Chad Coley
The Gospel According to John
The Testimony of John
John 1:19-37
6 December 2020
John the Apostle provides yet another testimony as to the deity of Christ - and that is the testimony of John The Baptist. This was a prophet who was the first in 400 years that Israel had seen since Malachi. The Apostle takes special care to ensure that people understand that there was no competition between John the Baptist and Jesus. Rather, John the Baptist testifies to the superiority of Jesus over him. And he confirms this to those who had been sent by the Jewish leaders: that he is but a forerunner for the Messiah. His role, as mentioned by Isaiah, was to prepare the hearts of Israel for the coming of Messiah... this is how he was preparing the way of the Lord. His ministry was in preparing Israel to meet her Saviour.
He was a voice crying to the Sanhedrin. The messengers of the Pharisees were perplexed and ask John on whose authority he was baptising the people. This was confusing for them because Jews were not the ones who were baptised. Instead, baptism was meant for Gentiles. But John redirects their attention from his baptism to the Messiah. Because He is more worthy. He called for all to recognise their sinfulness and repent.
He was a voice crying to the people. On the next day, John the Baptist shifts his focus from the messengers of the Pharisees to the people. And he testifies again to Jesus being the Messiah. John makes an interesting comment about Jesus existing before him, even though from an earthly standpoint John was the older of the two. He confirms that only Jesus is the exclusive Lamb of God designated to take away the sin of the world. The Old Testament sacrifices pointed towards the final sacrifice of Jesus Christ. There is nothing that His blood cannot cleanse, and only through His blood can we be cleansed.
He was a voice crying for all to follow Jesus. On the third day, we see two disciples with John the Baptist. Most likely there are Andrew and John the Apostle. And this is the third testimony of John the Baptist. He directs the two disciples to follow Jesus and they obey. Once again we see John the Baptist faithfully carrying out his God-appointed role: to testify to the deity of Christ and point people to Him.
He truly prepared the way for the Lord. First to the messengers of the Pharisees, next to the public at large, and then to the disciples. Do we believe in his testimony? Do we believe in Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world? Do we believe in Him for the forgiveness of our own sins?