strangers was extraordinary, almost eerie. They would stare back at him, hesitate, look away, look at each other and then look at him again, then hurriedly continue on their ways. One man turning to another who was my informant, exclaimed, How did he know? How did he know? No doubt many others had similar thoughts.

How did he know indeed? Guilty! Everyone! Guilty! Guilty of what?

Guilty of over parking, guilty of lying, guilty of arrogance and hubris toward the one God, guilty of borrowing, not to say embezzling money, guilty of unfaithfulness to a faithful wife, guilty only of evil thoughts or evil plans, guilty before whom? Is the police officer following? Did anyone see? Will they be likely to notice it? Did he know about it?

This isn't technically illegal, is it? The solemn accuser on the Chicago street corner has had many predecessors in the 8th to 6th century BC. Peripatetic exhorters held forth in thriving Palestinian villages, attracting large and attentive crowds. To their listeners, these earnest young men cried out, Guilty! and proclaimed ominously that for all the general prosperity, the same was prevalent thereabouts, which, unacknowledged and unrepented, would bring dire consequences. These men, known as prophets, were ignored, ridiculed as alarmists, jailed as transpassers, as trespassers or driven from the country.

In the course of time, their predictions were fulfilled and their countries were annihilated. One of these, John Ben Zechariah, lived in the desert outside the metropolis and attracted considerable attention from the common people. Crowds trekked into the desert to hear him. He reproached many of them for their swinging ways of public and private life. Desist! Repent! He cried. But why, some must have asked.

We never had it so good. Why not, said others, and vowed to mend their ways to signalize their intentions, they underwent a public bathing ceremonial. John Ben Zechariah then became known by the nickname, The Baptizer. Little communities sprang up, devoted to bathing, poverty, chastity, penitence.

Stay with me, a few more lines. This commotion in the desert did not go unnoticed by the establishment. Ben Zechariah was picked up by the police, taken back to the city and jailed. Soon afterwards, he was decapitated without warning or trial, and his severed head was publicly displayed on a platter at a social gathering.

Prosperity with much public construction and international commerce continued on briskly. Life this year could go right on for you. It would be as though you never heard a word today. My prayer, however, is that you will be haunted by these words. Without Christ, you are as guilty as sin. And only through Christ can you know the freedom from all of that guilt and shame that you now hide. The secrets will no longer be held secrets. You will make things right with those you have wronged. You will repent. You will change your direction.

And this year will be like none other you've ever lived, unless, of course, you wish to go on with business as usual. This is all I can say or do, but it is enough. Turn to Christ. Start the year right.

Begin here. Now. Please bow with me. I realize the message today is strong.

It needs to be. I've not cut a corner or hedged on the truth. You've heard it. The question is, what are you going to do about it? You can go right on thinking everything will be as always the same. But I'll be honest with you, this year could be your last.

We could bury you before December. Don't take that chance. Don't let that happen. Trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Acknowledge your guilt.

Don't hide behind a parent or grandparent, a lot of religious stuff. Some of the good things you've done, don't let that turn you. The only way you will be cleansed is through the blood of Christ who died for you.

Trust Him now. Let us know you've done that. We'll help you in your first steps toward a whole new life. Oh, Father, I pray that as a result of the words and the passion of this message, that not a soul will walk away in the same condition in which they came. Speak to every Pharisee, every Sadducee, every secret sinner, every individual who has lived one way but talked another, and bring us to our faces before you as we bow in utter humility and faith. Thank you for the courage of a John who would declare the truth against all odds, knowing that his days would be numbered. Now give us who have heard the courage to believe to repent and to walk with you the rest of our days. In the blessed name of Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life, we pray. Everyone said, Amen. John the Baptist didn't try to take the rough edges off his message.

He didn't pull any punches. He spoke boldly to his audience about the dangers of leading a sinful lifestyle. You're listening to Insight for Living and another message in Chuck Swindoll's brand new study of Matthew.

To learn more about this ministry, visit us online at insightworld.org. Well, this series will capture our imagination over the next several months, in fact, the better part of the year, as Chuck guides us through a verse-by-verse study of Matthew's New Testament book. We're starting with the birth of our king, tracing his footsteps through all 28 chapters, moving all the way through his great commission to go and make disciples. Now, in conjunction with this brand new broadcast series, Chuck has recently completed a commentary on Matthew as well, and it's available right now.

In fact, because of the enormity of this study, Chuck's commentary comes in two hardbound volumes. The set is called Swindoll's Living Insights Commentary on Matthew. Whether you're new to the Bible or you're teaching the Bible as a pastor, you'll find Chuck's approach to Matthew both scholarly and accessible, and it's written in the engaging style that's become a hallmark of Chuck's teaching. To purchase Swindoll's Living Insights Commentary on Matthew, go to insight.org slash store, or if you prefer, call us if you're listening in the United States, dial 1-800-772-8888. Insight for Living Ministries is supported not by the purchase of books and resources, but through the contributions of people like you. And we invite you to join our mission to introduce King Jesus to all 195 countries of the world. To give a donation today, call us if you're listening in the United States, dial 1-800-772-8888.

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Or you can easily sign up online at insight.org slash monthly companion. Have you ever been surprised by Jesus? That's our topic Friday when Chuck Swindoll continues our study in the book of Matthew, right here on Insight for Living. The preceding message, Strange Preacher, Strong Proclamation, was copyrighted in 2015 and 2021, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. The creation of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.