Hold Nothing Back
John the Baptist did not care if he offended anyone. He had a message to share, a truth to expose, and he spoke like one who didn’t have time for the games of diplomacy. Not many people would greet the crowd coming to listen to them by calling them vipers. John held nothing back. His message was too important, and so is ours. The old saying, “You catch more flies with honey,” still rings true. However, if all we offer each other is honey, we will be far from healthy.
People who only speak in flowery and flattering words will garnish a ton of friends, but are they truly good friends? Churches which only preach on peace, love, and mercy without warning their congregations about the danger of sin may have full pews, but are they making a change for the Kingdom? Isaiah 56:9-10 says, “All you beast of the field, come to devour – all you beasts in the forest. His watchmen are blind, they are all without knowledge; they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber.” We are the watchmen of our family, the Church. If we see sin prowling in another’s life like a ravenous beast and we stay quiet, it is as if we open the door to let the destroyer in. John understood this. He saw sin destroying his community and God’s people, and he didn’t wait to pick pleasant words. He didn’t worry if he might offend. Honestly, he might have been going for the shock value of his statements. It was what the people needed. They needed to be shook from their slumber. They had grown soft on sin in their lives. Their righteousness was tattered, and they were leading others down the wide and unholy path of destruction.
When the people asked John what they should do instead of the life they had been living, this is when John truly shined. He didn’t simply announce their debauchery and rebuke them for their life choices. He taught them what they should be doing instead. He message was simple. God’s message is always simple. We humans complicate it unnecessarily. God made the way plain so we could follow it. John responded to the questions by telling the people to do what they do with honor and righteousness. Notice that John didn’t tell the tax collectors or the soldiers (both hated by his people) to become something different. He didn’t tell them to find other occupations. Taxes are needed. Soldiers are needed. They may not have been the most popular of people and life paths, but they are not jobs which require rebellion against the Lord. The jobs themselves were not sinful. How the people might have behaved in their jobs was. To this, John told them to “Collect no more than is appointed you,” and “Rob none by violence or by false accusations, and be content with your wages.”
This was the message that is declared the “good news” in verse 18: Stop sinning. Embrace salvation which is free and complete. We must share the same message. If we only share the last part, we are hindering the growth of the hearer. To be saved comes with a requirement: repent. Jesus said it very clearly in Mark 1:15: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel.” To believe is only half of the equation. We must also repent. How can we expect people to repent when our message leaves out the part for which we need repentance? Be bold like John. Preach the truth in love with the motivation of restoration. This is the message we are all called to share.
(Written by Keegan Harkins.)
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