Matthew 3: Kingdom Trailblazer (4)
Pray Psalm 126.1-3.
When the LORD brought back the captivity of Zion,
We were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
And our tongue with singing.
Then they said among the nations,
“The LORD has done great things for them.”
The LORD has done great things for us,
And we are glad.
Sing Psalm 126.1-3.
(Truro: Shout, for the Blessed Jesus Reigns)
When God restored our fortunes all, we were like those who sweetly dream.
Our mouths with joy and laughter filled, made Him our constant song and theme.
Then the astonished nations said, “The LORD has done great things for them!”
Indeed, great things our God has done, Whose Name we praise, Amen, Amen!
Read Matthew 3.1-17; meditate on verses 11, 12.
Are you baptized with Jesus’ baptism? What’s that like?
Prepare.
1. What would Jesus do differently than John?
2. What was Jesus coming to do?
Meditate.
In those days, grain was harvested by breaking off the heads and gathering them in piles. The piles were then flailed and winnowed, a process that involved repeatedly throwing the kernels up in the air with a kind of sieve, to separate the chaff from the grain. Some of the chaff would fall through the sieve to the threshing floor, and some would blow away in the wind. The grain settled onto the sieve—the “winnowing fan”—and was secured for use. Then the threshing floor would have been swept clean, and the chaff that did not blow away in the wind would have been gathered and burned.
This is what Jesus was coming to do. Those who received John’s baptism testified before God and men that they repented of their sins, were washed of them, and were made ready vessels for the Lord’s purposes. John’s baptism was preparatory and symbolic, however. The baptism of Jesus was of a totally different kind.
The Spirit is the Wind of God to separate the chaff of sin from our souls, and the chaff of sinners from the congregation of the righteous. The “winnowing fan” Jesus bears is the proclamation of the Kingdom. How people respond to the announcement that the Kingdom and righteousness of God have come in the Person of our Lord Jesus Christ determines whether they are precious kernels to be saved and gathered to the Lord, or vile chaff to be swept away and burned in “unquenchable fire.” Jesus will “thoroughly” clean His threshing floor; not a chosen kernel will be lost, and not a condemned bit of chaff will remain. No wonder John considered himself unworthy even to carry the sandals of the Lord.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
There are beautiful images spoken of in this passage—the Holy Spirit’s baptism on His own—and there are terrifying aspects alluded to— “He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (Matt. 3.11, 12).
And yet, when we send our children off to clean out their rooms we expect it to be thoroughly attended to—nothing left on the floor and the whole room tidy and useable.
Why should we be alarmed if that is the way Jesus will clean things up in His Kingdom?
We should not be alarmed; but rather rejoice that He is purifying His home for eternal use.
Detritus removed—Jesus’ perfection firmly ensconced throughout.
“I go to prepare a place for you” (Jn. 14.2); and I will come and get you so that you can be where I AM eternally (Jn. 14.3). Clean, beautiful, and perfect—all adorned in His beautiful Presence.
Our job is to make ourselves ready to go there. He has cleaned us up by His death and resurrection; and He baptizes us in His Holy Spirit to prepare the way for others, to be cleaned up by His death and resurrection, so they can prepare the way…and so on and so forth. It is the rhythm and pattern of the Kingdom.
“Let my heart be blameless regarding Your statutes, that I may not be ashamed” (Ps. 119.80).
As we live in His Kingdom now, imperfect, in an imperfect world, doing His will, through the power of His Holy Spirit, on earth as it is done in heaven, we eagerly anticipate the Day of His return to winnow what remains, and gather.
“Then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.
And then He will send His angels, and gather together His elect from the four winds,
from the farthest part of earth to the farthest part of heaven” (Mk. 13.26, 27).
To “gather His wheat” (Matt. 3.12).
Step one: repent, turn, be baptized with water.
Step two: live obediently and fruitfully in the Kingdom (as wheat, not chaff)
baptized with the Holy Spirit here and now.
Step three: be ready to be gathered there and then; preparing the way for others.
Step four: live eternally with our Savior and Lord here and now.
Step five: be gathered, either through death or on that Day (1 Thess. 4.16, 17).
Step six: live eternally with our Savior and Lord there and then.
Step seven: “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” (Phil. 4.4)
“For I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD.
They are plans for good and not for evil,
to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29.11 TLB).
Reflect.
1. Suppose someone asked you about the meaning of baptism. What would you say?
2. Why is it reasonable to expect that a life of growing in the Lord should follow baptism?
3. How would you describe your place in the “threshing floor” of Jesus at this time? Explain.
The function of the fan is to separate the fruitful from the unfruitful. That the decision lies in God’s hands is indicated by his splendid wheat, the ripened fruit of believers, to be stored in barns. But the chaff indicates the futility of the unprofitable and unfruitful who are fit for the fire of burning judgment. Hilary of Poitiers (315-367), On Matthew 2.4
Pray Psalm 126.4-6.
Weep for your sins, and ask Jesus to winnow them out of your life, and break you free from captivity to sin. Then seek His grace and leading as you go forth to sow in your Personal Mission Field.
Sing Psalm 126.4-6.
(Truro: Shout, for the Blessed Jesus Reigns)
Restore our fortunes, LORD our King! Let grace like flowing streams prevail.
All they with tears of joy shall sing who sow while yet they weep and wail.
They who in tears of sorrow sow and cast their seed on every hand,
with joy shall reach their heav’nly home, and bring the harvest of their land.
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest: This week: The Read Moore podcast begins readings from If Men Will Pray. Our Crosfigell teaching letter concludes its brief series on the early 6th-century Irish saint, Coemgen. The ReVision column continues its look at how to grow the divine economy. Check out our other excellent writers. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
