Luke 7:24-28

Luke chapter 7, verses 24 through 28 for our text and studied this morning. And when the messengers of John were departed, he began to speak under the people concerning John. What went he out into the wilderness for to see? A reed shaken with the wind? But what went ye out to see? A man clothed in soft raiment, behold they which are gorgeously arrayed and live delicately, are in king’s courts. But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and much more than a prophet. This is he of whom it is written. Behold, I send my messenger before thy face. and he shall prepare thy way before thee. For I say unto you, among those that are born of women, there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist. But he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he. May God bless to us his sacred and holy word this morning. The Greek word for character means to cut or to engrave or to make a furrow. It’s something different than we might call a pencil line, which could be easily rubbed up. Something it’s permanent. It’s cut with a tool. Therefore, it leaves a lasting impression when it’s made. John. the Baptist, you recall, has sent two of his disciples to Christ to ask if he is indeed the Christ that they’ve been looking for or should they look for someone else. And after these messengers had seen the miracles of Christ and report and go back to report that to John the Baptist, Jesus begins to speak to the people, the multitude there, about John himself. And he has high praise for John the Baptist. The Lord wishes to make the people aware of the advantages they enjoyed under John’s ministry. Now they were deprived of John’s ministry at this time because he has been locked up in prison. But John was a man of great character. He left a lasting impression. It wasn’t easily were up doubt. When John came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, people flocked to hear him from all Judea, all the region roundabout the Jordan. Jesus asked, what did you go out in the wilderness to see? What attracted you to him? And then the Lord begins to note the qualities that made John the Baptist a faithful minister. It is still these ministerial traits, which should be valued by anyone who preaches the gospel or hears the gospel preached. So I want to speak this morning on commendable traits. of a faithful minister. And the first we see here in verse 24, you need a minister who has a consistent doctrinal message. We read in verse 24 here, what went ye out into the wilderness to see, or to see, a reed shaken with the wind? Now, Jesus indicated. here that John was not like a reed shaken in the wind. That wouldn’t have attracted people to John. John was not like a reed bending whichever way the wind. Whatever direction the wind blew, if it blew out of the east and the reed would bend in that direction. If the wind blew from the south, then it would bend in that direction. The Lord uses this illustration to say to us here that John the Baptist was not a waving, unstable, changeable person when it came to his doctor. He was solid. He was the opposite of a reek. He was like an unmovable rock, a faithful, uniform, consistent teacher of doctrine. Those ministers which are unstable in their doctrine are really useless to the people of God. To be contradicting yourself constantly. To be explaining away what you once said was the truth at a later date is to confuse people and to lead them astray. We read that Jacob said to his oldest son, when he was about to die, he left this behind, you’re as unstable as water, thou shalt not excel. And the Bible tells us, a double-minded man is unstable in all his way. If he can’t make up his mind about something, he cannot be a stable person. You can’t build on that. You don’t want a minister who pursues the latest doctrinal fad who chases after the newest and most popular trend when it comes to doctrine. As Jeremiah 616 says, Thus say if the Lord stand ye in the ways and see and ask for the old pass, where is the good way and walk therein, you shall find rest for your souls. The old pass, those that have been taught for years, those that were consistently true down through the years. When I was in seminary, we had a student in theology class who would change his theology, his doctrine, his doctrine, from one class to the next. And finally, in exasperation, the teacher finally said to him, I mean, every time he was asking a question, he was on a different horse, as the teacher said, he said, if you’d stay on one horse long enough, I’d be able to shoot you out of the saddle. That’s what he said. He was from Texas. Yeah, you know, the teacher was from Texas. Ministers shouldn’t be tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of of doctrine like a reed, just bent by the wind. I had someone that was in our church one time, and when he was in our church, he decided he was going become Presbyterian. So eventually, he leaves our church and he goes to the Presbyterian church. When he gets to the Presbyterian church, he wasn’t even there a year. He decided to become a Baptist again. So the next thing I know, you know, about six, eight months later, he wants to come back to our church. I said, okay, he came back to our church. He wasn’t our church that long, and he became a Presbyterian again. So he leaves and goes back to the Presbyterian church. The third time, wherever the fourth time, actually, he wants to come back to the church, and I just said, I’m not playing musical chairs here. You make up your mind what you believe. You can’t have this when it comes to teachers. When you get, we have leaders in the church. So you should appreciate a minister whose doctrine is consistent, year in and year out, solid, scriptural, a rock. That’s important, I think. So you need a minister who has a consistent doctrinal message. I think this is one of the reasons why God would not have young men just jump into the ministry without some seasoning, because you need to really get some settled doctrine before you begin to teach other people. The second thing we see here is you need a minister who has a self-denying spirit. Verse 25, we read these words, but what went ye out to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they which are grinned. gorgeously arrayed and lived delicately are in kings courts. In royal palaces is where you find people dressed up in gorgeous garments, maybe purple and silk and so forth. Beautiful clothing. This is where people enjoy, you know, gourmet meals and all the luxuries that come with royalty. And luxury is where luxury is where people enjoy, you know, gourmet meals and all the luxuries. banquets and so forth prepared by the chief chefs in the land. So they have the best of food and everything. Now, John the Baptist was just the opposite of that. He was found in the wilderness out there where there’s really, you know, a lot of barrenness. He dressed and he lived in a very different way. We know that his raiment was made of camel’s hair and in a leather. a girdle about him or a belt of some sort that he had wrapped around him. A very plain and unfancy clothing as you can possibly find. And of course, his food was locusts and wild honey. Not very appetizing, perhaps, but I guess it was nutritious. And so he, that’s what he ate. So here is a man of unparalleled self-denial. An amazing example of mortification and contempt for the world. When you think about it, he just, he lived out there in middle of nowhere. He ate these things that in the wild, he didn’t dress fancy. He was all about preaching of the gospel. He was all about focused on the kingdom of God. while john does not need to be imitated in the exact manner, because I don’t think too many of you are going to have locusts and wild honey for lunch today, yet you ought to appreciate a minister who lives a self-denying life. I think that’s important that we see that. Now many ministers today are well-paid, like CEOs of a large business. A thousand-dollar suits. They drive sports cars. They have large mansions. They have big salaries. They belong to the country club. They even belong to the yacht club. There is no self-denial in their ministry. They wouldn’t think it. worthy of them to take a small church and try to work with that. No, that’s beneath them to do that. There’s no willingness to do that. Because that can’t sustain their luxurious lifestyle that they need to have. There’s no spirit of appall, let’s say, who did without, in order to freely proclaim the gospel as a missionary, who knew what it was like to suffer need, even hunger at times, in order. order to serve Christ. He says, I know how to abound, and I know how to, you know, suffer need. He said, I’ve been in both situations. Now, I’m not saying that a minister should be kept poor by his congregation. He’ll do him good for keeping them done. No, I don’t think that’s what we should say here. He should be paid a livable wage whenever possible. At the same time, he doesn’t need the individual. of a major business officer. We should appreciate those ministers who are sacrificing the sir of God and preach the gospel in a church which is in full of rich people. Most of you know Jonathan Edwards, he became the pastor of a congregational church in Northampton, Massachusetts at the age of 29. And five years later, he was certainly, recognized as one of the foremost theologians in America. In 1744, a controversy developed. And nobody took membership in his church for four years. There was a lot of murmuring and complaining, and agitation for a new minister grew. And the church ended up dismissing Edwards as the pastor. Edwards was 47 years of age at that time. He had a wife and he had 10 children. And they dismissed him as the pastor. And the only church that offered him the past, I pastor it, was a very small church in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, which he accepted. And at the same time, he also served as a missionary who’s the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, uh, who’s, uh, who’s, Stonic Indians, uh, as well who were in that area. How’s Astonic, maybe it is, Indians in the area. And from this obscure pastorate came some of his richest writings, like the freedom of the will and things of this nature. And he developed, uh, these writings while he was pastoring this small church. What self-denial? To come from a large church, to take a small church, to live in a more, uh, very austere fashion in order to preach the gospel. He showed, I think, as a prestigious theologian in a great order, how he could humbly serve Christ. And I think he sets an example for us here as well. So you need a minister who has a self-dealer. denying spirit. The third thing here, you need a minister who acts as God’s messenger. He says here in verse 26, and what went you out to see a prophet? Yay. And I’ll stop there for a second. John the Baptist was indeed a prophet. Now, we should understand that a prophet is not one who merely foretells future events. but one who proclaims the message of God. And so John had his commission, his calling, directly from God. There was a man, the Bible, that says, that was sent from God whose name was John. The same came for a witness to bear witness of the light that all men through him might believe, John 1, verses 6 and 7. By birth, we know that John was a priest. but his office of prophet superseded it. And that was what he’s really known for as being a prophet. He sort of eclipsed his honor as a priest. His foremost task was to proclaim God’s message to a generation which was certainly in the dark. And we find that John the Baptist faithfully did this, even though his message was not very popular because it was a call to repent. Kingdom of heaven is at hand. It’s essential, I think, that a minister sees himself as someone who is especially called of God to be God’s messenger. In other words, what is your role as a minister of the gospel of Christ? It is to proclaim God’s message. Ministers of Christ must not. be unsent. They must be men called of God and see themselves as God’s spokesman. Your task is not to be a men-pleaser, but to faithfully proclaim God’s work. As Paul said in Galatians 1, 10, do I seek to please men? Or if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. The vast majority of ministers today, I’m afraid, seek to be popular. and to be received by the masses because their whole goal is to have a large church. God demands what he said to Jeremiah long ago in chapter 1, in verse 7. Whatsoever I command thee, thou shalt speak. That’s the message that we’re to bring. This is why expository preaching is so important because we’re focused on what God has said in his word. It doesn’t give you a, much wiggle room to devise your own message, does it? When the prophet, uh, Micaiah was pulled out of prison to come to appear before King Ahab, he was given a warning. Ahab wanted to attack Ramat, Gilead, and recapture it from the Syrians. And so all his prophets, his personal prophets, without exception, told him, him, go up the Ramath, Gilead, and prosper. The Lord shall deliver it into your hand. It’s going to be yours. One of his prophets, Zedekiah went so far as to make a visual aid. He made horns of iron. And he said, with these, the Lord has said, you will push the Syrians and conquer them. They just push them out of the way. And so the king’s servant who was sent to fetch Makaya says to the true prophet of God these words. Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good under the king with one mouth. Let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them. You better agree with them when you go see the king. So there’s pressure put on Micaiah that just conform. Just say the same thing. the popular message. The Makaya, being a genuine prophet, couldn’t do that. And so what does he say? He says this, as the Lord liveth what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak. And so Micaiah delivered God’s message to Ahab, and it was not what the king wanted to hear. You have been deceived. You have been persuaded to do what will bring about your demise in the downfall of Israel. You won’t live through the day. And the dogs will lick your blood. It’s this trait to, we’re committed to speak just what God says, which distinguishes God’s from all the rest. So you need a minister who acts as God’s messenger. Fourthly, you need a minister who promotes Jesus Christ. Notice the second part here, verse 26. Yay, I send to you, and much more than a prophet. And then verse 27, this is he, of whom it is written. Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare. by way before thee. John was more than a prophet because he was the messenger to pave the way, if you would, for the Messiah that’s mentioned in the book of Melachi, specifically. And so Malachi 3-1 is quoted in verse 27 as this is a fulfillment of what he is doing. He actually came to point out the Messiah of his generation, to make the path straight, so to speak, for the king of kings. And so he declares Christ. That’s what it’s all about. While Malachi spoke of John preparing the way for Jehovah himself, Luke gives us an indication here through the direction of the Spirit that Jesus Christ is Jehovah. He’s Jehovah God. He’s the Messiah. He fulfills this passage of Scripture. John saw his key purpose then was to point people to Jesus Christ as the Lord and the Savior. And thus we read in John 1, 35 to 37, John stood in two of his disciples and looking under Jesus as he walked. He saith, behold the Lamb of God and the two disciples heard him speak, and they follow Jesus. That’s sort of a very concise way of indicating the kind of thing that he would be doing, pointing people to Christ. Now, no one has the exact role of John the Baptist today. But we can say, in a sense, ministers have a duty that’s similar. our duty is to point people to Jesus Christ. That’s the chief and the special purpose of the minister of the gospel. To point out Christ to lost men and women as the Savior of sinners. To preach Christ to declare his person, his offices, his offices, his attributes, his at atoning work, his resurrection, his reign as king, and so forth. Faithful ministers preach Christ, and they call upon men and women to trust in Christ for salvation from sin and hell. That’s what they do. When Martin Luther set out from Wittenberg to face charges from the Roman Catholic Church, he did so in a well-worn garment without any money in his pocket. But he was encouraged not only by the favor of the elector, one of the officers of the city, the city official, but by the enthusiasm of the people who were crowded at the gates of the city. And they were very excited to cheer him on as a representative of the Reformation movement. And they cried out, Luther forever as he went out of the city. Luther stopped and he said, no, Christ in his word forever. He had no intention of exalding himself. He had every intention of exalding Jesus Christ. That is the duty of the minister of the gospel of Christ, to point people to Christ. You need a minister who promotes Jesus Christ. fifthly and lastly, you need a minister who enjoys the spiritual privileges of the kingdom of God. Now you’ll notice verse 28, where I say unto you among those that are born of women, there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist, but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he. There’s no greater prophet than John the Baptist. That’s a pretty powerful statement that is made. Prophets were the greatest persons born of women. They were greater than kings. They were greater than priests. And so he sees the exaltation here, or he mentions the exaltation of John. John was invaluable as a great witness to his generation concerning Christ. However, he is, least, he that is least in the kingdom of God, is greater than he. Now, that sounds paradoxical almost, doesn’t it? The kingdom of God here is referring to the new covenant error when Christ is revealed. And Christ’s kingdom is ushered it. These, there were superior privileges to living in this age. The New Testament times were much more revealing with regard to spiritual matters than the Old Testament was for us. There’s a special light that came with Christ’s presence among us, so that the least disciple who lived during Christ’s time and after his crucifixion and resurrection would be far great. than John the Baptist in knowledge who died before these events. So the least minister, when we think about this, of the new covenant era, would understand things by the light of Christ’s death and the cross which John only saw in a murky sense, in a dark sense. So think of the superior knowledge that Paul’s epistles provide us today regarding the person and work of Christ. Compared, let’s say, to maybe Isaiah and some of the things that he reveals. Isaiah 53 is very revealing about Christ. But Jesus himself said this in Matthew 13, 16. Blessed are your eyes, for they see and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say, you that many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see and have not seen them and to hear those things which ye hear and have not heard them. You are a greatly privileged people. Now, certainly, it would have been edifying to sit under John the Baptist or any of the prophets in the Old Testament. No question about it. And yet, sadly, many blessed truths of Christ’s work and salvation were seen in a glass darkly, which now a New Testament minister can plainly and clearly speak about with great insight today because of the further revelation that we have. The superior light of the Gospels and the epistles on the New Testament are often taken for granted, but they should not be. The Old Testament prophet spoke of Christ. But look at the revelation we’ve been given. We’ve been given now the full revelation. Here you sit under the minister of the new covenant. And you’re privileged to know far greater and more information concerning the person and work of Christ and many who lived in past ages. You ought to be very thankful for this and realize how much spiritual illumination you have been granted. And having more light than those in the Old Testament, I must say you’re more accountable to God because of it. Remember what Paul said in the Old Testament, it was like they were still children and they used like pictures, like a pitcher book. You know, kids’ books have a lot of pictures in them because they’re little and you read a few words, but there’s pictures that hold their interest. And so in the Old Testament, all the things the Old Testament were like pictures portraying Christ in his work. When we come to the New Testament, he treats us as men. He treats us as grown up. We have a fuller understanding of these things now. And a faithful minister who declares the superior light associated with the kingdom of God is of the greatest help to your soul. So let us be thankful to Christ for gifting his church with faithful ministers that will do such a thing. Well, let us close with this. Jesus has high praise for John the Baptist. He’s a man of indelible character. And we see the minister of sterile traits here that made John a person of note. We need a pastor who has a consistent doctoral message. We need a minister who has a self-denying spirit. We need a minister who acts as God’s messenger. We need a minister who promotes Jesus Christ and we need a minister who enjoys the spiritual privileges of the new covenant knowledge. Let us close with a word of prayer this morning. Heavenly Father, we bow before you, thankful for your goodness and grace. We pray, Lord, that you would forgive us of our many sins and our shortcomings. Father, we who stand and speak from this pulpit, we pray, Lord, that we may do so faithfully declaring what you have given us in your work. Bless us as your people, encourage us that we may be faithful. And I pray for the benefit and edification of your people that they would enjoy and appreciate the spiritual light that flows from your word to them. Lord is in the name of Christ Jesus, we ask these things with Thanksgiving. Amen.