CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE DAILY DEVOTIONAL ON YOUTUBE
Matthew 3:5-6
We learned in Matthew 3:1-2 (NKJV) that John the Baptist came preaching, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” Today in Matthew 3:5-6 we learn, “Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.”
This is the reaction that our heavenly Father desires of us all in opening our hearts to the simple truth of the message of the Gospel as declared by John the Baptist in Matthew 3:1-2, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”
This is a wonderful display of the workings of the gospel message. John the Baptist preached out in the wilderness; he did not stand on a soap box in the town square; he did not schedule a visit to the largest church/temple in Jerusalem; he did not send out flyers inviting all of Jerusalem, Judea, and the surrounding areas to come and listen to this new message that God has put in his heart for everyone to hear; he simply preached out away from the city in the wilderness, and those who heard must have relayed the message, in their excitement, to their family and friends so they too could go and hear this new, wonderful message of repentance and baptism.
But we also have the connection of John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness. It is in the wilderness of this world that we find ourselves in need of salvation. Jesus came to save the lost – in which we all are without His saving grace extended to us. When Jesus was visiting with the sinners of the day, and then questioned by the Pharisees of why He would associate with such people, He replied in Mark 2:17 (ESV), “…Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick, I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Jesus extended His saving grace to us through His work on the cross, burial, and resurrection. He came into this sinful world to conquer it in the love of God for His greatest creation – you and me – unto salvation as we put and keep our faith in Him. This is the greatest news you will ever hear – the gospel – the good news of salvation in Christ Jesus through our repentance – to turn from a life of willful sin to a redeemed life in Christ Jesus that will open doors that are not seemingly there until we put our trust in Him by asking of His forgiveness for our sins – sins that He paid for us because we are not worthy to pay them for ourselves; but He did, and He waits with patience, that only He knows, for us to turn to Him for help in the wilderness of this world.
The simple message of the gospel: confess, repent, and be baptized – in Christ! For the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Matthew 3:1-2, 6, NKJV).
Dear LORD,
The gospel message is clear, but many people are blinded to it by the sins of this world. My prayer today is that You would inspire those of us who are open to hearing the message of the gospel to share it with our family and friends so that they too may come to You with a open heart to confess their sins, repent from them to a new life in Christ Jesus, and be baptized showing a public declaration of their faith in You through the work that Jesus did for us all on the cross, in His death, burial, and resurrection from the dead to life everlasting. In Jesus name I pray, amen.