Prince of Peace: Ambassador of Peace: John the Baptist
God’s people are waiting for the promised Prince of Peace — the King who would finally set them free from their enemies. Through the final Old Testament prophet, God tells them about a messenger who would usher in the coming King.
Malachi 3:1 | “Look! I am sending my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger of the covenant, whom you look for so eagerly, is surely coming,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
The Promised King will be in the temple after the messenger prepares the way before Him. Last week we saw God’s people rebuild the temple to get ready for the King’s arrival.
But then, there was silence. For over 400 years, God’s people didn’t hear from Him. But the here’s the thing about silence— when its broken, everyone notices!
God breaks His silence by sending an angel to Zechariah, a Jewish priest who had served Him faithfully (Luke 1:6). But his first proclamation isn’t about the birth of the Prince of Peace. Instead, it's about the messenger who would prepare God’s people. Why is this messenger so important? Because it has been centuries since God’s people have heard Him speak. They need to be reminded of the coming Savior so they recognize Him at His arrival. This messenger would be an ambassador of peace who heralded the Good News of salvation to everyone he could.
The Bible tells us that Zechariah and Elizabeth-
Luke 1:7 | …had no children because Elizabeth was unable to conceive, and they were both very old.
Fulfilling the prophecy of Malachi 4:5-6, the angel tells Zechariah—
Luke 1:13b-14 | Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John. You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord.
God really knows how to get everyone’s attention! The miraculous birth of John would not go unnoticed, which was a good thing since he would have such an important job to do—
Luke 1:16-17 | And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.”
John would get people ready for the Prince of Peace. After 400 years of waiting, He would remind God’s people of the importance of following Him. As an ambassador of peace—
Luke 3:3 | John went from place to place on both sides of the Jordan River, preaching that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven.
John drew many to the Prince of Peace. Just like John, God has chosen His followers to be current day ambassadors of peace.
2nd Corinthians 5:17-21 | This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
If you have peace with God because of Jesus (the Prince of Peace), be an ambassador of peace, just like John, who shares the message of salvation with everyone you can.
An ambassador represents whoever sent them. Who does an ambassador of peace represent? What is their message?
Why did God send an Ambassador of Peace before Jesus’ birth?
What did John do to share the message of peace? (Luke 3:3)
What can you learn from John’s example?