Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist. Here we see that in the midst of God's people the Elijah ministry was a very important ministry, for it had been prophesied that this Elijah would come again. There was an expectancy within their midst that Elijah would return to the earth again. But the Bible tells us that John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah. In other words, before the fullness of the Christ was revealed, it was God's high purpose to cause this Elijah ministry to appear once again in the earth.
History has a peculiar way of repeating itself.
God, down through the generations, has caused a repetition of mighty ministries to come forth in the midst of His people. When Jesus was born, He came not merely to be an example, but He came that there might be a demonstration of the fullness of God on earth, and His great forerunner was in the form of the ministry of Elijah. Here Jesus was referring to something that was fulfilled in their day, and He was pointing down through the centuries to something that would be fulfilled in a future day, when there would be a repetition of this ministry of Elijah in the end time-in the hour of consummation. He was pointing to the time when once again the ministry of Elijah would come forth in the earth. The ministry of Elijah was a restoration ministry, and it had many peculiarities that were not peculiar to the other ministries that God had revealed.