John
appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming ha baptism of repentance for
the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were
going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing
their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt
around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, “After
me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy
to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize
you with the Holy Spirit.”
(Mark 1:4-8 ESV).
We soon read of Jesus’
being baptized, receiving the Father’s blessing, and then being sent to the
wilderness to be tempted by Satan. Jesus resists the devil so effectively that
Satan leaves him (cf. Matthew 4:11). Then Jesus begins preaching that “the
kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
The gospel, the good
news of Jesus Christ, is that our Creator so loves us that he provides a way
out of our miserable life of sin—through belief in Jesus. The first step in our
sanctification is admitting we have been sinful. And when Jesus calls us to
follow him, we should leave our old life of sin behind. So, he tells us,
“Repent” (which means “turn around”), and “believe the good news” that God has
made salvation possible. Then he says, “Come, follow me.”
Lent is a good time to
go back to “the beginning of the good news,” recognizing that we are still
capable of sin even though we believe in and follow Jesus. His Spirit is
working in us, but (in this life) we are not yet made perfect. Use the remaining
days of Lent to practice repentance and accept the Gospel. This is the path to
which we are called so that we can follow Jesus more faithfully.
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