EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 8/26/2026
8:59 PM
My
Worship Time
Focus: PT-1“John’s Powerful Contribution”
Bible
Reading & Meditation
Reference: “Luke 7:29-30”
Message of the verses: “When all the people and the tax
collectors heard this, they acknowledged God’s justice, having been baptized
with the baptism of John. But the
Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves, not having
been baptized by John.”
As I listened to the sermon that mentioned these verses
in it I remember that MacArthur said “Whether
these two verses record words spoken by Jesus or are Luke’s editorial comment
is not clear, but the latter is more likely.
John’s profound impact on the nation is evident from the response both
of those who initially accepted his message, and those who rejected it. So great was John’s influence that he
literally divided the nation. When
all the common people, including even the hated and reviled tax
collectors, heard John’s powerful preaching they acknowledged God’s
justice, or righteousness. They
admitted that they were sinners and that God was holy, righteous, and just to
condemn them for their sin and call them to repentance. They also agreed to be baptized with the
baptism of John, thus publicly acknowledging themselves to the outside of
God’s kingdom and no better off than the pagan Gentiles.
“On the other hand, the religious
elite, the Pharisees and the lawyers, rejected God’s purpose for themselves,
and refused to repent and be baptized by John. The lawyers, or
scribes, were the self-criminal, and governmental matters. Most of them were Pharisees, proud,
aloof, self-righteous, and viewing themselves as spiritually superior to the
common people (cf. John 7:49).”
(cf. John 7:49).
“49 But this crowd that does not know the law is
accursed.’’
“Unlike
the people, they were not at all willing to acknowledge that they were sinners.
“The common people were thrilled for
a while by John’s ministry. They were
excited to have a prophet among them again after four centuries without any word
from God. The people eagerly anticipated
the arrival of the long-desired Messiah, of whom John was the forerunner. But John’s identification of Jesus as the
Messiah put them in a quandary.
Amazingly, instead of accepting the testimony of the one whom they had
hailed as God’s great prophet, the people refused to embrace Jesus. Some even chose to escape their dilemma by
revising their view of John to accommodate their rejection of Jesus. Some said the worst according to Luke 7:33
where the Lord said, ‘For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and
drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ Others, according to John 5:35, were
temporarily impressed by John. In the words of Jesus, ‘He was the lamp that was
burning and was shining and you were willing to rejoice for a while in
his light’ (emphasis added).
“All the euphoria surrounding John
and his ministry was short-lived. Awed
and traumatized by John’s powerful preaching and caught up in the crowd
mentality, many people made superficial, emotional commitments. Later, under the influence of the religious
leaders, they turned away from John and his teaching. The began to deny what they had once affirmed regarding John to justify their
rejection of Jesus. So completely did
they abandon John that there was no public outcry when corrupt Herod executed
him. Many similarly were swept up in the
excitement of Jesus’ triumphal entry.
But the same frenzied mob that shouted ‘Hosanna!’ on that occasion would
just a few days later scream, ‘Crucify Him!’
Like the rocky and thorny soils (cf. Luke 8:6-7), their commitment was
shallow, superficial, and fading fast.”
(cf. Luke 8:6-7)
“6 And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up,
it withered away, because it had no moisture. 7
And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked
it.”
“But despite his exemplary personal
character, uniquely privileged calling, and undeniably powerful contribution,
the shocking truth is, Jesus told His hearers, that although ‘among those
born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the
kingdom of God (the sphere of salvation where God rules over His people) is
greater than he.’ That surprising statement
can be understood in two ways. First,
the kingdom of God is an eternal, spiritual reality, while John’s ministry was
an earthly, temporal one (although John himself, of course, was also in the
kingdom). Thus although no one ever had
a more significant earthly function than John, everyone in the kingdom has
greater spiritual privileges. Eternal
salvation far surpasses the highest earthly privilege.
“But there is another sense in which
the Lord’s words can be understood. The
kingdom of God takes on various distinct forms.
It existed in the Old Testament where God ruled as king over Israel (cf.
1 Sam. 8:7; 12:12; Isaiah 33:22).”
(cf. 1 Sam. 8:7; 12:12; Isaiah 33:22)
“7 And the LORD said to Samuel, "Obey the
voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected
you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.”
“12 And when you saw that Nahash the king of the
Ammonites came against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over
us,’ when the LORD your God was your king.’
“22 For the LORD is our judge; the LORD is our
lawgiver; the LORD is our king; he will save us.”
“It was a
kingdom based on the promise of the coming Messiah. But there was another form of the kingdom
that both John the Baptist (Matt. 3:1-2) and Jesus (Matt. 4:17) said was
imminent, inaugurated with the coming Messiah.”
(Matt. 3:1-2)
“ 1 ¶ In
those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at
hand.”
(Matt. 4:17)
“17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying,
“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
“This was
not a different sphere of salvation, but rather the fulfillment of the kingdom
promised in the Old Testament. All
believers in the era of fulfillment enjoy greater privileges than even John,
the greatest man of the era of promise, enjoyed.” 8/26/2026 9:40 PM
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