John the Baptist was the cousin of Jesus and played a crucial part in preparing the way for Jesus ministry to flourish. He knew his role and was happy to decrease whilst Jesus’ ministry increased. His life was cruelly taken from him, but his example of selfless service remains for us today.

<p>John the Baptist was the cousin of Jesus and played a crucial part in preparing the way for Jesus ministry to flourish. He knew his role and was happy to decrease whilst Jesus’ ministry increased. His life was cruelly taken from him, but his example of selfless service remains for us today.</p>

Lineage Season 4: Manger to Messiah

Adam Ramdin

Lineage Journey

01 The Birth of Jesus Christ

The Redeemer's Coming There are over 300 prophecies in the Old Testament that pointed forward to the coming of the Redeemer, and Jesus fulfilled all of them.

It was prophesied that he would be born of a virgin, that he would come through the bloodline of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David, and also specifically the town he would be born in.

In Micah 5 verse 2 it says that out of Bethlehem Ephrathah, the 1 who was to be the ruler, would come.

There was more than 1 Bethlehem, and here in Bethlehem 2, 000 years ago, Jesus was born.

🎵 Music 🎵 The likelihood of 1 man fulfilling 300 prophecies by coincidence or accident is almost impossible.

The likelihood of 1 man fulfilling 8 prophecies is 1 in 10 to the power of 17.

A man by the name of Professor Stoner illustrates it this way.

If you took 1 in 10 to the power of 17 silver dollar coins and put them in the state of Texas, they would cover the state 2 feet deep.

Then if you mark 1 of the coins and put them in the pile and blindfold a man and ask him to find the marked coin, his chances are 1 in 10 to the power of 17.

Yet Jesus did not fulfill 8 prophecies, he fulfilled 300.

🎵 Jesus' birth was foretold and also the town of his birth was foretold.

However, Mary and Joseph lived about a 2 to 3 day journey from this town, or a 70 mile journey.

The Bible records in Luke that due to a decree of Caesar, everyone needed to be registered, and Mary and Joseph headed to Bethlehem.

Heavily pregnant and riding on a donkey, they made their way there slowly, and as they reached there they could not find any room in the inn.

They were only offered a stable, and feeling desperate and out of options, they took this.

[♪ music ♪ Today there are a few locations that claim to be the exact location of Jesus' birth.

Whether any of them are true is open to debate, but the fact remains he was born in a stable.

His parents were not rich, and he was not born in a nice warm room.

The first things that he saw apart from his parents would have been wild animals.

The first smells that he would have smelt would have been that of a barn and all that that entails.

If Jesus could be born in such a dirty, filthy place, then have no doubt that Jesus can be born in your heart today, no matter how bad you have been.

🎵 Even though there were many prophecies in the Old Testament that pointed to the coming of Jesus, nearly everyone missed it.

They had a certain idea as to how they thought the Messiah would come, and when he didn't come the way they expected, they missed it.

Let us not miss the second coming of Jesus because we have a false interpretation of prophecy.

The only people ready to receive Jesus when He came, were the shepherds who were tending their sheep in these fields.

When the angel appeared to them to share the good news, they rejoiced and hurried to the stable and worshipped the Redeemer.

🎵 Music 🎵 Jesus' birth and the prophecies that foretold it prove with a certainty that Jesus was Messiah.

Starting here, He would go on to live for 33 years, a life that would change the history of the universe.

The location of Jesus' birth shows how humble our Savior is.

He came from heaven to earth and lived a life where he was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and his birth here in a barn in Bethlehem shows how low he was willing to go to save humanity.

Jesus, who was born in a stable, can be born in your heart today if You

02 The Wise Men

In the beginning, there was no man, but a woman, and a child.

But the Lord had given her a son, and he was born again.

And the Lord was with her, and she was with him.

At the time of Jesus' birth, there was in the east some wise men who sought to know truth.

They studied the heavens and noticed a mysterious light on the night that Jesus was born as a star in the sky.

It wasn't a normal fixed star or planet, but rather a band of angels appearing in the heavens on the night that Jesus was born.

They studied the prophecies and no doubt came across Numbers 24 verse 17, which says, There shall come out of Jacob a star.

Wondering if this could be the sign of the promised 1, they set out to find what it was.

🎵 Arriving in Jerusalem, they asked around, saying, where is the 1 who is born King of the Jews?

However, the curiosity of King Herod was around, and he called them to the palace and told them to go and find the young child and afterwards come back and tell him where he is so he could go and worship.

King Herod was an Edomite and wasn't liked by the Jews, and only held this position because the Romans liked him.

But his real intention was to kill baby Jesus and remove any threat to his rule.

The wise men went and found baby Jesus and brought him gifts, as was the custom back then.

They brought him gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

It's often thought there were 3 wise men, but the Bible never says this.

After paying their respects, they were warned in a dream to go back to their own country and not to see Herod first.

[♪ music ♪ Joseph also had a dream, telling him to take the baby and his mother and flee to Egypt and remain there until it was safe to come home.

Taking baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt, running from a king who wanted to kill them, and came here to live in a foreign land.

When King Herod heard that his plans to kill baby Jesus had been thwarted, he was very angry and ordered that all the baby boys in Bethlehem be put to death, fulfilling the words of Jeremiah 31 15.

A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping.

Rahel, weeping for her children, refused to be comforted because they were not.

Jesus lived for some of his early years in a foreign country and was what we would call today a refugee.

It was not safe for him to be home, and so we found refuge here in the land of the Pharaohs, no doubt seeing these same pyramids that we see today.

Jesus understands what it's like to live in a foreign country, to learn a new language, to look and speak differently.

When Herod died, his father was told by an angel that it was now safe to go back to Israel.

His father, though, was scared to go to Bethlehem because Herod's son was ruling, and so they went to the Galilee region and lived in the town of Nazareth.

The wise men were not Jews, but they were sincere and earnest in their search for truth.

They serve to us today as examples of many people who are desperately trying to find light and understanding about the deeper issues of life.

The Bible says, "'Other sheep I have that are not of this fold.

Them also I will call, and there will be 1 flock and 1 shepherd.

May we be open to the movings of the Holy Spirit and welcome those who come to a knowledge of the truth.

03 Jesus: The Temple Visit

The Town of Nazareth Episode 4 The Town of Nazareth After being born in a stable and then fleeing to a foreign country after his birth, the town chosen for Jesus to live in would follow in a similar vein of hardship.

Nazareth was an obscure and despised town that was held in low esteem, illustrated by Nathanael's words in John 1, verse 46, when he said, "'Can any good thing come from Nazareth?' Jesus passed by the wealthier towns and the courts of royalty to make his lot with the rough and ready people of Nazareth.

[♪ music ♪ It was his parents' duty to teach him the scriptures, and the very words he had inspired Moses to write many years ago, he was now taught by his mother.

She diligently taught him so that when he was older, people would ask and wonder how he knew so much, having never formally been trained in the schools of his day.

Jesus grew up amongst the wicked inhabitants of Nazareth, but he grew in wisdom and the grace of God.

His life stands as a rebuke to those of us who think ourselves dependent upon fortune, place, and prosperity in order to live a good life.

Sometimes temptation, adversity, and trials are the very discipline that we need.

For nearly 30 years Jesus lived in Nazareth, where he worked in his later years as a carpenter.

We really don't read anything about Jesus during these years except for 1 instance.

For Jews, the dividing time between childhood and youth was 12 years old, and at the age of 12 Jesus' parents took him up to Jerusalem.

As he neared the temple and saw the priests conducting their work, he soon found himself in the midst of them talking with the religious leaders and teachers.

🎵 The Bible records how Jesus was both listening and also asking questions, questions that showed he had a depth of knowledge and understanding far beyond his years.

His parents, Mary and Joseph, pack up their things and depart, along with the people who have come down from Nazareth.

As it is a large group with many people, horses, and donkeys, they don't see him but think he's somewhere in the group.

When they finally realize that he isn't there, they turn around and head back to Jerusalem.

Searching the city, they now come to the temple, and it's been 3 days since they have seen him, and they find him talking to the religious leaders and teachers.

Asking him why he has caused them such heartache and pain, he responds and says, Did you not know that I must be about my father's business?

Here, at the age of 12, is the first time recorded in scripture where he understands his divine mission from his heavenly father rather than his earthly father.

For the next 18 years, while knowing that his mission on earth is a sacred 1, he returns back to Nazareth and performs the duties of a son, brother, friend, and citizen.

No doubt Jesus had a hard time growing up.

Not only did he live in a rough town, but also from the age of 12 he knew that he was set apart for a different work.

His life was a lonely 1, with even his own family not understanding his work.

But having a sense of identity and a sense of mission gave him something to focus on in his early adolescent years.

The clearer our sense of identity, mission, and purpose is in life, the more productive and fulfilling our lives will be.

May we find these things in Jesus and allow him to direct our lives.

04 Jesus: Baptism & Wilderness Experience

The time to start the ministry Jesus did not just start his ministry when he felt like it, but the time that he should start was outlined prophetically in Daniel chapter 9, verse 24-27.

When the time came, he made the 70 mile, 120 kilometer journey from Nazareth down here to this site in the River Jordan.

Arriving there, Jesus would have known that his life would never be the same again.

John the Baptist was a cousin of Jesus, and Jesus approached him and asked him to baptize him.

John the Baptist initially recoiled from the idea, saying that Jesus ought to baptize him, but Jesus insisted, saying that it was needed to fulfill all righteousness.

[♪ music ♪ The Bible account in Matthew, Mark, and Luke records that when Jesus came up from the river, the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Jesus did not get to enjoy the aftermath of his baptism with family and friends, but Mark 1 verse 12 says that the Spirit drove him into the wilderness where he was for 40 days, and then he was tempted by Satan.

There were some trials and experiences that Jesus had to suffer and bear alone, and this was 1 of them.

Immediately after his baptism, prior to his public ministry, Jesus had a wilderness experience.

🎵 Jesus did not invite this temptation.

He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to contemplate his mission and work through prayer and fasting.

After 40 days of fasting in the wilderness, no doubt weak and emaciated, worn and tired, Satan himself met Jesus.

He personally took on the task of tempting Jesus, and his first temptation was to tell him to turn stones into bread.

But before this he tried to insinuate doubt in Jesus' mind and said, if you are the Son of God, should Jesus comply with Satan, it would have been an acceptance of doubt.

He remembers the words at his baptism, This is my beloved Son.

Jesus responded that man should not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

Satan's next temptation is to take him to the top of the temple, to cast himself down, and to let his angels bear him up.

Jesus again responds by quoting scripture.

His last temptation is to take him to the top of a mountain, and he promises that all power and dominion will be his if he will only worship Satan.

How to resist temptation Jesus again resisted temptation and will not back down, and quotes scripture in his defense.

He says, "'Get thee behind me, Satan, for it is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.' In this, Jesus gives us a principle for dealing with temptation.

Psalms 119 verse 11 says, "'Your word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against you.

Satan always tries to tempt us in the weak points of our character.

He tempts us to distrust God, His divinity, to question His love, and to doubt our own experience with Him.

It is important that we know what Jesus has done for us, how much He values us, and have confidence in Him.

[♪ music ♪ Satan's first temptation was to get Jesus to doubt his identity, and his last 1 was to solicit worship.

But Jesus knew who he was, and knew that he who made the world could never worship a created being.

He tries to get us to doubt our identity and submit to him.

May we always remember that we are bought with a price, that we are precious in the sight of Jesus.

Submit to God, resist the devil, that he may flee from us.

05 The Wedding at Cana

Kena, Egypt The story of the city of Kena Part 2 The modern-day town of Kena is located very close to Nazareth, just about 5 miles or 8 kilometers away.

However, some scholars say that the ruins on this hill in Kerebek, Kena, is the real Kena where Jesus performed the miracle of John chapter 2.

Either way, both locations are relatively close and it's likely that Jesus, growing up in Nazareth, would have known some of the people in Cana.

Shortly after his baptism in the River Jordan, Jesus was back in the region and there was a wedding taking place, and Jesus, his disciples, and his mother were invited to attend.

🎵 music 🎵 Weddings are usually meticulously planned, but even the best planned wedding has something that goes wrong.

A relative shows up late, someone forgets their outfit, the musician can't make it, or the preacher is sick.

The Bible says that they ran out of wine.

We believe this wasn't fermented alcoholic wine, but rather unfermented wine or grape juice.

In the Bible, John the Baptist was forbidden to have wine or strong drink at birth and In the Old Testament it calls wine a mocker, and those who are caught up by it are not wise.

The Bible is a consistent book, and something that is forbidden in 1 area wouldn't be made by Jesus in another area.

In John 2 verse 6, The Bible says there were 6 water stone pots, each containing 20 to 30 gallons each.

In total, this would have been 120 to 150 gallons.

If this was fermented wine, then someone would have gotten completely drunk and most likely gone home and done something harmful.

Jesus wouldn't make something in such large quantities that would make harmful behavior possible and easy.

In Cana today they have some stone pots that are reported to date back to a similar time period and be a similar size.

[♪ MUSIC ♪ Then he told them to take some out of the pot, and as they drew the cup out, it wasn't water anymore, but it was rather pure, delicious grape juice.

They gave some to the master of the house, and he commented that normally they start with the good and work their way to the not-so-good, but here they were towards the end of the feast and they had saved the best till last.

The wedding had been saved and the reputation of the family was able to remain intact.

🎵 music 🎵 Here at this wedding, Jesus had mercy on this family, and his heart was touched by their relatively small problem in their hour of need.

Jesus had compassion on them and helped them out during this time of trouble.

Jesus has a special place in his heart for weddings.

His ministry begins with 1, The Bible in Revelation ends with 1, and in Genesis with Adam and Eve it begins with 1.

Not all of Jesus' miracles were to raise someone from the dead or to heal them from sickness.

They weren't all to feed 5, 000 people or to calm the seas.

Here in this instance, that could be argued had relatively little bearing on the plan of salvation, Jesus helped out the family in their time of need.

Jesus' heart is touched with our feelings, our stresses, and our worries, and you can know that whatever you're going through right now, Whether it's something big or something small, you can cry out to Jesus and He will help You

06 The Pool of Bethesda

John 5 John chapter 5 records 1 of the most famous miracles of Jesus that took place when He healed the man at the Pool of Bethesda.

Today they have excavated the site and you can see exactly where this miracle took place.

The Bible tells us that it was by the Sheep Gate and that in the pool there were 5 porches.

Here today you can see the elaborate structure and down at the bottom is where the pool of water would have been.

The excavations took place in the late 19th century and give us a glimpse into what it looked like back then.

We can also see today on this site remains of churches that were built during the time of the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, and the time of the Crusades.

[♪ music ♪ John 5, verse 3 and 4 says that a great multitude of sick people who were either blind, lame, or paralyzed, and they lay next to the pool.

At certain seasons the water would be troubled, and it was believed that this was the result of supernatural power.

It was believed that an angel would come down and stir or trouble the waters, and the first person who stepped in after this would be healed of whatever malady they had.

In order to accommodate the number of people who waited here, they built shelters next to the pool to shade them by day and protect them at night.

[♪ MUSIC CONTINUES ♪ Due to the large number of people who came by and the stampede that would occur when the waters were moved, there were many people who could not make it in in time and they came back day after day, month after month, year after year.

That would all change for 1 man when Jesus decided to stop by Bethesda.

There was a man who had been sick for 38 years and when Jesus saw him he had pity on him and asked him the question, Do you want to be made whole?

[♪ music ♪ This man was alone and friendless, and in response to Jesus' question he says that he has no man to help him to get into the water and that when it's troubled, others get in there first.

Jesus simply looks at the man and says, Rise, take up your bed, and walk.

This man exercises faith and it springs into action.

His nerves and muscles are energized, and he springs to his feet as an active man.

The day that Jesus performed this miracle was the Sabbath, and this would prove a problem for both of them.

The Jews had created many laws that were not in the Torah about how the Sabbath should be kept, and had made it a burden.

Jesus wanted to remove these burdens and to make the Sabbath a delight and something that should be enjoyable.

🎵Music🎵 He then picked up his bed and was told off for carrying a burden on the Sabbath day.

He told them that someone had healed him, but he wasn't sure who.

Later on when he was in the temple giving thanks, he saw Jesus who told him to sin no more lest the worst thing come upon him.

He then identified Jesus to the Pharisees, who the Bible record says sought to kill him because he had healed a man on the Sabbath day.

Today it's a privilege to be able to visit this place where Jesus performed this miracle of healing.

Bethesda means House of Mercy in the Aramaic, and we are reminded that Jesus was a merciful Saviour.

He has touched with the feelings of our infirmities, and today he longs for all who may be ill, either physically, emotionally, or spiritually, to reach out to him In response to the question, will You

07 John the Baptist

The Life of Jesus John the Baptist The Life of Jesus The Life of Jesus John the Baptist was born to Zacharias and Elizabeth and was to play an important role in the life of Jesus.

His parents received word of his impending birth from an angel, but his father initially doubted the promise.

He temporarily lost the ability to speak until the birth of his son.

John the Baptist was born during a time of tremendous upheaval in Israel where there had been strong tension with their Roman rulers, and the spiritual state of Israel was in dire straits.

🎵 As a son of a priest, the natural order of things would have been for him to go and train in the rabbinical schools of his day, but this would have unfitted him for his work.

Instead of being sent to learn under the theology teachers, God sent him to the desert to learn in nature.

He gave up the luxuries of home life for the stern discipline of the wilderness, a life of simplicity and self-denial.

He wore the garments of the ancient prophets, camel's hair, and he ate locusts and wild honey, things that were found in the wilderness.

🎵 music 🎵 In the first century AD there was a group of people living in Qumran called the Essenes.

They were a sect of Jews who lived a very strict and solitary life.

It was in the caves of Qumran in 1946 when a shepherd boy found the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Even though there is no hard evidence to suggest that John the Baptist was an Essene, there are some similarities between his life and their lifestyle, and it's likely, though not proven, that he came in contact with them.

John the Baptist was called to be the voice crying in the wilderness and was to prepare the way for Jesus to come.

John the Baptist called the nation to repentance at a time when they needed it most, and practiced his baptisms here in the River Jordan.

John preached prior to Jesus' public ministry, and it was John who baptized Jesus in the River Jordan.

As Jesus' ministry now started and increased, the crowd started to follow him, and slowly the crowd to follow John the Baptist decreased.

🎵 Music 🎵 John's disciples, though, were jealous at this situation and came to him, but he gave no ear to their complaints or had sympathy with their dissatisfaction.

He knew what his mission was and what Jesus' mission was, and he said in John 3 verse 30, He must increase, but I must decrease.

John the Baptist did not have any selfish ambition in him at all.

Series

Lineage Season 4: Manger to Messiah

07 John the Baptist

Transcript

Description

Parent Series

Sponsor

Recorded

Plenary

Arise

1h 45m

The King’s Ambassador

28m

Personal Evangelism 1

Small Group Evangelism: A Longing for the Real Christian Life- Part 1

1h 59m

Morning Devotional

Great In the Sight of the Lord

1h 1m

Plenary Sessions

One Life

1h 21m

A Thoughtful Hour

A Thoughtful Hour- Part 1

1h 11m

Michael Carducci Weekend

02 All Wrapped Up and Where to Go?: Who’s Salvation Is It Anyway?

1h 13m

GYC 2007 Plenary Sessions

Be

58m

Morning Devotional

The First and Final Forerunners

1h 3m

Then the End Will Come

48m

Sabbath School 4th Quarter 2024: Themes in the Gospel of John

04 Witnesses of Christ as the Messiah

28m

Sound Doctrine