John the Baptist preaches against the “Brood of vipers”.

Matthew 3:7-12

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” Matthew 3:7

The heart of the Pharisees and Sadducees were being guided by their spiritual corruption and the desire to please the Roman government more than pleasing God. They had no intention of repenting, confessing their sins, and being baptized by John the Baptist. The Pharisees and Sadducees feared losing their power and authority, given to them by the Romans, if they allowed John the Baptist to continue growing His ministry. John’s ministry was attracting multitudes to repent of their sins and at the same time drawing them away from the oppressive corruption of the Jewish leaders. The reason the chief priests plotted to kill Jesus is the same reason they came to spy on John, “If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.” John 11:48

That sounds like the church leaders of today that have partnered with the community culture instead of living for God through Jesus Christ. The church leaders fear losing the standing of the church if they lift up the Cross of Christ. In their spiritual corruption and partnership with worldly values, they serve the culture of the beast as they embrace the beast that gives them what to say, do, think, and feel. They welcome the image of the beast that is given breath/life to speak by speaking and living through them. By what they are given to say and do, they are conformed to the mark, name, number of the beast.

John very plainly said to the Pharisees and Sadducees, for all the people to hear who came to be baptized and cleansed of their sin, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” Small venomous vipers were common in the desert/wilderness. They were known for being stealthy with a deadly bite and were a symbol of deceit, danger, and hostility. That was the description of the hearts of the Pharisees and Sadducees because they were living in the sin of lust for power, authority, envy, oppression, and murder. John knew that they hadn’t come to give up their sinful ways and to live righteously in the eyes of God. That is why he said, “Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”

John was living by the Scriptures of the Old Testament because the New Testament hadn’t been written yet. The Pharisees and Sadducees were reading the same Scriptures as John, but they didn’t believe what they were reading, the sin of their heart wouldn’t allow them to see the Scriptures as John saw them. John saw the judgment to come for spiritual corruption, and the Pharisee and Sadducees couldn’t see how that applied to them. John was living by the Spirit of God, the Pharisees and Sadducees were living by the carnal nature of the flesh, “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” 1 Corinthians 2:14

There is a brood of vipers that congregate in the fallen churches of today. They have the same Bible to read that every born-again believer has. However, their hearts are hardened to the message of the Cross where Jesus Christ gave His life to cleanse us from sin and to give us a heart that embraces the Holy Spirit. They do not believe in God, they reject Jesus Christ, and they oppose the presence of the Holy Spirit. They have no idea of the wrath of God’s judgment that is coming to them on this earth and beyond the grave. If they were asked, “Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”, the answer wouldn’t be a born-again testimony!

“Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.” Matthew 3:8-9

God did indeed raise up children to Abraham, from stones, through Jesus Christ. We can think of those stones as being all the people whom the Israelites called Gentiles because they did not have the Scriptures. The Israelites were the only ones in the whole world that had the Ten Commandments, the laws for the animal sacrifices to atone for sin, and other such commandments. For centuries and centuries, the word of God did not enter into the hearts of anyone who were not part of the Jewish culture. In that sense, the Gentiles were stones without hope of ever being acknowledged as part of the family God.

From the stone of the Gentile heart, children of God were raised up as the children of Abraham through Jesus Christ. “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Galatians 3:29 That is what our Lord Jesus came to do when He gave His life on the Cross, to make anyone a child of God by faith in Him. That is the power of the Cross, to reach into heart of any person, by the forgiveness of sin, and cause a fellowship to happen with the Spirit of God. We have fellowship with Him through the Holy Spirit and that makes us His children. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:12-13

How can we know if we have the Holy Spirit? If we do not speak against Jesus and say that He is Lord then we have the Holy Spirit, “Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 12:3

The Kingdom of God has been taken away from the Jewish culture because they do not show the fruits worthy of repentance. The Kingdom has been given to everyone who lives by faith in Jesus Christ, “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.” Matthew 21:43 What are the fruits of repentance? Foremost of all, the fruits of repentance include belief in God the Creator, acknowledging Jesus as the Christ, our Lord, and Savior of the world, and as we welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit. The fruit of the Holy Spirit follow the fruit of repentance.

“And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” Matthew 3:10

The ax was laid to the root of the tree of the Jewish culture, even during the ministry of John the Baptist. Multitudes of people were coming to be baptized by John, for the repentance of sins, to flee the corruption and oppression of the Jewish leaders. The Jewish leaders saw their influence over the people starting to slip away. The wickedness of their spiritually corrupt heart was not able to maintain control of the desire of the people for righteousness.

After the atonement for sin that Jesus made for us on the Cross, after He was resurrected and ascended into heaven, the Holy Spirit was poured out upon all who believe in Him. Jesus reached into the heart of the people by the forgiveness of sin and gave the Holy Sirit. By that combination of forgiveness of sins and the presence of the Holy Spirit, the way of Christ rapidly grew to global proportions, leaving the unbelieving Jewish culture with nothing more than a remnant upon the face of the earth. “See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you will see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’” Matthew 23:38-39

We know them by their fruit, and that speaks of those of today’s culture, which is global. They live by the power of darkness and do not have the fruit of repentance anywhere within their heart of sin. Instead of believing in God through Jesus Christ so that they can live by the Holy Spirit, they serve the beast that gives them what to say do, think, and feel. They will be cut down and thrown into the fire of Hell after their judgment beyond the grave.

Even today, the ax is laid to the tree of the culture of the beast, which is global. Global warming is in the world and is the Fourth Plague of Revelations 16:8-9. Global warming plays a role in plunging the power center of the beast into darkness in the Fifth Plague of Revelations 16:10–11. At that time, the “tree” will be laid to the ground as the government the beast and its global culture are rendered powerless. That ushers in the Battle of Armageddon of Revelations 16:12-16., which sends the “tree” into the fire and ends this present world system of the beast.

“I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” Matthew 3:11

The one Who came after John the Baptist is the Christ and Son of God whose name is Jesus. If the Pharisees and Sadducees thought that John the Baptist’s ministry was something to be threatened by, they hadn’t seen nothing yet. Jesus would come in the power of the Spirit of God, and His following would be spectacularly larger than even John’s and would eventually reach all seven continents around the world.

Jesus baptizes with the Holy Spirit as we are freed from sin and the Spirit reaches into the heart and mind of anyone who believes in Him. That born-again experience is more powerful than anything external to us, including baptism with water. Have you been baptized in the Holy Spirit since you believed? If you are not speaking against Jesus and say that He is Lord, then you have the Holy Spirit, “Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 12:3

“His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” Matthew 3:12

Everyone who comes to God through Jesus Christ are the “wheat” that are gathered into the “barn” of the eternal New Jerusalem. Everyone who thinks that the sacrifice that Jesus made on the Cross to atone for sin is not for them, they are missing out on a life-changing experience and refusing to let the Holy Spirit be part of who they are. They are the chaff that will burn up with unquenchable fire.

Today, we can recognize the “chaff” as being those who welcome the image of the beast that is given breath/life to speak by speaking and living through them. They are being conformed to the mark, name, number of the beast by what they are given to say and do, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself will also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.” Revelations 14:9-11

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.
I am coming soon. 
Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.’”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:1