April 3 - John's Testimony

April 3 – John’s Testimony

Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”

They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.”

Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’ ” 

Now the Pharisees who had been sent questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”

This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

One of the things that strikes me about this passage is that the learned and scholarly people of Jesus’ time were in such anticipation of the coming Messiah that they were looking for Him everywhere!  There was an expectation of His arrival and they recognized the signs, though they didn’t recognize the truth.

Our culture has become so cynical that we no longer have an expectation of great things; we no longer anticipate the arrival of the Divine in our midst.  The first thing we assume (and generally rightly so) is that when a person announces He has been sent by God, He is obviously a nut.

The first thing the Pharisees wanted to know about John was if He was … the Messiah (Christ) … Elijah … or the Prophet.

The question regarding the Prophet may come from their knowledge of Deuteronomy 18:15 when Moses said, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.”

This discussion between John and the Pharisees illuminates the desperate need for transformation within the people of Israel.  The Messiah, Elijah and a reflection of Moses all signified important moments for change in God’s relationship to His people. 

John wasn’t to be the instrument of change, but He was there to as the precursor.  He brought a ministry of repentance.  “I baptize you with water for repentance” (Matthew 3:11).  He announced the coming of the Messiah who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matthew 3:12). 

Change was coming for the people of Israel … the Pharisees sensed it as John tried to prepare them for it. 

Do you sense change coming?