NOTES for Mat 3:1-17

If one listens closely, tension can be heard in John's call itself. After all, in order to call people to repentance, he had to remind them that the Kingdom of Heaven had drawn near. Alas, we too often have to be reminded of something requiring seriousness before we can remember what it would be good to do even without reminders. And if it is not possible not to sin at all, why not repent in time? But we drag it out to the limit.

John admits those who come to be baptized to baptism after they confess their sins. But from the Pharisees and Sadducees he demands that they produce fruit of repentance, that is, prove their faith by deeds. Moreover, he meets them very sternly. Meanwhile, one can reproach the Baptist for unfairness, since the other sinners also want to escape the coming wrath, and their sins are hardly blacker than those of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

But the Pharisees and Sadducees claim to be the elite, and therefore more is required of them. Yet that is not the only reason. These highly educated people no longer have the simple-heartedness of "ordinary" sinners, who habitually commit "customary" sins but are capable, after feeling revulsion, of turning away from them. But a mind inclined toward reflection and intellectual games too often tries to justify any actions of its educated owner. And therefore for those who have tasted the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees it is harder to grasp that repentance is not only a theoretical awareness that something is wrong, but also a decisive rejection of the former habitual way of life.

All the Evangelists tell of the ministry of John the Baptist. Apparently, it is evident to them that his very appearance was the sign promised by God, preceding the coming of the Messiah. It is impossible to receive Christ without receiving the message of His forerunner. John's preaching has two parts: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven has drawn near.” The Kingdom is near, but it can be seen and recognized only after one has first changed. Repentance means an inward turning, a refusal to accept the present state of one's soul, and an appeal to the One who can bring about this necessary change within us. Such a turning requires courage, and John helps people resolve to take this step both by offering washing in the waters of the Jordan as an outward expression of what is happening in the soul and by pointing to the approaching Messiah.

When we read the evangelists' accounts of the preaching of John the Baptist, which preceded the Baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ, we easily miss the direct meaning contained in the narrative. Thus the evangelist Matthew tells us about the preaching of the Forerunner by saying that "all Judea" was baptized by him. Of course, this is an exaggeration, and not all the residents of Judea were baptized without exception. Yet it is clear that there were very, very many of these people. That is the truly astonishing fact. To us, on the other hand, for understandable reasons, it looks natural.

John the Baptist, calling people to receive in repentance the Kingdom of Heaven that had drawn near, did not invent a new rite for repentance. He used the washing performed for "second-class" people coming to God: Gentiles and women underwent this procedure, while for Israelite men entrance into the covenant was circumcision. In essence, John's call was like someone calling modern Orthodox Christians to be baptized a second time. For those who came to John at the Jordan, this act meant confessing that they, as traitors and apostates, were unfaithful to God and were approaching Him in repentance not as full descendants of Abraham, but as Gentiles. This was exactly the kind of repentance Israel's prophets had spoken about earlier. Is it not astonishing that there were many people who repented with such humility?

The behavior of the Pharisees and Sadducees can more readily be called natural. Both groups thought that one more pious rite would do them no harm, thereby revealing their unbelief in pious rites in general. Both groups wanted to show off their piety before people; soon after His Baptism, the Lord Jesus Christ would expose them for this.

The fact that the evangelist Matthew emphasizes how many sincere penitents there were in the days of John the Baptist first of all reveals to us what the "fullness of time" is, in which, according to the apostle Paul, God sends His Son. It is the time when many hearts are ready to receive Christ in humility and repentance. Therefore the repentance of some and the hypocrisy of others are not the main point in the ministry of John the Baptist. The Forerunner preaches repentance and baptizes not in order to give people salvation, but so that Christ may be revealed to us.

The Gospel image of John the Baptist most of all resembles the early prophets, especially Elijah. The Savior Himself compares him precisely with Elijah. Historians connect John and his preaching with the Essenes, with the Qumran community, suggesting that he began his spiritual path there, on the shore of the Dead Sea.

And indeed, at first glance it may appear that John preaches almost the same thing as the Essenes. But precisely "almost." All the Essenes, including the members of the Qumran community, were sure of their own election. They believed that the Messiah would come only for their sake, simply because no one except them had managed to preserve the spiritual and ritual purity necessary for meeting the Messiah. The Essenes had no pity for the unclean: they were doomed in any case, and there was no point in saving them, not to mention that it was impossible. Salvation was available only to members of the "holy community"; the rest would perish. The Messiah would come in order to lead "His own" out of this world sunk in evil, while the world itself, with all its sins, would burn in a cosmic fire. Those whom He did not take with Him would perish.

John, however, speaks of conversion, which opens to the repentant the way into the Kingdom. Yes, people have things from which they need to be cleansed, and the cleansing will be harsh, fiery, not easy to pass through. And still the way into the Kingdom of the Messiah is closed to no one.

There are exceptions, however: the Pharisees and Sadducees, whom John directly calls a "brood of vipers" ("offspring of vipers" in the Synodal translation). And the point is not that some of them, the Pharisees, were spiritual leaders of the religious establishment, while others, the Sadducees, were connected with the priesthood and quite possibly even with the temple elite. The point is that neither group felt any need for repentance, cleansing, or new conversion. They were ready to perform one more cleansing washing, since this mysterious newly appeared prophet was insisting on it. After all, he could indeed turn out to be a man of God, and an extra washing would not hurt in any case. But deep down they were sure that even without it they were ready to meet the Messiah, and that even without it they were clean from sin and righteous. This, and nothing else, separated them from Christ coming into the world and from His Kingdom. And no washing by itself could help them, because Christ needs our heart, not our washings.

What does John reproach the scribes and Pharisees for when they come to him to be baptized in the Jordan? After all, outwardly they are performing one more gesture of piety; they want to receive a ritual washing and thereby be cleansed, as if to become better and purer. Why scold them for that? It would seem there is nothing to scold.

Yet it is worth looking more closely at the reasons that bring the Pharisees to the Jordan. As we know from all four Gospels, the Pharisees are people of great learning, devoting their whole lives to studying and interpreting the law of Moses. And such a burden and responsibility of knowledge often prompted them to stand, as it were, above ordinary people, to feel themselves somewhat more righteous than the rest. And now in the Judean wilderness a certain new prophet appears. Why do they go to him? Apparently, one reason was the desire to "check" what he is calling for, and especially HOW he does it, for conformity with the Law. Well, if all the necessary formalities are observed, then why not take part themselves? For the sake of order. It never hurts to be cleansed one more time.

Is this not how we too often approach confession, as a formality? Yes, of course, this is what is prescribed, so we pronounce words memorized by heart, without thinking. And deep down we do not doubt that in reality we are no worse than others, and sometimes even better. But then the bitter words of John the Baptist sound for us today as well: "who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance."

It is interesting to ask whether one can repent and be cleansed from sin just like that, just in case. Is this hypocrisy? Hardly: the Pharisees were deeply religious people who would scarcely have allowed themselves open deception. But what, then, provokes John's anger? Pride? The confidence of those who came that they, descendants of Abraham as they were, could not by definition be unworthy of the Kingdom? Yes, no doubt. Pride has never brought spiritual benefit to anyone. And yet the matter, it seems, is not only this.

Why would a cleansing washing, and the "baptisms" performed by John were precisely cleansing washings, be needed by someone who was confident of his own sinlessness? After all, Judaism of that era did not know such a concept as "original sin." For a Jew of the Gospel era, sin was something very concrete, and only the person who had committed such a sin was considered a sinner, not every human being by definition, as we think today. Why, then, should those who had not sinned be cleansed? As can be seen, precisely just in case. What if this strange preacher, so much like the ancient prophets, is right? What if one more cleansing is needed in order to be worthy of the coming Messiah? What if... In short, one extra washing, in any case, will do no harm.

Only spiritual life is not a religious rite; here nothing is done "just like that" or "just in case." Just as there is no "faith just in case." It exists, or it does not. No third thing is given.

How do we evaluate our life before God, our spiritual condition, our relationships with the people around us? If we think that everything is all right with us, "no worse than with others," and are satisfied with what we have, then we need nothing more, and we do not need God either. There is no repentance in this, not even its beginning. Repentance begins with the realization that not everything is all right, that all our efforts do not allow us to attain a life truly worthy of a human being, that we need God and His saving grace. That is, the first movement of repentance is the rejection of ourselves as we are, a refusal to consent to our own sin, a renunciation of it. The second step of repentance is turning to God, acknowledging the necessity of His presence, bringing Him our failure, and waiting for our cleansing, healing, and filling with life from Him.

But repentance also has a third component: the fruit of which John reminds us. Our expectation of change is meaningless if we do not show our readiness to change. We show it not by a "mood," not by a word, but by deed. We must begin to live as righteously as if we had already received everything from God; then He will have freedom to give us strength to carry out this righteousness, to fill our actions with inner content, with love. This will be the saving grace with which God answers our repentance.

Today we are going to hear John the Baptist’s words, friend of the Groom, the one who introduces the coming of the Savior. We need to remember the meaning of the word "repentance” in order to comment John the Baptist’s words".

How do we estimate our life in the sight of God, our spiritual estate, our relationship with people surrounding us? If we consider, that everything is alright with us, «not worse than others», that we are satisfied with what we have, we don’t need anything more, and God too. Then there is no repentance in us, even its beginning. Repentance begins when we become conscious, that not everything is alright, that all our efforts do not allow us to reach the real worthy life a person deserves, that we need God, His saving grace. This is the first movement to repentance – aversion to ourselves, as we are, disagreement with self-existence. The second step for repentance is talking to God, recognizing the necessity of His presence, bringing to Him our inconsistency and expecting our purification, healing and full life from Him.

But there is also a third component for repentance: the fruit, that John reminds us. Senselessly will be our expectation of changes if we do not show our readiness to change. We don’t show this by "mood", by word, but by action. We should start to live justly, as if we have already all received from God, - then He will receive freedom to give us strengths for the fulfillment of this goodness, making our deeds be in accordance with our inner meaning - love. This will be the saving grace by which God answers to our repentance.

It is interesting to ask whether one can repent and be cleansed from sin just like that, just in case. Like the Pharisees mentioned in today's Gospel reading? What is this - hypocrisy? Hardly. The Pharisees were deeply religious people who would scarcely have allowed themselves an outright deception. But what, then, arouses John's anger? Pride? The confidence of those who came that they, descendants of Abraham, simply could not by definition be unworthy of the Kingdom? Yes, no doubt. Pride has never brought anyone spiritual benefit. And still, the matter is evidently not only this. Why would someone who was sure of his own sinlessness need a cleansing washing? And the "baptisms" performed by John were precisely cleansing washings. After all, the Judaism of that period had no concept such as "original sin." For a Jew of the Gospel period, sin was something very concrete, and only someone who had committed such a sin was considered a sinner, not every person by definition, as we think today. Why should those who had not sinned be cleansed?

As we can see, precisely just in case. What if this strange preacher, so much like the ancient prophets, is right? What if one more cleansing is needed to be worthy of the coming Messiah? What if... In short, one extra washing will not hurt in any case.

Only spiritual life is not a religious rite. Here nothing is done "just like that" or "just in case." Just as there is no "faith just in case." It either exists or it does not. There is no third option.

Few of us today think about the paradoxical nature of such a Gospel event as the Savior's baptism. What we customarily call baptism was a cleansing washing that freed the one washed from the consequences of a sin he had committed. In the context of what John the Baptist called people to, the washing became something more than simple cleansing; yet even in that case it was still a matter of liberation from sin and of a new conversion, which, according to the prophet's word, everyone needed.

What kind of cleansing and what kind of conversion could the One need who was not subject to sin, the One who brought the Kingdom into the world? What cleansing could be in question here? John himself understands everything perfectly and says to Jesus: You should wash and cleanse me, not I You. Jesus answers him with words that are not very easy to understand: let it be, because in this way we must reveal the fullness of truth. By "the fullness of truth" He means the Kingdom that He brought into the world and that now, with the beginning of His earthly ministry, must be revealed to the world.

Why does this happen through a cleansing washing that He Himself does not need at all, at least not in the sense in which a sinful person needs such a washing? If the washings mentioned in the Old Testament books had been no different from those known to the pagan world from the most ancient times, there would most likely simply be no answer to this question. Before the Savior's coming into the world, they were no longer a magical ritual like pagan washings, but a manifestation of the power of God. Water served only as a physical mediator, a natural conductor of its effects on the person whom God wanted to cleanse from the consequences of the sin he had committed.

The manifestation of the Kingdom is also the manifestation of God's power, and in a fullness that the world had not known before. The cleansing effect of this power now proved qualitatively different, incomparably deeper, so deep that it overcame the consequences of any sin committed by a person, if only the person repented of what he had done, even if the sin had been committed consciously. This was something never seen before, when one could be cleansed only from the consequences of a sin committed involuntarily, through weakness or ignorance.

Jesus calls the cleansing power of the Kingdom, which frees the world from the power of sin, the fullness of truth. The cleansing of the world is the first step toward its transfiguration, which will be completed only when the world becomes an inseparable and organic part of the Kingdom. Without this first step there will be no later steps: sin is incompatible with the Kingdom. The washing of the world, its liberation from sin, begins with the washing of the Savior Himself, when the water with which He washed became a river of living water that opens the Kingdom to the world.

Just before the Baptism, in response to John's attempt to stop Him, Jesus utters mysterious words: "Let it be so now, for thus we must manifest righteousness in all its fullness" (the Synodal translation offers the wording, "for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness"). When it comes to an ordinary person, the connection between the cleansing washing, or "baptism," and righteousness is obvious: according to traditional Jewish ideas of Gospel times, it is precisely the cleansing ritual that frees the sinner from the consequences of the sin he has committed, of course only when this ritual is accompanied by repentance. But Jesus had nothing to repent of and nothing from which to be cleansed. His righteousness was always full and perfect.

The point could evidently only be that this righteousness, previously hidden from the world, should now be manifested to it. Such a manifestation could and had to be connected precisely with what John was calling the people to, namely conversion. Indeed, conversion presupposes not only repentance for the sins committed by the one who is converting. Repentance here is not the goal, but only the means. The goal is the establishment of relations with God, without which there can be no question of any righteousness.

Jesus' conversion, then, was not so much the establishment of such relations, since He had them from the beginning, as their demonstration, a witness to what they should be and what they can give to the one who converts. And then to all who witnessed what was happening there was opened the Kingdom that Jesus brought into the world, because the fullness of relations between God and man is this Kingdom. A Kingdom made accessible to everyone through the ministry and sacrifice of One.

Why is Jesus baptized? He is sinless, and He does not need repentance. Is it to show us an example? But surely not a meaningless one. John the Baptist senses this very strongly, and therefore he "tried to prevent Him."

But this is exactly how Jesus "fulfills all righteousness," bringing righteousness in this world to its fullness, because by entering the water of baptism He makes it able to cleanse us from our sins. In this way He takes them upon Himself and then carries them to the Cross. And John, standing in that water, suddenly receives the possibility, unknown to people until then, of seeing God in the relationship of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and of hearing from heaven the revelation of God's good will, revealed in Jesus Christ, the beloved Son of God.

The episode of Jesus receiving baptism looks almost like an appendage to the story of John the Baptist, and this emphasizes the outward inconspicuousness of what is being described. It is not hard for us to imagine how many people gathered that day on the bank of the Jordan, but very few among those gathered were able to understand what great event they had witnessed. Yet in this too Jesus' self-emptying was revealed, something the disciples found so hard to comprehend and that remains mysterious for us as well.

Mysterious too are the words Jesus spoke in response to John's hesitation. What was that righteousness that "we," that is, the two of them meeting at the Jordan, had to fulfill? Why did the sinless Jesus have to enter the waters that washed away sins? Of course, in order to take upon Himself the sins of others, and not only the sins of those Jewish people long ago, but the sins of all of us. Yet one cannot escape the feeling that behind Christ's answer there is something more, something that slips past a superficial glance but that the evangelist considered important to convey to us.

What we are meant to see in the depths of Scripture the Lord will reveal to us, for He does not hide what is necessary for salvation and a full spiritual life. John was the first to whom it was revealed that the Spirit of God descended upon Jesus at His baptism. Through John's eyes the evangelist lets us see this too, and we believe: union with Jesus is union with the Spirit of God. And this most important revelation was given to all of us on the day when Jesus came inconspicuously to the bank of the Jordan.

Jesus comes to John... Is it not astonishing that He comes Himself, and not John to Him? But this is His way: from now on He will always and everywhere come to everyone Himself. Always the First and always unrecognized, though expected.

They recognize one another... A special language, the language of love for Scripture, a language filled with Scripture and made up of the words of Scripture. "I will ponder the way that is blameless: when will You come to me?" (Ps 100:2) is not only a question, but the prayer and expectation of many years of John's life, of many generations of the righteous. Jesus' answer is saturated with the words of the Psalms. "His righteousness is upon children's children, upon those who keep His covenant and remember His commandments to do them" (Ps 102:17-18). And: "Blessed are those who keep justice and do righteousness at all times!" (Ps 105:3). And also: "The foundation of Your word is truth, and every judgment of Your righteousness endures forever" (Ps 119:160). Finally, the words of blessing from Deuteronomy: "...he chose for himself the first portion of the land; there the ruler's portion was reserved, and he came with the heads of the people and carried out the righteousness of the Lord and His judgments with Israel" (33:21). The "first portion of the land" is Jesus Himself. The Most High chose Him for a special ministry, unheard-of and unrepeatable. From now on He is a stumbling stone until the end of time. But John did not stumble and fall: recognizing the Messiah in Him, he decreases to the end, giving Him everything, even his beloved disciples. They, John, the future evangelist and apostle of love, and Andrew, immediately bring Simon, then Philip and Nathanael.

The core of the community of future disciples took shape within a few days, immediately after the Baptism. Who else was capable of such an unheard-of generous gift? Should we not hear in many of Jesus' parables about gifts an allusion to John? This also sounds in Jesus' words about the widow's mite: "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; for all these put in gifts to God out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood she had" (Luke 21:3-4). Jesus receives this gift from John, as He also receives the gift of Baptism, because it is fitting for Him to "fulfill righteousness," entrusted to Him by the Heavenly Father: to give people Heaven on Earth, to lead them into the Kingdom of Heaven. From this time on He will announce this, preach it, and teach it in many parables. And very soon the moment will come when He will offer absolutely everyone entrance into this Kingdom as the New Covenant, concluded in His Blood.

He Himself is the Door into the Kingdom of Heaven.
He Himself is the Way into the Kingdom of Heaven.
He Himself is the Truth, that is, the essence of future life in the Kingdom of Heaven.
He Himself is the Life, that is, the Kingdom of Heaven itself.

But tragic and terrible is His question addressed to us: "When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?" (Luke 18:8).