PT-1 "His Self-Denial'

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 12/3/2021 9:47 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  PT-1 “John’s Self-Denial”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Matthew 11:8

 

            Message of the verse:  “8 “But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ palaces!”

 

            In today’s SD we want to continue to look what Jesus did in this verse and that is to challenge the crowd by asking them another question about John.  As He asks this question He reminds them of the third characteristic of John’s greatness:  his self-denial.

 

            John MacArthur gives a sort of modern day examples of self-denial as he writes:  “Great generals put their lives on the line with their troops.  Great athletes train their bodies mercilessly, denying themselves pleasures most people take for granted.  Great scientists often risk their health to make an important discovery.  Great inventors sacrifice social life in order to develop and perfect and invention.  Great medical researchers risk exposure to deadly disease in order to save thousands of lives.  The easy way is never the way of success.”

 

            Now the self-indulgent “man dressed in soft clothing” does not live in the wilderness as John did.  John wore “a garment of camel’s hair, and a leather belt about his waist and his food was locusts and wild honey” as seen in Matthew 3:4.  We read that his lifestyle was a living, visual protest against self-indulgence and self-centeredness.  John had a reason for doing what he did and that reason was to tell people of the coming of the Messiah, to prepare the way for the coming Messiah.  John was the first prophet to come along in 400 years to the land of Israel and people wanted to go out into the wilderness to see this man.

 

            In our Lord’s Day it is reported that in order to court the king’s favor, some scribes forsook the rather drab garments they usually wore and donned the ornate, luxurious robes of the king’s court.  Now because it served to silence possible criticism from those religious leaders, the king gladly encouraged the practice.

 

            We know that John the Baptist was not a self-seeker.  MacArthur adds “Both physically and symbolically, he dressed, ate, and lived far apart from the hypocritical and corrupt religious and political systems.  He was not interested in the ease or approval of the world.  He had no penchant for gaining the favor of those who could advance his career or promote his welfare.  He was so consumed by the cause God gave him that he was not attracted to the world and its standards.  His devotion to his ministry completely superseded any personal interests and comforts.”

 

            This will be a very short SD as we will finish this section about John in our next SD, as I have to work on my Sunday school lesson on what is one of the toughest sections in all of the Bible.

 

12/3/2021 10:19 AM