A revival broke out in this place "beyond Jordan" where John at first baptized, and where Christ Himself had likely been baptized. The Jews had tried to stone Christ (John 10:31-39) but He escaped out of their hand and went to the Jordan to revisit the place of His initial public act. It is good for a person to return to the place where great spiritual experiences took place. When a Christian lives over again the chain of events leading to his conversion and baptism, his soul is revived, thrills of his first encounter with Christ are lived over again, and important loyalties are renewed.

Christ went back to the place where John baptized Him. "Many resorted to Him there," the record says. Perhaps the hymn writer, John Keble (1792-1866), had this beautiful scene in mind as he wrote—

"Where is the lore the Baptist taught,
The soul unswerving and the fearless tongue?
The much-enduring wisdom sought
By lonely prayer the haunted rocks among?
Who counts it gain now?
His light would wane,
So the whole world to Jesus throng."

Every loyal Christian, and especially every true pastor, wants attendance at his church services to be good. When Christ is made central, and the facts symbolized by baptism are preached winsomely, then people will resort to churches. John the Baptist had the satisfaction of seeing great crowds come to the wilderness to hear him preach Christ. If modern Christians learned his techniques, perhaps crowds would gather again to hear the Gospel. The question then, is—

"God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions (Eccl. 7:29). Among the inventions for doing Christian work is "Group Dynamics" where people sit in a circle and exchange their opinions. When these opinions are summarized, or synthesized, each person is supposed to feel that progress has been made. But unless a higher authority such as the Bible is followed, one wonders about the progress made, if any. Too often poorly informed speakers will take the time with the result that no progress at all will occur.

Syncretism is another plan which some moderns advocate. Take a little of Christianity, a little of Buddhism, something of Taoism, some wisdom from Confucious, and perhaps a bit of Bultmanism; mix it all together, and the result should be the condensed best of all religions. But it does not work; it does not produce Christians.

Education is highly touted as the only savior of civilization. President Kennedy has given us a memorable quotation: "Knowledge, not hate, is the passkey to the future." Certainly knowledge is better than hate, but it is still not good enough. The Japanese war leaders had much knowledge before Pearl Harbor; Hitler’s Luftwaffe had knowledge before they bombed Poland and Holland; Russian leaders had knowledge before they enslaved their millions; yet hate used knowledge as a tool to do its evil work. No; only the love of Christ can save mankind.

Culture is the god of many people, even of some church members. Culture is good, but without Christ to give it direction and purpose it will fail. The Kaiser of Germany in 1914 boasted of his "kultur" but it made him arrogant and warlike.

These inventions of men have been tried and they are found wanting. God’s plan is best. God’s plan at the very beginning of the New Testament era included a man He could trust, a man filled with the Holy Spirit. Slater Brown said it well (125):

"The baptism of repentance that John brought into the dark world around him was a new thing, and it will forever be new in an evil world . . . To reach Christ, to reach the gentle teacher of Galilee, one must make one’s own road straight through the wilderness of this world. We must follow the way the Baptist has shown us - after his example, constantly speak the truth, boldly rebuke vice, and patiently suffer for the truth’s sake."

God’s plan for presenting the Gospel is best for our contemporary world. It is to depend upon the Holy Spirit’s filling, and leading, and saving power. Every successful evangelist, pastor, Sunday School teacher and missionary has learned that difficult lesson. Even then, not every one will have spectacular success. God chooses whom He will to be leaders. He chose John the Baptist before his conception, and made him a great prophet. God may choose some boy now living to be His future messenger to millions. He may be only testing that person to see if he will be as yielded to the Spirit as John was.

For those who wish to know just what is meant by being filled with the Holy Spirit, they have in the Baptist a clear example. Let them see what John did, how he lived, and let them study what he said, and they will find clues to Spirit-inspired success. However, God need not deal with any two persons alike. He leads one person one way and one another. The Holy Spirit will give directions to those souls who are sensitive enough and willing enough to listen to His still small voice. He never shouts at anyone.

"I walked today where Jesus walked," begins a beautiful song. It is the right path to follow. That path was marked out for Him by the Holy Spirit Who led John to "prepare the way of the Lord, (and to) make his paths straight" (Luke 3:4). The Holy Spirit is still willing to do this work.

The password to the future is "Repent!" It was the Spirit-inspired word which John used, and which Christ used after him. It was used effectively by Peter at Pentecost, by the Wesleys in England, and by Finney in America. That word is still needed, not only in rescue missions and jails but also in homes and in churches. It is desperately needed in schools where the Bible is downgraded to the level of folk lore or "myth" and the students are left to flounder helplessly without divine authority. Those teachers who deny the supernatural in the Bible are putting out the eyes of their students as far as ability to see God is concerned. Those modern Philistines will nullify the potential strength of each Samson who is tricked into believing their false doctrines.

How present the Gospel? Repent! Judge your own sins first. Forsake all known sins. Receive Christ as the substitute-offering for sin. Confess sin and then confess Christ via baptism. Then, as a part of Christ’s body which is the church, go to work heartily for Him.

"John came unto you in the way of righteousness" (Matt. 21:32). His baptism declared righteousness, for it symbolized the death and burial of all sin with consequent rising to walk in newness of life. In one sense, therefore, those called by the name of Baptists are under greater obligation than all others to live lives of righteousness. For the name Baptist implies a clean life, since baptism is a symbol of cleansing. Christians having other church names (which may also convey rich meanings) will also want to live clean lives, but their names do not imply such obligation as "Baptist" does.

Rich rewards await those persons who follow their Lord Jesus Christ as sincerely as the first Baptist followed Him. Jesus praised John more profusely than He praised anyone else on earth, not excepting His own mother. John deserved this lavish praise because he first listened to the counsel of God, and then he followed that counsel. This leads us to ask—

First, one must understand the nature of the Gospel. This involves an accurate knowledge of the Bible, especially the New Testament. Then with this knowledge sanctified and organized by the indwelling Spirit, the Christian will use all his energies in living and in teaching the Gospel. Lazy people will not succeed; they will not even begin to show results. Communist agitators are not lazy; they work strenuously at all hours for their atheistic and dialectic materialism. Cultists are not loafers; their fanaticism is equaled only by their zeal. They think they are superior to ordinary Christians, and they are - in effort. These cultists are imbued by the evil spirits of divisiveness, of antagonism to the deity of Christ, and of opposition to salvation by grace. Shall true Christians allow the world to think that the Holy Spirit has less power and influence than the spirit of evil? God forbid!

The wheat and the chaff will one day be separated, John said (Matt. 3:12). The sheep and the goats will eventually be identified, Jesus said (Matt. 25:32, 33). Paul (II Tim. 4:1) and Peter (I Pet. 4:5) said that God will some day judge "the quick and the dead." But long before these future judgments, people will have been dividing themselves. They are taking sides with Christ, or against Him. In John’s Gospel the statement is thrice made, "So there was a division among the people because of him" (John 7:43; 9:16; 10:19). Jesus Himself said, "Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division" (Luke 12:51). This division is due to the fact that some will accept Christ as their personal Saviour and Lord, while others will reject Him.

Many liberals do not like this thought of division. They like to teach that all men are much the same; that God is too good to let anyone perish; and that He will somehow contrive to make room for everyone in His universalist heaven. They promote a "Cult of Commonism" in which we are all good fellows together. For example, Wendell Willkie wrote a book entitled "One World" after he had traveled through Russia during World War II. Still another man produced a book on "The Coming Great Church." Great pains are taken to promote one race. Down with all divisions!

The "commonists" who wish to tear down all walls should temper their crusade by reading the inspired books of Ezra and Nehemiah in the Old Testament. Those two great men were led of the Lord to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, to reject all "united efforts" of their unbelieving neighbors, and to maintain the integrity as well as identity of their people. As clearly as anything in the Bible it is stated that God led Ezra and Nehemiah in restoring the walls of Jerusalem. This does not argue extreme isolationism and bigoted segregation, but it does suggest that integration has its limits. "The broken wall" of Ephesians 2:14 should be understood in the light of the restored wall of Nehemiah 4:6 and 12:43.

However desirable one world or church or race might be, the fact is that the present world is badly divided. It will likely not be otherwise until Christ brings in His own kingdom "wherein dwelleth righteousness." The kingdom which John the Baptist proclaimed as "at hand" will one day be universal in extent. "For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" (Hab. 2:14; Isa. 11:9). Of the millions who repeat the Lord’s prayer with its "Thy kingdom come," one wonders how many realize what they are asking. But some day the Lord shall have one world, irrespective of Willkie’s naive prophecy.

The Cult of Commonism is busy at church union, not without some reason. Most divisions have been unnecessary. Some have occurred because the main body apostatized; in such cases a new reformed body needed to be created. But no true union can function when it is based more on tradition than on the Scriptures, or when it is controlled by self-perpetuating hierarchies more than by the Holy Spirit, or when the purpose is for the pride of bigness more than loyalty to Christ. Only when all Christians are determined to go back to—the Bible, back to Christ, and back to the Holy Spirit, will true union be possible. And since baptism is one of the main bases of union (Eph. 4:5), it is important to restore the original meaning and mode of that ordinance. The Lord’s Supper, while important, is less a symbol of unity than baptism—in the New Testament. And those who cheapen the Lord’s Supper by urging everyone, baptized or not, to share in it—all for the purpose of promoting "unity" —are really destroying the Scriptural basis of Christian union.

Further, the cultists of commonism are frantically busy at achieving one race, even at the price of miscegenation. They quote a portion of Acts 17:26, "And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth" but they seem to ignore the remainder of that verse—"and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation." The slave trade which began to curse America as early as 1619 is still cursing the nation with racial troubles which seem to be insoluble. America is reaping what it has sown. But many well-meaning people seem to forget that it was God Himself who first divided mankind into segments and "scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth" (Gen. 11:5-9). It was God Who made people of different colors. "Thus saith the Lord . . . Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots" (Jer. 13:23). The Samaritans are not a happy example of integration, even though color of skin may not have been involved.

Jesus was always kind to the Samaritans, although He never urged a mixture of races. True Christians have always been kind to people of all races, and they always will be wherever they live. But the subtle propaganda of communists, and the less subtle demagogery of politicians, plus the liberals who are desperate for a "cause" - all these continue browbeating antimiscegenationists with accusations of prejudice and bigotry. One wonders, if southern churches have been so wicked all these years, why it is that most American Negroes respected Baptists enough to accept their faith? And where in the world axe non-whites as fortunate as in America? May God bless all races which are trying to live better. God loves them all without partiality; so must we.

Lest the above may seem like a digression, it may be well to quote John 1:29 again. "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." Then the Baptist had the whole world in view, with all its races and other differences. Here is the first strong missionary note in the New Testament. What required a miracle for Peter to see in Acts 10, John had seen long before. But John was not a "commonest"; he declared that Christ would "thoroughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable."

In all this John was inspired by the Holy Spirit. He declared the counsel of God so well that Christ could endorse his preaching. If contemporary Christians desire Christ’s endorsement, they would do well to copy John the Baptist. Of course, Christ is the Great Example for all Christians, but those who follow His example will give much attention to John as He did. The purpose of John was to make Christ manifest. Our purpose should be the same.

It is to live the Gospel. A person filled with the Holy Spirit, as John was, will have the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22, 23). These indispensable virtues adorn the Gospel (Titus 2:10). Love for all men must be practiced more than preached.

To reveal Christ one should preach the Gospel. This preaching need not be confined to churches or to congregations; it can be one person talking to one other, as in Acts 8:35. Philip preached the Gospel to the Ethiopian treasurer; he evidently included baptism for that was the new convert’s first request.

What is the Gospel, briefly? Paul condensed it in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. "Christ died for our sins"; "he was buried"; "he rose again the third day." This, said Paul, is the Gospel "wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved." John the Baptist preached this same Gospel in baptism.

Visual aids can be made to reveal Christ. John used one, an ideal object-lesson, in order to make Christ manifest and to make Gospel truth more easily understood. This visual aid is clearly described in three easy steps in Romans 6:4. "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death" —this describes the convert renouncing his sins and burying them symbolically. "That like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father" —this portrays the believer beginning his new life, enabled by the glorious resurrection power of the Father. "Even so we also should walk in newness of life" —this suggests close fellowship with Christ throughout one’s lifetime. The baptized believer has a new life, a new Companion, a new power, a new motive, a new goal, and a new fellowship. Praise the Lord!

Christ lives! He saves! He satisfies! All this He does for each believer because He rose again from the dead. Baptism testifies to this sublime fact. Immersion, and it alone, suffices for this heavy load of visual-aid teaching. Scripture knows no other "baptism" in example, precept, inference or type.

Since the ordinance of baptism signifies such extremely weighty facts, then it must follow that the name Baptist should also convey the same great truths. John was called "Baptist" because he baptized. In the American Standard Version of Mark 6:14, 24, he is called John the Baptizer. And he baptized in order to reveal Christ. Then every Baptist should reveal the same Christ, in a similar way even though in different degree.

Bible names are meaningful, significant and revealing. The name Baptist is no exception. It apparently is meant to convey the three essential facts of the Christian Gospel (I Cor. 15:1-4). The word "baptism" in its cognate forms apparently conveys the entire work of Christian witnessing and soul-winning.

The entire work of John the Baptist is described in John 1:28 by the single word "baptizing"; in John 1:31 by "baptizing"; in John 3:23 by "baptizing"; and in John 10:40 by "baptized."

The entire work of Christ is described in John 3:22 by the single word "baptized"; in John 3:26 by "baptizeth"; and in John 4:1, 2 by "baptized."

How can this be? Why did the Holy Spirit inspire the writing of such a brief record with this one new word? Perhaps for these reasons. Baptism is the logical culmination of all the work that goes toward winning a soul to confess Christ as his Savior. In New Testament times baptism of converts was taken for granted; it was the first duty of each convert. No one seemed to delay it, or debate it, or deny it, or revise it, as so many do now. An unbaptized convert was by that much a disobedient one. Thus baptism stands for ALL the work of winning souls.

Further, baptism signifies the new life in Christ, the life which goes on until death. The baptized life is the life IN, FOR and WITH Christ; it is the new life; it is distinct from the old way. Hence, baptism properly signifies all of the new life with its training for service, its witnessing, and its work.

With these facts in mind, one can readily see the divine wisdom in calling the first Christian by the name Baptist. He was not ashamed of it. It is a good name for several reasons.

First, the name Baptist is a Scriptural name. It is found fifteen times in the New Testament. It stands for the man whom Christ approved with high praise. It signifies all that John believed and taught his many converts to believe. They shared his views; they had his viewpoint as to the Lord Jesus; they were as firm believers in his Gospel and in baptism as converts could be. While it is not said they were called Baptists (no need then), they could have been so called with perfect propriety. They were Baptistic without being partisan.

Second, the name Baptist is a descriptive name. It describes one who believes in Christ’s death, burial and resurrection on his behalf, one who has voluntarily buried his past life of sin and has risen to walk in newness of life with Christ, one who believes all that John preached about Christ, one who believes all that Christ said about His forerunner, and one who is obligated by his baptism to exhibit the indwelling Christ in his life.

Third, the name Baptist is doctrinally sound. Besides conveying the salient points of the Gospel as mentioned above and in chapter six, it is solidly based upon Scripture. For the Lord Jesus approved the name Baptist. He used it repeatedly. The Holy Spirit directed its use. And God the Father approved the baptism of John by His voice at the baptism of His Son.

Fourth, the name Baptist is unifying. Here is one act that any convert, no matter how weak, can do in exactly the way Christ Himself observed it. It is the same for all races, for bond. or free, for men or women, for all ages, for rich or poor, for the learned or illiterate, for old or young, for entire families, for every country, for every age, and it is accepted by every denomination. No other "mode of baptism" has all these assets. "One Lord, one faith, one baptism" (Eph. 4:5).

Fifth, the name Baptist is Christ-centered. It points to Christ Who died and rose again for us; it points to Christ as the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world; it

points to Christ alone as our Savior. It therefore denies salvation by works, or by ordinances, or by birth, or by character, or by ancestral covenant. In symbol it puts to death and buries every claim anyone has on salvation by works. It indicates, by complete submission to the baptizer as God’s agent, entire dependence upon God. This name also reminds us of John’s oft-quoted promise that Christ would baptize His followers in the Holy Spirit.

All Christendom owes a tremendous debt to the first Baptist!

All Christians who, under God, would follow John as a soul-winner, as one wholly devoted to Christ, as faithful unto death, as worthy of trust by all who knew him, as receiving Christ’s warm commendation—all these would thereby deserve at least part of the approval which Christ gave to the first Baptist.