Luke Chapter 3

v.2- "the word of God came to John in the wilderness"
-Interesting how the word of God came to him "in the wilderness". I remember when Dorman was preaching on the book of Numbers, which the title in Hebrew was "in the wilderness", or "in the desert" (bemidbar).
During many times of trouble, pain, or uncertainty, God's word will come to me to encourage me and give me hope despite the circumstances. Hope it does the same for you.

v.3- John preached a very specific message: "a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins".
-This is not to say that you need to be baptized to be saved though, but rather repentance of one's sins, and salvation through Jesus and the forgiveness of sins.

v.4-5 - The words in Isaiah speak of the way, paths, ravines, mountains, hills, and rough roads.
-These words remind me that the path and road to salvation and the Christian walk and journey afterwards is not always smooth and easy. There will be ups and downs, highs and lows, but the end goal in v.6 is "all flesh will see the salvation of God". Embrace and enjoy the journey and walk with Christ.

v.7-9 - John exhorts the people to "bring forth fruits" and to bear "good fruit", lest they be "cut down and thrown into the fire".
-Sounds pretty harsh to me, but there are times when I (we) need to hear the truth so I (we) don't become too complacent and rest on my (our) laurels.

v.10-14 - John gives practical suggestions to the people when they ask him what they should do.
-A lot of times, we ask God what we should we do about this and that. The answers that John offers us some practical suggestions too:
1) Share with others to meet their needs (v.11)
2) Deal honestly at work and have integrity (v.13)
3) Do not use power or authority over others unjustly (v.14)
4) Do not accuse others falsely (v.14)
5) Be content with what you have and are given (v.14)

v.15-18 - John pointed to Jesus as the one people should be looking for and the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.
- We, like John, should be pointing people to Jesus and the gospel (good news), not to gifted individuals.

v.19-20 - John was locked up in prison, for preaching the gospel.
- There are risks and there are people who will be opposed to us and the message we want to share.

v.21-22 - Jesus was baptized, was praying when the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven.
- These verses are often referenced to when one speaks of the trinity. The Holy Spirit is referenced to as a person here.

v.23-38 - Jesus' humanity is revealed in his lineage through the male descendants (David, Abraham, etc.), fulfilling Biblical prophecy.

Blessings and thanks for reading.

-Ying