Christ’s forerunner came from among the faithful in Israel. Zacharias, an aged priest, and his wife Elizabeth were “both righteous before God,” and in their quiet lives the light of faith shone out like a star amid the darkness. This godly pair was given the promise of a son who would “go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways.”3TC 53.2

Zacharias had gone to Jerusalem to minister for one week in the temple. As he stood before the golden altar in the Holy Place of the sanctuary, suddenly he became aware of an angel of the Lord “standing on the right side of the altar.” For years he had prayed for the coming of the Redeemer. Now these prayers were about to be answered.3TC 53.3

The angel greeted him with the joyful assurance: “‘Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. ... He will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit. ... He will also 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 a people prepared for the Lord.’ And Zacharias said to the angel, ‘How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.’”3TC 54.1

For a moment the aged priest forgot that what God promises, He is able to perform. What a contrast between his unbelief and the faith of Mary! Her answer to the angel’s announcement was, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” Luke 1:38.3TC 54.2

The birth of a son to Zacharias, like the birth of Abraham’s child and Mary’s, was to teach a great truth: in every believing soul, God’s power will do what human power cannot. Through faith the child of promise was given. Similarly, through faith spiritual life is born, and God enables us to do the works of righteousness.3TC 54.3

Five hundred years before, the angel Gabriel had revealed to Daniel the prophetic period that would reach to the coming of Christ. Zacharias knew that the end of this period was near, and this encouraged him to pray for the Messiah’s coming. Now, the very same angel through whom God had given the prophecy had come to announce its fulfillment.3TC 54.4

Zacharias Doubted

Zacharias had expressed doubt about the angel’s words. Now he was not to speak again until they were fulfilled. “Behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.” It was the duty of the priest in this service to pray for pardon of sins and for the coming of the Messiah. But when Zacharias attempted to do this, he could not speak a word. As he came out from the Holy Place, his face was shining with the glory of God, and the people “perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple.” Zacharias “remained speechless,” but he communicated to them what he had seen and heard.3TC 54.5

Soon after the birth of the promised child, the father’s speech was restored. “And all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea. And all those who heard them kept them in their hearts, saying, ‘What kind of child will this be?’% 7D’ All this called attention to the Messiah’s coming.3TC 55.1

The Holy Spirit rested on Zacharias, and he prophesied about the mission of his son:3TC 55.2

“You, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
To give knowledge of salvation to His people
By the remission of their sins.”
3TC 55.3

“So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.” God had called the son of Zacharias to the greatest work ever committed to human beings. And the Spirit of God would be with him if he obeyed the angel’s instruction.3TC 55.4

John was to bring the light of God to the people. He must impress them with their need of God’s righteousness. Such a messenger must be holy, a temple for the Spirit of God to dwell in. He must have good physical health and mental and spiritual strength. For this reason, it would be necessary for him to control his appetites and passions.3TC 55.5

In the time of John the Baptist, greed for riches and the love of luxury and display were everywhere. Sensual pleasures, feasting and drinking, were causing physical harm, numbing the spiritual perceptions, and lessening the awareness of sin. John was to stand as a reformer. By his self-denying life and plain dress, he was to rebuke the excesses of his time. This was the reason an angel from the throne of heaven gave the lesson about temperance to his parents.3TC 55.6

Childhood and youth is the time to develop the power of self-control. Habits established in early years decide whether we will be victorious or defeated in the battle of life. Youth—the sowing time—determines the character of the harvest for this life and the life to come.3TC 56.1

In preparing the way for Christ’s first advent, John was a representative of those who prepare a people for our Lord’s second coming. The world is set in self-indulgence. Errors and myths are everywhere. All who would perfect holiness in the fear of God must learn temperance and self-control. See 2 Corinthians 7:1. They must keep the appetites and passions under the control of the higher powers of the mind. This self-discipline is essential if we are to develop that mental strength and spiritual insight that enable us to understand and practice the truths of God’s Word.3TC 56.2

John’s Unusual Education

In the natural order of things, the son of Zacharias would have been educated in the rabbinical schools. But since this would have unfitted him for his work, God called him to the desert, so that he could learn of nature and nature’s God.3TC 56.3

John found his home in the barren hills, wild ravines, and rocky caves. Here his surroundings helped him form habits of simplicity and self-denial. Here he could study the lessons of nature, of revelation, and of God’s leading. From his childhood, his God-fearing parents had kept his mission before him, and he had accepted the holy trust. The solitude of the desert was a welcome escape from society in which unbelief and impurity had become almost universal. He avoided constant contact with sin in order not to lose the sense of its exceeding sinfulness.3TC 56.4

But John did not spend his life in austere religious gloom or in selfish isolation. From time to time, he went out to mingle in society, always an interested observer of what was happening in the world. Illuminated by the divine Spirit, he studied human nature to understand how to reach people’s hearts with the message of heaven. The burden of his mission was on him. By meditation and prayer, he set about to prepare himself for the life work before him.3TC 56.5

Although he was in the wilderness, John was not exempt from temptation. Satan tried to overthrow him, but his spiritual perceptions were clear, and through the Holy Spirit he was able to detect and resist the tempter’s approaches.3TC 57.1

Like Moses in the mountains of Midian, John was shut in by God’s presence. The gloomy and terrible aspect of nature in his wilderness home vividly pictured the condition of Israel. The vineyard of the Lord had become a desolate waste. But above, over the dark clouds, arched the rainbow of promise.3TC 57.2

Alone in the silent night, John read God’s promise to Abraham of descendants as numberless as the stars. The light of dawn told of Him who would be like “the light of the morning when the sun rises, a morning without clouds.” 2 Samuel 23:4. And in the brightness of noonday, he saw the splendor when “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.” Isaiah 40:5.3TC 57.3

With awed yet elated spirit he searched in the prophetic scrolls for the revelations of the Messiah’s coming. Shiloh was to appear before a king would cease to reign on David’s throne. Now the time had come. A Roman ruler sat in the palace on Mount Zion. By the sure word of the Lord, the Christ was already born.3TC 57.4

Isaiah’s Portrayals Studied

John studied Isaiah’s grand portrayals of the Messiah’s glory day and night. See Isaiah 11:4; 32:2; 62:4. The glorious vision filled the heart of the lonely exile. He looked on the King in His beauty, and self was forgotten. He saw the majesty of holiness and felt himself to be inefficient and unworthy. He was ready to go forward as Heaven’s messenger, unshaken by anything human, because he had looked upon the Divine. He could stand fearless in the presence of earthly monarchs, because he had bowed low before the King of kings.3TC 57.5

John did not fully understand the nature of the Messiah’s kingdom, but his hope centered on the coming of a King in righteousness and the establishment of Israel as a holy nation.3TC 58.1

He saw his people self-satisfied and asleep in their sins. The message God had given him was to startle them from their dullness and apathy. Before the seed of the gospel could take root, the soil of the heart must be broken up. Before they would seek healing from Jesus, they must be awakened to their danger from the wounds of sin.3TC 58.2

God does not send messengers to lull the unsanctified into fatal security. He lays heavy burdens on the conscience of the wrongdoer and pierces the soul with arrows of conviction. Ministering angels present the fearful judgments of God to deepen the sense of need. Then the hand that has humbled in the dust lifts up the repentant one.3TC 58.3

On the Edge of Revolution

When the ministry of John began, the nation was moving toward revolution. Archelaus had been removed as king, and Judea had been brought directly under the control of Rome. The tyranny and extortion of the Roman governors and their efforts to introduce heathen symbols and customs kindled revolt, which had been quenched in the blood of thousands of Israel’s bravest.3TC 58.4

Amid the discord and strife, a voice spoke up in the wilderness, startling and stern yet full of hope: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” With a new, strange power, it moved the people. Here was an announcement that the coming of Christ was right upon them. With the spirit and power of Elijah, John denounced the national corruption and rebuked the prevailing sins. His words were pointed and convincing. The nation was stirred. Crowds flocked to the wilderness.3TC 58.5

John called the people to repentance. As a symbol of cleansing from sin, he baptized them in the waters of the Jordan. By doing so, he declared that those who claimed to be the chosen people of God were defiled by sin. Without purification of heart, they could have no part in the Messiah’s kingdom.3TC 58.6

Princes and rabbis, soldiers, tax collectors, and peasants came to hear the prophet. Many repented and received baptism in order to participate in the kingdom he announced.3TC 59.1

Many scribes and Pharisees came confessing their sins and asking for baptism. They had led the people to hold a high opinion of their piety, but now the guilty secrets of their lives were unveiled. But John was impressed that many of these men had no real conviction of sin. They were following their own self-interest. As friends of the prophet, they hoped to find favor with the coming Prince. And by receiving baptism, they thought they would strengthen their influence with the people.3TC 59.2

John’s Sharp Rebuke to Hypocrites

John met them with the scathing question, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance.” Because the Jews had separated themselves from God, they were suffering under His judgments. This was the cause of their bondage to a heathen nation. Because in times past the Lord had shown them great favor, they excused their sins. They deceived themselves into thinking that they were better than others and entitled to His blessings.3TC 59.3

John declared to the teachers of Israel that their pride, selfishness, and cruelty showed them to be a deadly curse to the people. In view of the light they had received from God, they were even worse than the heathen. God was not dependent on them to fulfill His plans. He could call others to His service.3TC 59.4

“Even now,” said the prophet, “the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” If the fruit is worthless, the name cannot save the tree from destruction. John told the Jews plainly that if their life and character were not in harmony with God’s law, they were not His people.3TC 59.5

All who became citizens of Christ’s kingdom, he said, would give evidence of faith and repentance. Their lives would exhibit kindness and devotion. They would minister to the needy, shield the defenseless, and be examples of virtue and compassion.3TC 59.6

“I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” Isaiah had declared that the Lord would cleanse His people “by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of burning.” Isaiah 4:4.3TC 60.1

The Spirit of God will consume sin in all who submit to His power. See Hebrews 12:29. But if any cling to sin, then the glory of God, which destroys sin, must destroy them. At the second advent of Christ, the wicked will be consumed “with the breath of His mouth” and destroyed “with the brightness of His coming.” 2 Thessalonians 2:8. The glory of God that gives life to the righteous will destroy the wicked.3TC 60.2

In the time of John the Baptist, Christ was about to appear as the Revealer of God’s character. His very presence would make people aware of their sin. Only as they were willing to be cleansed from sin could they enter into fellowship with Him.3TC 60.3

In this way, John the Baptist declared God’s message to Israel. Many accepted it and sacrificed everything in order to obey. More than a few cherished the hope that he might be the Messiah. But as John saw the people turning to him, he took every opportunity to direct their faith to the One who was to come.3TC 60.4

Christ’s Problems as a Child

The Baptism of Jesus