6: John’s baptism was to show true repentance. He would not administer it to those who would not truly repent of their sins. Those who partook were voluntarily saying that they were unworthy of the coming Messiah. They were confessing their ill-preparedness due to sin in their lives. They were confessing a change of attitude…

4: John was clothed very similarly to Elijah. His clothing and living in the wilderness upon the fare of the wild both parallel the ministry of Elijah. It is best to understand locusts as literally being locusts, several types of which might be eaten even by one keeping the law of Moses.5: John was exactly the kind…

3: John stands at the end of the old testament and the beginning of the new. He shows the reality of the old prophecies, and yet the advent of a new reality. Christ is come, and repentance is commanded. The hope has come to fruition and it is high time to make the most of it. His…

2: Repentance is the only proper response to the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom coming refers specifically to the coming of the Messiah. The Jews at that time did not expect to have to repent in order to enter into the Messiah’s kingdom. As Jesus later explained, the kingdom of heaven would grow from a…

1: John the baptizer is the great forerunner of Christ. He lived his entire life for the purpose of preparing men for the Lord. Much can be learned from his example. Personal Journal Entry #12105Prayer Journal Entry #12105Daily Bible Reading: 1 Kings 1:1-2:46Praise Journal Entry #12065: Heavenly Father, may we be busied with the gospel at all times. You…

21: Once again, Matthew emphasizes that Jesus is the woman’s child. He doesn’t say that Joseph took his son back to Israel, but that he took the child and his mother.22: Archelaus was much like his father, Herod. So, Joseph obviously wanted to avoid another move in the near future. God guided him to Galilee. In that…

20: It is said here that ‘they’ were dead that wanted to kill Jesus. This is strange since it seemed to be the design only of Herod at that time. So, this may be a case of using the plural when the singular is meant. However, it is more likely that both Herod and his…

19: Even the fact that Jesus was in Egypt for a time was the fulfillment of prophecy. Everyhting about his life fulfilled prophecy. Personal Journal Entry #12102Prayer Journal Entry #12102Daily Bible Reading: 2 Samuel 17:1-19:43Praise Journal Entry #12062: Heavenly Father, thank You for Jesus. His life is so clearly for us. He lived and died…

2: In this verse, Luke reviews the end of his gospel, catching the reader up to the present events. Jesus is said to give commandments through the Holy Spirit. This is not to say that Jesus had no authority to make commands. Indeed, it shows that he had the authority to include the power of…

1: Luke is, of course, referring back to his gospel. Many have suggested that Theophilus is not a particular person. However, it seems that he was indeed an actual individual. In his gospel, Luke refers to Theophilus with a title that indicates the man was a magistrate or officer of some type. Acts is the natural sequel…