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John the Baptist
Jesus cousin is John the Baptist. So now we are introduced to John the Baptist. You can read the account of his birth in Luke 1:5-39 if you like. It is quite interesting. John and Jesus were cousins, second cousins I believe is how it works outbecausetheir mothers, Mary and Elizabeth, were 1st cousins. In verse 15 we have another one of those statements about Jesus always being with God because John was actually born six to nine months before Jesus:
15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, "This is the one I spoke about when I said, He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'")
Verses 16 thru 18
16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given.17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God andis in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
This is simply John the Baptist announcing that God is visiting our planet in the form of His son. The Jews of that day looked to Moses, his writings and the Law (10 commandments, etc.) for knowing how to live for God but now John is saying that the 10 commandments do nothing but show us that we can't live without sinning. I'll give you a second to count how many of the commandments you have broken or you could just say most of them so we can move along. All the commandments did was prove to them that we all sin and can't live the perfect life God requires. John the Baptist is introducing them to THE only way out of this mess, this awful sin nature that we all have.
Verses 19 thru 28
19 Now this was John's testimony when the Jewish leadersin Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was.20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, "I am not the Messiah."21 They asked him, "Then who are you? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" He answered, "No."22 Finally they said, "Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"23 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.'"24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent25 questioned him, "Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?"26 "I baptize withwater," John replied, "but among you stands one you do not know.27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie."28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Now we begin to see for the first time the jealousy and spiritual blindness that would eventually lead to the death of Jesus on the cross. The Jewish leaders were a cross between lawyers, judges, pastors, and local government. They were by far the most powerful citizens in Israel and enjoyed a very good living. They were greatly respected by the people. But then thiswild man (John the Baptist)living in the desert starts preaching around the Jordan River and people begin to flock to him. His message was very different than what the Jewish leaders had spent their lives teaching. They were fearful and jealous and weren't there to learn from him but to try and shut him up.John the Baptist quotes Isaiah, a prophet that wrote about 600 years before Jesus. Isaiah is talking about John the Baptist:
Isaiah 40:3- A voice of one calling:
"In the desert prepare
the way for the LORD;
make straight in the wilderness
a highway for our God.
Maybe the most important lesson in verses 19 thru 26 is the attitude of John the Baptist. It is a good lesson for all Christians but especially for those that are pastors, teachers or worship leaders. This is not a blanket endorsement of Rick Warren, a man I do admire but he expressed this lesson being modeled by John the Baptist very well on the first page of his famous book,The PurposeDriven Lifewhen he said:
IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU!!
I'm not yelling. Really I'm not but it doesn't matter how gifted you are if your gift is not being used to further Jesus' teaching and pointing to His glory in some way. Here John the Baptist is becoming quite famous and gathering many followers and baptizing many new converts but he refuses to take any credit by giving all glory and credit to Jesus.
