Luke 3:7-18 Commentary

Comments, Questions, and Observations

Throughout this passage, there is a contrast of powers for transformation. That contrast is most thoroughly set forth in the two baptisms John talks about—his and the one of the Messiah. One is like John himself, human; the other is filled with the power of God. One has power that is seen slowly and over time; the other can do its work slow or quick. Both have results that look similar—like love in action—but only one of their administrators is worthy to be trusted as the Saviour.

But before he gets to contrasting baptisms and worthiness, John the Baptist makes another contrast. Standing at the riverbank, John looks out at the people coming to him to be baptised and calls out some of them for being looky-loos hedging their bets. They aren’t interested in the two-part preparation that we talked about last week. They believe they have a birthright and perhaps think that this baptism is its latest accessory of belonging.

“Bear fruits worthy of repentance!” John barks. His baptism is useless without intent on its participants’ part. Human power is part of the fuel for repentance and John intended his baptism as a purposeful commitment to a new way of living as one of God’s people.

To their credit, the looky-loos engage with curiosity, asking John what sort of life that will look like. John describes a lifestyle of mercy and righteousness, beginning with sharing with others the basics like food and clothing then moving on to the ethics of how we conduct ourselves in our vocations. John describes for them what living differently looks like personally and professionally, and perhaps shockingly, choosing soldiers and tax collectors as his professional examples.

But everything John describes are things that we humans can do under our own strength. They are the good side of human nature. We are capable of doing good, of being different.

And even still, we’ve got nothing on the one who is coming. Just ask John, who says he’s not even good enough to be the Messiah’s household servant. We know that John is being used by God as he helps people live more holy lives, but what John is doing with his baptism is different than what God does. John says it’s the difference between purifying with water and purifying with fire.

We’re not talking flash floods or natural disasters here. We’re talking more like the bucket of water poured out or the quick dip in the river to cool off. What is wet will dry and if you come back to look for it later, the wet spot will have disappeared. But what is scorched or singed by fire is marked—either scarred or refined. What we humans do on our own strength and power is here today and gone tomorrow, but what we do because of God’s power in us, that lasts and transforms.

Or more rightly described, the baptism that John prophesies that Jesus brings is a purification and life change brought on by the Holy Spirit’s fire.

Even though the church remembers and enacts this baptism by using water today, we would do well to remember that this sign and seal is about a baptism much larger than one that can be time-stamped. As far as we know, Jesus did not take up administering a baptismal rite like John the Baptist even though, as he ascended, Jesus commissioned his disciples to go out and make disciples through baptism and teaching.

In short, God baptises with God’s presence. Jesus came and everywhere he went, whatever he was doing, was an act of baptism, of purifying (fire) and of sharing the good news through the Godhead’s overflowing presence (the Holy Spirit). Everywhere he went, Jesus left a mark, transforming lives. And the Holy Spirit continues to be that presence, baptising us in all times and places, doing its work of purification sometimes slow, sometimes fast, but always leaving a mark.

Meeting God’s presence willingly in any situation is an act of repentance—something we can do by our power to recognize the overwhelming power of God already there and at work. Everything that was part of John’s baptism is God-honouring, just not enough. Like John the Baptist looked for, we need to look for God to lead us, to overflow and overwhelm us with God’s presence so that we live and breathe and have our being in the streams of abundant life that Jesus came to provide. That’s the power of God’s baptism. What a contrast indeed.

Textual Point

John says that he is not worthy to untie Jesus’s sandals in verse 16. Such an act was not even expected of the lowest servant in the household—meaning John is emphasising how far apart he and Jesus are on the “worthy” scale when it comes to the role of anticipated Messiah. In many ways, it is like the difference in the two baptisms: human power is noteworthy, but God power is off the charts.

Note: In addition to our weekly sermon commentaries that appear every Monday, we have put together a special Year C resource page for Advent and Christmas.  Visit this resource to find links to whole Advent and Christmas sermons in print and as audio sermons as well as other reflections and helpful ideas for preaching in Advent. 

Illustration Ideas

On when something becomes a fad… When I was working on my ThM at Regent College I enjoyed using the quiet library in the basement. Regent is a Christian postgrad institution nestled at the edge of a large secular university, the University of British Columbia, and one week there was a noticeable uptick of young undergrads coming into the building asking where the library was. It turns out that someone had made a social media video in our library calling it a “secret study spot” that couldn’t be missed. It didn’t last long though, before the next fad led them all away.

Another story. When the iPhone first came out in 2007 there was a news story from Dallas, Texas about a woman who wanted to buy out a store’s inventory so that she could sell them on ebay. She gave the guy at the front of the line (who had been waiting for hours) $800 in exchange for his spot. But when she got into the store and tried to buy more than one iPhone she was hit with a hard lesson which she could have seen in the fine print: AT&T was limiting phones to one per person. It reminds me of what John says here about relying on our own plans—like thinking being one of Abraham’s descendants is enough—we aren’t the ones with the authority to make those calls.