What John the Baptist Would Tell You to Do

A question that runs through the whole Bible

"What should we do?" "What must I do?" These questions come up again and again in the New Testament. They were asked of John the Baptist, of Jesus, of Peter on the day of Pentecost, of Philip by the Ethiopian official. They were asked by crowds and by individuals. And most of these questions (not all, but most), were asked about salvation and eternal life.

Our starting text is Luke 3:2-14. That year, God gave his message to John, son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. John went through the whole region around the Jordan. He called people to be baptized to show they were changing their lives so they could receive forgiveness for their sins. And it's there, on the banks of the Jordan, that three very different groups come and ask him exactly the same question.

What's striking is that the answers aren't necessarily the same. Each one calls for a spiritual commitment, but also a practical one. John the Baptist's answers, like Jesus' later on, adapt to the person asking. They are not identical for everyone.

Outline of the teaching

1. The crowd by the Jordan: share with the needy

The first question is asked by the crowd, in verse 10. John the Baptist answers: "He who has two coats, let him give to him who has none. He who has food, let him do likewise."

This answer is meant as a general rule, valid for everyone. Here we're in the realm of social life, of sharing, of loving your neighbor. In fact, John the Baptist is picking up the teachings of the Old Testament.

In Deuteronomy 15:11, it says: "For the poor will never cease out of the land. Therefore I command you to surely open your hand to your brother, to your needy, and to your poor, in your land." The preacher recalls hearing a politician once quote this verse to claim it only applied to "fellow countrymen." That person should have also read Leviticus 19:33-34: "If a stranger lives as a foreigner with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. The stranger who lives as a foreigner with you shall be to you as the native-born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am Yahweh your God."

We live in a secular country, and it's a shame this kind of text isn't heard more often on the radio or on television. But for you who read the Bible, the rule stays clear: sharing what's necessary (food, clothing, the basics), is the foundation. John the Baptist isn't inviting you to some distant ideal. He's bringing you back to what God has asked all along: open your hand to the one who has nothing.

2. The tax collectors: demand nothing more than what's set

The second group who comes to John the Baptist is the tax collectors. In the Roman Empire, this was the person who collected taxes and tolls, fees on goods moved from one territory to another. Some demanded more from the taxpayer than what was actually owed.

We can guess this from Luke 19 with Zacchaeus. When Zacchaeus stands before Jesus, he says: "Behold, Lord, half of my goods I give to the poor. If I have wrongfully exacted anything of anyone, I restore four times as much."

This is one reason tax collectors were hated. First, they collaborated with the Romans. Second, they were something of thieves. And we can guess it too in John the Baptist's answer to them: "Extort no more than that which is appointed to you."

The answer isn't the same as for the crowd. It targets their profession and their particular temptation. If you hold a position where other people's money passes through your hands (accounting, business, negotiation), John the Baptist points you back to this simple requirement: stay within what's fair, don't take what isn't owed to you.

3. The soldiers: extort no one, be content with your wages

The third group, in verse 14, is the soldiers. They too ask: "What about us? What must we do?" Answer: "Extort from no one by violence, neither accuse anyone wrongfully. Be content with your wages."

The preacher believes these aren't Roman soldiers but rather Herod's soldiers. John the Baptist reminds them they must not use their strength and power to abuse their neighbor. Being content with their wages points to shaking people down and plundering: don't take what you can take just because you have the power to.

Once again, the answer is tailored. To the crowd: share with the needy. To the tax collectors: do their job honestly without skimming off the top. To the soldiers: do their job without abusing power, no extortion. The answers differ according to the people and categories asking the question.

4. The common thread: repentance that shows in actions

Yet there is a thread common to all three answers. That thread is recognizing your condition as a sinner (repentance), and, from there, visible consequences. That's what John says in his letter: "My little children, let's not love in word only, neither with the tongue only, but in deed and truth" (1 John 3:18).

In John the Baptist's ministry, we also see that God rejects no one. Repentance and the forgiveness of sins are offered to everyone. Whatever a person's status, whatever their condition, the door stays open. Luke 7:29-30 confirms this: "When all the people and the tax collectors heard this, they declared God to be just, having been baptized with John's baptism. But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the counsel of God, not being baptized by him themselves."

What's striking in this text: the ones who stay closed off to Jesus are the religious people. And John the Baptist never says "Live like me." He doesn't ask the people who question him to imitate his outward lifestyle. He aims at the inside. That's the whole difference from a teaching built on legalism.

5. The Pharisee and the tax collector: watch what lifts you up

"What must we do?" Some would answer: pray at least two hours a day, fast once or twice a week, memorize a verse a day, give 10% of your income. It's not that these things are bad in themselves. But read Luke 18:11-14.

The Pharisee, standing, prayed like this to himself: "God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men, extortioners, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get." But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."

If you do things you believe are good in order to compare yourself with others, you're on the wrong path. What God looks at first isn't religious performance, it's a heart that recognizes its need for grace.

6. The rich young man: the same question, a more unsettling answer

In Mark 10, the question comes up again, with a striking answer from Jesus, who this time speaks of commandments. From verse 19, Jesus says: "You know the commandments: 'Do not murder,' 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not give false testimony,' 'Do not defraud,' 'Honor your father and mother.'"

Why does Jesus give this list? Because he knows this man. He knows him well, and he knows perfectly well everything this man has already done. The man answers him: "Teacher, I have observed all these things from my youth."

Verse 21: "Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, 'One thing you lack. Go, sell whatever you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me, taking up the cross.' But his face fell at that saying, and he went away sorrowful, for he was one who had great possessions."

Asking a question can bring an unsettling answer. "You lack one thing." That's quite something to hear when you have everything. And it can turn our eyes back to ourselves: what am I lacking? What must I let go of? Not to be saved, but to draw nearer to Jesus.

The story of the rich young man might seem negative, he leaves sorrowful. Yet it's full of hope. From verse 23, Jesus looks around at his disciples and tells them how hard it is for those who have riches to enter the Kingdom of God. This word surprises them. Jesus presses on: "Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter into the Kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God." The disciples wonder: "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looks at them and says: "With men it is impossible, but not with God, for all things are possible with God."

What's interesting is that we don't know what happens next. We don't know what becomes of this rich young man. It's a bit like the parable of the prodigal son, where the older brother grows angry and refuses to go into the house. The father invites him in, but we're never told how he responds. He had three options: go in to please his father, stay in his anger and leave, or come to realize he should be glad his brother had come home. It's also good when the Bible invites us to think through different possibilities.

What's certain is that Jesus loves him. Perhaps you feel that God, at times, asks something of you that unsettles you, something you don't want to do. Be sure of one thing: Jesus loves you, and he wants what's best for you.

7. John 6 and Micah 6: the heart of the answer

In John 6:28-29, the crowd asks Jesus: "What must we do, that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answers: "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent."

This answer sums up the heart of the gospel. The first thing God asks for is faith in his Son. And from that faith flows a transformed life. That's what John the Baptist, Peter, Paul, and all the other apostles teach. "What must I do?" always receives an answer that joins faith and a life that bears its fruit.

To close, Micah 6:6-8: "How shall I come before Yahweh, and bow myself before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will Yahweh be pleased with thousands of rams? With tens of thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my disobedience? The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" Then comes the answer: "He has shown you, O man, what is good. What does Yahweh require of you, but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"

This is a remarkable passage because it already announces what John the Baptist, Jesus, and the apostles will teach. Walking humbly with God, practicing justice, loving mercy. The New Testament doesn't set aside Micah's moral demands. The fulfillment of these demands finds its source in faith in Jesus Christ, and in the work of the Holy Spirit.

So the same question runs through the whole Bible: how do we answer God? The New Testament's answer shows us that it's through fulfillment in Jesus Christ. Amen.

Key takeaways

• The same question, different answers. John the Baptist doesn't tell the crowd, the tax collectors, and the soldiers the same thing. Concrete repentance takes a different shape depending on your place, your work, and your particular temptations.
• Repentance shows in action. Loving in word isn't enough. John the Baptist, like 1 John 3:18, asks for visible fruit: sharing, being fair, not abusing your power.
• No one is rejected in advance. Forgiveness is offered to all, crowds, tax collectors, soldiers, the rich young man. The only ones who close themselves off are those who already consider themselves in good standing.
• The Pharisee in Luke 18 is a warning. Turning your "good deeds" into a comparison with others is the wrong path.
• The heart of the answer is in John 6:29: believe in the one the Father has sent. From that faith flows fruit, in line with Micah 6:8: act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with God.

Personal application

• If John the Baptist asked you: "What must you do?", what answer would fit your work and your situation right now?
• Is there a "second coat" in your life (a piece of clothing, food, time, a skill), that could be shared this week with someone who has nothing?
• Do you sometimes use your position (work, authority, place in a family), to get "more than what's set"? Where could you simply become fair again?
• Are you leaning more toward the Pharisee's prayer ("I thank you that I'm not like other people") or the tax collector's ("God, be merciful to me, a sinner") these days?
• Like the rich young man, is there one thing Jesus, looking at you with love, would ask you to let go of so you can draw nearer to him?

Verses cited

• Luke 3:2-14 · John the Baptist by the Jordan, a baptism of repentance
• Acts 2:37-38 · "Brothers, what shall we do?" / Repent
• Deuteronomy 15:11 · Open your hand to the poor
• Leviticus 19:33-34 · Treat the foreigner as one of your own
• Luke 19:1-10 · Zacchaeus, the tax collector
• 1 John 3:18 · Love in deed and truth
• Luke 7:29-30 · The people justify God, the religious reject his counsel
• Luke 18:9-14 · The Pharisee and the tax collector
• Mark 10:17-27 · The rich young man
• John 6:28-29 · The work of God is to believe in the one he sent
• Micah 6:6-8 · Act justly, love mercy, walk humbly

FAQ

Why does John the Baptist give each group a different answer?

Because repentance isn't a one-size-fits-all religious template, it takes shape in your actual life. To the crowd, he calls for sharing. To the tax collectors, he targets their particular temptation: taking more than what's fair. To the soldiers, he targets abuse of power. The common rule is recognizing your condition as a sinner; the application changes according to your place in life.

Is doing good works enough to be right with God?

No. Luke 18 shows this: the Pharisee does everything "correctly" (fasting, tithing, praying), but uses it to compare himself with others, and goes home unjustified. The tax collector, on the other hand, recognizes he is a sinner and goes home justified. John 6:29 confirms it: the first work God asks for is belief in Jesus. The fruit comes after, as a consequence of faith.

Do we, like the rich young man, have to sell everything to follow Jesus?

Jesus' answer targets whatever, in this particular man, was taking the place only God should have. For him, it was wealth. For you, it might be something else. The question isn't "must I sell everything?" but "what's holding me back from following Jesus completely?" That's the question Jesus asked while looking at him with love, and it's the one he's still asking you today.