An older couple, Zechariah and Elizabeth, incapable of conceiving a child were given a promise by God that they would have a son of their own. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River." For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John. John the Baptist was sent by God as a messenger to prepare the way in the hearts and minds of the people of Israel for the coming of their Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ: “There was a man sent from God whose name was John. St. John the Baptist was an ascetic Jewish prophet known in Christianity as the forerunner of Jesus. Honors . The birth of John the Baptist is a beautiful story because it shows, yet again, the mercy and kindness of God. https://amazingbibletimeline.com/blog/john-the-baptist-in-the-bible-biography John the Baptist, like so many of the Old Testament prophets, was contrary and confrontational. Our mission today is much the same as John’s. John the Baptist, however, by this time was confined in one of Herod’s prisons and sent his own disciples to inquire of Jesus whether or not He really was the One Israel had been waiting for. He called sin, sin. The testimony of Josephus reminds us that the memory of John lasted a long time after his death. Matthew 11:14. His two parents, Zacharias and Elizabeth, were both advanced in years and unable to have children. ... John’s ministry was to confront the people of his time with their sin, their need of salvation, and the reality of the soon-to-be arriving Savior. In this gospel, John is not called "the Baptist." until 39 A.D., almost exactly the lifetime of Jesus. 3:1. John the Baptist’s ministry grew in popularity, as recounted in Matthew 3:5–6: "People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. The Baptist's ministry overlaps with that of Jesus; his baptism of Jesus is not explicitly mentioned, but his witness to Jesus is unambiguous. Archaeologists claim that they have identified the deadly dance floor where John the Baptist — a preacher who foretold the coming of Jesus — was sentenced to death around A.D. 29. People thought he was the Messiah, but John the Baptist always pointed them towards Christ. He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that all might believe through him. His moral charges only added fuel to the flames. Zechariah means “God has remembered again.” Once again God we see God keep His word. Malachi prophesied about John the Baptist: "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; and he shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers" (Malachi 4:6). He shook up society and prepared them for the start of Jesus’s public ministry. “The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John; since that time the gospel of the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it. Their story is told in the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke. As per the Sacred Tradition, John the Baptist emerged at the time of death of people, who have not heard the Gospel of Christ to give them the good news about Christ's arrival. Instead, it was a variation on the popular Jewish practice at the time to immerse in water to achieve ritual purification. John the Baptist. John appeared publicly on the religious scene of his day about six months before Jesus began preaching. John fulfilled prophecy by preparing the way for the Messiah. After spending some time in his prison cell, John sent some of his disciples to Christ. This Herod was married to the daughter of Aretas, an Arabian prince. John’s Confinement . "14:1 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus, 14:2 And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him. 1 – John the Baptist Church. And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. To be baptized by John was to admit your sin and repent of it—which was, of course, a great way to be prepared for the Savior’s coming. Matthew 11:12-13 . He was to be a voice in the wilderness, preparing the way for Christ to come. He boldly proclaimed God’s message to both the common man and the hypocritical Pharisees of his day. Verse Concepts. He was of priestly descent. He drew attention to things usually passed over in … https://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/series/bible-videosJohn the Baptist is born. Birth of John the Baptist_Family Bible Time A priest and his wife were well beyond the years when it is possible to give birth to a child. He succeeded his father, Herod the Great, and served as tetrarch (appointed by the emperor Augustus to rule over one quarter of his father’s kingdom) from 4 B.C. Do not be deceived by the Jehovah’s Witness organization that would have you deny the true nature of Christ. Herod Antipas is known mostly as the Herod for whom Salome danced and who ordered John the Baptist to be beheaded.. Herod Antipas ruled Galilee in Jesus’ time. Only God can save us, and only God can fulfill the prophecy given in Isaiah 40:3 and Mal. Saint John the Baptist Who was St. John the Baptist? The message of John the Baptist. John the Baptist plays an important role in Christian historiography, but it is important to remember that John was not Christian—there was no such thing at the time—and his “baptism” was not the same thing as the later Christian ritual of initiation. John pointed the people to Christ regularly (John 1:6-8, 19-27, 29-37). John the Baptist was a fiery preacher who preached a convicting message of repentance. If John convicted them to repent then they would truly be ready to hear the coming Messiah. The fulfillment of John the Baptist as the messenger and Jesus as YHWH make these scriptures clear for us to understand. The Construction. 8-19). the "forerunner of our Lord." John the Baptist’s message. Immediately before His statement that the kingdom of God suffers violence, Jesus honors John as the greatest prophet (Matthew 11:11). The existence of John the Baptist within the same time frame as Jesus, and his eventual execution by Herod Antipas is attested to by 1st-century historian Flavius Josephus and the overwhelming majority of modern scholars view Josephus' accounts of the activities of John the Baptist as authentic. 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