Those who think that God will always be benign to everybody do not understand the gospel.  Salvation is only necessary because of God's wrath against sin.  His wrath will consume us all unless we repent of sin and shelter under the Saviour (see www.crosscheck.org.uk).  John's comment about the axe being already at the root of the trees refers to judgement, because the Saviour is also the Judge.  If there was no coming judgement, we would not need a Saviour: and if God has provided a Saviour, it is because we need to be saved from that judgement.  So, salvation and judgement are the opposite sides of the same coin.

As people teemed towards John for baptism, he had to teach them the meaning of repentance and the signs of a real change of heart.  Faith is good but without evidence of lifestyle change, it is worthless (James 2:17).  So the crowds ask John for practical examples.  The first is about selfishness, which is close to the root of sin; the personal obsession to get one’s own way and keep possessions for self.  John said that if you have two of anything and another person does not have even the bare necessities of life, it is right to share.

Some have interpreted this as allowing believers the right to demand what they want from other people.  That was not what John intended.  He wanted repentance to include freewill giving, not to impoverish the giver but to enrich the poor.  Not to make the poor greedy but grateful.  That kind of giving reflects the grace of God in giving Himself for the life of the world.  It is a physical demonstration of denying self, taking up our cross and following Jesus (Luke 9:23).

Interestingly, many new Christians, when asked what attracted them to Jesus, will point to believers who live authentic lives.  Lives which match the way they speak, spontaneously giving what was needed to help the unbeliever.  Of course, this is not to say that the Gospel is preached by good deeds alone (they are the simple living parables of a Christ-transformed heart).  Without a clear explanation of the sacrifice of Christ, sacrificial giving by believers will only reinforce the religious myth that says, ‘If you do good things you will get to heaven’.  The truth is much more wonderful: if you receive salvation through repentance and by faith, then you are sure of going to heaven ... and so you can freely give in the Name of your Saviour.  Try living like that today, and see the difference it makes at work!