Prophet Out of Control!
John the Baptiser did not fit within the religious system of his day - he was not controlled by the status quo. The Jewish leaders did not know what to do with him and the radical baptism that he performed.
By not towing the line of human structures and regulations, John was able to respond to the control of God's Spirit in pointing people toward Christ - something which the religious leaders were mostly unable and unwilling to do.
The question for us is who is in control - is it the set systems that we have grown accustomed to? Is it our own prideful independence? John's baptism called people to recognise their own inability to be righteous and instead to rely on God for forgiveness and cleansing. Jesus appeared as the Lamb who would take away the sins of the world - the one who makes that forgiveness and cleansing possible.
Will we hand over control of our lives to Him? Will we relinquish our own control? Will we stop being controlled by other people and other people's rules?
