Matthew 3:4

Based on Victor Porton's sermon

A short sermon about John the Baptist.

Matthew chapter 3, verse 4.

“And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.”

The first impression of John manners is that he was deliberately poor.

But I think, there was a deeper reason for this John’s lifestyle: I think, he was a survivalist. His lifestyle rather than being just deliberate poverty, was disconnection from urban supply chain. If the urban life crashes, John would still have food.

Despite him being a great prophet, he didn’t predict his death from Herod, and his survivalism was in vain.

But survivalism adds scores in a spiritual image, doesn’t it? Another reason, why John would choose deliberate poverty may be showing an example that even having financial opportunities (and he clearly had, because he was famous) one can refrain to spend much resources to leave more to real poor people.