Discover the incredible story of John the Baptist’s early life—from his miraculous birth to his time in the wilderness, preparing the way for Jesus!
Join Polo, Maurice, and Priscilla as they explore this dramatic Bible story, following the authentic biblical account.
Perfect for all ages!
POLO: There lived an elderly couple who had no children, but then an angel appeared to him when he was working in the temple as a priest.
PRISCILLA: Wow, that’s not normal.
POLO: The angel told him to not be afraid, that their prayer had been answered, that his wife would give birth to a son, and they must name him John.
MAURICE: Ah, I assume that’s John the Baptist.
POLO: The angel continued to say that they would have great joy because of John, and many people would rejoice at his birth, for he would become great before the Lord. Also, he was told that John must not drink wine and that he would be filled with the Holy Spirit, and he would turn many people back to the Lord their God, and he would prepare the way for the Messiah to come.
PRISCILLA: Awesome! How did John the Baptist get on with that?
POLO: Well, we will continue with the story. As a young man, John the Baptist lived in the desert, and he ate locusts. Ugh, crunch, crunch, ugh, and wild honey. Mmm. His clothes were made from camel’s hair, scratch, scratch, itchy. He also had a leather belt around his waist, and he looked quite wild. Then, when he was about thirty years old, God told him:
GOD: Go to the River Jordan. These words from the book of Isaiah are about you. “You are the voice of one crying in the wilderness. Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways. and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”
MAURICE: I guess the picture of valleys and mountains was referring to people being proud, like a mountain, and they would be brought down and humbled.
PRISCILLA: Oh, yes. Or others would be in a poor, low place, like a valley, and God would raise them up and help them.
POLO: Yes. So, John the Baptist started preaching to the crowd who had gone to find him. He told them to turn back to God. Then, when they had turned to God, John would baptise them by dunking them in the river, or by pouring some water over them. This was a symbol of them being clean before God.
PRISCILLA: Oh, I like that picture of being washed. I like water anyway.
POLO: Are you ready for what comes next?
PRISCILLA: What? Are you going to shock us?
Link to PodBean Podcast.