Luke 3:16-17 (ESV)
[16] John answered them all,
saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the
strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the
Holy Spirit and fire. [17] His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his
threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will
burn with unquenchable fire.”
Jesus was to come with both the
Holy Spirit and fire. Acts associates fire with the coming of the Holy Spirit
on the church at Pentecost, but Malachi 3:2 associates it with cleansing. John
the Baptist, in this passage, seems to associate it with judgment and cleansing
as well. “His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor . . .
but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
That same contrast between the
Holy Spirit and judgment is seen in the next two paragraphs. John preached good
news to the people. It’s the same word translated gospel or evangelize. John’s evangelization
resulted in two contrasting effects. Herod’s sin was exposed resulting in John’s
imprisonment. Jesus was baptized and the Holy Spirit came upon him while a
voice declared, “You are my beloved Son.” That’s what the Good News, the
gospel, does. It empowers those who believe while exposing sin. Holy Spirit and
fire. We like the Holy Spirit part. Exposing sin is not so fun, but they can’t
be separated.
There is no Holy Spirit power
without exposing sin. It’s how we respond to the exposure that makes the
difference. Jesus was baptized, identifying with the sins of the people. Herod
jailed John, thinking that would put an end to the conviction. When God exposes
sin in our lives, we can either agree with him and accept his forgiveness, or
we can try to hide it and cover it up. Covering up sin only makes it worse. It
doesn’t make it less sin. Confession, agreeing with God and resting in his
forgiveness brings freedom.
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