Knowing The Word in Luke 1:80

John the Baptist Grows Up

1:80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

Comments

This is all the description we get of John’s life from birth until around age 30. That he grew and became strong in spirit is similar to Luke’s description of Jesus. Luke shows parallels in the lives of these two cousins. John grew up secluded, it appears, in the wilderness, the traditional place of prophets.

The Essenes lived in the wilderness away from Jerusalem in communities such as Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. Remember that John’s parents were old when he was born and may have died when John was very young. The Essenes brought up other people’s children for them. Perhaps John lived in an Essene community as an orphan. When John appeared as an adult, his ascetic lifestyle was closer to the Essenes than to any other group of Jews living in his day. It would also help explain why he did not recognize Jesus when Jesus came to be baptized by him.

Application

There are different threads of Christian spiritual practices. Contemplative is one thread. Contemplative Christians like to spend time with God in quiet seclusion, even though others may be with them. They focus on being in the presence of God. Spend some time this weekend in quiet with God. It may be that one minute is all you can do, or perhaps you can spend an hour, but give it a try and see what happens.

Prayer

Lord, I come quietly into your presence. Help me to be quiet and to know that you are God.