Road Warriors: John the Baptist—A Message of Repentance - Monday
Romans 3:23
…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God… (NIV)
This week, our focus is on John the Baptist and how he paved the way for Jesus’ arrival. As we learned on Sunday, John prepared the way for Jesus by warning the people about the coming judgment for their sin. But before we dive more into John, we must first bring our attention to Jesus. And in order for us to truly understand who Jesus is, we must first understand why we need Him.
With that being said, the verse we are focusing on today can perhaps be translated as: Everyone sins. Everyone has sinned. There is no one who does not sin. Aside from Jesus, there is not a single person who is exempt from the label of sinner. Every person who has ever lived falls into this category. We like to conveniently gloss over our own sin or believe there are ‘good’ people out there who never sin. However, no matter how ‘good’ a person is, we ALL fall short of God’s glorious standard.
Alongside the truth that we are sinners is the fact that we can’t do anything about it on our own. Think of sin like a serious disease. Realizing and accepting that I have the disease is half the battle; the other half is finding a cure. Just like a physical disease, sin requires a cure to prevent the inevitable destruction it will cause. But unfortunately, I don’t have the means to cure myself, and neither do you. Because we have all sinned, none of us can make ourselves righteous or ‘good’ on our own, try as we might. Only God can provide the cure to the problem of sin.
John the Baptist knew this, which is why he sternly warned people about the seriousness of sin’s danger and the destruction that comes from it. However, his message was not a glass-half-empty message. Alongside the problem, he knew that the cure had finally arrived—Jesus, the long-awaited Savior of the world. By bringing the warning, John paved the way for people to turn from their sin and toward Jesus, the cure.
Monday’s Reflection
Pray through this verse, and ask the Lord to reveal any area of your life where you have turned a blind eye to your sin. If there is any area where you have been conveniently glossing over your own sin, confess and ask God for forgiveness, and receive His abundant grace today.
