Chapter 14: The Gift of Jesus

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John the Baptist preached the same message as Jesus did. It was a message of repentance for sinners to get right with God again. Both John

and Jesus offered the same good news that all of the preceding prophets before them did. Yet why two prophets? There had to be more to Jesus.

The Real Definition of Good News!

The real good news is that God will forgive your sins if you simply repent of your evil ways and walk according to His ways. That is the exact message in Ezekiel 18 from God Almighty Himself. That is the message in Joel 2:32 from God Almighty Himself. So, Christian, how do you explain

away the words of Jesus and of his fellow prophets on this simple message of salvation: repent and be saved? How do you explain away the words of God Almighty who reiterates the same simple message of Christ that those who sincerely repent will be saved? If you love God’s Word like I do, you

will not simply ignore it or try to rationalize it away with some orthodox dogma that allows for continued willful sin. Clearly God has something else in mind with repentance; it is why Christ said: “Go and sin no more.”

“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand!’ ” Matthew 3:1-2

Clearly the message of John the Baptist was virtually identical to that of Jesus Christ concerning eternal life. The Bible makes it clear that many took advantage of this opportunity for the forgiveness of their sins.

“Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him [John the Baptist] and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.” Matthew 3:5-6

Now, the question arises: Are those who repented and were baptized by John saved? The answer is yes if the repentance was sincere and it resulted in them following God’s ways. To say otherwise is apostasy.