God's All Stars - Week One: John the Baptist

Football season is here! Each week players give outstanding performances on the field. Join me each week as I reveal guys in the Bible that would make God's All-Star team:

Week One All-Star: John the Baptist

Vital Statistics: (see Luke 1:5-37)

Son of a Priest; Miracle baby (his mother was old & barren); Set apart to God from birth; Cousin to Jesus

Physical Description: (see Matthew 3 & Mark 1)

Lived in the desert; Never had a haircut; Wore leather; Ate bugs & wild honey; Had an intimidating look in his eyes (my opinion)

Nicknames: (see Matthew 3:3, Mark 1:2&3 & Matthew 11:11)

The Voice (of one crying out in the wilderness); The Forerunner; The Greatest

Strengths:

Courage, Powerful Communicator, Humility, Holiness

Weaknesses:

Moments of doubt (See Matthew 11:2&3)

Famous Quotes:

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” Matthew 3:2

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29

“He (Jesus) must increase, I must decrease.” John 3:30

Greatest All-Star Performances:

• Preached fearlessly day after day, baptizing people as a sign of their repentance and forgiveness of sins. (See Matthew 3:1-12, Mark 1:4&5)

• Identified & Baptized the Son of God! (See Matthew 3:13-17, Mark 1:9-11 & John 1:12-34)

• Was imprisoned and beheaded for his faith. (See Matthew 14, Mark 6 & Luke 9)

Summary:

If John the Baptist lived today, you’d likely see him dressed in leather, riding a Harley through the desert with bugs in his teeth and his long hair blowing in the wind. (A real ‘holy roller’!) Survivalist Bear Grylls would want him as a guest on his TV show, Running Wild with Bear Grylls. Although he didn’t look like the typical preacher, there was such an anointing on John the Baptist that the sound of his voice and the look in his eyes could penetrate a person’s heart. His message was so powerful that it drew thousands of people out into the desert to hear him! He was fearless; daring even to call out kings and religious leaders for their sins. And although he was extremely popular, when the time came, he humbly bowed out of the spotlight and pointed people to Jesus. In life and in death, John the Baptist unashamedly laid it all on the line for God.

All-Star Impact:

If you could meet John the Baptist, what sin(s) would you confess and repent of?

Which of John’s strengths do you need the most – courage, humility, or holiness? Why?

What spiritual action step are you going to take to make that strength a reality?

God wants to make a spiritual all-star out of YOU! “You were…created to be like God, truly righteous and holy.” Ephesians 4:24 (GWT)