1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’” 4 Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
— Matthew 3:1-12, ESV

If John the Baptist were here today, you might think him to be a professional wrestler.  He would be wearing one of those onesies, with a big, WWE-style belt across his waist.  His speech would match his look, gruff, loud, aggressive.  John the Baptist may not have been a wrestler, but he was a fighter.

He fought for God, as “the voice of one crying out in the wilderness.”  He fought for Jesus, to “prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.”  He fought with the power of the Holy Spirit, the power with which all preaching should be punctuated.  His words packed a punch.  John the Baptist was a fighter.

John the Baptist was a fighter, but he was a fighter for peace, the theme of this Advent Sunday.  He used fighting words, but only for the purpose of putting people into the ring with God, so that they might find peace with God, through faith in the Messiah who has come to earth, and is coming again soon.

Today I want to hit you with the same fighting words used by John the Baptist.  I pray you will feel them like words of iron delivered in a velvet glove.  Like John, I do not fight to hurt, but to heal.  These fighting words are an offering of peace.  

Peace can come gently, in the way of assurance, when you hear God’s word and know in your heart of hearts you are right with Him.  But peace can also pack a mighty punch, the resounding rush of regeneration when you feel the heavy weight of your sin being knocked away by the grace of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  So put up your dukes and perk up your ears and pay attention to these fighting words for peace.

“Repent”

I dare you to walk into some biker bar one night, go up to three or four of the biggest, burliest, baddest dudes you can find, look them right in the eye and say, “You better repent.  Repent, I tell you, right now!”  

I think you’d be in for a fight.  John the Baptist would do it.  I might not.  But I don’t mind doing saying such things in church to a friendly crowd.

“Repent” is a fighting word.  It is a commandment, and people do not like commandments.  It is an order to change, and people do not like change.  It reveals something is wrong with you, you are headed in the wrong direction, and people do not like to be told they are wrong. 

But John the Baptist used the word.  Jesus, in His first recorded sermon, used it in the same way (ref. Matthew 4:17).  Jesus is God and God is love; therefore, “repent” is a fighting, loving word that fights for peace in the soul of someone you love.

When you tell a non-Christian to “repent,” you are telling them they should change their mind about Jesus Christ.  Non-Christians do not believe in the gospel and lordship of Jesus.  They may give mental assent or lip service to it, but in their heart of hearts they do not believe.  

Biblical repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of heart that leads to a change of life.  It can also be described as a turning, a turning away from “sins” (another fighting word) and turning the leadership and direction of your life over to God.  Sin is the unbelief that leads to an unwillingness to worship and serve the Lord.  Repentance changes your life, it fills your life with saving faith and fuels you to “bear fruit in keeping with repentance.”  

The problem with contemporary Christianity is it offers faith without repentance.  But only true faith with true repentance can bring true peace with God.  This is why we must fight, with the gospel word of “repent,” in order to bring people from the lost world to the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

“You brood of vipers”

Here is another one-liner for the biker bar.  Find a seat right in the middle of the place and say, “You guys are nothing but a bunch of snakes!”  I hope you’re wearing a football helmet.

John the Baptist did it, to the Pharisees.  Jesus did too (ref. Matthew 12:34, 23:33)!  That took some guts, and, a whole lot of love.  

The Pharisees, for all of their religiosity, had not repented of their sins.  They would not even admit they were sinners.  They thought they were right with God because of their externals.  They were Israelites, they quoted commandments, they attended religious services, they gave a little money to charity.  They sound like good American church members. 

But God demands the heart, and a clean heart at that.  To make it clean, you must admit it is dirty, that you are a sinner, that you are included in the “brood of vipers.”  Snakes have always symbolized sin, from the garden, to the bronze pole in the wilderness, to the preaching of John the Baptist and Jesus.  

The only thing that will kill the snake is the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Own your sin.  Then give it away to God, by grace through faith in the finished work of Christ, and watch it die, so you won’t have to die.  It will still squirm and wiggle for a while, but if God kills it, it will one day be dead forever.  

Fight the good fight against sin and God will give you peace.  Do so today.  The “fire” is coming.

“Fire”

After you walk into that biker bar, and after you’ve told the fellows to “repent” and called them “a bunch of snakes,” how are you going to get out of there with your teeth intact?  Perhaps you could yell out, “Fire!”

But that would put you in a legal fight.  Your right to free speech would be trumped by the criminal responsibility you bear for starting a dangerous panic.  People can get hurt, or worse, in a false alarm.

In 1856, Charles Haddon Spurgeon’s popularity was so great they could not pack enough people into the church where he preached on Sunday morning.  So, they planned an evening service in the enormous Surrey Gardens Music Hall in London.  As the great orator began to preach to a full house that night, some hoodlum in the hall cried, “Fire.”  A panic ensued, a mad rush developed, and seven people died in the melee.  

But what if you were in a crowd, and there was a fire, and you said nothing?  What if a fire is coming, and those without the Holy Spirit are going to perish in it, and you say nothing?  John the Baptist said something, and he mentioned the word “fire.”  So did Jesus.  So must we.  “Fire” is a fighting word for peace.

We must tell people to repent.  We must tell people they are sinners, that sin will kill the body and the soul, unless the Holy Spirit saves them from the fire.  We will all be baptized with One or the other.

To be baptized with the Holy Spirit is to believe.  By God’s grace, the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit gives the new believer a new heart, filled with repentance and faith.  But such grace that produces faith comes by hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ (ref. Romans 10:17).  Hearing requires speaking, speaking requires words, and some of the words we must use are fighting words.  “Repent,” “sins,” “fire.”  But, they are fighting words for peace.

“Barn”

Let me leave you with the last word, “barn.”  Don’t use it like this, don’t tell the boys in the biker bar, “You smell like you were born in a barn.”  Those would be fighting words.  Use it like John the Baptist, ever the outdoorsy type, who referred to “the barn” as the ultimate place, of peace.  

God is going to “gather His wheat into the barn.”  This will happen at the second advent to the ones who have taken advantage, and received grace, from the first advent.  So, fight the good fight, with fighting words for peace.  

Hear them and apply them to your own soul.  Repent of your serpentine sin.  Be free from the fiery judgment to come.  Get in and stay in church, which is God’s barn for now.  A better barn is coming.  And please, stay out of biker bars.