There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit

 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  As it is written in the Prophets:

"Behold, I send My messenger before Your face,
Who will prepare Your way before You."
"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
'Prepare the way of the LORD;
Make His paths straight.'"

John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.  Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.   Now John was clothed with camel's hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.  And he preached, saying, "There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.  I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.  And immediately coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove.  Then a voice came from heaven, "You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." 

Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness.  And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. 

- Mark 1:1-13

Yesterday we read that, as the apostles had gathered at Jerusalem and spoke of the encounter with Christ on the road to Emmaus among other appearances, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, "Peace to you."  But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit.  And He said to them, "Why are you troubled?  And why do doubts arise in your hearts?  Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself.  Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."  When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.  But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, "Have you any food here?"  So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb.  And He took it and ate in their presence.  Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me."  And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.  Then He said to them, "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.  And you are witnesses of these things.  Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high."  And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them.  Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven.  And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God.  Amen.

 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  As it is written in the Prophets:  "Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You."  "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:  'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'"  Gospel, my study bible says, refers not to the writings of Mark per se, but rather to the whole story of the life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  That is, the good news or good tidings of our salvation.  The word gospel in English is translated from the Greek word εὐαγγελίου, the root of which we can see includes αγγελίο -- "message," the same root of "angel" or "messenger."  The very language tells us something interesting here, because this "good news" is that which is somehow told or announced to us.  It comes from another person (or Person, as the case may be).  Indeed, the Annunciation (to Mary of the "good news" of the child she will bear) is called Ευαγγελισμός in the Greek, another form of the same word translated as gospel.  The beginning here points to these opening events of Jesus' public ministry, starting with the preparation by His forerunner, St. John the Baptist, and his encounter with Christ.  This good news is also tied in with the "announcements" of the prophets of the past, and thereby the whole of Jewish spiritual history, as John quotes from Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3.  The fulfillment of prophecy is at hand, and John comes to wake the people to this news, and prepare them for Christ's ministry.

John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.  Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.   Now John was clothed with camel's hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.  And he preached, saying, "There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.  I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."  As John comes announcing the fulfillment of prophecy within this generation with the coming of the Christ, so he fulfills the role of the greatest prophet of all the Old Testament type prophets.  The very clothes he wears tells us a story as well.  He is clothed in the same manner as Elijah (2 Kings 1:8).  And he himself fulfills prophecy -- that of the return of Elijah before the Christ comes, as Jesus Himself has taught.  We can see John's clear humility in his statements, his reverence for God, his total voluntary poverty for the sake of the kingdom of God.  Moreover, the text observes John's effect upon the people.  As one who is widely recognized as a holy man, he galvanizes the public in this time of crisis as many hope in the coming of a Messiah.  Even all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem go out to him to be baptized in the Jordan in preparation for the coming of the Lord.

It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.  And immediately coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove.  Then a voice came from heaven, "You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."   John has prepared the people with baptism for repentance and remission of sins for the coming of the Lord.  But the day comes when Jesus goes to John.  This in effect is the day in which the Holy Trinity is revealed.  The Spirit descends upon Christ like a dove, and the Father's voice speaks from heaven to call Him My beloved Son. 

Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness.  And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him.  As He begins His public ministry, Jesus is driven into the wilderness for a period of forty days, in which as One who is both fully human and fully God, He confronts the elements of this world in the midst of the spiritual battle in which human beings are caught.  He is at once  tempted by Satan, with the wild beasts, and ministered to by the angels.  For a fuller picture of these events see Matthew 4:1-10 and Luke 4:1-13.

John the Baptist, with his radical poverty in the lineage of the great prophets of Israel, is essential to salvation history.  Luke tells us that John was chosen before his birth to be the herald and forerunner of the Messiah (Luke 1:13-17), and that he knew his Lord from the beginning!  John's disciples would form the basic group from Jesus' earliest disciples would be drawn.  My study bible says that John's ministry and brotherhood were characterized by repentance in expectation of the Kingdom, baptism for forgiveness of sins, bearing the fruit of righteousness, and spiritual discipline.  As we observed above, John's signs of radical poverty indicate a tremendous asceticism, and are referred to during Jesus' ministry as well -- especially when Jesus tosses back accusations against both Himself (for being too indulgent) and John (for being too ascetic) to those who fail to recognize the holiness of both ministries.  John, my study bible tells us, lived an ascetic rule of poverty and fasting.  A note says, "His eyes were set not on the body and its desires, but on Christ the Lord, and his influence was widespread."   When Jesus appeared before John, in his great humility John stated that he needed to be baptized by Christ, but Jesus taught that He should be baptized to "fulfill all righteousness" (Matthew 3:15).  John's ministry prepared the people to accept Jesus as the Christ (John 5:33-35).  And finally, after Judas was lost through betrayal as a disciple, his place was fulfilled by another who had been John's follower (Acts 1:22).  John's life is an example of total devotion to God and to God's purposes.  His preparation of the people was effective precisely because of that devotion which was apparent to all the people of Israel, even compelling the rulers to come and be baptized in preparation for the Christ.  He teaches us about the essential role each may fulfill in salvation history, coming between the Old and the New Testaments, the last and greatest in line of the old prophets of Israel.  What we understand from his vow of poverty is not asceticism for its own sake, nor great feats of spiritual endurance and heroism, but quite simply and purely the total love of God and therefore service to God's purposes, for which every single other consideration in life was given a second ranking, lower priority.  This is the true way to see his radical gift of humility, his poverty, his total devotion to mission.  We shouldn't forget that it was Christ who deeply and powerfully emphasized that regardless of outward externalities of appearance, "wisdom is justified by all her children."  So should we see all our brothers and sisters in Christ and in the communion of saints.  Jesus and John are more than brothers, despite apparent differences in practice and even seemingly competing ministries of the time.    John teaches us that radical commitment to the love of God is more than all the things of this world put together; it transcends, deepens, galvanizes, motivates, and prepares the world for all the good things God has to bless us with, the Promise of mercy and the Spirit, the truth of Christ.    Imagine the difference one person made.  Finally, as martyr for Christ, he teaches us all.