Transcript
Luke chapter 3. And we want to begin reading at verse 15. Luke 3:15.
Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, John answered, saying to them all, ‘I indeed baptize you with water, but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn. But the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.’
And with many other exhortations he preached to the people. But Herod the tetrarch, being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, also added this above all, that he shut John up in prison.
About the middle of November in 1985, twenty-six-year-old Antonio Johnson walked into the FBI office in Detroit, Michigan. The FBI did not suspect the surprise that he had in store for them.
At first Johnson claimed to have information about a robbery that had taken place a couple of days before. But in reality he had a lot more information than that.
After interviewing him for several days the FBI was able to link Antonio Johnson to a whole series of robberies of banks and of savings and loan institutions stretching all the way from New York to San Francisco, California.
The FBI did not have the slightest idea that all of these robberies had been committed by the same individual. You see Johnson was extremely clever at concealing his age, his sex, and his race. He could convince eyewitnesses that he was a twenty-five-year-old black woman. Or he could convince them that he was a sixty-year-old white man.
Altogether, starting in about 1982, he had robbed at least twenty-two banks and savings and loan institutions and had collected for himself somewhere in the neighborhood of three hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
Kenneth Walton, the special agent in charge of the Detroit office, summarized Johnson pretty well. He said, “To put it simply, he was a master of disguise.”
Now please don’t ask me why a successful bank robber like that decided to turn himself in because I don’t have a clue. But maybe, just maybe, he got tired of playing all of those roles and decided that he wanted to be just plain old Antonio Johnson once again.
Wait a minute. Isn’t it true that there are times when all of us are masters of disguise? And if we are given the right set of circumstances, if we are given the right kinds of motivation, you and I are perfectly capable of playing roles that really do not belong to us.
And please don’t think that that is a temptation that only comes to unsaved people or to careless and uncommitted Christians. That kind of temptation comes very often to men and women who are deeply dedicated to Jesus Christ.
And so the topic of my sermon this morning is drawn from a popular modern phrase which I happen to like very much. The phrase is this: Get real.
That’s the title of my message today. Get real.
Some of you have heard me tell it before. But many years ago when I was in the second grade, and let me assure you that that was many years ago, but in the second grade I fell madly, wildly, and head over heels in love with a little second-grade girl named Ann Nuttall.
Now I want you folks to understand that my parents raised me to be a well-behaved little boy. But in the second grade I was blinded by love. And I actually stooped to the practice of writing mushy little love notes and passing them to the girl of my dreams during class time, which of course was against the rules.
And one of the greatest acts of treachery that I have ever had to endure happened one day after a recess when I committed one of these little notes to a friend of mine who sat next to the little girl. And instead of delivering it to her he took it straight to my second-grade teacher.
And as she read silently to herself that gooey little communication I could feel myself sinking slowly, slowly through the schoolroom floor.
But despite an occasional downer like that I did have one glorious moment in the sun. You see when I got into third grade I was still involved with this little girl. Only now we were in separate classrooms.
But happily it fell to the lot of the third grade to put on a Christmas play before an adult audience in full costume on a brightly lighted stage in our school auditorium.
Our play was The Nutcracker. And Ann Nuttall was chosen to play the role of the beautiful princess who is captured by the evil villain. And of course they needed someone to play Prince Charming who concealed his identity behind a dark cape until dramatically at the last moment he flung it aside to reveal himself as the handsome and dashing prince.
And when they selected someone for this role, guess what? I modestly confess it. They chose me.
Now you talk about an opportunity to act out your childhood fantasies. You talk about a chance to live your dream. That was it. I was the dashing hero rescuing the girl of my dreams and, as in all good stories, living happily ever after.
The only trouble was that when the curtain came down and when the auditorium lights went on, reality returned. And today I don’t have the slightest idea where Ann Nuttall is. And she doesn’t have the slightest idea where I am. And sad to say she at least probably doesn’t even care.
But sometimes, my friends, even after we have grown up we have an opportunity to play a role that really appeals to us. Sometimes we get a chance to pretend to be something that we really are not.
And believe me, John the Baptist had that opportunity in spades. He had that opportunity in spades.
Remember that just a few short weeks or months ago John was a desert hermit and almost nobody in Israel had even heard of him. And suddenly, like a meteor flashing across the nighttime sky, John had become the most popular preacher in the land of Palestine.
Great crowds were streaming out from all parts of the land of Palestine to hear him preach. Great multitudes were submitting to him in baptism. And the name of John was on everybody’s lips.
And the question that was in everybody’s heart was this: Could this man be the promised Deliverer? Could John the Baptist be the Savior and the King that God has promised to Israel?
And please understand that if John had wanted to play that role he could have played it. And his popularity would have gone straight through the roof.
You see Israel was a restless nation. The people chafed under the hated rule of the Roman Empire. And people dreamed about the coming of the Messiah who would lead them to political independence and political greatness once again.
And all that John would have had to have done was to drop a few broad hints that he was the man they were waiting for. And overnight he would have been numero uno in Israel. Overnight he would have been the most powerful person in all of Palestine.
I’ll bet I know what some of you are thinking. You’re saying, “Zane, that was a very special and unique kind of temptation that could only come to a man like John the Baptist. And it really doesn’t relate to me at all.”
Don’t kid yourself. Don’t kid yourself. That’s the kind of temptation that comes to all of us. It just happened to come to John the Baptist on a larger scale.
And it is not at all uncommon for a person or an individual in a Christian church to want to play the role of the most powerful person in the church. And believe me that’s not always the pastor.
And it is not uncommon for an individual in a church to want to play the role of the most spiritual person in the church or the most effective personal worker in the church or the greatest prayer warrior in the church or the best Sunday school teacher that this church has ever had or the best husband and father or the best wife and mother. And on and on it goes.
And there are almost as many roles to play as there are people in a church like ours.
Mrs. Arthur Sulzberger of the Sulzberger newspaper dynasty was once saying good night to her little granddaughter. And the child remarked, “Mommy and Daddy are entertaining some very important people downstairs.”
“You’re right,” said Mrs. Sulzberger, “but how did you know?”
To which the little girl replied, “Just listen. Mommy is laughing at all of Daddy’s jokes.”
And that’s a story we can all relate to, isn’t it? How easily, how quickly we slip into our little act when there’s someone around that we want to impress.
Madame Modjeska was a celebrated Polish actress who was particularly noted for her portrayal of tragic roles. On one occasion she was a guest at an evening party. And her admiring fellow guests began to urge her to do a recitation from one of the plays in which she had performed.
At first Madame Modjeska refused. She said that her memory might fail her without the usual stage settings and footlights and other things. But her fellow guests continued to press her insistently.
And finally Madame Modjeska gave in. And she announced that she was going to recite in her native language. And as she did so she held her audience spellbound. And some of them were even moved to tears.
And when she had finished someone asked her what was the name of the touching story from which she had recited. And Madame Modjeska said, “I counted to one hundred in Polish. I counted to one hundred in Polish.”
And my friends one of the dangers that we face is that in the Christian church we may put on a marvelous and even a moving performance. And behind that performance there may be no spiritual substance at all.
Oh there it was. The opportunity of a lifetime for John the Baptist. A chance to play the role of the Christ of God.
And can’t you just hear the beguiling voice of Satan speaking to John’s heart? He was saying, “Come on, John. Come on, John. This is the way to hit the big time. This is your ticket to superstar status, John. Don’t you get a little tired of this dreary existence out here in this desert wilderness?
“What you need is a little R and R down in the capital city, down in Jerusalem. You’ll rub shoulders with kings and high priests and leaders of the people. And if they think you’re the Christ they’re going to wine and dine you. And I guarantee you, John, once you’ve tasted some of their food and drink you’ll never want to go back to eating locusts and wild honey.
“Face it, John. Face it. Wise up. You only go around once in life and you sure have to grab it as it goes by.”
Sound familiar? Sure it does.
And please don’t think that such thoughts didn’t go through the mind of John the Baptist. He wouldn’t have been human if they hadn’t gone through his mind. The devil wouldn’t have been the devil if he hadn’t suggested that.
But listen to me. You will never read or hear words spoken by a human being that are any greater than the words that are spoken here by John the Baptist.
And I want to give you a free translation of these words. I want to give you a paraphrase of what John said to the crowds.
John says, “Why are you people looking at me? I’m only baptizing you in water. But I’m telling you that there’s someone coming very soon who’s so much greater than I am, so much mightier than I am, that if He were here standing in front of us I wouldn’t even deserve to bend down to His feet and unloose the strap of His sandals.
“And you folks think that my water-baptizing ministry is a big deal? Well it isn’t. This person knows how to baptize. And He’s either going to baptize you with the Holy Spirit or He’s going to baptize you with fire.
“You folks need to understand that I don’t determine the eternal destination of any one of you. But this person does. In fact this nation is like this threshing floor. And with the winnowing fan of His word he’s going to separate the wheat from the chaff.
“And the saved are going to be gathered into His kingdom like wheat is gathered into a barn. And the unsaved are going to be cast like the chaff into the unquenchable fires of eternal hell.”
Wow. Wow. You talk about stepping out of the spotlight and turning the focus on somebody else. Those words are a masterpiece. They are an absolute masterpiece.
And John is saying, “Look folks. Do you think I’m important? Do you think my ministry is important? You don’t know important. Here’s what’s important. It’s the Coming One, our true Messiah.”
And now be honest with me this morning. Will you be honest with me?
Are you ever tempted to forget what is really important in life? What is really important in life?
Well it isn’t you. And it isn’t your personal affairs. And it isn’t even the work that you do for God as significant as that may be.
Here’s what’s important. It’s Jesus Christ the Son of God, our Savior and our Lord.
And if you ever forget that reality you will be playing a role in the church before you can count to ten.
There is a very engaging story that is told about Leonardo da Vinci who was not only a scientific genius but also a master painter.
The story is that it was the Duke of Milan who requested that da Vinci paint the dramatic scene of Jesus’ last supper with His disciples. It turned out to be one of the greatest paintings that da Vinci ever did.
For three years he worked on this masterpiece. And he worked carefully. And he was meticulously concerned with every detail.
He divided the disciples into groups of three with two on one side and two on the other of the central figure of Jesus. He painted Christ with His arms outstretched. And in His right hand Christ was holding a cup which da Vinci had painted beautifully and with astounding realism.
When the masterpiece was finished da Vinci said to one of his friends, “Observe it and give me your opinion of it.”
And the friend exclaimed, “It’s wonderful. And that cup, it’s so real I can’t take my eyes off of it.”
And the story is that when da Vinci heard those words he took a paintbrush and he drew it across that sparkling cup. And as he did so he said, “Nothing shall detract from the figure of Christ.”
And happy is that Christian man and happy is that Christian woman who has decided to paint Jesus at the very center of the canvas of their lives. And blessed is that believer who says in his heart, “Nothing, nothing shall detract from the figure of Christ.”
So you see that’s the kind of man John was. That’s the kind of man he was.
And what did it get him? What did it get him? Let me tell you what it got him.
It got him some free room and board in one of King Herod’s prisons.
Oh boy. If we had been living back there wouldn’t we have been tempted to give John our ten-cent lecture on using some common sense?
“John, you blew it. You blew it big time, buddy. Tell me what your problem is. Your problem is that you are so sickeningly sincere. You are just plain downright too honest for your own good.
“Okay, okay. Maybe it wasn’t too bad to forego your reputation and there are some dangers in being a public figure. I don’t think maybe it wasn’t too bad to play down your baptizing ministry. I think you did that track after all.
“But John, please. Did you have to go and tell your audiences that King Herod was committing adultery because he was living with his brother Philip’s wife?
“Can you realize that Herod is a half-breed Edomite Samaritan who has to rule over a Jewish population? Can you imagine how much he appreciates the most popular preacher in the country telling his crowd that he’s an adulterer?
“Have you any conception of what that does to his popularity rating and gall?”
And John, what really eats my cake is this. You could have ended your days in applause and instead you’re ending them in a prison. The chances are that you’ll never get out of that prison alive.
And he didn’t get out of it alive, folks. Because acting at the request of a little dancing girl who happened to be the daughter of the woman with whom he was living in adultery, Herod sent an executioner to the prison who beheaded John the Baptist in prison.
But just in case you’re tempted to buy into the philosophy that sometimes you have to play a role, that sometimes you have to do a little pretending, just in case you are persuaded that sometimes insincerity and hypocrisy pays off big, let me remind you of this fact.
Not very long after John was put in prison Jesus was surrounded by crowds. And this is what He said about John the Baptist.
He said, “What did you people go out into the desert to see? Did you go out to see a reed that went this way and that way depending on which way the wind was blowing? Did you go out into the desert to see a man wearing soft clothes? People like that are living in kings’ palaces.
“But what did you people go out and see in the wilderness? A prophet? Yes, and more than a prophet.”
And then Jesus added these superlative words, “Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen a greater than John the Baptist.”
You want to talk about success? You want to talk about success? That’s real success. And it’s fame and success from the only source that really matters, from Jesus Christ our Lord.
Would you like to be a great Christian man? Would you like to be a great Christian woman? Here’s my advice. Get real. Get real.
Dr. Espy G. Gordon tells the story of an elderly Christian woman who was gradually losing her memory. At one time she had known many, many verses of the Bible by heart.
But as her memory slipped away she could only recall one verse. And the verse was that famous one written by the apostle Paul that says, “I know whom I have believed and I am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day.”
But as time passed even parts of that verse began to drift away from her. And now she would sit and she would repeat over and over again the only part of the verse she could recall: “That which I have committed unto Him. That which I have committed unto Him. That which I have committed unto Him.”
And finally as she lay hovering between life and death her loved ones saw that her lips were moving. And they bent over her to see if she needed something. And they heard her repeating over and over again the only part of the verse that now remained in her memory.
It was a single word. And it was “Him. Him. Him.”
And yes, that elderly woman had lost nearly all of her memory. But she still had a firm grip on ultimate reality. For you see the only reality that counts, whether for you or for me, is Him. Him. Him.
Shall we pray?
Father what a challenge, what a reality we are confronted with in John the Baptist. Teach us the lessons that we must learn from this great man of God. We ask it in Christ’s name. Amen.