Preparing His Way (John 1:19-28)

John the Baptist is a herald and his main job is to announce the one who is coming. But who is he preparing the way for? Why is the coming one important?

As we will see through John’s message, the King is coming and John is here to announce that. The people of Israel are finally going to see the promised King and they ought to respond appropriately in worship and praise.

(A) John's Identity: The prophet of the Most High who prepares the way for the Lord (John 1:19-23)

The passage immediately jumps to talk about what John did(John 1:19), and we will need to look at the other gospels to understand things about his birth and background. 

Luke wrote about John’s parents (Luke 1:5-7). He was borne of Zechariah and Elizabeth. They were both Levites and Zechariah was a priest. Luke wrote that they were righteous before God, yet, had no child and they were already advanced in years. Zechariah and Elizabeth were a similar type to some of the OT characters.

Luke also detailed the circumstances surrounding John’s birth (Luke 1:11-17). The angel spoke to Zechariah, and told him that his prayer has been heard. His wife will give birth to a son and Gabriel goes on to detail what John can and cannot do. The angel also said that John will be filled with the Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children (Luke 1:17) and will be used for wonderful things. Thus, we see that John was born with a mission and distinct calling. He will turn the hearts of Israel back to the Lord. 

John also had a distinct dressing and diet (Luke 1:80, Matt 3:4-6). And true to what God told Zechariah through Gabriel, the child grew and became strong in Spirit. He also had a unique commission (Luke 1:76-79, Matt 3:2). John will be called the “prophet of the Most High” and will go before the Lord to prepare his ways. He is here to give knowledge of salvation to the peoples and to call them to repentance for the forgiveness of their sins. 

John came to show people the Light that shines on those who sit in darkness. John’s ministry began with a recognition that sin is real and results in darkness. John ushered the Light that is our Salvation, the Promised One. 

John the Apostle recorded for us an exchange between John the Baptist and priests and Levites. When asked about his identity. John confessed in the negative, that he is not the Christ (John 1:20). We might think that it is a strange response, because he is not really answering the question, nor does he offer any helpful information. In doing so, he is eager to tell the Jewish leaders who he is not. It does not matter who he really is, and it’s more important that they not think that he is the Christ. He did not come to draw attention to himself. He is simply not the Messiah, and that is all they need to know. 

They go on to ask if he is Elijah, to which he denied (John 1:21). This is because of the way he dressed and lived, which is reminiscent of the OT prophet and prophecies. They wonder again if he is the promised Prophet in Deut 18:15-19 and John calmly denies it again. 

Why is this significant and why does the apostle record it for us? John the Baptist did not claim to be more than who he is. He was clear about his role and his mission and sought to do his work. He could have sought to make more of himself, to stroke and ego or to feel good and important, but he did not thing of it. Friends, do we serve out of a need to feel wanted or to feel secure? Do we reach out and serve because of love or are we just desperate to feel needed and love? 

In John 1:23, John identified himself as the fulfilment of the Isaiah promise in Isa 40:3 — the voice of one crying out in the wilderness. It is significant because Scripture is fulfilled after hundreds of years. And, the answer is in keeping with what John has been so clear about — his identity and mission. All he said is that he was a voice that pointed to the one who is to come!. John did not see the need to trump up his prophetic credentials. How instructive for us in this LinkedIn world! His answer is relative to the coming of the Lord. He is so wrapped up with the coming Messiah that if you removed God, who would John be? 

This is also a clear picture of humility of the servant of the Lord. He is clear about his role — to talk about the Messiah and nothing else matters. 

If you were to compare yourself to this character, how would our service and how we see ourselves in relation to God, others and our mission compare to John’s?

(B) John's Message: Christ is coming — repent and be baptised for the forgiveness of sin! (John 1:24-28)

What do we learn of the men who questioned John (John 1:19,22,24-25). These were priests and Levites sent by the Pharisees that he also called brood of vipers (c.f. Matt 3:7). They were not random passerbys but came with an intention to find out what John was doing to critique his actions. They met him with suspicion and insecurity because they took John’s ministry to mean that he was infringing on their turf. 

After 400 years of silence and waiting, these men responded to the good news with such hard hearts. They questioned and doubted the word of John. How are we responding to the message and good news of God? Do we respond with gratitude and in joy or do we have hard hearts?  

John pointed to the King who is coming after him (John 1:26-28). John recognised that this King is a great one, whose sandals he is not worthy to untie. John in his ministry, also called the people to bear fruit in keeping with repentance (c.f. Matt 3:8-11). In Luke 1:17, 3:3, we also read of how John called people to repent and baptised as a mark of this repentance. John the Baptist had one consistent message: Repent! 

This is the same message for us today. We too, are called to respond in obedience and repentance, unlike the suspicion of the Pharisees. We are to be honest about our sins and turn to God in repentance and faith! This too, is the message of Christmas. Christ our King has come and will come again. In His first coming, he came to die for our sins. Today, if we believe that He has died for our sins, our sins are forgiven and we can look forward to His coming again, because we are His and have been baptised into His holiness. What a sweet message this is! This is a better message than the festivities and feels that surround our streets around this time of the year. It is more lasting, more eternal that whatever our world offers. 

In John 3:22-36, we read of a discussion that arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification. His disciples compared John’s ministry with Jesus’ ministry, and said that people were turning to Jesus. John replied that “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). What a response! What does this mean practically for us? It reminds us that we do not get jealous at the fruit in someone else’s group or church. We are happy for them and their ministry, because it means that the gospel is growing. We rejoice for Christ’s name is glorified. Perhaps this will also be freeing for us as we minister, because we won’t be worried about anything apart from the name of Christ. 

John was always clear that his work was not about himself. He was always preparing the way for the One to come. Once again, in John 3:31-36, John’s message is clear — repent and be saved. He is the Light that shines into the darkness and He is the light that has come! We are saved because of Him. How will we respond to Him? As we approach Christmas in the coming weeks, what would it look like to worship God rightly as our King and Most High?