All right, so we're gonna start off in Malachi chapter four. We sang of many dry and thirsty lands, and I was singing, I was getting a little out of breath with that, so I'm glad Mr. Brown, he put a water bottle up here. So, I'm gonna wet my whistle first. But we're looking at an interesting era tonight when we look at Malachi four. We're gonna start off with this text, but we're actually gonna go around in a lot of different places of scripture. Malachi chapter four, follow along with me as I read it. We're gonna read the whole chapter, it's only six verses, so don't get too worried, but pay attention to the words here as this is the last part of the Old Testament. For behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall be stubble. And the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the Son of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings. And ye shall go forth and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day, that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts. Remember ye the law of Moses, my servant, which I commanded unto him, in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet for the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. So we're gonna be talking about bold beginnings tonight. Let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this day, Lord. Thank you for this opportunity, Lord. I pray that you would be with so many, Lord, who are sick and just need healing, Lord. I pray that you would work in their lives. I pray, Lord, that we would learn something from this scripture, Lord, and that we take it to heart and apply it to our lives, Lord. In Jesus' name, amen. So as we looked and we saw that final chapter of the Old Testament, thus would begin the silent years, as they call it. It's 400 years of no prophets speaking, no scripture being written of that whole period. It's a very interesting time in scripture between the Old and the New Testament. What happened at the very end of this section is where there were several prophets and leaders who would speak to Israelites. They would tell them, like Ezra, Nehemiah, Malachi, they would tell them, we need to turn back to God. And there would be temporary times of victory in that. People would turn back. But during this time marked a lot of spiritual silence as well. The people turned their hearts against God and a lot of failure resulted from that. During this time, a lot of leaders and world nations would assume control of Israel, and they would kind of be passed around and in control of these different places. When we finally get to the end of those silent years, the Roman leadership would be over them, and this would further dampen their spirits as they exerted control over their lives in Israel. Everyone was awaiting God's deliverance as he had in the past from numerous nations. Time and time again, God would deliver them, and so they were waiting for this time, this long period of silence. So they would look to Malachi 4 to be this hope for them. It speaks of someone in the spirit of Elijah coming and ministering and bringing and ushering in the kingdom. So this was a big deal to them. But through this time, cynicism and materialism slowly corrupted the Jews during these silent years. And we see this connect over to the New Testament, when the Pharisaical order and the Sadducees, all these people, would be so stuck in their ways. And what happened to Israel during this time? Well, the religion became vain, as they could only recall the prophets of the past, and they were deafened by the seeming silence from God, spiritually deafened. They were losing sight of all that God had done. The religious leaders claimed that they were fine because of their ancestors, and they even added more to the law, more to what they knew of the Old Testament, to exert more and more control. This was the time in which the spirit of Elijah would come and have to minister to these people. At the end of the verse here, notice in verse five, behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. They awaited this day. Orthodox Jews still await this day. They would look forward to this time in which Elijah would return and the Savior would bring victory. In fact, during Passover's, Orthodox Jews, they still, they set out an extra chair and a cup for Elijah if he were to show up and to be able to usher in the true Messiah. But as we know as Christians, the Messiah did come. And this person who would have the spirit of Elijah would be John the Baptist. And he is the one we're focusing on tonight. But many of these people, they didn't see the significance of this. They believed that Elijah would return from his dramatic ride into heaven in the whirlwind. He would come back and tell of the coming king who would liberate them. So more and more people during these 400 years would lose hope and people would descend spiritually during this period. Seemingly, God had forgotten about his chosen seed. But what we're gonna see from this tonight is that God wants us to be bold in his calling for our lives. In the several passages we're gonna see, we'll look at John the Baptist's ministry and see his boldness that shone forth in three of his actions that we're gonna see tonight. So the first is that John boldly prevailed in unique times. This was truly a unique time. We're gonna look a little bit back at these silent years, that they truly haven't been silent. You know, there's no recorded prophets that spoke during this time. There's no scripture that speaks of, there's not much that's said about this time. That's why it's referred to as a time of silence. But God was not silent. And that's the problem that a lot of the Jews had, is that they had forgotten about God. And they were just clinging on to things of the past. They thought that God wasn't working with them. As they got passed from nation to nation, under different nations, under their control, some nations more harsh than others, it was a time of difficulty for them. But they had forgot about God, and they thought He had forgotten about them. But chronologically, we're gonna look right at the book of Luke. This is the time in which it would open up and look at what happened right after this long period. So as much as the people's hearts were hardened to God, he was not silent. You know, this reminds me of today. You know, we don't have... The canon of scripture is finished. So we could kind of describe this time as a time of silence in that new scripture is not being written, yet God is still very active today. We have to remember that. So even in the midst of this, when it was a time of silence, God is never silent. God is still at work. So we have to remember that. So look over to Luke chapter 1. When we consider the gospels, they were written at a few different times. And like I said, Luke would open up this time of silence and things would happen here. So John the Baptist, he had a righteous upbringing in his life. His parents, they had significant names here. Look at verse five, so Luke chapter one, verse five. There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the chorus of Abiah. And his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. So these were his parents. And these people were a really good influence in John the Baptist's life. His father's name was Zacharias, which means God remembers. His mother's name was Elizabeth, which means his oath. So when you combine these two together, I think there is significance there. That despite the 400 years of silence, people would look back and remember, you know, God still remembers, he still had his promise in Malachi. Someone will come and talk and bring in the Messiah. So they would remember that. Therefore, he remembered his oath to mankind. God would remember this, he wouldn't forget about it, and there's significance to that passage in Malachi. His parents, they righteously walked with God. Look at verse six. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord, blameless. Blamelessness is truly an awesome trait to be described as, but that's what God's word says here. They were blameless. They were really outstanding people in their society. Zachariah, he would serve as a priest for the nation, and he would work in that way. Elizabeth, it says that she wasn't able to have children. She was barren. And during this time, they didn't let circumstances dictate their righteousness. They still lived faithfully for God. They weren't able to have children. And during this time, so I'll kind of talk about later, but in the Jewish culture, they really, really wanted children. This was a huge, a big deal. They would look to scripture and they would want to train up their kids to follow and to go after their ways and to follow after God, but they couldn't have children. But nonetheless, they were still very faithful to God. We see pretty soon that the forerunner would be foretold to them. They would faithfully pray for a son. When Gabriel shows up to them, he brings up the facts. But look at verse 13. But the angel said unto him, fear not, Zacharias, for thy prayer is heard, and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. As much as John is, we kind of consider it to be kind of a generic name today, it really meant something back then. And the fact that Gabriel said, this is his name, this would be, if there's anyone, there's several Johns in here, I'm sure. I did not mean that against you. But we're gonna see that the name John really does mean something. So it is a great name. But his son, or their son would be named John. And this was significant, this will come up later. So John would be set apart with a great purpose and the angel would foretell of this. Look at verse 15. And many of the children of Israel he turned to the Lord their God. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. So there he is, the spirit of Elias would be John in this passage. This promise was given to him, this was a big moment for Zacharias. But despite all that, Zacharias would actually have some unbelief with it. Something I wanted to point out in this passage, an interesting verse, when it talks about in verse 15, it says that the Holy Spirit would fill him even in his mother's womb. This is a very unique portion of scripture. We have to remember that in the Old Testament, oftentimes, or every now and then, the Holy Spirit, he was around the Old Testament. He didn't first begin in Acts 2 in the Pentecost. He was still around. The Trinity was around. So he was there, but he would temporarily fill people of God and empower them to do different things. So this was a temporary filling by the Holy Spirit. But what's being communicated here is he had a special purpose. This did not mean that John couldn't act on his own free will. He could. He had this special calling from God, and he still decided a purpose in his heart to follow through with it. There have been other prophets that God has had in scripture in the Old Testament, and they would go against what God would tell them to do. So John here, he still made that choice and he followed after what God had planned for him. But there was a special calling here with the Holy Spirit. So John, he would win many Jews to Christ. He possessed the spirit of Elias, and Israel needed to be ready for their king. The problem was that many of these listeners that would listen to the preaching of John, they thought that exactly right at that moment, as Elijah would show up, someone would be the ambassador for Christ, the herald, announcing his coming. They thought Jesus would immediately overthrow the Romans. That's not what would happen here. But Zacharias, he'd have his doubts about this. And we could almost justify what he was thinking, but this was a big offense, what the angel points out here. So Zacharias, he says, well... We're upper in years, I don't think we're able to have children now, I don't think this is possible. But Gabriel would rebuke him. And I think it's amazing, over and over in the Bible, I said this this morning in Sunday school, but God has used women who are barren, he'd use them to glorify him even greater. This was an amazing thing that despite that, God would still allow them to have a child. But Zacharias was punished for this unbelief. This time of silence, he would also be silenced for what he believed on this. He was punished by not being able to talk anymore for quite a while. So look at verse 21. There's kind of a humorous moment with this. But look at verse, so Luke 1, 21. And the people waited for Zacharias and marveled that he tarried so long in the temple. As he's doing his duties, he was taking a long time. And when he came out, he could not speak unto them. And they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple. For he beckoned unto them and remained speechless. And it came to pass that as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house. Someone who was speaking normally, all of a sudden he comes out and he's just motioning over with hand motions trying to say, like, he can't talk anymore. This was a very strange thing that happened in scripture. And it was public knowledge. He was one of the priests. Everyone all of a sudden was shocked by this. Why could he no longer speak? And so this punishment that he had, this curse, you were to say, It affected him for a long time. And this reminds me that this unbelief over and over again, I would think he'd want to speak. And as promised here, his child would develop and the pregnancy would go through. But he couldn't express his excitement with his words. So every time he was reminded to do that, he was remembered of his unbelief. And it kind of echoed what the children of Israel were in, this time of silence, that they had a lot of unbelief. But as things would progress here, amazing things will happen here. So look over at verse 41. Before Elizabeth is gonna give birth to John the Baptist, there's a special moment here. Look at verse 41. She speaks to Mary. And it came to pass that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost. This is not something that could be explained away through science. This was a miracle. This was an amazing thing that God already had plans going here, and he was uplifting the Savior that would come. Elizabeth, she was much older than Mary at this time, but they were close. And through this, she was offering encouragement to Mary. And it's amazing because throughout we're going to see this family, not only was John the Baptist in the womb filled with the Holy Spirit, now Elizabeth would be filled with the Holy Spirit. And pretty soon we'll see that even Zacharias would be as well. This was a rare occurrence in the Old Testament, but this just really showed how much God was going to use these people and how big this moment was. And so now we see that their son would finally be born. Before this happens, this is truly a miracle. Look at verse 36. And behold, thy cousin Elizabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age. And this is the sixth month with her, who is called barren. For with God, nothing shall be impossible. Over and over again, God would use people like this. They weren't able to do something. In some way, he'll pick people that can uplift him even more, bring the glory to God. God can perform the impossible. This time of silence, there were still miracles happening. So their son would finally be born. Look at verse 60. So when John was born, people were talking, hey, let's name him Zacharias. They would often do this. They would name their son after the father. But Elizabeth cherished the promise in her heart and she reminded them. Look at verse 60. His mother answered and said, not so, but he shall be called John. This really illustrates she remembered the promises. She remembered who John was supposed to be. He wasn't gonna be Zacharias, he was gonna be John. So this was a tremendous moment here. And so Zacharias, he would confirm this as well. He couldn't speak, yet he would write, his name shall be John. And his public silence would lead to public singing. He starts singing a song. And again, he was publicly silent, now he's publicly singing. This is a very significant moment for them. And so John would have a specific calling that Zacharias would share with him. It speaks in scripture that Zacharias at this moment, when his lips were loosed, he was able to speak again, that the Holy Spirit came upon him as well. All of this was happening here, and God was still blessing this family. He prophesied that God will keep his promise, even though it had been 400 years. Malachi 3.1 it says, Behold I will send my messenger and he shall prepare the way before me. There's a few points in scripture where John would be prophesied of and he was coming and they remember this. And he would give John a really good commission in verse 76. I know this chapter is kind of a longer chapter here, but it's amazing. Some of these characters that maybe we don't think of as much, like the father of John the Baptist, he had some really good words here. So look at verse 76. And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the highest, for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins. through thy tender mercy over God, whereby the day spring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness, in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. As much as we're gonna look at John the Baptist tonight, I couldn't help but look at his parents and their great influence. He had unbelief, but he realized what he had done, he realized who John the Baptist truly would be. And so John, he would obey this. He would present the gospel. He would give light, present the light to the dark, and he would guide people unto peace. So John, in one little short verse here, I'd say how John would respond to this. Verse 80, and the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel. Just like in Jesus's life, there's not much spoken of of his childhood, but he would live for God. He would be faithful to him. He obeyed his parents in all that they have taught him. You know, it's interesting to think that his parents were quite a bit older than he was, and they wouldn't live to be there for his whole childhood. And so as they grew in years, he would be raised in the desert, and he would grow up in the desert, in the wilderness. It's a very harsh place. But it's here that it says he waxed strong in spirit. He didn't let that put him down. And he showed up back in town to fulfill his calling. Maybe you're wondering, okay, what's so significant about John the Baptist? Why is he so great? Well, Jesus later on in Matthew 11, 11, he said, Verily I say unto you, among them that are born of women, there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist. So he would prove to have a very important role here. So how does this apply to us today? We talked a lot about the silent years. We talked about his parents. But during this time where John was, he was serving, he was gonna serve boldly, it was a very unique time. You know, there is never an optimal time in which it will be easy to be bold for Christ. There never will be. We need to decide to follow God's calling for our lives. Everyone has different backgrounds. You know, his parents, they weren't around for a long time to be able to be there as he grew up. He had to live in the desert. We might have different personalities, but this doesn't give people a free pass to be bold or not. We are to be bold. Latch onto the blessings that God has given to you. Whatever your background may be, God has given blessings and we need to remember those. And always pray to the Holy Spirit that he would indwell us as believers and that he would empower us, help us as we seek to be bold for him to accomplish his purposes. So now we see the second action we see from John is that John would boldly present the truth. So I have a lot to unpack tonight as I made my different points. I'm just letting you know my third point is a lot shorter. So this point is a little shorter and our last point is even shorter after that. But we're gonna be jumping around now into a bunch of different passages. So look over to Matthew chapter three. It speaks of some of John's message here. So verse one, in those days came John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, repent ye for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah saying, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. The word for preaching here is the same idea of heralding. He was telling of this king that was going to come. He was over and over heralding and telling of him. He'd also speak of repentance, the nation needed to turn back to God during this time of silence. This theme of repentance will show up again, and we'll look at it as he answers some of the questions of these people who are listening to his message. He also speaks of the kingdom. in which this would perk the ears of the Jews. Like, oh, the kingdom's coming. We're gonna be liberated from the Romans. And this kingdom, however, would not be realized until way later, even past our ears today. And John's message was predicted here. The same kind of words he uses here in Isaiah 40, verse three. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord. Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. This was predicted 700 years ago. So John's ministry here was prophesied for years and years. And he would pave the way for the coming king. The next few verses, every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord had spoken it. I need to give some context to this. So back then, roads like we think of today were not common at all. When they would have these special roads paved in for someone, it would be for royalty. So him paving the way for the coming king was very significant. As we, when this makes me think of as we rule and reign with Christ in heaven, the fact that he has roads paved with gold in heaven for us to walk on is even more significant. That we're going to rule and reign with Christ and he has this prepared for us. So the fact that there are roads at all in heaven speaks volumes. And John, as he would go through his ministry, he would lift up the dejected, people who thought they weren't worthy to worship God. He would lift them up. And then he would humble the uplifted so that all of these people, he would make their paths straight so that they would see the one that was coming after him. This was his mission. And so John, as he would proclaim this dramatic mission, he actually had nothing extraordinary to offer on the table. We look at Matthew 3 verse 4. His outfit was really stunning, but not in a positive way. He wore very simple clothes. He came from the wilderness. He was a different looking guy. He had a very simple diet. He ate honey and locusts. My wife jokingly said that he actually didn't know how to cook. He wasn't married, so no one taught him how to cook. So he just ate the locusts and honey that he found. But nonetheless, he was a very simple, plain man. He lived in the wilderness. But there was significance to this. Oftentimes when we think of somebody who lives in the wilderness by themself, we think, oh, that's a crazy person that's just trying to do everything on their own. But he was far from that. You know, it's said that in Scripture that he didn't drink. He was very sober, very serious. His message was very, very serious and important. His simple garb communicated his difference from the religious leaders. As we'll see, they're gonna come out. They're like, who is this voice crying in the wilderness? And so these upper class people would come and see him, and it was a stark difference. He was dressed so plainly, yet he had such a powerful message for the people. This makes me think of American history, when Washington, George Washington became the first president, in his inaugural dress, he purposely wore a very simple coat. He didn't want to look like royalty, like the England, the monarchy that they were used to, so he dressed in more simple clothes to show him that he didn't intend to have America be the same. So I think this is a similar kind of thing, that he was trying, he was using it to communicate something. John, he performed no miracles, yet he was very bold in his mission. So preachers, they often do more than preach with their words. They preach with actions and with the clothes they wear. And I've said this before, that all of us are called to preach in some way. That could be just talking to someone, sharing the gospel with someone. That's the definition of preaching. It doesn't have to be behind a pulpit. So all of us need to consider that, that we preach with our words, we preach with our actions, we preach with what we wear, all sorts of things. So this was a factor here. And with such kind of a plain way of doing things, John had much success as word would spread. Many, many people would come to hear this voice crying in the wilderness. And they were excited. They were electrified that John the Baptist was here. He was breaking the silence, announcing that the Messiah was coming. And they may have had different ideas about it, but it drew in many, many people. And as John would share the message here, not just telling of the Messiah, but telling them to repent of their ways, many would believe, receive salvation, and were baptized. So he did a great work for God. But we're going to see that people are going to confront him and ask him questions. So in Matthew 3, let's look at verse 7. So religious leaders would come to him and they would wonder about him. So verse 7, but when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? I bet they did not expect him to say that to them. They thought they were ready, they were doing what God wanted, but he was exposing that he was warning them of wrath that was coming for them. So this was a big wake-up call for them. They were quite comfortable in their seats that they had after these silent years. They had their orders, but he's pointing out failures on their part. The religious leaders needed a spirit of repentance. They needed to change their ways. Look at verse nine. It shows something that they were depending on. And think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham, our father. For I say unto you that God is able these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. They were depending so much on the words of the prophets of old and thinking that because of their bloodline that they would have all the merits and they were pleasing unto God. But this was not true. John, his righteous wrath here can be kind of jarring, but I believe it was justified. It was very important here. Something to remember with this is when presenting the gospel, he talked about the wrath that God would have. And when we leave that out, the sense of urgency is lost. So as much as we can speak about God's love, but if we talk about God and all we talk about is love, we miss the point of that, that God does have a sense of righteousness. When we only talk about his love, then his righteousness is eclipsed. It's hidden away from people, and people need to realize that. So as much as John was very harsh here, called them out for who they were, it was used very effectively, it cut to their hearts. In verse 10, it talked about that people would be judged from the root, they would be cast into fire. So there's a very, very impactful message here. Now there were other people there who showed up. If we look over at Luke 3, it talks about other people who were there listening, and they would ask John some questions. So he's saying they need to repent, but what is it that they need to repent? How do they need to change? So he would give them some answers here. So similar verses are shared before this, but when he responds to religious leaders, look at verse 10. And the people asked him, saying, well, what shall we do then? And he answered and said unto them, he that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none, and he that hath meat, let him do likewise. So what he's saying here is that they need to be selfless. These Pharisees and Sadducees, they would mask their charitable deeds, do it in the eyes of men, but they really did it for themselves. So they needed to be selfless. That's what he would point out for them. Other people would ask questions. We see here that the publicans, they would ask him, what should we do? And John would tell them, be fair, don't be greedy. That was something that the publicans would struggle with. The soldiers petitioned as well. What were they to do? He told them to be less violent, more just, and more content. As a side note, I think all of that is very significant what he pointed out for the soldiers. Maybe you think of emergency responders or those who serve in protecting the country. They need to take heed to some of these things. Justice is very important and being content because that will help shield people from corruption when you're content. So these kinds of things are very important. But the bottom line with all this, you may be thinking, okay, a bunch of different people are talking, what's the main idea here? They all needed to repent or to change their ways. What was going on during these silent years was a lot of corruption was going around and they needed to change their ways. So they all needed to repent. And the importance of this commission is through the idea of repentance. In Luke 18, when the rich young ruler would come unto Jesus and ask, what must I do to be saved? Jesus' answer was a bit more indirect than we would expect. He said, we'll sell all that you have, give to the poor, and follow me. The rich young ruler, he departed from him. He couldn't do it. Jesus saw his heart. And so this idea of repentance, all of these things that these people had to do, their hearts were completely turned upside down. They needed to turn towards the Lord. All of these things were holding them back. from God. So John was emphasizing that here. Even though these were outward actions, it reveals this repentant heart that they had to have. Later, John would emphasize baptism to them. Baptism, it wasn't a new concept to them. But the thing is that baptism was reserved for Gentiles at that time. When a Gentile wanted to go through the process of proselytizing, becoming a Jew, They would become baptized, showing that they are no longer being a Gentile, they are gonna now be a Jew. And this is their new lifestyle. But the fact that John was saying everyone needs to be baptized, he was pointing out the illustration of baptism that they all needed to believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Pointing out the significance of baptism. So that was the major point why he was communicating that so much. So don't compromise the truth in its presentation. When we look at this for ourselves, remember that the truth must be presented boldly. A Christian who is overcome with fear will dart away when the truth is challenged or controversial. Now, when I'm saying boldly, I'm not saying, oh, if you're an introvert, you have to be an extrovert or those kinds of things. But as much as when I look at the life of John the Baptist, I don't see a lot of similarities with myself with him. But as Christians, we need to be bold in that hold on to the truth. So don't compromise. If we end up as Christians not being bold and not having a backbone with the truth, then we're gonna cave in. So we need to be bold with the truth. People will see your fruit, so we need to bear the good fruit of being a Christian. In Children's Church, Chris and I, we've been emphasizing the kids, the different fruits of the Spirit. And we're trying to emphasize the importance of that. We want the children to recognize that their fruit, even though they're little, their fruit matter. Matthew 7 20 says, wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. So when you think of these different occupations, these people that talk to John, the businessmen, like the publicans, they need to bear good fruit. If you are involved in emergency services, like a soldier, bear good fruit. If you are involved in Bible studies or you are mentoring others, bear good fruit. All of this is so, so important. We can't leave out repentance as a theme of salvation, as John would hear. So we now come to the last action of John. Like I said, this one is a little bit quicker here. But John, he would boldly place himself under Christ. And I think this is the most important part here. Look at verse 15. So we're still in Luke chapter three. Look at verse 15. And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ or not. John the Baptist's preaching was very effective, it was speaking in their hearts, and they were wondering, is this the Messiah? Is this the one speaking to us? But John would quickly deflect this, and look at verse 16. John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water, but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose. He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire. That's probably the verse here that you remember the most, that John the Baptist, he's the one that, he understood his perspective with Christ. He saw that he was even less than a servant to his master, Jesus Christ. Someone that was gonna unlatch someone's shoes, that was the lowest of lowest of servants, yet John didn't even see himself there. He didn't respond with all this praise he was getting from the people. Oh yeah, look at all the great things I'm doing. No, he pointed them to Christ. He said, I'm not worthy to even be a servant to him, but worship him. When he shows up, worship him. Follow what he says. So we need to humbly serve God. Ask yourself this, when was the last time that you have felt that low in respect to God? When we pray, we often don't have that perspective that, man, I'm not even worthy to be a servant of God. You know, we need to, we have that mindset. William Barclay said, the true preacher is obliterated in his message. You know, that's an important part. As we speak the gospel to people, we need to decrease ourselves that he may be increased. And he would say that the Messiah would introduce the Holy Spirit later to those who would repent. And he would refine his children with fire. The fire that's speaking of in this verse, it's not talking about judgment. It's talking about the Holy Spirit will refine the believer. But in the next verse, he speaks of judgment that is coming. So look at verse 17. During that time, during the Old Testament, they would throw up their wheat and their chaff. They couldn't tell the difference. But the wind would blow the chaff away and the wheat would come back down because it was heavier. So in that same way, he's mentioning that God will come, he'll separate the wheat from the chaff. So they need to make sure that they were of the kingdom of God. They would repent and turn unto him to be able to enter the kingdom. John's ministry would continue, and it would continue until his death. Look at verse 18. And many other things in his exhortation preached he unto the people. You know, I'm genuinely curious, what were John the Baptist's other messages like? You know, we may not know, but we know his focus was always on Jesus. Focusing on, he was the forerunner. He would run before him and announce and herald the king that was coming after him. And so later he would call out one of the tetrarchs of the kingdom and point out a sin in his life. John the Baptist was a very bold guy. And all this would happen and he would later, he'd be punished and he would prepare the way for Jesus. You know, he fulfilled his mission. So don't allow your boldness to get in the way of Christ. Just like John the Baptist, he was very bold. He was great in that manner, but he didn't allow it to get in the way of Christ. When we think of boldness, it needs to be coupled with humility. When we have boldness without humility, then that leads to pride. So that's the difference there. We need to be bold, but we need to have humility. Remember the reason why we can be so bold. Remember what scripture says for us. That's why we can be bold. So ask God to give you humility coupled with boldness to better serve him in your calling. So what we saw here is that God wants us to be bold in his calling for our lives. Boldly prevail in unique times, wherever you find yourself. Boldly present the truth and boldly place yourself under Christ. John's ministry reflected Jesus' mission later. Later, Jesus would arise from among the commoners and he would come and he'd be baptized by John the Baptist. This would be the beginning of his earthly ministry. But during this time, John would be quickly shut in prison and his life would end. But Jesus, he would echo a similar message to John. Just as John had said, Jesus would say, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. You know, we may think of the nation of Israel, and wow, John the Baptist's ministry, it was a national failure. You know, John, he fulfilled his will. What the Holy Spirit put of him, even inside the womb, he fulfilled that calling. But the children of Israel as a nation, they failed. They hated John. They hated Jesus. They crucified him. So we may think that was a failure. But remember though, in just a few years, Jesus, or just a short amount of time here, Jesus would recruit some disciples. Some of those disciples were followers of John. There were many people who he won to Christ through his ministry. So ask yourself tonight, how are you going to make a bold difference for Christ?