Ch01_05_Sermon_John the Baptist， the forerunner of the gospel (Mark 1:1–2)

First, John the Baptist is the messenger whom God sent in order to entrust him with the duties of the high priest. The New Testament says, “Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You” (Mark 1:2). Dear fellow believers, the Bible must be read very carefully. It must be read carefully. Why did God send His messenger John the Baptist before each one of us, before you and me (Matthew 11:10–11)? Why did that John the Baptist come six months before Jesus Christ came to this earth? It was to play the role of a servant, and the other thing is that he came to carry out the duties of the high priest. He came in order to fulfill the duties of Aaron the high priest, in order to pass all the sin of the world on to Jesus. Six months before Jesus was conceived by the virgin Mary, John the Baptist was conceived by Elizabeth, a descendant of the family of Aaron, the high priest of the Old Testament. The division of Aaron the high priest refers to the order of the priests who offered sacrifices. In the Old Testament, the sons of Aaron the high priest could all work as priests according to the division of Aaron. Aaron carried out the office of high priest for the nation of Israel. And God gave his sons and his descendants the privilege of being able to carry out the office of high priest. Let us look at the word of 1 Chronicles. “Now these are the divisions of the sons of Aaron. The sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. And Nadab and Abihu died before their father, and had no children; therefore Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests. Then David with Zadok of the sons of Eleazar, and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, divided them according to the schedule of their service. There were more leaders found of the sons of Eleazar than of the sons of Ithamar, and thus they were divided. Among the sons of Eleazar were sixteen heads of their fathers’ houses, and eight heads of their fathers’ houses among the sons of Ithamar. Thus they were divided by lot, one group as another, for there were officials of the sanctuary and officials of the house of God, from the sons of Eleazar and from the sons of Ithamar. And the scribe, Shemaiah the son of Nethanel, one of the Levites, wrote them down before the king, the leaders, Zadok the priest, Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the priests and Levites, one father’s house taken for Eleazar and one for Ithamar. Now the first lot fell to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah, the third to Harim, the fourth to Seorim, the fifth to Malchijah, the sixth to Mijamin, the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah, the ninth to Jeshua, the tenth to Shecaniah, the eleventh to Eliashib, the twelfth to Jakim, the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab, the fifteenth to Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer, the seventeenth to Hezir, the eighteenth to Happizzez, the nineteenth to Pethahiah, the twentieth to Jehezekel, the twenty-first to Jachin, the twenty-second to Gamul, the twenty-third to Delaiah, the twenty-fourth to Maaziah. This was the schedule of their service for coming into the house of the LORD according to their ordinance by the hand of Aaron their father, as the LORD God of Israel had commanded him” (1 Chronicles 24:1–19). He had the sons of Aaron perform the priestly office in place of their father. Let us look at the word of Leviticus. “‘This shall be a statute forever for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who dwells among you. For on that day the priest shall make atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. And the priest, who is anointed and consecrated to minister as priest in his father’s place, shall make atonement, and put on the linen clothes, the holy garments; then he shall make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tabernacle of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel, for all their sins, once a year.’ And he did as the LORD commanded Moses” (Leviticus 16:29–34). We must know that God entrusted the office of high priest to the descendants of Aaron forever, according to the division of Aaron the high priest. That the descendants of Aaron carry out the office of high priest was a law established by God that never changes forever. For the atonement of the people of Israel, God had the sacrifice of atonement offered every year on the tenth day of the seventh month, and He had Aaron the high priest offer it.

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