Mar. 22, 2026

Saints & Sinners

John The Baptist – Cleansing Water

March 21 & 22, 2026 

Primary Text: John 1:24-28           

1)  Water Baptism

John 1:24-28:  Now some Pharisees who had been sent questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”  “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know.  He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”  This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.  

DQ 1) What was the nature of John’s water baptism?

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2)  Ceremonial Cleansing 

Leviticus 14:1-3, 9:  The Lord said to Moses, “These are the regulations for the diseased person at the time of his ceremonial cleansing, when he is brought to the priest: The priest is to go outside the camp and examine him….  On the seventh day he must shave off all his hair; he must shave his head, his beard, his eyebrows and the rest of his hair.  He must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water, and he will be clean.”  

DQ 2) What was ceremonial cleansing according to the Mosaic Law?

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3)  The Scapegoat

Leviticus 16:20-26:  “When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat.  He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head.  He shall send the goat away into the desert in the care of a man appointed for the task.  The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a solitary place; and the man shall release it in the desert.  Then Aaron is to go into the Tent of Meeting and take off the linen garments he put on before he entered the Most Holy Place, and he is to leave them there.  He shall bathe himself with water in a holy place and put on his regular garments….  The man who releases the goat as a scapegoat must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may come into the camp.”  

DQ 3) On what day was the Scapegoat released… what was its purpose?

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4)  The Red Heifer

Numbers 19:1-10:  The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: “This is a requirement of the law that the Lord has commanded: Tell the Israelites to bring you a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke.  Give it to Eleazar the priest; it is to be taken outside the camp and slaughtered in his presence.  Then Eleazar the priest is to take some of its blood on his finger and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the Tent of Meeting.  While he watches, the heifer is to be burned—its hide, flesh, blood and offal.  The priest is to take some cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet wool and throw them onto the burning heifer.  After that, the priest must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water.  He may then come into the camp, but he will be ceremonially unclean till evening.  The man who burns it must also wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he too will be unclean till evening.  A man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place outside the camp.  They shall be kept by the Israelite community for use in the water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin.  The man who gathers up the ashes of the heifer must also wash his clothes, and he too will be unclean till evening.  This will be a lasting ordinance both for the Israelites and for the aliens living among them.”

Hebrews 9:11-14:  When Christ came as high priest….  He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.  The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean.  How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!  

DQ 4) Why is a “Red Heifer” often mentioned today in connection to the Jewish temple?

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5)  John’s Baptism

Matthew 3:1-6:  In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”  This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’”  John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist.  His food was locusts and wild honey.  People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan.  Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.  

DQ 5) How was John’s baptism different from Old Testament ritual cleansing?

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