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In our text, Jesus is speaking to the crowd about John the Baptist. Jesus unveiled who John the Baptist was and his mission on earth. John was a reed man who lived in the wilderness. The word reed is used figuratively in this sentence.

John was not a weak fellow who was affected by any wind of opinion (Eph 4:14; James 1:6). On the contrary, he was a very bold man who had no fear. He knew he was on mission, so he didn’t allow the things of this world to distract him. John was a special prophet because he was prophesied in the Old Testament (V. 10; Mal 3:1). Special because he came to prepare the way for the Son of God (Matt 3:3, 11–12).  He was special because he was better than all the other prophets who came before him (v. 11). Verse 12 explains the environment in which John ministered. It was not a peaceful environment. It is in this same kind of violent environment that Jesus will proclaim the message of the kingdom. The violent take it by force seems to mean that despite the hostility and violence, the kingdom is marching forward, and no one can stop it.

Those who know that they are on mission will not allow their environment to distract them. Christians are pilgrims here on earth; they should not allow the pleasures of this world to distract them from their assignments.

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