Thru the Bible

Steve: What's really happening when someone's baptized? Is it just a symbol, or is it something far deeper? And what's the difference between water baptism and the baptism of the Holy Spirit? Welcome to Through the Bible. I'm Steve Swets, and in this study, Dr. J. Vernon McGee is going to take us to Matthew chapter 3, where we'll explore the baptism of Jesus and uncover the answers to these important questions.

And then in chapter 4, we're going to step into the wilderness and watch as Jesus faces and defeats Satan's temptation. Many of you remember how Dr. McGee often opened his studies by reading letters from listeners, stories of salvation, transformed lives, and sometimes a bit of humor.

Well, as we carry on that tradition and continue reading your letters, we occasionally like to share some of those original readings with you as well. So, let's enjoy one now. Here's Dr. McGee.

Dr. J. Vernon McGee: Listen to this letter here that comes to us from Decatur, Georgia. It says, when WAEC began broadcasting with Christian music about five years ago, I really liked some of the music which did not sound religious. I did not like you, however. I was willing to learn something about the Bible, but I didn't like the way you would be in the Old Testament and then go dragging something in from the New Testament. I didn't understand then that Jesus is the Word of God made flesh and is all through the Old Testament writings.

At the time, you sounded like a poor old drawling so-and-so who didn't know any better than to believe that the Bible was really true. I felt sorry for you. You reminded me of Herman Talmadge. I kept listening to you, though. And he goes on to say that it was through this ministry that he's come now to a saving knowledge of God. The spirit of God, he said, led me to the truth. The Father led me to Jesus, the Anointed, the Son of God, first begotten from the dead. And we rejoice, by the way, in that.

Steve: Well, that certainly shows Dr. McGee's sense of humor, doesn't it? And God's too. And even more, it reminds us just how much God loves us. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for the privilege of hearing more about your son, Jesus Christ. And we ask that you'd take what we hear and then use it to shape our hearts and strengthen our faith. And for those who don't yet know you, Lord, stir conviction in their spirits and reveal yourself through your word today, and lead them to trust what they maybe are already beginning to see is true. In Jesus name, Amen.

Steve: Now here's our study of Matthew 3 on Through the Bible with Dr. J. Vernon McGee.

Dr. J. Vernon McGee: Now we come today to this third chapter of Matthew, and we put in at verse 10. We are looking at John the Baptist. As he began his ministry, he introduced the Lord Jesus. He introduced him as the king, and he's the one that makes the announcement that he is present.

I put in it, verse 10. "And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire." A great deal is said in the New Testament about fruit-bearing. Now, fruit-bearing is the result of having the right kind of a tree. You see, only a fruit tree can produce fruit. And now he talks here about the fact the axe is put to the root of the tree.

Why? Because it's not bearing fruit. Now, an apple tree will bear apples, plum tree will bear plums. But when an apple tree bears thorns, it's not an apple tree; it's to be cut down. The root and the fruit go together, by the way, because it has to have the right kind of of a root to bear the right kind of fruit. And so that is what he's saying here. The wrong kind of tree is going to be taken down.

Now listen to him in verse 11. "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. But he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I'm not worthy to bear. He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire." Now, I'd like to spend a moment here. He says, "I baptize with water." But he's coming, and when he comes, he'll baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire. Now that "and" there is already over 1900 years long.

We're living in the age of the Holy Spirit. He's baptized us with the Holy Spirit. Now, fire is the second coming, and that's judgment. That distinction needs to be made. Somebody says, "Well, I thought on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came, that that was fire too," because it says that the tongues of fire sat on them. Oh, my friend, you ought to read it again. It says, "like as fire." And it was like the sound of a rushing mighty wind. It wasn't.

It was the coming of the Holy Spirit. But the thing is that there was something to appeal to the eye gate, the fire, to the ear gate, the sound of a rushing mighty wind. So that when the Holy Spirit came, that was not the fulfillment of the baptism of fire. That takes place at His second coming. And you and I are living today in the age of the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit comes upon every believer, not just some. Every believer is baptized by the Holy Spirit. That means He's identified with the body of Christ. He's part of the body of Christ. And that's one of the great truths of the Word of God.

Now let me continue to read. It says, "Whose fan is in his hand. He will thoroughly purge his floor and gather his wheat into the garner. But he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." "Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John to be baptized of him." This is remarkable. And we're going to ask this question and try to answer it. Why was Jesus baptized? I hope we can see that here.

Will you notice, "But John forbade him, saying, 'I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?' And Jesus answering said unto him, 'Suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness.' Then he suffered him." Now what is the answer to the question, "Why was Jesus baptized?" And I'd like to ask you that question. Why was He baptized?

Now there may be several answers, but I think the primary reason is given right here. The Lord Jesus said, "It is essential for the fulfillment of righteousness." He's identifying Himself here completely with sinful mankind. The prophet had written, "He's numbered with the transgressors." Here is a King that comes down and He's identified with His subjects.

And I believe that that is the purpose of the baptism of the Lord Jesus, for the baptism means actually identification. And this is a coming down and identifying of Himself here with them. He was baptized, I think, for that reason. And that, I think, is so important for us. Now, notice this again. The reason that Jesus was baptized, it's not to set us an example. It's not a pattern. Christ was holy. He did not need to repent. I do. He was holy, harmless, and undefiled and separate from sinners.

He completely identified Himself with humanity, the race of mankind. He was numbered with the transgressors. Now will you notice, His death was a baptism. You remember, He said to James and John, when they wanted to place next to Him, "Are you able to be baptized with the baptism that I'm baptized with?" His death was a baptism. He entered into death for you and me. And then, the third reason, He was set aside for His office as priest. The Holy Spirit came upon Him here for this ministry. Everything that He did, He did it by the power of the Holy Spirit.

He was made sin for us who knew no sin. There was sin on Him, but there was no sin in Him. My sin was put on Him, not in Him. That's important. And therefore, you and I are saved by being identified now with Him. He identified Himself with us in baptism. And Peter says, "We're saved by baptism." What? By being identified with the Lord Jesus. And that's what it means to be saved. What does it mean? Well, to be in Christ. How do you get in Christ? By the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

And I believe in baptism. And I think that we're to be baptized to declare that I am identified with Christ. Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out. We today must recognize that we have to be identified with Him. And that is done by the Holy Spirit. And our baptism tells that out. An old salt one time said to a young sailor, in trying to get him to accept Christ and be baptized, he says, "Young man, it's duty or mutiny."

And when you come to Christ, friends, you be baptized because it's a duty. And if not, it's a mutiny. This is a tremendous thing. And I feel like this is something that we needed to elaborate on a little because the subject of baptism needs to be lifted out of the realm of constantly arguing and talking about it, and to get to the high and lofty plane of where today we are going to stand for Him. We need to come out and stand for Christ in a very wonderful way. "Suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness."

He identifies Himself. And then John suffered him. Now verse 16. "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water, and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon him. And lo, a voice from heaven, saying, 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I'm well pleased.'" And by the way, John teaches the Trinity.

You have here the Lord Jesus, and the Spirit of God descends upon Him like a dove. And then a voice from heaven, the Father, says, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I'm well pleased." Now, He is identified with His people. What a king. Oh, what a king He is. Now, that brings us to chapter 4 here.

And when we come to chapter 4, we have the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. You see, immediately, this one who's identified with us now, by baptism, He has come down here, and now He came, and His birth, He's identified with us, as He grew up, as any other child would. But He's holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners. But in His baptism, He identifies Himself for me. And my sin was put on Him, not in Him.

Now, will you notice, we find here that He's being tested. The question now is, is this King able to withstand a test? Is He able to overcome? And I want to deal with a very important question here. I think probably we better deal with it first. And I think that as we look at the temptation, this might become clear. I trust it will become clear.

Now, what do you mean by the temptation of Jesus? Well, temptation is a word that really has a twofold meaning. First of all, it can mean to incite or entice to evil, that is, to seduce. There is something in the individual that causes him to yield. The Lord Jesus said, "The prince of this world cometh and he hath nothing in me." Well, you see, that wasn't true of Jesus. There is something in me that causes me to yield, you see. And He was separate from sinners.

So the temptation had to be different than which would come to me and cause me to fall. It had to be much greater for Him. Now, the word temptation means to test. We're told, as we saw in Genesis, God did tempt Abraham. Now, God tested Abraham's faith, and God does not tempt man with evil. James says that in James 1:13. And God never does that.

Now, He's going to be tested, and it's going to be a real test. And the question arises, could Jesus have fallen? I want to answer that with a very emphatic no. He could not have fallen. Oh, I hear some strange things today on radio. And I guess that's what some of you are thinking when you hear me. But there are a lot of strange things today that are being said from pulpits. A lot of strange things.

May I say to you that if Jesus could have fallen, then you and I do not have a sure savior at all. Then somebody says to me, "Well then, if He couldn't have fallen, was His temptation a legitimate and genuine temptation?" Well, may I say to you, His temptation was greater than any that you and I have ever had. They get out a new model Chevrolet or a new model Ford, and I better bring that in and probably say a new model Dodge. And they're tested to prove they can stand the test.

You see, a genuine diamond is tested to prove that it's perfect, not to show that it's a phony. And the Lord Jesus was tested to demonstrate that He's exactly who He claimed to be. I remember as a boy, and I must tell this little story. When I was a boy, we lived out in West Texas. That's a long time ago. Sparsely inhabited area in those days. And the Santa Fe came through our little town. It didn't stop in our little town. It stopped in the next little town. Believe me, you couldn't get off at the place where I live, but it went by.

And the Santa Fe crossed the Brazos River, the West Fork of the Brazos River at that place. Now, that Brazos River, in summertime, there wasn't enough water in it to rust a shingle nail. But in wintertime, you could float a battleship in it. It was that kind of a place. Now, one winter, we really had a flood, and it washed out the Santa Fe bridge. And so we didn't have a train for a long time. But finally, they put in a bridge. Oh, they worked a long time. And then, one day, they brought in two engines and put on that bridge and tied down the whistles on both of them. And believe me, that's more whistling than we'd ever heard in that little town.

And all of us in this little town, we ran down there to the river, to the bridge, to see what had happened. When we got there, we saw. All 23 of us went down there, by the way. And we were standing around, and one brave citizen, he went up and said to the engineer in charge, "What are you doing?" Says, "Testing the bridge." Because both of those locomotives went on top of the bridge. And this person says, "What are you doing? Trying to break it down?" And the engineer almost started. He says, "Of course not." Well, he says, "What do you mean? You're testing it." He says, "We're testing it to prove that you can't break it down."

May I say to you, that's exactly the way the Lord Jesus was tested, to prove, to demonstrate that He could not be broken down. His testing, therefore, was greater than ours. You see, there's a limit to what we can bear. You just give me enough temptation, and finally, you'll build up pressure, and I'll succumb to it. And that's true of you too. But He never gave in. The pressure continued to increase.

In other words, a 10-pound fishing line is broken when 25 pounds of pressure is put on it. But a 100-pound line can bear more than 25 pounds of pressure. Now, I'm the 10-pound fishing line, He's the 100-pounds. Then there's something else that's quite interesting here. In this temptation of the Lord Jesus, the contrast and the comparison between the testing of Eve is really interesting. To begin with, this one that took place in a wilderness. And Eve was tested in the Garden of Eden. What a contrast.

Now, I must read chapter 4, and I begin with verse 1. "Then was Jesus led of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil." Now, to be tested of the devil. "And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward and hungered. And when the tempter came to him, he said, 'If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.'" Now, that's the same temptation that came to Eve. The first one was physical. She saw the tree was good for food. And the Lord Jesus is told, "Command that these stones be made bread."

Now notice His answer. "But he answered and said, 'It's written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.'" And that's found in Deuteronomy 8:3. He sure knew Deuteronomy, and he believed it was the inspired Word of God. Then verse 5. You have the second testing. "Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, setteth him upon a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, 'If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down, for it's written, He shall give His angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.'" That's Psalm 91, verses 11 and 12.

Now that's the second one. It's a spiritual temptation. The first was physical. And you'll remember that Eve saw it was desired to make one wise. "Cast thyself down from the temple." And that's pride of life, the lust of the flesh, the pride of life. And those are the things that Christian are tempted in, you see. Now the third is psychological.

Notice this, verse 7. "Jesus said unto him, 'It's written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.'" And that's Deuteronomy 6:16. Again, verse 8. "The devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, showeth him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them, and saith unto him, 'All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.'" That's psychological, you see. He showed him the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them. Believe me, man lusts for power, the lust of the eyes, the things that are in the world today.

And that's the thing that Eve saw, pleasant to the eyes. Oh, I tell you, this world gets a great many of us. Notice the answer of the Lord Jesus. "Then said Jesus unto him, 'Get thee hence, Satan, for it's written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.'" Now he's quoting again from scripture, Deuteronomy 6:13 and Deuteronomy 10:20.

Friends, you have our Lord answering each time scripture. And certainly, that ought to have a message for all of us. Why is it that many of us are having trouble and difficulty living the Christian life? May I add this very kindly. It's ignorance of the Word of God. Ignorance of the Word of God. Our Lord answered by giving the Word of God. Now, I believe that the Word of God has an answer for your particular problem. That doesn't mean I know it. And that doesn't mean your psychologist knows it, and I don't think he knows it anyway. But may I say to you, God has an answer in His Word for your problem. That's the reason we ought to know the book a little bit better than we know it.

The interesting thing is the Lord Jesus answered Satan every time out of the Word. He didn't say, "Well, I think this," or "I think this is the best way to do it." He said very pointedly, very definitely, "The Word of God says this." That's the answer. And for the child of God, that's enough. And by the way, the devil seems to think it's a pretty good answer, because verse 11 says, "Then the devil leaveth him, and behold, angels came and ministered unto him." One of the other gospels says, He left him for a little season. I think he was back the next day myself, and all his life. And I think we see at the Garden of Gethsemane especially that he's there again tempting.

This is important here, by the way. This temptation reveals that here is a King who can stand the test. And He is the one that is able to stand for the Lord. Here is one who can meet the devil and can overcome. That's very important. Now we're going to move on from there next time, and I trust that many of you are reading the Scripture with us as we go along. Read the fourth chapter and the fifth chapter of Matthew for next time. May the Lord richly bless you, my beloved.

Steve: Let's read chapter 4 and 5 and ask God to use them to prepare our hearts for our next study. You're going to find a copy of our reading schedule in the app or over at ttb.org, by the way. And if you'd like something to maybe keep in your Bible as a guide, we'd be glad to send you a bookmark. Just call 1-800-65 Bible and ask to be added to our mailing list to receive it each month along with a copy of our newsletter.

Now, if you've never checked it out, our newsletter is really packed with even more from Dr. McGee, extra teaching that helps connect the Bible to everyday life and then practical tips for your time in God's word, as well as updates on ministry projects and there is so much going on here, as well as great stories on how God continues taking His whole word to His whole world. You can subscribe, it's really easy. Go to ttb.org or 1-800-65 Bible when you request that bookmark.

Now, as we head into the weekend, don't miss Dr. McGee's message, "John the Baptist and John the Prophet." This Sunday sermon, which we've never aired before, by the way, is thoughtful and relevant for the world that we're living in right now. I know that you're going to love it. So listen with the app, online at ttb.org, or call 1-800-65 Bible to find a station near you. I'm Steve Swets, thanking God for the privilege of studying His word with you.

Steve: Join us each weekday for our five-year daily study through the whole Word of God. Check for times on this station or look for Through the Bible in your favorite podcast store, and always at ttb.org.