Characters

John The Baptist

Heroes in BibleForce

Known As

Proclaimer of the Messiah

Lessons in the BibleFroce Bible

Where in the Bible?

The Books of Malachi, Matthew, Mark and Luke

Stories in the BibleFroce Bible

Did You Know

John was focused and unremitting. He refused to compromise his beliefs, and he insisted on telling the truth, no matter what the consequences might be.

Bio – John

c. 5 BC– ‎c. AD 28–36

From his birth, John the Baptist was set apart by God for a special purpose. The long-awaited child of Zechariah the priest, and his wife Elizabeth, a relative of Mary, John was the one of whom Isaiah had spoken so very long ago. He would grow up to become the unlikely prophet who would prepare the way for the Messiah.

Living a simple life in the desert, dressed in animal skins and eating locusts and wild honey, John nevertheless became an important figure. He was filled with the Holy Spirit and helped to prepare the world for Christ’s arrival. His searing message—a condemnation of the sinful times and a demand for true repentance—drew people from Jerusalem and Judea and the surrounding area. They came to hear him preach, and many made a commitment to turn from sin and were baptised by John in the Jordan River. When Jesus came to see him, he asked that John baptise him too. John was taken aback by the request and recognised that he was unworthy, for he knew that this man before him was the Lamb of God, but when Jesus insisted, John humbly obeyed and baptised him.

John did not mince his words or soften his message, not with the people who came to hear him talk, and not even with King Herod Antipas. When John condemned the king’s actions (Herod had married the former wife of his brother) and announced the coming of a new “ruler”, he found himself arrested and thrown into prison. There, he was to meet his abrupt death, having incurred the wrath of the king’s wife, Herodias. Furious with the prophet’s judgement of her and her husband, Herodias deviously engineered John’s execution.

John was focused and unremitting. He refused to compromise his beliefs, and he insisted on telling the truth, no matter what the consequences might be. He lived a life set apart from others, obedient to the Lord. He was the first prophet called by God in around 400 years, but unlike all those who had gone before him, John actually saw the Messiah in the flesh in his own lifetime. John was filled with faith, and lived his life focused on the mission God had given him.

Copyright ©2020 International Publishing Services (IPS) Sydney Australia

John - Proclaimer of the Messiah

Bible Verses About John

Malachi 3:1

“Behold, I send My messenger,
And he will prepare the way before Me.

Matthew 3:3

For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
Make His paths straight.’”

Matthew 11:9-11

“But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it is written:
‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face,
Who will prepare Your way before You.’
“Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Mark 1:4

John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.

Luke 1:13-17

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Luke 1:66

And all those who heard them kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And the hand of the Lord was with him.

Luke 1:76

“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways . . .”

Luke 7:28

“For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist . . .”

John 1:23

He said: “I am
‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
“Make straight the way of the Lord,”’
as the prophet Isaiah said.”

John 3:28

“You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’”

‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
“Make straight the way of the Lord,”’
as the prophet Isaiah said.”

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