B. What is the importance of John the Baptist in the story of Jesus (using all three Synoptic Gospels)?

The Gospels are the story of Jesus in the written form, bringing forth the proclamation of God’s Kingdom through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus, the Messiah or God’s Anointed One, is the climax of God’s plan in the salvation history. All things were created by Him and for Him[1]. All four Gospels accounts agree that ever since the point of time of Jesus’ life on Earth, the Kingdom of God has come to men[2]. Long before the coming of God’s Messiah, God’s prophets in the Old Testament had also been prophesying about the coming of God’s Kingdom through a Servant whom God loved and who would restore the Kingdom of God[3].

John the Baptist was one important figure in the New Testament who was referred to as the beginning of the gospel (Jesus’ life). He fulfilled the prophecy of the prophets Isaiah and Malachi[4]. As the “voice of one calling in the desert, prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him”[5], he ministered at the side of the Jordan river, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins because “the kingdom of heaven is near”[6]. Later on as John was put into a prison, we also found Jesus preaching on a similar message as John’s that demands a repentance of the heart and believing in the good news[7]. Jesus Himself was the good news and by believing in Him who would later die on the Cross, forgiveness of sins is made possible. Here we see that John the Baptist was a pre-cursor to the Lord’s mission, preparing the people to look forward to the real forgiveness from God.

As the Lord’s messenger, John the Baptist was not the Messiah. The Jews, including the priests and the Levites seemed to have mistaken John as the Messiah. However, John denied that identification and made it clear that the One who would come after him was a more powerful man than he was and that the Messiah would baptize with the Holy Spirit[8]. Despite this, Matthew recorded that Jesus submitted to John’s baptism to “fulfill all righteousness”[9], meaning to be obedient to God’s plan and to identify with the needs of God’s people [Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, pg. 387]. The Spirit descended on Jesus upon His baptism, preparing for His ministry following the temptations in the wilderness. The gospel took on its toll.

The teacher of the Law at the time of John and Jesus taught that Elijah must come first “before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes”[10]. Jesus here interpreted John the Baptist as the Elijah figure[11]. As a forerunner for Jesus, John had suffered under the hands of Herod Antipas and Herodias (and later on was executed). Despite the pressures, John faithfully preached on the coming Kingdom of God. This is all too clear an indication that the Son of Man would also suffer under the hands of men. As John had prepared the repentant people for the coming of Jesus, so it was said that Elijah would restore all things [Barnett, 1991].

On another occasion, Jesus also claimed that John the Baptist was more than a prophet, and from a human perspective, the greatest human being[12]. As a prophet, John the Baptist inaugurated the coming of God’s Kingdom. When he came into the scene, John the Baptist ended the era of the Law and the prophets [Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, pg. 388].

References:
- Barnett, Paul. 1991. Mark – The Servant King. Aquila Press, Reprinted 2006.
- Green, Joel B.; McKnight, Scot (Editors). 1992. Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. Intervarsity Press, Reprinted 2001.

[1] Col. 1:16; Jn. 1:3
[2] Mt. 4:17; Mk. 1:15; Lk. 4:21(v.18-21 are quoting from Is. 61:1-2); Jn. 1:9
[3] Is. 42-53 and many other OT passages.
[4] Is. 40:3; Mal. 3:1
[5] Mt. 3:3; Mk. 1:2-3; Lk.3:4-6
[6] Mt. 3:2; Mk. 1:4; Lk. 3:3
[7] Mt. 4:17; Mk. 1:14-15
[8] Mt. 3:11; Mk 1:7-8; Lk. 3:15-16; Jn. 1:19, 26-27
[9] Mt. 3:15
[10] Mal. 4:5; Mt. 17:10; Mk. 9:11
[11] Mt. 17:11-13; Mk. 9:12-13; also Mt. 11:13-14
[12] Mt. 11:10-11; Lk. 7:26-28