Mark 1:2-8
As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, ”See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way; the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.’” John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
John the Baptist is the forerunner, the voice crying in the wilderness, the herald of the coming of God’s good news embodied in Jesus Christ.
Mark combines two traditions to describe John’s ministry and mission. The first, as we explored earlier, comes from Isaiah. John is the messenger Isaiah foretold, according to Christian tradition, the one sent ahead to prepare the way for Jesus. And he is a second Elijah, the only prophet to be pulled into the heavens, the one foretold would come again when the Messiah came – hence he is garbed in camel’s hair and eats and drinks and speaks like an Old Testament prophet.
He is the old, pointing to the new. He is a prophet, proclaiming the coming of Messiah. And he is the one who baptizes with water, announcing the coming of the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.
Christians may be surprised to learn that baptism predates Jesus, but it was long a custom to symbolize one’s repentance and acceptance of a new life to wash, to ritually clean oneself before embarking on a new path. Many are flocking to John for this kind of baptism, to confess their sins, to be invited to turn away from mistakes and misdeeds, to embrace a new way of being in the world.
We live in a culture that often dismisses confession and repentance as archaic and even shame-inducting rituals. But the point of confession is candor, a deep honesty about one’s hopes and failures, one’s aspirations and reality and the often painful disparity between them. And the point of repentance is a chance, another chance, to start again. No wonder people flock to John – he invites them to new life.
Or, really, he invites them to a second chance at their old life. Which is why he points to Jesus. Jesus, we confess, is the one who baptizes not with ritual water but with the Holy Spirit that gives new life. John’s baptism is partial, symbolic, a down payment, a promise of what God will do to renew and save. Jesus comes to keep that promise.
This is why in so many paintings John is always pointing, one long finger stretching out to orient us to the full salvation that God enacts in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. He points still. Will we follow his lead?
Prayer: Dear God, let us listen to John and look for your Messiah, the One who came that we might have life, and have it abundantly. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Thanks for your great work! The comments about baptisms “pre Christian” roots lead me to ask whether infants were baptized in those times. I also am wondering how to respond to those who ask why we baptize infants now “and never see them or their families again”.
We know whole families were baptized; Acts tells us as much. Infant baptism as its own rite wouldn’t come into practice until after Christianity was somewhat established, as in the early years so many Christians come to the faith as conversation. Baptism, it’s helpful to remind folks, is a promise, not an obligation – if folks don’t come back, maybe we should consider what we can do to make the promise more palpable and participation in church more desirable. 🙂