Matthew 3:1-12

Why do I need to repent?

John the Baptist may have seemed to be a crazy street evangelist, yet his coming had been prophecies many years before. His message was one of repentance.

The need for repentance ????????

Matthew explains that John is the messenger who would appear before the Messiah to prepare the way for Him. He was like a herald for the kingdom of God.

In Isaiah where John is foretold, there is a sense of urgency. And so John's message was urgent: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near". John urged his listeners to change their lives and purpose for the kingdom of heaven, not only for the blessings that would be given, but also as a warning against the judgement that will come for those who ignore it.

The Fruit of Repentance ????

John was baptising people in the River Jordan. This was slightly different to the baptism we see in our modern day churches.

Here the greek word baptise was in reference to a repeated washing. A permanent cleaning.

Here John was using the washing as a sign of repentance and an acknowledgement of sinfulness before God. They now wanted to realign their heart to have God at the centre.

Repentance goes hand in hand with confession. Confession of our sins, and confession of our belief in Jesus.

The Consequence of Rejection ????

We have a choice to repent and bear the fruit of baptism. What happens if we don't make that choice?

John is very clear in his attitude towards the Pharisees and Sadducees - they had not repented and thought their heritage and conduct would bring them favour with God.

But John saw that there was no fruit from them. Therefore instead of a baptism of water and then the Holy Sprit, they would be baptised with fire.

If we rely on anything we do or have to be acceptable for God, then we will be cast out. The only way we can be part of God's kingdom, there is salvation through Jesus Christ.

If we repent and accept Jesus as Lord, and that He brought salvation to the world, we can have that salvation and a place in God's kingdom. The fruit of that is a spiritual and physical baptism, as a sign of our change if heart and fixation upon God.