John Series Part 5
John 1:19-28
Jesus the Messiah, the Lord: The Second Witness of John the Baptist, 1:19–28
(1:19–28) Introduction: the witness of John the Baptist is a dynamic example for every servant of God.
1. John was questioned by religionists who were suspicious of Him: they asked, “Who are you?” (v.19).
2. He was a man who knew who he was (vv.20–22).
3. He was only a voice—only a forerunner for the Lord (v.23–24).
4. He was a baptizer (vv.25–26).
5. He was an unworthy servant of this One, the Messiah (v.27).
6. He was a man who brought honor to a place (v.28).
1 (1:19) John the Baptist: John was questioned by the religionists who were very suspicious of him. These particular religionists were a fact-finding commission sent from Jerusalem, the headquarters of Jewish religion. The questioning of John by the religionists was to be expected, for John’s father, Zechariah, was a priest (Lu. 1:5); and in the eyes of the authorities, all the sons of priests were automatically priests by descent. However, John was not a priest like other priests. He was most unusual, for the way he lived and preached was radically different (see Mt. 3:1–12). He was a nonconformist, and the authorities had to find out why.
Thought 1. Too often institutional religion is suspicious and opposed to the unusual.
? If a person is different or does things differently, he is questioned.
? If a person is unusually blessed or if miraculous things are happening in his life and ministry, he is questioned.
DEEPER STUDY # 1
(1:19) Levites: these men were servants of the priests. They were descendants of Levi just as the descendants of Aaron were. However, only Aaron’s descendants could serve as priests; all other Levites served under them.
2 (1:20–22) Minister—Humility: the messenger was a man who knew who he was. Others had questions about John, but not John. He knew exactly who he was. He knew God personally; therefore, he knew God had sent him into the world for a specific ministry. He was from God, called and commissioned by God; therefore, He knew exactly who he was and what he was doing (see DEEPER STUDY # 1—Jn. 1:6. Also see outline and notes—Jn. 1:6–8 for more discussion.)
a. John was not the Messiah (see DEEPER STUDY # 2, Christ—Jn. 1:20).
b. John was not Elijah. Elijah was expected to return from the dead to proclaim the coming of the Messiah (Mal. 4:5). He was expected to do several significant things: to warn the people, to anoint the Messiah to His kingly office, to raise the dead, and to help select those who were to have a part in the Messiah’s kingdom. John denied that he was Elijah in person. It should be noted that Jesus did later identify John with Elijah (Mk. 9:11f); however, what Jesus meant was that John was Elijah in spirit, not in person.
c. John was not “that prophet.” This prophet was thought to be another forerunner of the Messiah (Jn. 7:40). Some persons thought he would be either Jeremiah or Isaiah. This belief was based on Moses’ prediction that there would be a prophet like unto himself (De. 18:15). However, today most Christians interpret the prophet predicted by Moses to be Christ Himself (Ac. 3:22; 7:37).
Thought 1. The lessons are clear. The servant (minister or layman) of God must not …
• claim to be the Christ nor any other great prophet
• pretend to be some great man of God
• seek recognition
• assume some honor that does not belong to him
• allow God’s power upon his life and ministry to turn his head toward pride, thinking more highly of himself than he should
“And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the LORD, which am but dust and ashes” (Ge. 18:27).
“I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast showed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands” (Ge. 32:10).
“And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Ex. 3:11).
“And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue” (Ex. 4:10).
“Then went king David in, and sat before the Lord, and he said, Who am I, O Lord God? and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?” (2 S. 7:18).
“And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in” (1 K. 3:7).
“The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed” (Mt. 8:8).
“For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God” (1 Co. 15:9).
“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief” (1 Ti. 1:15).
DEEPER STUDY # 2
(1:20) Christ—Messiah: the words Christ (Christos) and Messiah are the same word. Messiah is the Hebrew word and Christ is the Greek word. Both words refer to the same person and mean the same thing: the anointed one. The Messiah is the anointed one of God. Matthew said Jesus “is called Christ” (Mt. 1:16); that is, He is recognized as the anointed one of God, the Messiah Himself.
In the day of Jesus Christ, people feverishly panted for the coming of the long-promised Messiah. The weight of life was harsh, hard, and impoverished. Under the Romans, people felt that God could not wait much longer to fulfill His promise. Such longings for deliverance left the people gullible. Many arose who claimed to be the Messiah and led the gullible followers into rebellion against the Roman state. The insurrectionist Barabbas, who was set free in the place of Jesus at Jesus’ trial, is an example (Mk. 15:6f). (See note—Mt. 1:1; DEEPER STUDY #2—3:11; notes 11:1–6; 11:2–3; DEEPER STUDY #1—11:5; DEEPER STUDY #2—11:6; DEEPER STUDY #1—12:16; notes 22:42; Lu. 7:21–23.)
The Messiah was thought to be several things.
1. Nationally, He was to be the leader from David’s line who would free the Jewish state and establish it as an independent nation, leading it to be the greatest nation the world had ever known.
2. Militarily, He was to be a great military leader who would lead Jewish armies victoriously over all the world.
3. Religiously, He was to be a supernatural figure straight from God who would bring righteousness over all the earth.
4. Personally, He was to be the One who would bring peace to the whole world.
Jesus Christ accepted the title of Messiah on three different occasions (Mt. 16:17; Mk. 14:61; Jn. 4:26). The name Jesus shows Him to be man. The name Christ shows Him to be God’s anointed, God’s very own Son. Christ is Jesus’ official title. It identifies Him officially as Prophet (De. 18:15–19), Priest (Ps. 110:4), and King (2 S. 7:12–13). These officials were always anointed with oil, a symbol of the Holy Spirit who was to perfectly anoint the Christ, the Messiah (Mt. 3:16; Mk. 1:10–11; Lu. 3:21–22; Jn. 1:32–33).
“He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ” (Jn. 1:41).
“Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph” (Jn. 1:45).
“Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel” (Jn. 1:49).
“The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he” (Jn. 4:25–26).
“And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God” (Jn. 6:69).
“Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world” (Jn. 11:25–27).
“And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” (Ac. 8:36–37).
3 (1:23–24) Jesus Christ, Messiah—John the Baptist, Forerunner: the messenger was only a voice, only a forerunner for the Lord. Why was it necessary for the Messiah to have a forerunner? Why did John have to run ahead of Christ crying, “Prepare. Make straight the way of the Lord”? What kind of preparation needed to be done?
a. The people needed their concept of the Messiah straightened out. Their concept had deteriorated through the years.
1) First, few had ever seen “the seed” promised to Adam and Abraham as referring to the Messiah (see DEEPER STUDY # 1—Ga. 3:8, 16; DEEPER STUDY # 1—Ro. 4:1–25). They interpreted “the seed” as the nation Israel, as all circumcised Jews. “We be Abraham’s seed” they were later to tell Christ (Jn. 8:33). They saw Christ as being “the seed of Abraham” only in the sense that an ordinary Jew was. He was just an ordinary man born through Abraham’s line. Few ever saw the Messiah as “the Seed” in whom all the promises made to Abraham were to be fulfilled.
2) Second, the Jews saw the Messiah primarily as the Son of David. David had liberated and led their nation to its highest peak, so they saw the Messiah as following in David’s footsteps. (See notes—Jn. 1:45; Lu. 3:24–31; Mt. 1:1; DEEPER STUDY # 1—1:18; DEEPER STUDY # 2—3:11; notes—11:1–6; 11:2–3; DEEPER STUDY # 1—12:16; notes—22:42; Lu. 7:21–23). At first, the Jews saw the Messiah as a liberator, One who was going to deliver them from all their enemies and restore their nation to its greatest glory. (Keep in mind how awful the Jews had been treated and persecuted throughout history.) However, as centuries rolled on and they suffered brutal violence after violence, their concept of the Messiah deteriorated into anger.
The Jews saw themselves as the subjects of the Messiah’s salvation (deliverance) and saw all other people (Gentiles) as the subjects of the Messiah’s judgment. The Jews were the ones acceptable to God; all others were unacceptable. Therefore, the Messiah was to come and free Israel, elevating the nation to rule over all the nations of the earth. This, of course, led to two tragic faults. First, the Jews became blind to their own sinful condition and personal need for salvation. Second, the Jews saw salvation as a matter of national heritage and personal rites (being circumcised) and ritual (religious observances). They believed that they were safe because they had been circumcised and their forefathers were godly people.
The forerunner, John the Baptist, had to begin cracking through the crust of these errors. Salvation was not a national thing, not an institutional thing, not even a religious thing. It was not a matter of heritage and rites. It was a personal matter, a spiritual matter of the heart and life. A man had to personally want forgiveness of sins and then repent and be baptized if he wished to be saved. This was to be the message of the Messiah. Therefore, because of the hardness of the people in understanding the personal need for salvation, God had to send a forerunner to begin breaking through the crust of self-righteousness which had become so cemented in the mind of man. (Just how deeply rooted the false concept of the Messiah was can be seen in the enormous struggle the disciples had with it. See note—Mt. 18:1–2.)
b. The people needed their religion straightened out. They had allowed their religion to become formal and institutionalized, that is, just a form of godliness which denied the power thereof (2 Ti. 3:5). So many were going through the motions of religion, its services and rites, yet living as they wished. God and personal righteousness were of little concern. The Messiah was to bring a new message, a message of God’s love—a love so strong that it would proclaim the truth:
? that man is sinful and perishing (Jn. 3:16)
? that man must repent (Mk. 2:17)
? that man must prepare, for the Kingdom of God is at hand (Mt. 4:17)
The message was to be so radical that some preparation of the people was needed before the Messiah appeared on the scene. Therefore, God sent the forerunner, John the Baptist.
c. The world needed to know about the Messiah. As the Son of God, the Messiah would be so different—so pure, so holy, so truthful—that men would not tolerate His presence too long. His proclamation of the truth and salvation would be very, very short. Men would destroy Him. Therefore, men needed to be stirred to a high pitch of excitement when the Messiah arrived. Men needed to be buzzing about with great anticipation and with the glorious news that the Messiah had finally come. People would need to sit up and take notice. They may not respond; they might even react violently, but they needed to be aware of the Messiah’s historical coming and claims to be the Son of God. The forerunner was to arouse and stir the people to expect the Messiah immediately.
Thought 1. The same can be said of men today.
(1) Many need their concept of the Messiah straightened out.
(a) Some have never seen that the promised seed is Christ.
(b) Some still think of themselves as being special to God. They are blind to their sin and need for personal salvation.
(2) Many need their religion straightened out.
(3) Many simply need to hear about the Messiah: they have never heard that He has come.
Thought 2. The messenger of God is only a voice, only a forerunner for the Lord. But he is a voice and a forerunner; therefore, He must speak up for the Lord.
(1) He must be a clear voice proclaiming a clear message.
“For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you” (Mt. 10:20).
“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mk. 16:15).
“Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual” (1 Co. 2:13).
“If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever” (1 Pe. 4:11).
(2) He must be an earnest voice proclaiming the desperate need to prepare and repent.
“And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt. 3:2).
“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord” (Ac. 3:19).
DEEPER STUDY # 3
(1:24) Pharisees: see DEEPER STUDY #3—Ac. 23:8.
4 (1:25–26) Baptism—John the Baptist, Baptism of: the messenger was a baptizer. John was asked why he baptized.
a. His baptism shocked the Jewish nation, for Jews were never baptized. Baptism was only for non-Jewish persons who were converts to the Jewish faith. The Jews considered all Gentiles unclean, so they had to be baptized when they became converts (all males were also circumcised). However, Jews were thought to be clean and acceptable to God no matter how they lived. Why? Because Jews were “of the seed of Abraham,” of his heritage. They were his seed, the people promised to Abraham.
b. The religionists wanted to know if John were the Christ. They believed that when the Christ came He might institute the practice of baptism.
c. The religionists wanted to know if John were a prophet. In theory a true prophet was said to have the right to institute new practices and to change some laws.
John’s baptism was radical, most unusual, a shocking practice. It was a “baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Lu. 3:3). What does this mean? Simply this: when a person wanted God to forgive his sins, the person made the decision to repent, to turn from his sins, and to change his life. Then he was immediately baptized, thereby proclaiming that he was becoming a follower of the Messiah whom John preached (see note—Lu. 3:3 for detailed discussion).
The Old Testament prophets had cried for Israel to wash themselves and to be cleansed of their filthiness. John used water baptism to show that a man was turning from his sins and turning to God, seeking forgiveness of sins.
“Wash you, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil” (Is. 1:16).
“In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness” (Zec. 13:1).
“Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh” (Eze. 36:25–26).
Thought 1. Baptism is critical. The believer is to be baptized, but he is to be baptized because he is truly repenting and sincerely turning to God.
Thought 2. The servant of God is to be a baptizer, a man who proclaims and practices the baptism of repentance in its full meaning.
5 (1:27) Servant—Humility: the messenger of God was an unworthy servant. Two things demonstrated this.
a. John proclaimed and confessed that Jesus was preferred before him (see note—Jn. 1:15).
b. John proclaimed that he was not worthy even to unloose the shoe latchet of Jesus’ sandals. He confessed the nothingness of self. Slaves were the ones who loosed the sandals of guests and washed their feet. John said that he was less than a slave, unworthy to do even what a slave did.
Thought 1. The same confession of unworthiness must be made by every servant of God.
“But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve” (Lu. 22:26).
“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith” (Ro. 12:3).
“Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others” (Ph. 2:3–4).
“He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” (Mi. 6:8).
6 (1:28) John the Baptist—Minister: the messenger was a man who brought honor to a place. John was ministering in Bethabara beyond Jordan, which means it was a great distance from Jerusalem. John brought honor to the place. It would not be known apart from John, for nothing else is known about the city.
Thought 1. A servant of God who is faithful in his witness and ministry (like John) will bring honor to a place. In God’s eyes a place is honored because believers are there (see Ge. 18:16f).
Leadership Ministries Worldwide. (2004). The Gospel according to John
