In those days, John the Baptizer came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” Matthew 3:1-2 WEB
The gospel of Matthew begins with genealogy from the house of David to the house of Joseph, engaged to the mother of Jesus. It then relates prophecies from Isaiah and Micah that foretell the birth of the Jewish Messiah.
Next, Matthew describes Jesus’ birth and the young family’s flight to Egypt, escaping Herod’s order attempting to kill the newborn Savior. This fulfilled a prophecy from Hosea which predicted Jesus being called out of Egypt. Finally, Matthew tells of how Joseph brought Mary and Jesus into Israel ultimately settling in Nazareth fulfilling the prophecy that Christ would be called a Nazarine.
After reporting the genealogical information and revealing the fulfillment of prophecies relating to Jesus, Matthew begins chapter three of his gospel by skipping forward to the time of the ministry of John the Baptist. John preached repentance, foreshadowing Jesus’ message that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. The gospel mentions nothing of the twenty-five to thirty years that passed between these events.
The Wilderness of Judea
John preached the message “heaven is at hand” in the wilderness of Judea which was a hot, arid region west of the Jordan river near the Dead Sea. In this area, those who would have heard John would have to seek him out as he did not preach in high traffic areas where passers by would hear him.
John was known as “the Baptist” because he performed full immersion in water to baptize believers as a sign of their repentance from sin. Repentance is to turn away from sin and toward obedience to the will of God. It means to change direction from going the wrong way to the correct course.
John called people to repentance saying “the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” because Christ was soon to begin his earthly ministry. This brought into being the debate over whether the Kingdom of Heaven is physical or spiritual. Many Jews of the time thought that the Messiah would overthrow Roman rule and begin a new political order.
Not of This World
However, Jesus established that he would begin to transform the world in a spiritual sense. We read in John 18:36, “Jesus answered, ‘My Kingdom is not of this world. If my Kingdom were of this world, then my servants would fight, that I wouldn’t be delivered to the Jews. But now my Kingdom is not from here.’ WEB”
Ultimately, there will be a physical Kingdom established here on earth. Revelation 20:6 reveals a physical kingdom saying, “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over these, the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with him one thousand years. WEB”
Prayer: “Father God, thank you for calling me to repentance. Thank you for accepting me into the Kingdom of Heaven. Forgive me for my sins as I forgive those who have sinned against me. Lead me to do your will for my life. In Jesus’ name – Amen”
Yesterday’s Devotional: Refuge in God
