Luke 3:16

16 But John intervened: "I'm baptizing you here in the river. The main character in this drama, to whom I'm a mere stagehand, will ignite the kingdom life, a fire, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out.

Luke 3:16 In-Context

14 Soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He told them, "No shakedowns, no blackmail - and be content with your rations."
15 The interest of the people by now was building. They were all beginning to wonder, "Could this John be the Messiah?"
16 But John intervened: "I'm baptizing you here in the river. The main character in this drama, to whom I'm a mere stagehand, will ignite the kingdom life, a fire, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out.
17 He's going to clean house - make a clean sweep of your lives. He'll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he'll put out with the trash to be burned."
18 There was a lot more of this - words that gave strength to the people, words that put heart in them. The Message!
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.