John the Baptist and Jesus–fulfilling a great promise
Did you know that Jesus had a cousin called John the Baptist? John was only six months older than Jesus. So it’s easy to imagine these two boys having a great time playing together when they were kids. But they probably didn’t. John lived near Jerusalem and Jesus lived in Nazareth, many miles north of Jerusalem. Though the Bible doesn’t tell us about their childhood, we know that Zacharias, John’s father, was a priest. And he probably trained John to serve in the temple in Jerusalem as he did. We also know that Jesus was a carpenter like Joseph.
Did you know? You can read about John in the books of Matthew and Luke, chapter 3.
Like all Jewish boys, John and Jesus went to a synagogue school, where they were taught about God and learned the Ten Commandments. And their families helped them learn how to obey the Commandments. In school they would also have learned about the prophets and of God’s promises to send a messenger and a Messiah who would bring healing to the people (see Isaiah 35:3–5, 40:3; Malachi 3:1).
When John and Jesus were about 30 years old, the age when a man could preach in those days, these promises in the Bible became very important in their lives. Let’s look at how it happened.
Did you know? When Jesus talked to the crowds about John, he said:
"This is the one about whom it is written,
'See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'
"Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist." (Matthew 11:10, 11, New Revised Standard Version)
John lived in the desert of Judea near the Jordan River. He wore a camel’s hair garment, a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey. John told the people that the kingdom of God was at hand, and they should repent of their sinful ways. They should live how God wanted them to. Those who repented were baptized in the Jordan River at places such as Bethabara, Perea, or at Aenon, where there was lots of water. Repenting means not just being sorry that we’ve done something wrong, but not doing it again. It’s like making a promise to ourselves to be good and pure. Water is a symbol of purity, and that’s why
baptizing is a sign of becoming purified. So, when people repented, John would immerse them in the nearby water, and that’s how John got the name John the Baptist.
Some people wondered if John was the expected Messiah, or Christ. He said he wasn’t. Then he told them that although he baptized with water, someone else would come who would baptize them with fire of the Holy Spirit. This was not an outward sign like water, but it meant purifying the heart. John said that he wasn’t worthy of even untying the shoelaces of this person.
John was very surprised when Jesus came to be baptized. John refused, saying that he needed to be baptized by Jesus. Jesus told him that this was the right thing to do at this time. Maybe Jesus did this because a lot of people believed that you had to do something other people could see as a sign that you were a good person.
Very shortly after baptizing Jesus, John was put in prison because the Roman rulers were afraid his preaching would cause the people to rebel against them. Once in prison, John never saw Jesus’ healing work, but he heard stories of what Jesus was doing.
Dig deeper
1. How many healings did Jesus do in Matthew, chapters 8 and 9? Is there one you especially like? Why?
2. John and Jesus seem very different. Can you name two ways they are alike and two ways they are different?
3. Sometimes all of us are sorry for something we did or said. Can you think of something you had to "repent" of? Did you feel "baptized" as though you'd given up something that never really was part of you?
So he sent two messengers to ask Jesus if he really was the Messiah they expected. Jesus sent John a message of proof that he was. He said, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them” (Matthew 11:4, 5, New Revised Standard Version). This must have been very reassuring to John because the reason he told people to repent of their sins was so that they would be ready for the message of the Christ, the Messiah. He was like the messenger Isaiah talked about—a voice crying in the wilderness to “prepare the way of the Lord” (Isaiah 40:3, Matthew 3:3, NRSV).
John was executed, but that did not end his good work. Many of his disciples became disciples of Jesus, and Jesus praised John’s work. This was at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Jesus did a lot more healing and teaching. The disciples, who came to be called the early Christians, spread the good news Jesus taught that the Christ is always with us to comfort and heal us.
Something special about the story of John and Jesus is that it shows us how the New Testament continues the Old Testament. The prophets had told people to expect a messenger (John), who would announce the coming Messiah (Jesus). It happened. This great promise was fulfilled. The Bible is one story, and we use all of it to help us live our lives today.
