I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

--Parallel verses:
‭‭Acts‬ ‭2‬:‭1‬-‭4‬
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭24‬:‭1‬-‭5‬
The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters. Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior.

Having a pure heart is important in this life. This speaks to a collection of components — motives, thoughts, speech, and actions — that are holy and righteous. This holy and righteous standard is not judged by any man or church, but by God.

John was calling out the heart purity of the Pharisees. They outwardly tried to look good and made impressive speeches, giving off the appearance of holiness; but they lacked a heart to repent of their sins and be humble in the sight of God and man. And so he warns them here that Jesus will come in power and truth and he will judge the fruit of their faith. As he harvests souls for eternity, he will keep those that are righteous and pure, uncorrupted by the world. And he will cast off those souls to eternal death that are proud and full of sin.

The Psalms passage here tells us what is required to commune or dwell with a holy God — clean hands, a pure heart, and steadfast devotion to him, and him alone, as Lord. It is a pursuit that is challenging and hard at times, but brings confidence and joy to the follower. And we become like God when we seek him. Not a god, but in tangible ways people see Jesus through us and feel his love and power through his Spirit inside our hearts.

And I like the beginning of this statement by John the Baptist, as well. He compares his power and ministry to Jesus’, saying there is no comparison. It would be like a time traveler from the 1980s coming to your home and finding an old Atari video game system. And you see them and tell them, “That is nothing, wait until you see the Nintendo Switch!”

The Atari had poor graphics and the outline of the space ship was there in Space Invaders, but it was a mere placeholder for your imagination. With the Nintendo Switch, you can see and almost experience it. And then you give them a VR headset …!

And so it was with John and Jesus. John was a reflection of, and outline maybe, of the message and ministry of Jesus. Once Jesus came, people were going to be blown away. And this still happens with those who decide to follow Jesus today. When they experience the Holy Spirit inside their hearts, it is a level of living and connection to God never previously imagined.

Lord, please fill me with your truth and help me to see the wonder of your ways. May you Word penetrate into the deepest parts of my heart and purify me to be a holy vessel or tool in your hand.