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Luke 3:1-17
We are continuing our series on Advent.
We started by talking about the hope that we have in the coming of our Savior to rule and reign on the is earth.
We saw last week that we can have true joy if we will yield to the Holy Spirit, Obey what He tells us, live in anticipation of His coming and trust Christ.
Today our third candle represents Peace.
John the Baptist came as a forerunner of Christ and his message prepared people for Jesus’s arrival, which would bring peace.
The world around us longs for salvation.
During Advent we are called again to bring a foretaste of the Prince of Peace’s salvation into our area of influence.
Advent means the coming of a notable person, thing or event.
In this season we celebrate the coming of the Lord in the past, present and the future.
In the past he came as a baby in a manger.
Int he present He wants work through His Holy Spirit to help us grow closer to His image.
in the future he will come to rule and reign as King of kings and Lord of lords.
The Bible prophesied through Isaiah the coming of the Lord as a child:
Today as we look at the candle of Peace, we are looking again at the story of John the Baptist.
His story is a great way for us to access our own longing for salvation.
John came with a message that challenged every member of his community.
His message demanded repentance and preparation of all people.
No one was exempt from his call.
John the Baptist was definitely a seeker sensitive preacher.
He was in your face, repent now the kingdom of God is at hands kind of preacher!
But people responded.
People everywhere want Peace.
Peace with fellow man, peace with God, and peace with themselves.
The message that John preached included all of these!
The overall message that John preached was how to obtain peace through the coming of God’s Kingdom.
In this passage I see four avenues of Peace that is available to all mankind:
I. Peace is Brought through Redemption
6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
7 Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
8 Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
Men and women of all types came to hear John preach and to be baptized by him.
In his sermon here I see three categories of men here that the same peace is available to:
A. To the Reprobate
Both John and Jesus used this graphic term to describe the wicked men, often the Pharisees.
It is not specified who he is speaking to here, like it is with Jesus.
So we are left to believe that it is referring to anyone who refuses the Salvation of the coming Messiah.
The term throughout the Bible speaks to wicked people.
We are all wicked without Christ!
John is speaking harshly and openly to those who have come to him for baptism, it seems that they wanted baptism without repentance.
John was using a shock and awe type of wording to grab their attention and bring them to the place of repentance.
Peace is available to everyone!
But not everyone will receive peace - he even warns them here of the wrath to come.
Peace is going to be needed, and it is available, but these wicked must come by repentance.
This was the crux of his message - verse 3 tells us that he was “breaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.”
But without repentance, baptism is worthless!
So here I see the second group of people to whom peace is available:
B. To the Repentant
To the vipers he cautions them to “bring forth fruits worthy of repentance...”
Those who stand before him that hear his words of warning that the wrath of God is coming, these that have a repentant heart heed, and come to God.
It is important to understand the definition of repentance.
The word repentance means a change of mind from evil to good.
He asks them to bring forth the fruit, that is the proof, the deeds, the conduct that is worthy (that shows forth) this repentance that has happened in their heart.
A changed heart will always result in a changed life.
To say that you have a changed mind, but continue doing that which you changed your mind about would be ludicrous.
Imagine you have a friend that you were going to have dinner with, and it was agreed that you would pick him up at his home.
You show up and knock on the door, he answers and says, “Oh, I changed my mind, I’m sorry I’m not going to go to dinner with you.”
Disappointed you leave only to see that your friend is walking beside you down the walkway to your car.
“I thought you changed your mind about coming.”
Your friend replies, “Oh I did!”
You get into your car thinking he must just be heading in the same direction.
All of a sudden your passenger car door and your friend sits down in the seat.
“I thought you changed your mind?”
“I did,” he replies.
Your shrug it off and drive him to the restaurant, he comes in with you, sits at the table with you, eats his food with you, gets back in the car as you drive him back home.
There is no fruit shown during the entire evening to show forth that he truly changed his mind about going out to dinner with you, in fact all evidence is to the contrary.
And yet there are professing Christians, who say “I have repented” and yet all evidence in their lives point to an unchanged mind.
Now Christians will sin!
There is no doubt!
But there will be fruit of repentance present.
Are you today in that first group, the vipers, the wicked who hear the call to repentance but refuse to change?
Hear the warning today!
Are you part of this second group and you want to change, repent.
Show forth the fruit of repentance!
Perhaps you are part of the third group
C. To the Religious
Verse 8 continues and those being called to repentance are said to be thinking...
“We have Abraham to our father...”
John is speaking to those who were trusting in their lineage, and especially in the rituals of their religion.
He was speaking to the religious crowd.
But John’s answer to them was that God is able to create children unto Abraham from these stones that are laying here.
He doesn’t need you, your lineage, or your religious rites.
he wants your repentance!
If you are here today and you are trusting in your spiritual heritage to get you to heaven…this is not the answer.
Every man must give an account of his life to God, himself.
If you are here today and you are trusting in your baptism, taking communion, your church attendance, your good life…this is also not the answer.
You must come to him with nothing in your hands, with a changed heart, a repentant heart and ready to receive the Peace from God that only Redemption can bring!
So yes, God brings Peace through Redemption, but he also says that:
II.
Peace Is Brought through Removal
Peace can be brought by the sinner repenting, or it can be brought by the removal of the sinner entirely.
Verse 9 says
9 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
John has already started this imagery of the fruit of repentance.
Now he continues this theme by speaking of the root of the trees.
The imagery of the axe laid at the root of the tree shows that the time is here to cut the unprofitable tree down.
An unfruitful tree is worthless.
The unfruitful tree is cut (hewn) down and the tree is cast into the fire.
John very graphically is calling these hearers to repent while there is still time.
There are two types of people here
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