John the Forerunner

The work of redemption began with Jesus' consecration to death at 30 years of age, symbolized by His baptism. There He who was made flesh for the purpose, gave Himself to be a Ransom-price for all, to be testified to all in due time. The humbling of the Logos to take human nature, the birth of the Babe of Bethlehem, and the years of development afterward, were incidental. Similarly, the work of John the Baptiser was a preparation. His mission was the announcement of Jesus as "the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world." He reproved sin and exhorted to righteousness as necessary to all who would receive Messiah and be received and blessed by Him as sharers in the Kingdom He would establish.

John preached, "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! Repent ye!" Only the Israelites indeed, without guile, received Messiah, and became associates in His glorious work. John's Baptism was the washing away of sins against the Jewish Law, and was intended only for Jews not wholly faithful.

John's Baptism symbolized cleansing from defilement, and was preached to the Jews, and was applicable to them only. Gentiles were excluded. How could they repent and get back into covenant relationship when they had never been in relationship? The Jews, still under the covenant made with them at Sinai through its mediator, Moses, had relationship with God, for, as St. Paul says, they "were all baptized into Moses, in the sea and in the cloud." Every Israelite in heart relationship with God through Moses, was transferred from Moses, to Christ, and needed no additional baptism into Christ, because already accepted in Moses, the type of Christ.

When the call began to go to the Gentiles, several at Ephesus believed and were baptized by John's Baptism, as though they had been Jews. This was a mistake. At St. Paul's word they were rebaptized, into Christ's death. Gentiles needed to be baptized directly into Christ's death.--Acts 18:25; 19:3-5;Romans 6:3;11:17-25.