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The 3rd Sunday in Advent
John the Baptist, the Elijah Promised
December 13, 2009

TEXT:  NKJ Matthew 11:2 And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples 3 and said to Him, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?" 4 Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: 5 "The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6 "And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me." 7 As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 "But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. 9 "But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. 10 "For this is he of whom it is written: 'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.'
 
Traditionally we consider the coming of John the Baptist on the third Sunday in Advent—John the Baptist was the fulfillment of prophecy—Malachi the prophet spoke of the one who would come
 
NKJ Malachi 3:1 "Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming," Says the LORD of hosts.
 
And the closing verses of the writings of Malachi reveal that the messenger would be Elijah
 
NKJ Malachi 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. 6 And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse."
 
Elijah was a prophet in the 9th century BC—his father was a priest—Elijah’s loyalty to the living God was unshakable—even when his life was threatened, Elijah showed courage and stood fast in his faith—Elijah came at a time when God’s people were being threatened by their king—King Ahab was under the influence of his wife Jezebel—King Ahab worshipped Jezebel’s god Baal and considered Baal equal with the living God our Creator—he even built a temple for Baal—Elijah stood up to the king and condemned his actions before God—Elijah told God’s people to repent and follow God’s way
 
Elijah was the voice of God—crying in the wilderness—he was a man in unusual dress—his dress was distinctive enough to be described in Scripture
 
NKJ 2 Kings 1:8 So they answered him, "A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist." And he said, "It is Elijah the Tishbite."
 
Elijah lived in the wilderness—sometimes he even lived in caves—and he ate what God provided
 
NKJ 1 Kings 19:1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, "So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time." 3 And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. 4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, "It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!" 5 Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat." 6 Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank, and lay down again.
 
Elijah went where God sent him—and he did what God sent him to do—Elijah was a very special prophet—and God sent him on very special missions—but even his steel-tough, unwavering faith began to falter –Elijah thought he was the only believer left in the world
 
NKJ 1 Kings 19:7 And the angel of the LORD came back the second time, and touched him, and said, "Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you." 8 So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" 10 So he said, "I have been very zealous for the LORD God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life."
 
Elijah was a very special prophet indeed—angels communicated with Elijah to make known God’s will—there is no doubt that God chose Elijah to do His work—and there is no doubt that God was pleased with the work Elijah performed—because God took him to heaven without Elijah dying
 
NKJ 2 Kings 2:1 And it came to pass, when the LORD was about to take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. …5 Now the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho came to Elisha and said to him, "Do you know that the LORD will take away your master from over you today?" So he answered, "Yes, I know; keep silent!" … 7 And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went and stood facing them at a distance, while the two of them stood by the Jordan. 8 Now Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up, and struck the water; and it was divided this way and that, so that the two of them crossed over on dry ground. 9 And so it was, when they had crossed over, that Elijah said to Elisha, "Ask! What may I do for you, before I am taken away from you?" Elisha said, "Please let a double portion of your spirit be upon me." 10 So he said, "You have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so." 11 Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
 
Elijah’s influence on God’s people may not have ended with his ascension into heaven—Scripture tells us that Elijah sent a letter to King Jehoram seven years after Elijah was taken into heaven—this letter is the only written message of Elijah—and it may have been left with Elisha for delivery—or it may have been sent from heaven—commentators have been debating this letter for centuries—but for certain, we know Elijah sent the king a letter after Elijah’s removal from this world
 
NKJ 2 Chronicles 21:12 And a letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying, Thus says the LORD God of your father David: Because you have not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat your father, or in the ways of Asa king of Judah, 13 but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and have made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to play the harlot like the harlotry of the house of Ahab, and also have killed your brothers, those of your father's household, who were better than yourself, 14 behold, the LORD will strike your people with a serious affliction -- your children, your wives, and all your possessions; 15 and you will become very sick with a disease of your intestines, until your intestines come out by reason of the sickness, day by day.
 
Elijah was well known to God’s people—and it is a type of Elijah that would lead the way for Jesus to start His ministry
 
We are not given much information on the early days of John the Baptist’s life—but we know he had many parallels with the Old Testament Elijah—John’s father was a priest, just as Elijah’s father—John faced and opposed the equivalent of a king—he declared that Herod, the Roman governor sinned because his wife was really his brother’s wife—she was the divorced wife of Herod’s brother—John the Baptist publicly demanded that Herod repent—as a matter of fact, he demanded that all sinners repent and be baptized
 
NKJ Matthew 3:1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" 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.' " 4 And John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.
 
NKJ Luke 3:18 And with many other exhortations he preached to the people. 19 But Herod the tetrarch, being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, 20 also added this, above all, that he shut John up in prison.
 
As we’ve already seen, Elijah was a man filled with the Spirit of God—angels were sent to guide him and lead him in the way God wanted him to go—John the Baptist was also filled with the Holy Spirit—even before his birth—we should recall the visit of Mary, who was pregnant with the Baby Jesus—as she entered the home of Elizabeth who was pregnant with John the Baptist
 
NKJ Luke 1:41 And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
 
John the Baptist was sent to prepare the way and show the world the Christ—John the Baptist was chosen by God for that task—today it is our responsibility to prepare the way in men’s hearts for Christ—to show everyone the way to heaven is through our Savior Jesus Christ
 
John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit—and the Spirit guided him through his life—God had a purpose for him even from before he was born
 
NKJ 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, 77 To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins, 78 Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; 79 To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace." 80 So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.
 
Our responsibility is no different today—it is our responsibility to tell others how it is that they should repent—and that they should seek the Kingdom of God—we are chosen just as John the Baptist was chosen
 
NKJ John 15:19 "If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
 
We are filled with the Holy Spirit just as John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit—and it is that Spirit that makes us to understand that Jesus is our Savior
 
NKJ 1 Corinthians 12:3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
 
Thank God that you know Christ—and have salvation—ask God to help you to reveal Him to others—that they may inherit eternal life—all men are sinners—the difference between unbelievers and believers is forgiveness of sins
 
NKJ Luke 6:37 " Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
 
We Christians ask forgiveness—and we Christians look to God with faith that our sins are forgiven—just as God promised in His Word—and one last thought on forgiveness—consider the lesson Jesus taught us about forgiveness and the love of God—when Jesus spoke to Simon the Pharisee concerning the woman who was a great sinner and was washing Jesus’ feet
 
NKJ Luke 7:47 "Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little."
 
As we each consider the sins that God has forgiven—and we approach the day of the church year that we give thanks to God for His Son and our Savior—remember the forerunners of Christ—Elijah and John the Baptist—remain constantly aware that we have much to be thankful for—and we are forgiven much—give thanks to God
 
ALL GLORY BE TO GOD!