John the Baptist

The coming of the next of the prophets was predicted in the last book of the Old Testament. Knowing that for some time there was to come a lapse in the frequency and prominence of prophetic messages, the Spirit of the Lord prompted Malachi to insert the message: “Behold, I will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in.” Chapter 3:1. Again he told of a prophet like Elijah coming to prepare the way of the Lord. Chapter 4:5. The role of John the Baptist as prophet-forerunner of Christ fulfilled Malachi’s prediction and served to link the Old and New Testament prophets. Since the days of Abraham there had not been so long a period without a prophet. It was necessary that the continuation of the prophetic gift be divinely predicted, lest the people should feel that the lengthy time gap indicated the discontinuance of the prophetic office.APAY 159.1

The time had come for the Jewish nation to make the greatest of all decisions: “What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ?” Matthew 27:22. This was the occasion for which the Lord had been trying to prepare His people since the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The future of the nation and their usefulness to God in His plan to win the world was to be determined by this final response. That there might be no mistake in the identity of this One who had been so long predicted, Simeon, the prophet, had testified in the temple when the Babe Jesus was presented to the Lord: “Mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou has prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel.” Luke 2:30-32. Also Anna, the prophetess, “gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of Him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.” Verse 38. John the Baptist was prepared to direct attention to Him. “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world,” he had declared at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. After Christ’s baptism, John spoke again as he saw the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descend upon the Messiah. The prophet said, “And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.” John 1:29, 34.APAY 159.2

Identification of Jesus Christ was unmistakable to the ones whose eyes were not blinded by pride, superstition, or sin. It was the testimony of the prophets Simeon, Anna, and John the Baptist that confirmed in many minds the conviction brought home by their knowledge of the Scriptures and their observation of the life and works of Christ. It was the testimony of the prophets that left without excuse those who did not see in Jesus Christ the fulfillment of the Old Testament predictions of Messiah to come for their redemption.APAY 160.1