Baptist Catechism 84 – 86

Q. 84. Which is the tenth commandment?

A. The tenth commandment is, “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s.” (Exodus 20:17)

Q. 85. What is required in the tenth commandment?

A. The tenth commandment requireth full contentment with our own condition, with a right and charitable frame of spirit towards our neighbor, and all that is his. (Heb. 13:5;1 Tim. 6:6; Rom. 12:15; 1 Cor. 13:4-7; Lev. 19:18)

Q. 86. What is forbidden in the tenth commandment?

A. The tenth commandment forbiddeth all discontentment with our own estate, envying or grieving at the good of our neighbor, and all inordinate motions and affections to anything that is his. (1 Cor. 10:10; James 5:9; Gal. 5:26; Col. 3:5)

Scripture Reading: Leviticus 19:9–18

“When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the LORD your God. You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another. You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the LORD. You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired worker shall not remain with you all night until the morning. You shall not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall fear your God: I am the LORD. You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor. You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the LORD. You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.” (Leviticus 19:9–18, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

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I would like to begin this afternoon by making some general observations about the tenth commandment in relation to the other nine, for the tenth commandment, which is “Thou shalt not covet”, is somewhat unique. 

For one, this commandment is only kept in the heart and in the mind. The other commandments are to be kept in the heart and mind too, but they may also be broken or kept with words and with actions. But covetousness is a sin of the heart. It is an invisible sin. There is no way to covet with one’s lips or to covet in action. 

Now, covetousness in the heart will inevitably produce sinful words and sinful deeds, but those sinful words and deeds will be something other than covetousness. In fact, the one who is wise will see that violations of the other nine commandments do often (if not always) spring up from a covetous heart. Some connections are obvious. Men and women often steal because they are discontent in the heart. They wish to have more than what they have. They wish to possess what others possess, and so they steal. Men and women will lie for the same reason. Adultery also proceeds from the sin of covetousness. In fact, covetousness in the heart will also drive violations of the first table of the law, which has to do with the proper worship of God. Think of Adam’s sin of eating the forbidden fruit. That sin was really about worship. Adam was to have God as God. But instead, Adam listened to the voice of the another. And why did he do it? Why did he violate the first commandment, which was written on his heart?  He listened to the words of the serpent who convinced him that there was more to be had, that God was holding out on him somehow. So, in a sense, it was covetousness that drove Adam to rebel against his Maker and to worship and serve the creature rather than the Creator. 

So then, though it is true that covetous is a sin of the heart, that does not mean that it is any less serious than the other sins. No, an argument could be made that it is a most serious offense, for it does produce all other violations of God’s law.   

I would urge you to reflect carefully upon this, and if you do I think you will agree that covetousness (or discontentment) in the heart is like a polluted spring that bubbles up producing many vile and unpleasant things.

James speaks to this in James 4, where he asks, “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.” (James 4:1–2, ESV)

Did you hear what James said? Where does murder come from? It starts with covetousness in the heart. Where do unjust wars come from? Covetousness in the heart. Where do our quarrels and fights come from? Often they spring forth from the covetousness that resides with our hearts.

Let me be very specific. How many times have you been cranky and short-tempered with others because… things aren’t going the way that you want them to go. Things are this way, but you want them to be that way, and from that discontent heart, all manner of evil does flow.

Now, think bigger. Think beyond the disappointing day and consider the course of one’s life. Immagine the evil and destruction that will flow from a heart that is discontent with life! 

The point is this: do not mess around with covetousness, brothers and sisters. Stated positively: pursue contentment in life, for “godliness with contentment is great gain…” (1 Timothy 6:6, ESV).

And what is the remedy to discontentment? The remedy is love. Love for God, and love for your fellow man. 

Love for God, and assurance of his love for us, will help to guard our hearts against discontentment regarding his will for us. 

The writer of Ecclesiastes speaks to this when he says, “Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot. Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God. For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart.” (Ecclesiastes 5:18–20, ESV)

Are you content with your lot in life, brothers and sisters? Are you content with God’s will for you? 

Think of it, it was God’s will for you to be born at a particular time, in a particular place, to particular parents. It was God’s will that you were born a certain gender, with a certain color of skin, not to mention many other physical features that are unique to you. And it was God’s will for you to have particular gifts, resources, and even experience. Are you content with these? Are you grateful to God? Or has your heart been overrun with discontentment before him. 

To love God is to be grateful towards him. And this is why I have said that love for God is a remedy to covetousness. 

But some will respond saying, but what about the hardships that I have endured? What about the suffering? The scriptures do speak to this, don’t they? They command the child of God to rejoice even in the trials and tribulations of life knowing that God works through them for good. This requires faith. This is a perspective that must be maintained. To be content we must love God, and we also must be assured of his love for us. 

Pursue contentment, brothers and sisters. It is great gain. But sometimes it is hard to get and maintain. It is especially hard to get and maintain during times of suffering. By no means am I denying that. But pursue it in Christ Jesus nonetheless. 

It seems to me that covetousness and discontentment is running rampant in our society today. Men and women are discontent with just about everything it seems. And this all begins with their hostility with God. They have no love for God, and they are thoroughly dissatisfied with God’s will for them, and so they war against it continuously by seeking to be god’s themselves. They decide for themselves what is right and wrong, and they even seek to overrule who it is that God made them to be. 

And such were some of you, but you have been washed in the blood of the lamb, and renewed by the Holy Spirit. Of all people, we should be content before God. 

Love for God is a remedy against discontentment, and so too is love for our fellow man. Instead of coveting what others have, if we love them we will rejoice with them concerning their prosperity. Are you poor? Do not look at your brother who is rich, covet his wealth, and complain against God that you do not have what he has. Rather, be grateful to God and rejoice in your brother’s prosperity with love in your heart for him. The very same thing may be said regarding the sick in relation to the healthy, the single in relation to the married, the childless in relation to those with children, etc. These are difficult issues to work through, brethren. By no means am I denying that they are difficult. But we must work through them with love in our hearts — love for God and love for neighbor. 

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Leviticus 19:9–18

Perhaps you noticed that that is how the Leviticus 19:9–18 passage that I read earlier concluded. That passage commanded all kinds of things in regard to our relationship with our neighbor. We are to care for the “poor and for the sojourner”. We must “not steal” or “deal falsely”. We must not “lie to one another”. Neither shall we “oppress”  or withhold from our neighbor, etc. In that passage sins of the heart are also forbidden — hatred and grudge-bearing. But it is all summed up with this command — “you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.” (see Leviticus 19:9–18, ESV)

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Conclusion 

Love is the remedy to covetousness, brothers and sisters. Love your neighbor as yourself. But love God above all. That is the key. We need to find our satisfaction in him and to be content with his will for us, for God is good, all the time. 

Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 40:1–8

“Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD’s hand double for all her sins. A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.’ A voice says, ‘Cry!’ And I said, ‘What shall I cry?’ All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” (Isaiah 40:1–8, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Luke 3:1-22

“In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’’ He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.’ And the crowds asked him, ‘What then shall we do?’ And he answered them, ‘Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.’ Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, ‘Teacher, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Collect no more than you are authorized to do.’ Soldiers also asked him, ‘And we, what shall we do?’ And he said to them, ‘Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.’ As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, ‘I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’ So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison. Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.’” (Luke 3:1–22, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

Here in the passage that is before us today the public ministry of John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, is described to us. 

Do you remember what the angel Gabriel said about John before he was conceived? Gabriel appeared to John’s father, Zachariah, and said, “you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared” (Luke 1:14–17, ESV). Here in Luke 3, we find the fulfillment of the words that were spoken by the angel Gabriel about 30 years earlier. Clearly, John’s ministry was one of preparation. He was called to prepare the way, or clear the path, for the Messiah.  And how did he do it? One, by preaching the good news concerning the forgiveness of sins (3:18), two, by urging men and women to turn from their sins and to trust in the Messiah (3:8, 16), and three, by baptizing in water all who professed faith and repentance. 

In just a moment we will return to these three observations to consider them in more detail. But before we do, notice the way in which Luke communicates the time at which this all transpired. He says in verse 1 that these things happened, “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar…” According to our way of dating things, this would mean that the beginning of John’s ministry (and Jesus’) took place in about the year AD 29. Notice, though, how Luke piles up names. If he only wished to give us the date, then the remark about the  “fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar” would have been sufficient. When Luke mentions “Pontius Pilate… [the] governor of Judea, and Herod… [the] tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene…”, he paints a picture for us. Rome was in power. Israel was not free but was in subjection to them. This was because of their sin and their breaking of the Old Mosaic Covenant. The time for change had come. The time for redemption was at hand. The Messiah would accomplish this redemption and establish an eternal kingdom. But it would not be the kind of kingdom that most expected – his kingdom would be not of this world.  

After the mention of five Roman rulers, Luke mentions two priests of Israel: Annas and Caiaphas. Some have wondered about this reference to two priests. Israel was to only have one high priest, not two. A few different attempts have been made to explain the difficulty. Some say there were two high priests because of the corruption in Israel. Others say that these two high priests alternated in their service yearly. And others say that Caiaphas was actually high priest, whereas Annas (who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, by the way) was called high priest because he had formerly served as such. It appears that Annas had been high priest from A.D. 6–15, and Caiaphas served from A.D. 18–36. However, Annas’ power and influence were still very great, so Luke mentions him here. Technicalities aside, it seems that Luke wants us to connect this powerful high priestly family of Israel with the powerful rulers of Rome. Again I say, Israel was not free, but under the thumb of Rome. Nowhere will this unholy relationship between Rome and Israel be more evident than in the crucifixion of Christ. The religious elites of Israel wanted Jesus crucified, and they used the Romans to do it. We get a little foretaste of the beast-like persecuting power of Rome in verse 19 of Luke 3 where we read, “But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison” (Luke 3:19–20, ESV).

So then, our passage begins and (nearly) ends with references to those with political power. From the world’s point of view, who are the powerful, mighty men who shape the course of human history? Answer: Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate the governor of Judea, Herod, Philip, and Lysanias the tetrarchs, and even Annas and Caiaphas the high priests. These all possessed political power. But where was the real power found? Not in these men, and not in these places. No, God was working mightily way out in the desert through a poor and insignificant man (worldly speaking) named John. Immediately after the listing of these powerful figures we read at the end of verse 2, “the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness” (Luke 3:2, ESV).

Just think of it. When the word of God came to announce the arrival of the Messiah, it did not come to the powerful figures living in powerful places (be it in Rome or in Israel), but to an obscure figure living in an obscure place with no power at all, humanly speaking. Why? Well, in brief, it was because John the Baptist was called to be the forerunner to the Messiah who would be a prophet, priest, and king of different kind.  The word that he came to speak was not of this world. The temple he came to build was not of this world. And the kingdom he came to establish was not of this world. He was brought into this world to do his work, not in and through the prevailing systems, therefore (for they had grown exceedingly corrupt), but in an obscure and off-the-beaten path kind of way. Both the beginning and end of our passage for today paint this picture.

Let us now consider the ministry of John the Baptist in three parts. How did John prepare the way for the Messiah?

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John Preached The Good News Concerning The Forgiveness Of Sins Through Faith In The Messiah

Firstly, we must see that John prepared the way for the Messiah by preaching the good news to the people. That is what verse 18 says: “So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people” (Luke 3:18, ESV). The question is, what was the content of this good news that John the Baptist proclaimed? The context makes it clear. John the Baptist proclaimed the good news that the Messiah was here and that forgiveness would come to all who believed in him. 

That the good news John preached was about the forgiveness of sins is made clear in verse 3. There we read, “And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Luke 3:3, ESV). 

That the good news was about the forgiveness of sins through faith in the Messiah who had now come is made clear in many places. 

It is made clear by the citation of Isaiah 40:3-5. In 3:4 Luke says, “As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God’” (Luke 3:4–6, ESV). 

Luke wants us to know that John the Baptist was the “voice… crying in the wilderness”, of whom Isaiah spoke. John was the one who prepared “the way of the Lord” – the Lord being the Messiah, God with us. The saying, “every valley shall be filled” communicates that the Messiah would lift up the lowly. The saying, “every mountain and hill shall be made low” communicates that to come to him in faith requires humility. The saying, “the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways”, communicates the need for repentance and that the Lord will sanctify his people. Finally. the phrase, “and all flesh shall see the salvation of God” communicates that the salvation worked by Israel’s Messiah would not be for Israel only but for all people – “and all flesh shall see the salvation of God”, Isaiah says. When Luke cites this text he is saying, the time has come. The things of which Isaiah spoke have arrived. 

We cannot take the time in this sermon to explore this point in depth, but you should know, brothers and sisters that Isaiah 40 is a very important Old Testament text. It begins by speaking of the comfort and peace that God would one day bring to Israel. But here is something important to know. Isaiah 40 introduces an entire section of the book of Isaiah running through to the end of chapter 55. May I encourage you to read that section on your own time later today, or later this week? When you read Isaiah 40-55 I think you will be able to see that it is all about the Messiah. It is about the Savior, the Redeemer, the Chosen One, the Servant of the Lord who would one day emerge from Israel, and the work he would do to accomplish our salvation. As you read Isaiah 40-55, you will notice Exodus themes. And you will probably also be struck by how often the nations are mentioned. Isaiah proclaimed the good news. Some have referred to the book of Isaiah, and particularly this section of Isaiah, as the gospel according to Isaiah. The good news was this: one day a Savior would come who would comfort Isreal with the forgiveness of sins. He would accomplish a second Exodus. He would be a light to the nations. When Luke quotes Isaiah 40:3-5 (and by the way, this is the first full citation of an Old Testament text in Luke’s gospel) he wants us to consider, not just Isaiah 40:3-5, but the whole chapter, and the whole section it introduces, namely Isaiah 40-55. Luke wants us to see that John the Baptist is the one who prepared the way for the Lord. He wants us to view the entire earthly ministry of Christ in light of what Isaiah had to say about him long before he was ever born. Luke wants us to read his gospel against the backdrop of the gospel that Isaiah proclaimed long before.

John the Baptist prepared the way for the Messiah by proclaiming the good news. The good news that John the Baptist proclaimed was that the Messiah – the one that Isaiah (and others) spoke of beforehand – was here, and that forgiveness was found in his name. 

That John was concerned to exult Jesus Christ is made clear in verse 15. There we read, “As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, ‘I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire” (Luke 3:15–17, ESV). 

The people – or at least some – were expecting the Messiah in those days. This may have something to do with the prophecy of the 70 weeks of Daniel which indicated the time in which the Messiah would arrive. But notice they were not sure about his identity. Some thought that John might be the Messiah, but he insisted that he was not the Messiah. His job was to prepare the way for him. “I baptize you with water”, John said (we will talk about water baptism in just a moment), “but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” As great as John the Baptist was, Jesus Christ was much greater. “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” What is meant by this? Well, Messiah means anointed one. He would be anointed with the Holy Spirit beyond measure. And, having finished his work of redemption, he would have the authority to pour out the Holy Spirit on his people leading to their salvation. The Messiah would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire, the text says. Fire refers to judgment. The meaning is this. The Messiah would bring salvation to God’s elect (he would pour out the Holy Spirit on them), and he will judge (he will baptize with fire all who remain in their sins). This meaning is made clear by what John says next: (verse 17) “His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire”. 

The point is this: John the Baptist was concerned to the exult, not himself, but Jesus the Christ. The good news that he proclaimed was this: the Messiah is here. He is Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of Mary, the Son of God. Forgiveness of sins will come to all who believed in him. 

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John Urged Men And Women To Turn From Their Sins And To Trust In The Messiah 

Secondly, John prepared the way for the Messiah by urging men and women to turn from their sins. Stated differently, he did not only urge men and women to trust in Christ but to repent also. Indeed, true faith will always be accompanied by true repentance. To turn to Christ is to turn from sin. So then, John prepared the way for the Messiah by preaching a message of repentance. 

Look again at verse 3: “And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins”. In verse 8 John commands the people to “Bear fruits in keeping with repentance”. In Verse 9 he warns, “Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” 

Notice that in verse 10 the crowds ask John what this repentance looks like: “And the crowds asked him, ‘What then shall we do?’” And John replies by speaking to the people in general and to tax collectors and soldiers in particular. To the general population, he said, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise” (Luke 3:11, ESV). In other words, he is what repentance looks like. It looks like loving your neighbor. Turn from the sin of self-love, and love your neighbor as yourself. If your neighbor is in need (without food or clothing ), and it is within your power to meet that need, then do it. To the tax collectors he said, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do’” (Luke 3:13, ESV). In other words, turn from the sin of covetousness and thievery. It was not uncommon for tax collectors to take what was owed to the government and a little extra for their own pocket. John the Baptist commanded them to turn from that sin and to Christ. And to the soldiers, he said, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages” (Luke 3:14, ESV). Again, stop oppressing your neighbor, but love your neighbor as yourself.

Brothers and sisters, can you see that John the Baptist did not only preach the gospel – that is to say, the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus the Messiah – he also preached the law. He insisted that men and women turn from their sins as he urged them to come to Christ for forgiveness. John the Baptist proclaimed the law and the gospel, you see. Verse 18 says, “So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people.” His preaching of the gospel included exhortations. And in verse 19 we learn that he even exhorted those in positions of power. “But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison” (Luke 3:19–20, ESV).

Dear friends, here is the thing that I want you to recognize. To turn to Christ in faith for the forgiveness of your sins involves turning from sin. It involves repentance. In other words, faith without repentance is not true faith. This does not mean that Christians no longer sin. But it does mean that Christians have turned from sin and to Christ in the beginning and when they do sin, they turn from it and to Christ again and again. The Christian life begins with faith and repentance, and it is characterized by ongoing faith and repentance. It is faith in Christ that saves. But turning to Christ in faith will always involve turning from sin.

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John Baptized In Water All Who Professed Faith And Demonstrated Repentance 

How did John prepare the way for Jesus the Messiah? One, by preaching the good news to the people concerning the forgiveness of sins through faith in the Messiah. Two, by urging men and women to turn from their sins and to trust in the Messiah. This brings us now to our third observation. John prepared the way for the LORD’s Messiah by baptizing in water all who professed faith and demonstrated repentance.

John baptized people in water. This is why he is called John the Baptist. 

To baptize means to immerse or submerge, and this is what John did. He submerged those who came to him in the Jordan River.  

And what is the meaning of this religious ceremony? Well, the ceremony signifies many things. Most obviously it signifies cleansing from sin and a new life.

Who did John Baptize? Notice, he did not baptize everyone who came to him, but only those who professed faith in the Messiah and showed evidence of repentance. He did not baptize infants, therefore. And neither did he baptize adult Jews on the basis of their ethnicity. Under the Old Covenant circumcision was applied to the male children of Isarel, not on the basis of faith and repentance, but on the basis of ethnicity or genealogy. All of the males who were born from the line of Abraham were circumcised, and rightly so, for they were by virtue of their birth members of the Old Covenant, of which circumcision was a sign. This is not the case with baptism which, as you know, is the sign of entrance into the New Covenant. Men and women become members of the New Covenant, not by birth, but by new birth. They enter the New Covenant and partake of all its benefits by the grace of God alone and through faith in Jesus the Messiah alone. Baptism (the sign of entrance into the New Covenant) is to be applied only to those who make a credible profession of faith and demonstrate repentance. 

Here in our text today we see that this was clearly the practice of John. Look at verse 7 and what he said to the crowds who came out to him to be baptized by him. “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance.” Evidently, John’s popularity had grown to the point that many came to be baptized by him, but he refused to baptize them unless they repent. He would baptize only those who turned from sin and to faith in the Christ that he proclaimed (see verses 15-18 again).

And evidently, some thought they had a right to be baptized based on their ethnicity. Some of the Jews must have reasoned in this way: I am a physically descended up Abraham, therefore, John ought to apply this baptism to me. Listen to John’s reply in verse 8: “And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham” (Luke 3:8, ESV). In other words, this baptism and all that it signifies has nothing to do with who your father is. It is for those who repent and believe. And when John said, “God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham”, he was making reference to the Gentiles who would become the true children of Abraham, not according to the flesh, but by faith. This is what Paul famously teaches in Galatians 3:7: “Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham” (Galatians 3:7, ESV). He teaches the same thing in Romans 9. 

Baptism shares this in common with circumcision: it serves as a sign of the New Covenant just as circumcision served as a sign of the Old. But it differs in this way: circumcision was to be applied to the male descendants of Abraham on the eighth day after birth whereas baptism is to be applied to those who turn from sin and profess faith in Christ. And these differences between the two signs correspond perfectly with the differences between the two covenants. Who were members of the Old Covenant? All who were physically born from Abraham. And who are the members of the New Covenant? All who are spiritually reborn in Christ, not from the Jews only, but from amongst the Gentiles also.

 And this is why John the Baptist spoke to the crows who came out to him to be baptized, saying, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham” (Luke 3:7–8, ESV). In fact, he warned the Jews who possessed this ethnic pride that a great change was about to take place. He said, “Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Luke 3:9, ESV). You see, this is the great difference between the Old Covenant and the New. The Old Covenant had many members in it who were faithless and fruitless. Not so with the new. Under the New, “every tree… that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire”. 

Or state the matter differently using the language of Jeremiah the prophet: “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more” (Jeremiah 31:31–34, ESV). John the Baptist understood that this New Covenant of which Jeremiah spoke was at hand, for the Messiah was at hand, and so he preached and administered baptism as he did – he refused to apply baptism to the unrepentant, and he refused to apply it on the basis of physical birth – he applied water baptism only to those who made a credible profession of faith and repentance. 

This is the first mention of baptism.  Where did this ceremony come from? I think it is right to say that it has its origins in the ceremonial washings of the Old Covenant. We considered these not long ago in our study of the book of Exodus. In the courtyard of the tabernacle (and later temple) there was a large bronze laver, bath, or sea. The priests would wash their hands and feet in it daily, but when a priest was ordained to the office of priest, he would be washed in the water from head to toe. It was a rite of purification. It signified the man’s consecration to the priesthood. 

This observation will help us to better understand why baptism was applied to Jesus, as verses 21-22 of our text describes. Some have wondered, why did Jesus need to be baptized given that he did not need to turn from sin or be cleansed. Even John seemed perplexed by this. Matthew’s Gospel tells us that “John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he consented” (Matthew 3:14–15, ESV).

Why was Jesus baptized? Not to signify the washing away of his sin, for he had none, but to signal his consecration as our great High Priest, the only mediator between God and man, and the Messiah. Notice what happened at Jesus’ baptism. It confirms what I am saying. In verse 21 we read, “when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’” (Luke 3:21–22, ESV). And in this way, Jesus was marked off or consecrated as our great High Priest and Messiah. Messiah means anointed one, and at this moment Jesus the Messiah was publicly anointed, not with oil, by the Holy Spirit, marking the beginning of his public ministry. For you and I, baptism signifies the removal of sin and a new life. Through baptism, we too are consecrated to God as God’s name is set upon us. In Jesus’ case, there was no sin to be cleansed from. Instead, he would be the one to cleanse from sin through his atoning sacrifice, for he is our great High Priest, the mediator of the New Covenant, that is to say, the Messiah who was promised from long ago.

I have one last question to ask regarding the baptism of John, and it is this: what is the relationship between the baptism that John applied and that Jesus commanded his disciples to apply? Those who argue for the baptism of babies under the New Covenant, and those who argue for baptism by sprinkling or pouring, tend to want to make a sharp distinction between the baptism of John and the baptism of Jesus as administered by his disciples. And it is not hard to see why they insist that the two baptisms are different and distinct, for it is very clear that John baptized by immersion (see Matthew 3:16), that he would only baptize those who made a credible profession of faith and repentance (Luke 3:7-8), and that he had no regard for physical descent. 

In fact, I think we are to see that the baptism that John applied before the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, and the baptism applied by Jesus’ disciples afterward, are very much related. Indeed, it is true that baptism was filled with even greater symbolism after Christ died and rose again, for we know that being taken under the water and brought up again now marks our union with Christ in his death and resurrection (see Romans 6:4). And indeed it is true that those baptized after Christ dies and rose again have a better understanding of how our sins are washed away – through the broken body and shed blood of Christ. So, I conceded that the baptism of John was forward-looking and that it lacked some of the symbolism that would be gained after Christ dies and rose again. But never-the-less, I think it is an error to divorce the baptisms applied by John and by the disciples of Christ before Jesus died and rose again from the baptisms applied afterward. The two baptisms are clearly related.       

One, these were baptisms into Christ, for it was the good news of Jesus Christ that John proclaimed! Stated negatively, these were not baptisms into John or Moses. They were baptisms into Christ! These were not baptisms into the Old Covenant, but into the New, which was at hand. These baptisms that John performed were meant to prepare the way for the Messiah. Why would we divorce the baptism that John applied from baptism into Christ, therefore?

Two, though Luke 3 does not say that John baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, there is some evidence that the baptism of John was marked by the blessing of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Indeed this is clearly seen in the baptism of Jesus Christ in verses 21-22. Hear it again: “and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’” (Luke 3:21–22, ESV).

Three, there is no evidence whatsoever that those baptized by John (or Jesus’ disciples) prior to the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ were rebaptized with a distinctly Christian baptism afterward. 

Now, some will point to Acts 19 as evidence for this, and I would like to deal with this text briefly to show you that no such evidence is found here. In Acts 19:1 we read, “And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?’ And they said, ‘No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’ And he said, ‘Into what then were you baptized?’ They said, ‘Into John’s baptism.’ And Paul said, ‘John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.’ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 19:1–5, ESV). 

Upon a surface reading, I can see how some would conclude that Paul made a sharp distinction between the baptism of John and baptism in the name of Jesus. But a more careful reading of the text reveals that something else was going on. When Paul came to Ephesus he found some men in the church who seemed to be deficient in their understanding of baptism (and even of the gospel of Jesus Christ). Notice what these men said when Paul asked them if they had received the Holy Spirit when they believed. They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And then Paul asked them, “‘Into what then were you baptized?’ They said, ‘Into John’s baptism.’” Do you notice anything strange about their responses? They claim, on the one hand, to have not known that there is a Holy Spirit, and on the other hand, to have been baptized into John’s baptism. There is an obvious problem, here, for John had a lot to say about the Holy Spirit, didn’t he? His mission was to prepare the way for the Messiah, which means anointed one (anointed with the Spirit, that is). In response to the question, are you the Christ?, John replied, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Luke 3:16, ESV). And when John baptized Jesus we are told that “the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’” (Luke 3:21–22, ESV). So then, there is something fishy about what these disciples in Ephesus said. They claimed to have been baptized into John’s baptism while at the same time being ignorant of what John taught. And notice what Paul did: he set these brothers straight concerning the things that John taught. In other words, Paul did not say, well John was deficient and his baptism was deficient. You need to be baptized into Jesus now. No! The problem with these men in Ephesus was that they did not understand John! So Paul said to them,  “‘John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.’ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus”. 

All evidence points in this direction: These men who were in the church of Ephesus were taught a deficient gospel. Clearly, they did not hear it from John nor from true disciples of John, for John pointed to Christ, and John taught about the Holy Spirit. These men we likely a part of one of the many John the Baptist cults that popped up after the ministry of John the Baptist was concluded, but the teaching of John the Baptist was clearly distorted there, and Paul set them straight. They were not rebaptized as Christians after having been baptized by John. No, they were baptized as Christians after having been baptized with an invalid baptism by some community that was clearly deficient concerning the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

How did John prepare the way for Jesus the Messiah? One, by preaching the good news to the people concerning the forgiveness of sins through faith in the Messiah. Two, by urging men and women to turn from their sins and to trust in the Messiah. And three, by baptizing in water all who professed faith and repentance. It is my opinion that we are to see more continuity than discontinuity between the baptism that John applied at the baptism that Christ commanded in the great commission, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18–20, ESV). Who is baptism to be applied to according to the great commission? Not infants, not those of a particular ethnicity, but disciples of Jesus only, that is to say, those who have turned from the sins and have believed upon Christ for the forgiveness of sins, for baptism is a symbol of this cleansing, of Spirit-wrought union with Christ in his death and resurrection, of death to the old life and the beginning new life under the New Covenant, which is the Covenant of Grace.

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Suggestions For Application

By way of conclusion I ask, how does this passage that we have considered apply to us today?

First of all, I must urge you to believe in Jesus the Messiah that John the Baptist proclaimed. He is the Savior that God has provided. He is the Redeemer that has rescued his people from bondage to sin, Satan, and the fear of death. He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through him. He is the only Savior, and you must know that he is also the judge. Those who do not have him as Savior will have him as Judge. As Luke 3:17 says, “His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” And so I urge you to believe upon Christ. Trust in him. Make him your Lord and Savior, and be cleansed. Indeed it is true, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9, ESV)

Secondly, do not forget that true, sincere, and saving faith will be accompanied by true and sincere repentance. To turn to Christ in faith, one must turn from sin. True, it is not the turning from sin that saves you, but rather the turning to Christ. But how can someone possibly turn to Christ without turning from sin? As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:9, “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9–11, ESV). The words, “and such were some of you”, indicate repentance. Those who come to faith in Christ are converted and changed. They are not yet made perfect, mind you. But true Christians are changed. Their life will be characterized by faith and repentance until the Lord returns or calls them home.

Thirdly, those who turn from sin and to Christ for the forgiveness of sins, are to be baptized in water in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In baptism, the forgiveness of sins, our union with Christ, the death to our old self, and our new life in the New Covenant, are signified. It is not the waters of baptism that do the cleansing or the saving. No, it is only faith in the crucified and risen Christ that saves. But baptism is an outward and visible sign of this inward and invisible faith. In baptism, we profess faith in Christ. In baptism, we say Jesus is Lord. In baptism, we make an appeal to god. And in baptism, the name of the Triune God is placed upon his people, who have been redeemed by the blood of Messiah. Do you have faith in him? Have you turned from your sins and to him? Then be baptized. 

Fourthly, and lastly, we as a church must be faithful to administer baptism according to the Scriptures. We must be faithful to give it, not to infants, not children who are too young to express faith and demonstrate repentance, and not to those who have not turned from sin and to Christ, but to disciples of Jesus only. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are not for the world. They are for those who have Jesus as Lord. And so we must give these to those who have made a credible profession of faith and who “bear fruits in keeping with repentance” (Luke 3:8, ESV). May the Lord give us wisdom, courage, love, and grace. May he work mightily in our midst so that we are blessed to baptize many in the years to come, teaching them to observe all that Christ has commanded.

Baptist Catechism 81-83

Q. 81. Which is the ninth commandment?

A. The ninth commandment is, “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” (Exodus 20:16)

Q. 82. What is required in the ninth commandment?

A. The ninth commandment requireth the maintaining and promoting of truth between man and man, and of our own and our neighbor’s good name, especially in witness bearing. (Zech. 8:16; Acts 25:10; Eccles. 7:1; 3 John 12; Prov. 14:5,25)

​​Q. 83. What is forbidden in the ninth commandment?

A. The ninth commandment forbideth whatsoever is prejudicial to truth, or injurious to our own, or our neighbor’s good name. (Eph. 4:25; Ps. 15:3; 2 Cor. 8:20,21)

Scripture Reading: Zechariah 8:14–17

“For thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘As I purposed to bring disaster to you when your fathers provoked me to wrath, and I did not relent, says the LORD of hosts, so again have I purposed in these days to bring good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah; fear not. These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace; do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the LORD.’” (Zechariah 8:14–17, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

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We have developed this tradition at Emmaus over the years to ask the question, “have you kept this law (that is God’s moral) perfectly?” and to answer, “no, we have violated this law in thought, word, and deed.” 

We didn’t come up with this tradition. The Reformed have been saying this for a long time. But it is a very helpful saying, and so we have adopted it as our own. By it we are reminded that we are violators of God’s law. Left to ourselves, we stand guilty before God. True, we are no longer guilty if we are in Christ! But we stood guilty before we placed our faith in him. And that is the point! We need Christ! And we are reminded of that fact every time we hear God’s law and say this saying. 

And this saying is also helpful because it reminds us that God’s law is to be kept, not only externally, but also in the mind and with our words. “Thou shalt not murder”, the law says. And most men would probably think that they have kept this law… that is, until they remember what Christ said about it. He said, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” (Matthew 5:21–22, ESV)

Let that sink in for a moment.

The law, “thou shalt not murder”, also forbids unrighteous anger in the heart, and all insulting. And the same sort of thing is true of the sins of idolatry and adultery, etc. So these moral laws forbid and require certain actions, but they also forbid and require certain thoughts and words.

The thing that I would like you to notice about the ninth commandment is that it has to do with our words and not our actions. “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor”, it says. And what does this require of us? Answer “the maintaining and promoting of truth between man and man, and of our own and our neighbor’s good name, especially in witness bearing.” The Christian — indeed, all people — are to use their tongues to promote truth. 

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Baptist Catechism 82

Clearly, this forbids lying. Don’t lie, brothers and sisters, but rather speak the truth. This is especially important in witness bearing, our catechism says. If ever you are called to testify in a court of law, or if ever you are called upon to serve as a witness in some other civil or churchly matter, it is especially important that you tell the truth. For what you say will affect the judgments that are reached, and these judgments will likely have a significant impact on other people’s lives and reputations. 

Our catechism says that we are to tell the truth so as to promote and maintain our own and our neighbor’s good name. Perhaps you have noticed how common it is in our day for men and women to tell lies about others, or to twist the truth regarding others, so as to damage their reputations, and thus gain some advantage over them. This is particularly common in politics today, and it is vile. We should have nothing to do with this. 

And notice that our catechism does not only deal with what is forbidden — namely, lying — but with what is required. The ninth commandment requires that we promote the truth between man and man. Not lying and promoting the truth are related things, but they are not the same things. It is one thing to not tell a lie. It is another thing to promote the truth. Not telling a lie may involve refraining from speaking, but promoting the truth will require speaking the truth whenever it is our responsibility to do so. 

To illustrate, if a person has wrongly been accused of a crime, and you know they are innocent and can provide information to demonstrate that they are innocent, then it would be a violation of the ninth commandment to refrain from speaking. Again, “the ninth commandment requires the maintaining and promoting of truth between man and man, and of our own and our neighbor’s good name, especially in witness bearing.”

So do not only not lie, but be resolved to use your words to promote the truth. 

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Zechariah 8:14–17

Think of how happy our families, churches, and societies would be if men and women promoted the truth with their lips. 

This is what the LORD commanded Old Covenant Israel to do in that Zechariah 8 passage that I read earlier: “These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace; do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the LORD.”

As we have been studying these Ten Commandments I have often been struck by the thought of how wicked our society is. When Christians think of the evils of our society they often think of the great evil of abortion and how it violates the sixth of the Ten Commandments, though shalt not murder. But if we were to consider our society with eyes wide upon I think we would see that sin is truly rampant. Men and women do often tell lies, and fail to promote the truth with their tongues. This happens in the media, in politics, in law, and in day-to-day life. 

And where we will learn to speak the truth in love except in our families and in our churches. Parents, we must teach our children to not lie, but rather to speak what is true. And this we must also do in the church. I’m afraid that many within the church break the ninth commandment, not by lying, but by failing to tell the truth.  Sometimes Pastors are guilty of this, for sometimes it is easier and safer to withhold the truth — speaking the truth is sometimes risky and scary. But do not forget what Christ said: “and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32, ESV). 

The truth is very powerful, friends. The truth brings life, whereas falsehood brings death. And so we must be committed to promoting the truth with our tongues. We must learn to speak “the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15, ESV). And do not forget what James said regarding the tongue. It is most unruly. But those who are mature in Christ will learn to control their tongues, to use their words to build up, and not tear, by speaking the truth lovingly and skilfully, for the glory of God, and for the good of others.

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Conclusion 

Q. 82. What is required in the ninth commandment?

A. The ninth commandment requireth the maintaining and promoting of truth between man and man, and of our own and our neighbor’s good name, especially in witness bearing. (Zech. 8:16; Acts 25:10; Eccles. 7:1; 3 John 12; Prov. 14:5,25)

Old Testament Reading: 1 Samuel 3

“Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision. At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, ‘Here I am!’ and ran to Eli and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call; lie down again.’ So he went and lay down. And the Lord called again, ‘Samuel!’ and Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call, my son; lie down again.’ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, ‘Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.’’ So Samuel went and lay down in his place. And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ And Samuel said, ‘Speak, for your servant hears.’ Then the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.’ Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. But Eli called Samuel and said, ‘Samuel, my son.’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ And Eli said, ‘What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.’ So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, ‘It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.’ And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord.” (1 Samuel 3, ESV) 

New Testament Reading: Luke 2:41-52

“Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, ‘Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.’ And he said to them, ‘Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?’ And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” (Luke 2:41–52, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

The passage that is before us today brings this opening section of Luke’s Gospel to a close. From Luke 1:5 through to the end of chapter 2 Luke tells us about the things that were accomplished immediately before, during, and after the birth of Christ, and before his public ministry began. As you know, Jesus began his public ministry at about the age of 30.  And it is in chapter 3 that Luke tells us about the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. So then, Luke 1:5-2:52 covers about a 30-year span of time. And in fact, most of what is said here in this section is about Jesus’ conception, birth, and infancy. Here in the passage that is before us today, we are told about something that happened when Jesus was twelve years old. 

This story is very intriguing. At first glance, it may almost seems like a strange story. It raises the question, was Jesus disobedient to his parents? Was he cruel to them when he disappeared from their sight by staying behind at the temple without their knowledge, leading them to frantically search for him for three days? I suppose the question could be asked, why did Luke bother to include this story given the questions it raises? Did he need filler? Did he think to himself, you know, it would be nice to have something about Jesus’ early adulthood – I guess I’ll include this little tidbit? I think not! In fact, the closer we look at this story, the more we should appreciate its profoundness.

I would like to suggest to you that this story provides us with far more than an insignificant glimpse into the early life of Jesus the Messiah. No, it actually provides us with great insight concerning the person of Christ and the way in which he came to understand his God-given Messianic mission. The story is somewhat shocking. It was shocking to Joseph and Mary as they lived it (verse 48 says they were “astonished”), and it is shocking to us as we read it. We wonder, why would Jesus do this thing? But the story is meant to be shocking. And being shocked by it, we are not to flee from it, but rather we are to contemplate it all the more carefully to see its significance. Like Mary, we are to treasure all these things in our hearts (see Luke 2:51).

So then, what do we learn from this story? 

While it is possible to draw applications from this text for married people based upon the activities of Joseph and Mary, saying, look at how devout they were as a couple. They journeyed to Jerusalem every year to celebrate the Passover –  married couples ought to be devout as they were. And while it is possible to draw application for young people from the life of Jesus, saying, look at how he loved the temple, the scriptures, and the pursuit of wisdom even as a twelve-year-old – young person, you should love God’s temple (the church)! You should love the Scriptures! You should pursue wisdom, even from a young age! And while it is possible to draw application for fathers and mothers from the actions of Joseph and Mary, saying, look at how deeply concerned they were for the physical and spiritual well-being of their child! They took him to Jerusalem and to the temple year after year to celebrate the Passover, and when they found him missing, they were deeply concerned – parents, love your children as Joseph and Mary loved Jesus. Provide for them and seek to protect them (as much as it is within your reasonable power to do so), and bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord! 

As good and true as those applications are, this is not what the text is about. This text is about Jesus. It reveals to us who he understood himself to be, and what he knew that his mission was, even at the young age of twelve. This text is about Jesus and the way in which he, according to his human nature, came to perceive his utterly unique relation to God the Father and his unique mission as the Lord’s Messiah.

Before we dive into the particulars of this text, I would like you to notice three things about it that show this is the meaning. 

One, notice that this text is bracketed with two statements regarding Jesus’ human growth in stature and in wisdom. Look with me at Luke 2:40. There we are told that after Jesus returned home with his parents after his dedication at the temple as an infant, he “grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.” And now look at the very last verse of our text for today. Luke 2:52 says, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” So then, this story about Jesus’ activity at the temple in Jerusalem at the age of twelve begins and ends with statements about Jesus’ human growth. He grew in stature. That means he grew physically, as all boys do. And he also grew in wisdom. This means that his knowledge and understanding of the truth increased.  

Two, I do not want you to forget about the similarities between the beginning of Luke’s Gospel and the beginning of the Old Testament book, 1 Samuel. I will not repeat all of the points that I made about the similarities in the previous sermon. I trust that you are able to remember the points of contact between the stories of the miraculous conceptions of Samuel and Jesus, the songs that their mothers, Hannan and Mary, sang, and the statements that were made regarding the development of the boys. After Samuel was left to be raised at the temple under the care of Eli it was said of him, “And the boy Samuel grew in the presence of the LORD” (1 Samuel 2:21, ESV). And in 1 Samuel 2:26 we read, “Now the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the LORD and also with man.” Those who know the Old Testament scriptures well will immediately think of these statements when they read what Luke wrote concerning Jesus in 2:40 and 52, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” 

These connections were made in the previous sermon. And the point was this: Luke wants us to make a connection between the life of Samuel and Jesus. Samuel was a prophet who ministered in the temple amongst the priests and was called to anoint kings. Jesus is greater. He is the Messiah, the great Prophet, Priest, and King of God’s people. Samuel foreshadowed him. Jesus is the fulfillment. 

But I think there is one more connection to make between Samuel and Jesus, it involves the two passages that were read at the start of this sermon. In 1 Samuel 3, we read of the experience that Samuel had as a boy while in the temple in Jerusalem.  He was sleeping in the temple and God called out to him three times in a row. It was the first time that the prophet Samuel had heard the voice of the LORD, so he did not recognize it. The first two times that he heard the voice, he thought it was Eli. When Samuel came to Eli the third time, Eil realized what was going on, and so he instructed the boy to say, Speak, “Lord, for your servant hears”, when the LORD called out to him again. And so he did. And from that day forward Samuel knew himself to be a prophet of God, and so did Eli and others who heard the news. That is what 1 Samuel 3:19-20 says. “And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the LORD” (1 Samuel 3:19–20, ESV). The story that is before us today regarding the twelve-year-old Jesus in the temple in Jerusalem mirrors this story about Samuel. Here Jesus demonstrates that he understands his unique relationship to God the Father and his special calling as the LORD’s Messiah. And not only does he demonstrate his understanding, but others see it too, as we will see. 

This leads us now to the third general observation about this text: It is here in this passage that we find the earliest recorded words spoken by Jesus. So far in Luke’s Gospel others have said things about Jesus. Men, women, and angels have testified powerfully concerning him, insisting that he is the Messiah promised from the days of Adam onward, the Savior of the world. But here in this passage, we hear the words of Jesus for the very first time. What he says is very important, for it reveals his understanding of his unique relation to the Father and of his God-ordained mission. Look at Luke 2:49 “And [Jesus] said to [Joseph and Mary], ‘Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49, ESV). The NKJV translates the Greek in this way, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” Both translations are possible and valid, but I do think that NKJV better captures the meaning. The point is this: Jesus, at twelve years of age, knew that he had an utterly unique relationship to God the Father, and that his life was to be devoted to his “Father’s business”.

I do hope that these three general observations have convinced you that the point of this story is not to encourage a God-centered marriage, the pursuit of wisdom from a young age, or godly parenting. As true and wonderful as those applications are, they are not the point of the text. This text is about Jesus, his person, and his work.

Let us now look a little closer at the text to glean from it. We will do so under two headings: the person of Christ, and the work of Christ. 

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The Person Of Christ

First, let us consider the person of Christ. Who is he? Two things must be said. He is the eternally begotten Son of God the Father, and he is also the son of Mary. 

That Jesus knew himself to be the Son of God the Father is seen in verse 49. 

Consider the story: Jesus was missing. He was not with the traveling party heading back from Jerusalem to Nazareth after the Feast of Passover ended. Joseph and Mary searched frantically for him for three days (can you imagine it?). And when they found him in the temple, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress” (Luke 2:48, ESV). And it is in response this that Jesus said, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49, NKJV). 

Some have wondered if Jesus was disrespectful to his parents at this moment. The answer must be, certainly not, for he was without sin all the days of his life (Hebrews 4:15). In fact, it was Joseph and Mary who were in the wrong.

Consider a few things: One, Jesus was twelve. In our culture twelve-year-olds are considered to be children still, but in the Jewish culture, the age of twelve marked a transition into adulthood. Though it might seem strange to us that a twelve-year-old would be given the freedom to linger in the temple, it should have been granted to Jesus, given his age and maturity. It seems that Joseph and Mary were being overly protective of their child. Two, the questions that Jesus asked of Joseph and Mary were not disrespectful, but honest: “Why did you seek Me?”, and “Did you not know?” In other words, Jesus’ perspective was that they should have known and that they should not have been so troubled by his lingering in Jerusalem at the temple. Though the text does not say it, one has to wonder if conversations were not had between Jesus, Joseph, and Mary before this event. Perhaps Jesus had communicated to them his knowledge concerning his calling and had indicated that he would be in his Father’s house and be about his Father’s business in a pronounced way during this trip to Jerusalem. Of course, this is speculation. But the thing that is clear in the text is that Jesus thought that Joseph and Mary were in the wrong. They should have known. And they should not have been searching frantically for him. His honest questions reveal that this was his perspective. Three, even if no specific conversations were had between Jesus, Joseph, and Mary concerning his awareness of his Messianic mission and his plans to linger in the temple, Joseph and Mary should have known based on what was revealed to them at the time of Jesus’ birth. I do not need to remind you of everything that was revealed to Joseph and Mary concerning Jesus at the time of his birth, for we have considered these things carefully in previous sermons. Joseph and Mary should not have panicked. They should have walked by faith. 

Think about this with me for a moment. From a merely human and unbelieving perspective, I suppose that Joseph and Mary’s “searching for [Jesus] in great distress” (vs. 48) was reasonable. Their child was missing and they were far from home. Most parents can sympathize with Joseph and Mary for they have likely experienced the feeling of panic that one feels when it is perceived that their child is missing or in some danger. And I suppose that some might be tempted to especially sympathize with them, reasoning like this: they were entrusted with the responsibility of raising, not a normal child, but the Lord’s Anointed. What pressure they must have felt! What a serious responsibility and burden! And perhaps they did feel the pressure. But if they did, it was unreasonable and rooted in unbelief. Joseph and Mary were called to be responsible parents. They were to do everything in their power to feed Jesus, to protect him, and to bring him up in the LORD. When it came to things beyond their control – when it came to Jesus’ survival into adulthood so that he might accomplish the purposes that God ordained for him before the creation of the heavens and earth – that was to be left to the God who is Sovereign over all things.  

In fact, if there is an application to be drawn from this text for parents, I think it would be this: Parents, be responsible. Raise your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Do your best to feed them well, to clothe them, and to provide them with shelter, so they might grow in stature. And teach them well too. Teach them common things and teach them spiritual things. Give them the Scriptures and bring them faithfully into the temple of God, that is to say, into the midst of the church gathered on the Lord’s Day,  so that they might worship and grow in wisdom. Yes, be faithful. But be very careful to not hinder them with your fearful disbelief. Entrust them to the Lord and then walk by faith knowing that God will accomplish all of his purposes. There are many things that are beyond our control, brothers, and sisters. We must be responsible to do what God has called us to do, trusting him in all things, and especially in those things which are outside of our sphere of responsibility. All parents must learn this, and it appears that Joseph and Mary had to learn it too. 

The crucial thing to notice about our text is that Mary refers to Joseph as Jesus’ father (and of course Joseph was Jesus’ father in an earthly and adoptive sense), but Jesus knows that God is his Father. He was in his Father’s house (the temple), and knew he was to be about his Father’s business.

Yes, God is the Father of all in this sense: he is the Creator of all. And yes, God is the Father of all who have faith in Christ, for in Christ we are forgiven, justified, reconciled to God and adopted as his beloved children, though we were by nature children of wrath because of sin. But Jesus has God as Father in an utterly unique way. As John 3:16 says, Christ is the “only begotten Son” of God. 

Time will not allow us to do a deep dive into the doctrine of the person of Christ now. But we have done this before, haven’t we? In a Sunday School class not long ago we considered the doctrine of Christ. And in it we learned to answer the question, who is Christ?, in this way: he is the eternally begotten Son of the Father, the second person of the Triune God, incarnate. The person of Christ is the person (or subsistence) of God the Son. In Christ, the person of the eternal Son of God, assumed (or took to himself) a human nature – that is to say, a human body and a human soul. But let me ask you this? Who is the person, that is to say, the subject that acts through the human and divine natures of Jesus? The person of Christ is the person of the eternally begotten Son. 

This is what John famously teaches in the opening of his Gospel. Instead of using the name “Son”, he uses the name “Word” but the meaning is the same. John says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:1–3, ESV). Verse 14: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14, ESV). You see, it was the person of the Word, or Son, who took to himself a human nature, body and soul. It was not the person of the Father, nor the person of the Spirit, nor was it the divine nature that became incarnate, but the person of the Son. 

The very truth that John communicates in didactic form, Luke communicates in his narrative. Rember what the angel said to Mary: “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David…” (Luke 1:31–32, ESV). And when the angel explained how these things would happen, given that Mary was a virgin,  he said, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God” (Luke 1:35, ESV).

The point is this: though Joseph was faithful to serve as Jesus’ earthy father by adopting him as his own, Jesus’ only true Father was (and is) God the Father in heaven. The same Father who eternally begets the person of the Son did also miraculously conceive the human body and soul of Jesus by the Spirit in the womb of the virgin Mary so that the person of the Son might become incarnate, experience a truly human life for us, and accomplish our salvation by living a sinless life and dying in our place. 

When Jesus uttered these words at the age of twelve, “Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49, ESV), he showed that he was aware of his utterly unique relation to God the Father. We are invited to call God “Father” as sons and daughters who have been forgiven and adopted through faith in Christ the Son. But we confess that Jesus is “the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father” (The Nicene Creed). 

Who is Jesus? He is the Son of God. But notice this: He is also the son of Mary. And here I am simply drawing your attention to his true humanity which he derived from her. The person of the eternal Son was born of woman. As Paul says, “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4–5, ESV)

Consider the way in which our passage reveals the true humanity of Christ. Jesus was born of Mary, and then he was raised by Joseph and Mary. Think of it. The one through whom Mary and Joseph were created, was, in his incarnation, born of Mary and raised by Joseph also. What a marvelous mystery!

And Jesus, the eternal Son of God incarnate, grew physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. He increased in knowledge and wisdom. Think of it, the eternal Son (or Word) of God learned to speak. He learned to count. He learned to reason. The eternal Son (or Word) of God learned the Holy Scriptures –   the very Scriptures that he inspired! The eternal Son (or Word) of God also came to an understanding of his Messianic mission. I understand full well that these statements sound almost blasphemous, but they are true. And how can it be that God the Son could increase in wisdom in this way?  The answer is that he did it, not according to his divine nature (which is eternal, unchanging, and perfect in every way), but according to the human nature he assumed. Jesus is truly human (yet without sin). He has a true human body (a body that grew; a body that bled). And he has a true human soul – a human mind (one that increased in knowledge), a human will (through which he offered up perfect and perpetual obedience to the Father), and human affections (by which he is purely drawn to that which is good, and repulsed by all that is evil). The person of Christ is the person of the eternal Son. And in the incarnation, the eternal Son experienced a truly human existence. Jerome, who lived in the late 4th century and early 5th century A.D. wrote concerning this high mystery, saying, “How does he who is Wisdom receive understanding? ‘Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and grace before God and men’. This means not so much that the Son was instructed by the Father but that his human nature was instructed by his own divinity. There is the seer’s prophesy of him who blossomed from the root of Jesse, ‘The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and of understanding’” (Jerome, Homilies On Psalm 15 (16). 

The point is this: Jesus is truly the Son of God, and he is the son of Mary. He fully divine, and he is fully human. And we see clearly in the passage that is before us today. 

The writer of Hebrews states it like this: “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself [that is, Christ our Savior]  likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Hebrews 2:14–18, ESV).

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The Work Of Christ

We have considered what this text reveals concerning the person of Christ. Who did Jesus understand himself to be? The son of Mary and the Son of God. Let us now briefly consider the work of Christ. What did he understand his mission to be? 

Well, the words of Christ in verse 49 are again our focus. “And he said to them, ‘Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49, ESV), that is to say, “about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49, NKJV). As I have said, both translations are valid. The Greek word that is translated as “house” by the ESV, and “business” by the NKJV can mean both things. 

If it is said that a servant manages his master’s house, that means that he manages his master’s business or affairs. And I think that is what Jesus meant. Joseph and Mary found in Jesus in God’s house, that is to say, the temple. And when they found him he said, “Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49, ESV), that is to say, “about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49, NKJV).

Jesus understood, even at the young age of twelve, that he had a special mission to accomplish. God the Father had determined to accomplish something, and he would be the one through whom it would be accomplished. He knew that he needed to be about he Father’s business. 

And what was that business? What was the work that Jesus was to be about? Well, if we were to focus only on Luke 2:49 we would not know. But if we back up from this verse just a little bit, all becomes clear. Indeed, the things that are said prior to this in Luke’s Gospel make it crystal clear what the mission of Jesus was by pointing us to the Old Testament Scriptures. 

Notice where Jesus was when he uttered the words, “Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” He was in the temple. His work was to fulfill the symbolism of the temple and to earn that which the temple signified, namely, the New Heavens and earth.

And notice when Jesus uttered the words, “Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” It was immediately after he had celebrated the Passover feast with his family. His work was to fulfill the symbolism of the Passover by accomplishing redemption for his people, not from Egypt, but from sin, the domain of Satan, and the power of death, by his shed blood. 

And notice what Jesus was doing when Joseph and Mary found him and he uttered the words, “Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” He was “sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions” (Luke 2:46, ESV). In other words, he was discussing the Holy Scriptures. And we are told that “all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers” (Luke 2:47, ESV). Jesus’ work was to accomplish all that was said concerning him in the law, the prophets, and the Psalms. Joseph and Mary knew this, for they themselves knew the Old Testament Scriptures, and they had heard others testify concerning these things at the time of Jesus’ birth, as recorded for us in Luke 1:5-2:38.

What was the Father’s business that Jesus knew he was to be about? Well, there are many ways to speak of it. As the Messiah, he was to earn salvation for God’s elect, he was to redeem them from sin and misery by accomplishing a second and greater Exodus. He was to establish an everlasting kingdom. He was to build God’s eternal temple. 

This was the mission of the Messiah, and Jesus knew it. Joseph and Mary knew it too, but they were still struggling to comprehend how these things would be accomplished, and who could blame them? Verse 50 says, “And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:50–52, ESV).

Before we conclude, I would like to suggest to you that there is one more way in which the mission of the Son is revealed in this story, and that is through symbolism or foreshadowing. 

Do you remember what that old man Simeon said to Mary when he gave praise to God for the baby Jesus regarding what she would experience as his mother? In Luke 2:34 we read, “And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, ‘Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.’” (Luke 2:34–35, ESV).

When Jesus was twelve, Mary received a foretaste of this, didn’t she? Her beloved Son was lost from her sight. For how long? For three days. And then on the third day, he was found. And where was he found except in the temple of God? 

I am saying that this event anticipated the sorrow that Mary would experience when her beloved Son would be taken away from her sight for three days by his death and burial. But on the third day, she would see him again? And where would he ascend except into the heavenly Holy of Holies into the very presence of the glory of God?

When Christ rose from the grave on the third day and appeared to his disciples, his mother Mary included, he very well could have said to them the words of Luke 2:49: “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49, NKJV). Indeed, that is what Jesus was about when his died, his body was buried, and his soul descended to Hades – he was about his Father’s business! I am not saying that he said these words, but he could have! “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49, NKJV).

In fact, things like this were said when Jesus rose from the grave. In Luke 24 we are told of women going to the tomb of Jesus. When they got there, the stone was rolled away and angels appeared to them. “And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” (Luke 24:5–7, ESV)

And when Christ appeared to two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus, “he said to them, ‘O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:25–27, ESV)

And a bit later he appeared to his disciple in Jerusalem,“And he said to them, ‘Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.’ And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.” (Luke 24:38–40, ESV)

“Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen” (Luke 24:5–6, ESV).

“Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” (Luke 24:26, ESV)

“Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself” (Luke 24:39-40, ESV).

The questions are not identical to the one that Jesus posed to Joseph and Mary after he was found in the temple being lost from their sight, and found on the third day: “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” (Luke 2:49, NKJV). The questions are not identical, but they are similar. They are all meant to encourage faith. Faith in what God had revealed concerning Christ, and faith in Christ himself. 

Brothers and sisters, Luke wrote so that we would have certainty concerning Jesus the Messiah. I pray that your certainty is increasing as we study this Gospel. I pray that you are growing more and more sure that Jesus of Nazareth is the Savior who was promised by God from long ago. And I pray that your love and gratitude for him would increase as well. This will, of course, result in greater obedience towards him, for those who love him will long to keep his commandments (John 14:15). 

Lastly, it may be that there are some in our midst who have not yet believed upon Christ. I pray that God, through the preaching of his word, and by the working of the Holy Spirit, would draw you to faith in Jesus the Messiah, for there is salvation in no other name (Acts 4:12). I pray that you would be convinced in the mind that he is the Savior that God has provided and that you are in need of him. And more than this, I pray that you would trust him in the heart and honor him as Lord, “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9, ESV)

Baptist Catechism 78-80

Q. 78. Which is the eighth commandment?

A. The eighth commandment is, “Thou shalt not steal.” (Exodus 20:15)

Q. 79. What is required in the eighth commandment?

A. The eighth commandment requireth the lawful procuring and furthering the wealth and outward estate of ourselves and others. (Prov. 27:23; Lev. 25:35; Deut. 15:10; 22:14)

Q. 80. What is forbidden in the eighth commandment?

A. The eighth commandment forbideth whatsoever does or may unjustly hinder our own or our neighbor’s wealth or outward state. (1 Tim. 5:8; Prov. 28:19; 23:20,21; Eph. 4:28)

Scripture Reading: Proverbs 6:6–11

“Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.” (Proverbs 6:6–11, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

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The eighth commandment is, “you shall not steal”. It is rather obvious what that means. Don’t take what is not yours. But that very simple principle is just begging to be fleshed out. For example, we should ask, how then should I provide for myself? How should I increase my wealth and my possessions?  

Stealing is forbidden. 

Yes, it is true that someone may give you a gift. That is fine. 

And making wise investments is also encouraged in the scriptures. 

But in general, we must confess that the way to provide for yourself and your family and to increase your wealth and possessions is to work. You are to provide a service for someone else and be compensated for it, or you must work your land with the hopes of reaping a harvest. Either way, the principle is the same. We must provide for ourselves by working. As Paul says,  “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.” (Ephesians 4:28, ESV)

There are so many questions associated with this topic. I’ll name a few to show you that I am not oblivious to them. Must a person work with his hands? No, some work involves the mind more than the hands. And what about the wife and mother who does not go off to work but remains at home? That is a great blessing, but the scriptures do warn against idleness at home. The wife and mother should be diligent to manage the home, and she is also free to engage in industry on top of that (see Proverb 31, for example). And what about retirement? Is there a place for that? Of course, there is. Hard work in the younger years does sometimes lead to retirement in the later years. But even in retirement men and women should serve the Lord. They should be diligent in prayer and (if possible) the service of others in their old age. And what about those who are independently wealthy who come into great wealth by way of inheritance? That is a great blessing. But the scriptures do warn the rich not to trust in the riches, but to trust in God. And those who are rich should use what they have been given for the furtherance of God’s kingdom, and the relief of the poor. They should be generous. Again, idleness is forbidden. 

In general, I wish to say this: Christians should be diligent and hard-working. That takes so many different forms. I am aware of that. Yes, things will look different from person to person, and the circumstances will change as the seasons of life change. But in general, Christians should be hard-working. Stated negatively, Christians are not to be sluggards. No, we are to use our time and energies for the glory of God, for our good, and for the good of others.

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Proverbs 6

The Proverbs have a lot to say about this. They constantly urge men and women to be diligent, hard working, and wise with their money. They show how men and women generally come to be both rich and poor. And the text that we read from Proverbs 6 is most instructive. 

“Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise”, the text says. 

Have you ever watched ants? And no, we are not talking about your Aunt — your mother or father’s sister — but ants — the little bugs that crawl on the ground. Have you ever watched them? They are very hard-working and diligent little creatures. They never stop. They just move along, working constantly to provide for themselves and others. Proverbs 6 tells us that we are to  “go to the ant” and “consider her ways…”

And no, the point is not that we are never to rest. That would contradict other scriptures, wouldn’t it? The scriptures teach that sleep is a gift from God. The scriptures warn against the vanity and folly of overworking. And the scriptures command that we cease from our labor one day out of seven to worship God in a pronounced way in public and private. That day is called the Sabbath Day, or the Lord’s Day. So we are not to imitate ants by working tirelessly and unceasingly seven days a week (in fact, ants do sleep. Worker ants take about 250 little power naps a day, totaling about 4 ½ hours of sleep a day. The Proverbs do not speak scientifically, but from the appearance of things).  

But what are we to learn from the ants who seem to work so diligently? Well, notice that the lesson is for the sluggard. “Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise” A “sluggard is a lazy person. It is the lazy person who is encouraged to go to the ant and to consider her ways to become wise. 

And what exactly is the sluggard to notice? Two things: 

One, the ant works very diligently “without having any chief, officer, or ruler”. Yes, scientifically we know that in an ant colony, there is a queen. And there are even other kinds of ants so there is a kind of hierarchy in the ant world. But the point is this: when you watch ants you see that they work very hard and very diligently and no one is cracking a whip, as it were. Ants seem to be self-motivated. It seems to be a part of their nature to work consistently hard. The sluggard should learn from this. The sluggard may work hard… for a time… if someone forces him to, and then back to the couch he goes. 

Two, this proverb urges us to notice this about ants: they seem to understand the seasons. “Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.” The ant is diligent to work and to save in times of plenty knowing that times of want or lack may soon come. The sluggard needs to learn this lesson too. The lazy person may have adequate provisions at the moment and so they lounge on the couch and sleep in their bed. But they forget that those provisions will soon run out! What then? That ant works diligently even when her storehouse is full for she knows that the time will come when provisions will be lacking. 

And that is what the Proverb warns against so directly, saying, “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.” 

Christians are to be hard-working and diligent people. The eighth commandment requires it. Yes, it forbids stealing. But that means on the flip side that we are required to “labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28). 

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Baptist Catechism 80

To state the matter negatively, “The eighth commandment forbideth whatsoever does or may unjustly hinder our own or our neighbor’s wealth or outward state.” 

As with all of God’s commandments, we must reflect deeply on these things. What sorts of things may “hinder our own or our neighbor’s wealth or outward state”? 

Well, concerning our neighbor, stealing is obviously out of the question. That would hinder our neighbor’s wealth, wouldn’t it? Dishonest work is also out of the question. Though we may provide some good or service to our neighbor, if it is dishonest work, or a good of poor quality that we deliver then we are not helping our neighbor, but hindering them. 

But what about the responsibility we have to earn a living for ourselves to provide for ourselves and to help others who may be in need?  It seems to me that we need to think about our own work ethic, the management of our finances, the wisdom of our investments and business ventures. Brothers and sisters, we must think carefully about these things. 

A Christians we must not love money. We must pursue contentment and be generous with what we have. But at the same time, we cannot be foolish with our money or unconcerned about the question, how will I make an honest living? And will I have enough for the future when my ability to earn an income has diminished? These are important questions. 

And perhaps I should move to a conclusion by saying, I understand that life does not always go as planned. Sometimes we wish to work, but cannot. I don’t mean for any of this to burden those who are a in situation like that. Rather, I am setting forth the scriptural ideal. Remember, the scriptures do speak of the importance of caring for those in need. Ideally, no one would ever be in need. But in reality, sometimes people are. And the reasons for this are varied. 

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Conclusion 

Q. 80. What is forbidden in the eighth commandment?

A. The eighth commandment forbideth whatsoever does or may unjustly hinder our own or our neighbor’s wealth or outward state. (1 Tim. 5:8; Prov. 28:19; 23:20,21; Eph. 4:28)

Let us pray. 

Lord, help us to keep your law in thought, word, and deed. And forgive in Christ Jesus us when we do not. We thank you for Christ who kept this law perfectly on our behalf and died for our sins. In him we have placed our trust. Amen. 

1. What is the eighth commandment?
2. What does it mean to steal? 
3. How is our daily provision and wealth to be obtained?
4. Ephesians 4:28 says, “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28, ESV). Can you think of certain kinds of “work” that would not qualify as “honest work”? Why must the Christian avoid this kind of work?
5. Why does our catechism say that the command, “Thou shalt not steal”, requires  “the lawful procuring and furthering the wealth and outward estate of ourselves and others”? How do we jump from the one idea to the others?   

Baptist Catechism 75-77

Q. 75. Which is the seventh commandment?

A. The seventh commandment is, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” (Exodus 20:14)

Q. 76. What is required in the seventh commandment?

A. The seventh commandment requireth the preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity, in heart, speech, and behavior. (1 Cor. 6:18; 7:2; 2 Tim. 2:22; Matt. 5:28; 1 Peter 3:2)

Q. 77. What is forbidden in the seventh commandment?

A. The seventh commandment forbideth all unchaste thoughts, words, and actions. (Matt. 5:28-32; Job 31:1; Eph. 5:3,4; Rom. 13:13; Col. 4:6)

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:18–7:5

“Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: ‘It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.’ But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” (1 Corinthians 6:18–7:5, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

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Before we can understand what the sin of adultery is, we must first understand God’s design for sexual relations. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And the pinnacle of God’s earthly creation was man made in his image. As Genesis 1:27 says, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27, ESV). And in the beginning, God did also institute marriage. As Genesis 2:24 says, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24, ESV). This one flesh union is covenantal and spiritual. In the marriage covenant, two lives become one. But it is also physical. The sexual union consummates the covenantal marriage bond after it has been made. 

And this is where we must begin if we are to understand the seventh commandment, which is “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” God created sex, so it must be considered good. But like many other things, it is only good when enjoyed in a particular context. Wine is good, but it may be misused. Men and women do sin when they drink wine to the point of drunkenness. Money is good. But the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. And so too, sex is good. But it may be misused, abused, and badly distorted. It is good when it is enjoyed by a man and woman bound together as one flesh in the covenant of marriage. 

When two who are unmarried engage in sexual relations, that is called fornication. Deuteronomy 22:28ff. speaks to the sin of fornication when it says, “If a man meets a virgin who is not betrothed, and seizes her and lies with her, and they are found, then the man who lay with her shall give to the father of the young woman fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife, because he has violated her. He may not divorce her all his days” (Deuteronomy 22:28–29, ESV). Now, we are not under the law of Moses as a civil law code, but we may learn from this law even still. It is fornication that is described here, and not adultery, for neither the man nor the woman was betrothed nor married. And the penalty, you will notice, was not death but a fine. 

The sin of fornication is a serious sin. Sexual relations are to be reserved for marriage. But a more serious sin is the sin of adultery wherein one who is married lies with someone who is not their spouse. That adultery is a more serious sin is made clear from the punishment prescribed under the law of Moses. Again, we are not under the law of Moses as a civil law code, but we may learn something about the seriousness of the sin of adultery from what it says — the adulterer and the adulteress were to be put to death. Deuteronomy 22:22 says, “If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman. So you shall purge the evil from Israel” (Deuteronomy 22:22, ESV). Don’t mess with the sin of adultery, brothers and sisters. It is so very destructive. 

And if we were to go even further to discuss even greater acts of sexual perversion we would have to talk about the sins of bestiality and finally homosexuality. Concerning the sin of homosexuality, Leviticus 18:22 says, “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination” (Leviticus 18:22, ESV). 

And the New Testament scriptures also speak against these sexual sins. Take for example 1 Corinthians 6:9, which says, “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9–11, ESV).

So, as I have said, to understand the seventh commandment and the sin of adultery, we must first understand God’s design for sexual relations. God created sex to be enjoyed by a man and woman bound together for life in the covenant of marriage. All other sexual relations are a perversion of God’s design. Sexual immorality of all kinds is to be avoided, especially the sin of adultery, for when the sin of adultery is committed, the marriage covenant, which is a very sacred thing, is broken. 

Can the adulterer be forgiven? Yes, of course. And so too can the homosexual and the fornicator. Did you hear what Paul said to the Corinthians? After speaking of the sins of sexual immorality, adultery, and homosexuality (among other things), he said, “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11, ESV). “Such were some of you”, Paul said. And by this, he indicateS that the Christians in Corinth were no longer these things, for they had turned from their sin and to Christ – they were washed, sanctified, and justified, through faith in Jesus Christ. 

You know, it is common for homosexuals and other sexually perverse people today to say, this is who I am. And there may be some truth to that. But look at what the scriptures say. Who you are needs to change! God is calling you to turn from your sin and to Christ, for in Christ, there is cleansing, renewal, and the forgiveness of sins. Who would allow the liar, the thief, or the adulterer to excuse their sin by saying, this is who I am? Well, though I do not doubt that people have propensities towards these sins – and though it may be true that their deepest desires lead them in this sinful direction – and perhaps this is their way of life to the point that they can hardly distinguish between the sinful act and their very being. Even still, God calls sinners to turn from their sin and to believe upon Christ for the forgiveness of sin and for renewal, so that it may be said of them, “and such were… you… but you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9–11, ESV).

The sin that is expressly forbidden in the seventh commandment is adultery. And adultery is forbidden because it is particularly damaging. Not only is it a perversion of God’s design for sexual relations, it is also the breaking of the covenant of marriage. I do not need to describe to you the damage that the sin of adultery does to individual lives, families, and to society. 

But as usual, our catechism helps us to see that the commandment is to be interpreted and applied broadly. Not only does the seventh commandment forbid the sin of adultery, it also requires “the preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity, in heart, speech, and behavior”, while forbidding “all unchaste thoughts, words, and actions.” The rest of the scriptures make it very clear that this is the proper interpretation and application of God’s moral law, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.”

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Baptist Catechism 76 and 77

Not only does the seventh commandment forbid you from committing adultery, it requires that you seek to preserve your own and your neighbor’s chastity. Now there is an old-fashioned word — chastity. It should not be old-fashioned. It ought to still be on our minds and lips. To be chaste is to abstain from extramarital or premarital intercourse. The seventh commandment requires us to preserve our own chastity and also our neighbors. 

This means that men and women should be careful to not bring temptation to those around them. Being mindful of this will affect the way that you dress and the way that you talk.

This also means that husbands and wives should be generous with one another as it pertains to conjugal rights, for this does help to guard against temptation. You may read 1 Corinthians 6:18-7:5 again to see what I mean. Husbands and wives are to serve one another in this way. 

And notice also how our catechism applies the seventh commandment to the heart, and not merely to our words and actions, saying, “The seventh commandment requireth the preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity, in heart, speech, and behavior”, and again, “The seventh commandment forbideth all unchaste thoughts, words, and actions.”

God’s commands are always to be applied to the heart, friends. You should know this by now. And this is why Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

Jesus was not saying something new here. Instead, he was giving the proper interpretation of the seventh commandment. God’s law was always meant to be applied to the heart. Remember the summary of the law is to love God with all our being and to love our neighbor as ourself. Here Christ is simply saying that the seventh commandment is to be kept from the heart. This was always the intent. 

And please don’t misunderstand his words. He is not saying that lust and adultery are the same thing. They are not. Adultery is worse because it is the sin of lust full grown. Jesus is simply teaching that lust is adultery in the heart. Lust is adultery in seed form. Root it out, brothers and sisters, for lust is a sin. And root out the sin of lust, before it is fully grown, leading to the act of sexual immorality and even adultery. 

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Conclusion 

“Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:18–20, ESV)