Who was John the Baptist and why does he matter today?
John the Baptist was a truly great first century preacher because in effect he announced a new divine Passover. It was the Passover in which God provided Jesus Christ as the sacrificial lamb. Passover is the feast in which there is a lamb sacrificed by each participating household, originally in divine preparation for the ancient Israelite people leaving slavery in Egypt millennia ago. A few Egyptians who believed also participated. With the later first century Passover the whole thing starts again but this time the household is the household of disciples of Jesus but is for the sins of the whole world too, as many as believe. John the Baptist spent years preaching and foretelling this divine event, before it took place not long after he died a martyr. It prepared everyone for this great new Passover, and many of the disciples of Jesus had started off as disciples of John the Baptist, prepared by him for their life of faith in Jesus and their discipleship as holders to the teachings of Jesus. The inner circle were there to participate in that Passover Last Supper when it happened. Jesus Christ called John the Baptist the greatest of all prophets who came before him and more than a prophet. But Jesus went on to say that anyone included in the kingdom of God is greater still. This is the kingdom created by that Passover in which Jesus was the lamb sacrificed.
