Just a few days after Christmas 2002, a man walked into a Baptist mission hospital in the Middle Eastern country of Yemen. He calmly sat in the waiting room with his pink slip that told security he was a returning patient. He sat patiently and quietly waited there with the other patients. Then at 8:15, he calmly got up and followed Dr. Martha Myers into Bill Koehn’s office. Now, I need to stop for a minute and tell you about Bill Koehn. Bill had been the hospital administrator for 28 years. You think of a hospital administrator and you think of a bigwig. But Bill was really nothing special. He wasn’t a scholar. He wasn’t a preacher. He wasn’t even a doctor. As a matter of fact, 28 years prior, before packing up and moving to Yemen, Bill was a grocery store manager in a small town in Kansas. If you didn’t know him very well, you would think he was backwards. He wasn’t outgoing. He hated to speak in public. If there was a group of people around, you could guarantee that Bill would be off to the side by himself. Bill was one of those types of people that you could meet and never remember. But God called him. Out of the middle of nowhere in Kansas, God called him to work with a Southern Baptist medical mission in Yemen. And he worked there faithfully for 38 years. The title of hospital administrator sounds really important. And it is in hospitals here. But not necessarily in hospitals in third world countries. His main jobs were fixing things that were broken. Pipes, beds, wires—whatever was needed, Bill did. And wherever he went, he witnessed. He witnessed to the patients. He spent his spare time carving out small wooden toys to give to the children on the streets so he could witness to them. He even was so bold as to witness to the Muslim guards at military checkpoints. The soldiers would look in his car and give the Muslim chant, “There is no God but Allah and Mohammed is his prophet.” Bill would look up at them and smile and say, “And Jesus Christ is His Son.” By all accounts, this nobody from nowhere was a true witness for Jesus. It was never about him. It was always about Jesus. Everything he did in his life pointed people to Jesus as the Son of God. On that morning in December of 2002, Dr. Myers and the hospital’s supply manager, Kathy Gariety were meeting with Bill as they regularly did. Sometimes it was for prayer, sometimes it was for business. But it was always with an eye toward being witnesses for Jesus. This time was different. It was different because Al Qaeda operative, Abed Abdul Razek Kamel got up from his seat in the waiting room and followed Dr. Myers into Bill’s office. When he entered, he pulled a pistol and shot and killed the three of them. Bill Koehn, Martha Myers, and Kathy Gariety were 21st century Southern Baptist martyrs. Do you know what the word martyr means? The word martyr is actually taken directly from a Greek word and it means “witness.” It is the same word that is translated “record” in the verse we just read. It’s also translated “record” in verses 32 and 34—“and John bare record”—and John witnessed. The John that we see in our passage this morning is NOT the same John that wrote this book. The John that we see in our passage this morning is the one we refer to as John the Baptist. And John the Baptist was a witness of Jesus. Just like Bill was. For 38 years in the violent, desolate Islamic country of Yemen, Bill was a witness to Jesus Christ. He lived as a witness and he died as a witness. Scripture tells us that even before he was born, John the Baptist was a witness. When Mary was pregnant with Jesus and came to Elizabeth when she was pregnant with John, the Bible says that John leapt in her womb. From before he was born, John the Baptist lived his life as a witness to Christ. And later on in the Gospel of John, we will see that he died as a witness to Christ. We always talk about witnessing and being a witness for Christ. So, what does it take to be a witness? Do you have to take a bunch of classes to learn what to say? Do you have to be a Bible scholar? Do you have to be outgoing and have the personality of a salesman or traveling evangelist? Do you have to have some formula or special training or special materials? No—it doesn’t take any of that. It doesn’t take any of that, but it does take certain characteristics. Characteristics that we see clearly in well-educated people like Dr. Martha Myers. Characteristics that we see clearly in extremely gifted and talented people like Kathy Gariety. Characteristics that we see clearly in plain, ordinary people like Bill Koehn. Characteristics that all those people shared with John the Baptist. Do you want to be the witness that Jesus has called you to be? Then you need to model three characteristics. The first characteristic of a witness of Jesus is that a witness deflects. Look with me at verses 19-28.
JOHN 1:19-28
A witness of Jesus deflects. John the Baptist was one of a kind. The Apostle John doesn’t go too much into the history of who John the Baptist was because the other Gospels, especially Luke covered it very well. And from the other Gospels, we know that John the Baptist was about 6 months older than Jesus. His father was a priest named Zacharias and his mother was a descendent of Aaron named Elizabeth. His conception was miraculous because both Zacharias and Elizabeth were old and beyond childbearing years. When the angel Gabriel told Zacharias that he and Elizabeth were going to have a baby, Zacharias doubted. When he doubted, God took his voice away until John was born. Even while John was in the womb, he recognized Jesus. Mary had just been told that she had conceived of the Holy Spirit when she went off to visit her relative Elizabeth. Nobody knew that Mary was pregnant and nobody would have suspected it since she wasn’t even married yet. But the baby in Elizabeth’s womb knew. And he testified in the only way that an unborn baby can. He jumped and kicked. Then, after John was born, the Scriptures are silent about his early years. The only thing we know is that he grew up and lived in the deserts until he began his ministry. And while he was in the desert, God called him to be a witness. He had a simple message. It certainly wasn’t designed to attract people or tickle their ears. It wasn’t flowery or emotional or sensitive or feel-good. It wasn’t even creative or entertaining. All he preached was, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He preached and he baptized. He baptized as a symbol of repentance. And anytime you talk about repentance, it rubs some people the wrong way. Because some people don’t think they have anything to repent of. The people in our day who don’t think they need repentance are good people. They might even be church going people. They might even be church leaders or teachers or even preachers. In John’s day, they were the priests and Levites. They were the good religious folks. And when John told them to repent, they didn’t like it. So they asked him, “who in the world do you think you are?” Now, take a step back for a minute. Who was John? He was a prophet called by God. He had a miraculous birth. His whole life had been spent in preparation for this moment. He knew the prophesies. He knew what his role was. He knew that he was the object of Biblical prophesy. How tempting it must have been to fire off a list of his qualifications to those who were questioning him. How tempting it must have been to say, “Who am I?!? I’ll tell you who I am!” But he didn’t. Because it wasn’t about him. It wasn’t about his qualifications. It wasn’t about his background or who he was. It was about Jesus. He flatly told them, “I’m not the Christ.” “I’m not Elijah.” “I’m not the Prophet that Moses talked about.” So they asked him again. And you know what he said? He said, “I’m just a voice.” All I am is the one who goes before the King to clear the brush on the road. I’m just a road clearer. I just clean of the right-of-way. In other words, “It’s not about me. Don’t look at me. Look at the One I’m pointing to. Look at the One I’m clearing the way for.” That’s what a true witness does. A witness doesn’t point to their works or their accomplishments. A witness doesn’t point to their qualifications or their personalities. A true witness always deflects. You might have the most phenomenal testimony in the world. But if it doesn’t always deflect to Jesus, it’s not truly witnessing. If a testimony leaves people thinking more about your story than it does about Jesus, it’s not a true witness. A true witness of Jesus deflects from your story to the person and work of Jesus. But not only does a witness deflect, a witness directs. Look at verses 29-34:
JOHN 1:29-34
A witness directs. When I say that a witness deflects, I’m saying that, just like John, we tell people that it’s not about us. On the other hand, when I say that a witness directs, we have to tell people who it’s really about. It’s one thing to deflect attention from ourselves. It’s completely another thing to direct attention to Jesus. That’s what John did. I think this passage loses something in the way we read it. So many times, we read it like John is calmly standing in his camel hair robe. And as he looks peacefully down the shoreline, he says in his best distinguished accent, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” It wasn’t like that. Here was the One he had waited his whole life to point out. Everything he was, everything he had prepared for his whole life was focused on this moment. So, when he saw Jesus—he shouted with joy and excitement. “LOOK! It’s Him! Jesus is the One I’ve been telling you about! I’ve known Him since we were kids, but until this moment, I didn’t know He is the One! IT’S HIM!!! HE’S THE ONE!!! So many times, we live our lives in front of all the lost people we know. And as we live our lives in front of them, they watch us. They might know we’re a Christian because of signs or calendars or posters. We might have even invited them to church a couple of times. So they watch us. But what do they see when things go wrong in your life? What do they see when things go especially well in your life? What do they see when something unexpected happens? What do they see when you face a moral dilemma? Make no mistake about it, they’re watching. What do they see? Do they see Jesus? The other night, the Christian singer Stephen Curtis Chapman and his family were on Larry King Live. I don’t know if you know the story, but a few months ago, their youngest daughter was killed in a tragic accident. As their 16-year old son was pulling into their driveway, the little girl ran out to meet her big brother. He didn’t see her and ran over her. Stephen Curtis Chapman and his wife performed CPR on their baby girl as the Lord took her home to be with Him. What a tragic story. What a heartbreaking story. Imagine what that family must be going through every single day. But every time they were asked about it in the interview, do you know what they did? They directed people to Jesus. It was as if they were standing there with John and saying, “There He is. There is the One who gives me strength. There is the One who gives me peace that passes all understanding.” “I can’t explain it all. I can’t understand it all. But there He is—in it all.” That’s being a witness. We sing the song, “Let others see Jesus in you.” That’s how you let others see Jesus in you. It’s great to invite people to church. Keep doing it. It’s great to give a canned Gospel presentation. Keep doing it. But even more than that, direct people to Jesus with the way you live. When things are great—tell them, “it’s all about Jesus.” When things are awful—tell them, “It’s all about Jesus.” Behold the Lamb of God. It’s HIM! It’s Jesus! It’s the One I’ve been trying to tell you about. Look how He’s sustaining me! Look how He’s my comfort! Look how He’s my rock and my anchor and my supply! Look at HIM! A true witness directs people to Jesus everywhere and in all things. A true witness deflects and directs. A true witness also decreases. Look at verses 35-37:
JOHN 1:35-37
A witness decreases. If John the Baptist were to write a book on church leadership, he wouldn’t sell any. He wouldn’t sell any, because look at his ministry. He didn’t know anything about advertising and image. He wore grubby camel hair clothes with a rough looking leather belt. He ate bugs—that’s certainly not going to attract people. He didn’t know anything about demographics and target marketing. Instead of going where the people were, he purposely went where they weren’t. He avoided the cities and towns and preached in the deserted areas. He didn’t know anything about being seeker sensitive and having a caring ministry. He called out the most prominent people in his congregation and called them a brood of vipers. He did all that and people still kept coming out to hear him. But here’s the part that amazes me. I guess because I see this from a pastor’s perspective. But one thing you love to see is people who are really dedicated. People who are willing to serve. People who take a job and see it through to the end. People who hunger for teaching and then take what they’ve learned and live it out. John had a good core of that type of people. The Bible calls them his disciples. A disciple wasn’t just a fan. He wasn’t just a groupie. He wasn’t even just a student or a follower. A disciple was a person who had dedicated their entire life to a teacher. They followed them everywhere they went. They served the teacher and provided for his basic needs. They completely submitted themselves to the discipline and teaching of their teacher. No matter what the cost. No matter what the sacrifice. We are blessed to have many people in this church who are willing servants. People who are truly dedicated. People who I know that when they step up to do a job that I don’t have to worry about it. The last thing I would want to do is send them away. But that’s exactly what John did. He sent his very best, most dedicated disciples away. Again, he said, “There He is! That’s the One I’ve been telling you about.” And he sent them off to follow Jesus. Think about what that meant. John had a ministry. He had followers. He had a crowd. But what did he say later on in John 3:30? He said, “Jesus must increase, but I must decrease.” How easy it is to take the credit for the things that the Lord does. When the Lord blesses your finances—well, it’s because of all my hard work. When the Lord blesses your family—well, it’s because I raised my kids the right way. When the Lord blesses your marriage—well, it’s because of all the hard work she did to put up with me. Well, that’s true, but that’s not where the credit lies. The credit lies with Jesus. A true witness has the same attitude of John. Don’t follow me. Follow Jesus. Don’t give me credit. Give Jesus credit. It’s His grace. It’s His mercy. It’s His goodness. It’s His love. There He is—follow Him!!!
Who are you following this morning? Are you following me? Are you following your husband or wife? Are you following your parents? Are you following your friends? Are you following your family? Or are you following Jesus? You ARE a witness. No matter what kind of life you’re living, you are a witness. You’re either a good one or a bad one. Which one are you? Do you know how you can tell? You can tell what kind of a witness you are by what you’re pointing to. Are you pointing to you and your comfort and your desires and what makes you happy? Or are you pointing to Jesus? Are you deflecting the focus from you? Are you directing people to Jesus? Are you decreasing so that Jesus might be increased in and through your life? That’s what it takes to be a witness. That’s what it takes to follow Jesus this morning. This morning, I’m standing before you, showing you the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The question is, what are you going to do with Him? This morning you have one more opportunity to follow Him. Don’t waste it. Follow Him today.
