John 01(19–34)

Introduction

We spent six weeks on the opening of John’s gospel and we could have spent even longer on those opening eighteen verses, because they’re so rich and so full of wonderful things for us to know about God’s Only Begotten Son.

John began by referring to him as the Word, who was with God in the beginning and who was God. That is to say, he is God. But since he was also with God, then that means that there’s more to God than the Word, because there’s the Word and then there’s the one he was with. There’s the Word and we know him as God the Son. And there’s the one he was with and we know him as God the Father.

And John told us that God made all things through the divine Word so that there is nothing that has been made which was not made through him. The divine Word is co-creator with the Father of all things.

And then John told us that in him — in the divine Word — was life. He has all life in himself. And that means that all the life we see in us and around us has come from him.

And he not only gives us life, but he also gives us light. That is to say, he gives the knowledge of God to every single living person. Every single living person knows there’s a God, because the divine Word gives us that light. However, because of the darkness of our sin and unbelief, which is in us because we’re sinners, we don’t see the light. We’re like people who are in bright sunshine, but they don’t notice it because of their dark sunglasses. And so, we don’t see the light which the divine Word displays in the world, because we’re sinners.

But the darkness of our sin and unbelief hasn’t overcome the light or obliterated it, because the divine Word is still shining his light in the world. Moreover, God sent his prophets to his people to reveal himself to them more clearly. And the last of those prophets was John the Baptist, who came to testify to the light by preaching to God’s people.

And then John told us that the light came into the world in a new way. The light came into the world as a person. He came as the Lord Jesus Christ. And he came to his own people, but they did not recognise him. But those who did receive him and who believed in him received the right to become children of God, born not in a physical way, but in a supernatural way. And so, they were able to know God in a new way as their loving, heavenly Father.

And in verse 14 John told us that when the divine Word came as a person, he came in flesh. Without ceasing to be who and what he eternally is, he took to himself a body and soul like ours and became one of us. And so, he is, from that time on, one person with two natures. He is one person: the Only Begotten Son of God the Father. That’s who he is. And from the time of his incarnation, he possesses two natures: the divine nature, which he possesses eternally, and a human nature. Whatever it means to be God, that’s what he is. And whatever it means to be human, that’s what he is also.

And last week we thought about how we have received from his divine fullness grace instead of grace. So, God’s people in Old Testament times received the grace of the old covenant: God graciously chose them to be his people; he graciously gave them his law to show them how to live; and he graciously gave them instructions in the law about what sacrifices to offer him for forgiveness. He graciously gave them all kinds of privileges, which they did not deserve. And it was wonderful. But with the coming of Christ into the world, we have received even more grace from God, because Christ came to offer himself as the once-for-all, perfect sacrifice for sins when he gave up his perfect human life on the cross for us and for our salvation. Instead of having to offer up the same animal sacrifices again and again and again, we now have peace with God because of Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice for sins. And so, the law was good, but the coming of Christ is far, far better.

And the final thing John told us in the opening verses is that no-one has ever seen God, but the only Begotten God, who was in the bosom of God the Father, makes him known. So, the darkness of our sin and unbelief kept us from knowing God. But now God has come in the person of his Son so that we can know him. And whoever knows God through Christ has eternal life.

That’s what the opening verses were about. And now, we’re ready to get into the main body of John’s gospel. And from verse 19 of chapter 1 to verse 22 of chapter 2, we have a week in the life of the Lord Jesus.

Verses 19 to 28 of chapter 1 are Day 1. The Lord Jesus doesn’t actually appear in these verses, but John the Baptist is talking about him.

Verses 29 to 34 are Day 2. John the Baptist is still talking about the Lord Jesus, but on Day 2 he’s able to point to the Lord Jesus, because he’s there too.

Verses 35 to 42 are Days 3 and 4. On that day, John is with two of his disciples, whenever the Lord Jesus walked by. John pointed his disciples to him and they left John and spent the rest of Day 3 with the Lord. On the next day, Andrew, who was one of those two disciples, went and fetched his brother, Peter. So, those are Days 3 and 4.

Day 5 is verses 43 to 51 and on that day the Lord Jesus found Philip and commanded Philip to follow him. And Philip later found Nathaniel and told him about the Lord.

And verse 1 of chapter 2 refers to the third day. That’s the third day after the last event. The Jews counted days differently than us. Therefore, on the third day means two days later. So, two days after Day 5 is Day 7. And on Day 7 there was a wedding in Cana, to which the Lord was invited.

So, it’s one week in the life of the Lord. We don’t know what happened on Day 6, but John tells us what happened on the other days of that week.

And let’s remember that the reason John is telling us all these things about what the Lord said and did is because he wants to convince his readers that Jesus is the Christ, God’s Spirit-Anointed and Conquering King sent to save us. John wants to convince us of that, because by believing in the Lord Jesus, we may have life in his name.

I’m a Celebrity is on TV at this time of year and we’re invited to spend several weeks in the company of various celebrities. It might be entertaining and it passes the time on dark evenings. But that’s all it is. No one is going to receive eternal life from watching celebrities. But John wants us to spend a week in the life of the Lord Jesus, because the way to receive eternal life in the presence of God, where we will be perfectly holy and happy for ever, is by believing in him.

We’re not going to cover the whole week today. All we’re going to focus on is Days 1 and 2. So again, Day 1 is verses 19 to 28 and Day 2 is verses 29 to 34.

Day 1

Let’s think about Day 1 first of all. The Apostle John, who wrote the gospel, has already referred to John the Baptist is the opening verses of the gospel, where he told us that God sent John the Baptist as a witness to testify to the light. If we read the other gospels, we learn that John appeared to the people in the wilderness. His clothes were made from camel’s hair and he wore a leather belt around his waist and he ate locusts and wild honey. There might not be any significance about his diet, but his appearance was reminiscent of the prophet Elijah.

And he preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. In other words, he preached to the people and said that they needed to turn from their sins in repentance and to turn to the Lord for forgiveness. And then he baptised the people in the Jordan River as a sign of God’s willingness to wash away their guilt. And the other gospels tell us that people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to the wilderness to hear John. So, he created quite a stir among the people in those days.

It’s no surprise then to learn in verse 19 that the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem sent a delegation of priests and Levites to find out what they could about John. The priests, of course, were the ones who were chosen by God to serve in the temple and to offer sacrifices to the Lord for the sins of the people. And the Levites helped them. And now, the Jewish authorities sent some of them to John to find out who he is. Who is this man who has caused such a stir among the people and who looks like a prophet and who is preaching and baptising in the wilderness?

Now, the Apostle John doesn’t tell us what their first question to John the Baptist was. But we can guess what it was from the way John answered them in verse 20. Presumably they asked him, ‘Are you the Christ?’ So, they want to know whether he’s God’s Spirit-Anointed and Conquering King sent to save them. From time to time in the Old Testament God revealed that one day he would send them the Christ or the Messiah to save them from their enemies. And in Luke’s gospel, we’re told that the people were filled with expectation and they were wondering in their hearts whether John the Baptist might be the Christ. So, lots of people were already wondering whether John was the Promised Saviour. And this delegation from Jerusalem must have asked him directly whether it was true. Are you the Christ? And we read in verse 20 that John did not fail to confess, but he confessed it freely that he was not the Christ. In other words, he did not hesitate and he did not leave them in any doubt about it. He told them clearly that he was not the Christ.

Then the delegation asked him whether he was Elijah. Now, remember: Elijah did not die, but he was taken up alive to heaven in a fiery chariot. And in the last book of the Old Testament — the book of Malachi — God announced to his people that he would send his people the prophet Elijah before the Day of the Lord. The Day of the Lord was the day when God himself will come to save his people. And before that day comes, the Lord will send Elijah to prepare for his coming. So, if John the Baptist is not the Christ, then perhaps he’s Elijah. Perhaps God has sent him to prepare the people from the great Day of the Lord. But, according to verse 21, John denied it.

Elsewhere in the gospels, the Lord Jesus says that John is Elijah. That is to say, John performs the work of Elijah, which is to prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. However, it’s perhaps a sign of John’s humility that the thought did not even cross his mind that God had sent him to perform the work of Elijah. John’s humility prevented him from having such big thoughts about himself. In fact, as we’ll see in a moment, he sees himself as nothing more than a voice. He’s not a big prophet. He’s only a voice, crying in the wilderness.

So, if he’s not the Christ and if he’s not Elijah, is he the Prophet? And they’re asking about ‘the Prophet’ because way back in Deuteronomy 18, God promised to raise up for his people a prophet like Moses. It says that God will put his words in the Prophet’s mouth and the Prophet will tell the people everything God has commanded him to speak. And so, the people were expecting this great Prophet to appear. Was John that Prophet? And again John denied it.

They can’t go back to Jerusalem with three nos. They need an answer from John. And so, they press him: ‘Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?’ And John answers them by quoting from the prophet Isaiah: ‘I am the voice of one calling in the desert, “Make straight the way of the Lord.”‘

He’s quoting from Isaiah 40. And the image in the background to this verse is how people in the ancient world would make a highway in the desert whenever they knew the king was coming. Normally they didn’t bother too much with making roads, but when they knew the king was coming, they would build a straight and level road for the king and his retinue. And in Isaiah 40, the Lord was telling the people in those days to get ready for him, because he was coming to rescue them from their exile in Babylon. He was going to rescue them from their Babylonian captivity and bring them back to the Promised Land. But the way to prepare for the coming of the Lord was not really to build a road. The way to prepare for the coming of the Lord was to turn from their sins in repentance. Turn from their false gods and turn from their disobedience and turn to the Lord who was coming to save them from Babylon.

That’s what the verse meant originally. But now John the Baptist takes that verse from Isaiah which was originally about the exile and he applies it to himself and to how God has sent him to prepare the people for the coming of the Lord Jesus. So, he’s a voice and he’s in the wilderness around the River Jordan and he’s calling on the people to repent, because the Lord is coming.

And then we discover in verse 24 that there were also, among the priests and Levites, some Pharisees. And they wanted to know why John was baptising the people since he’s not the Christ or Elijah nor the Prophet. They’re really asking him who gave him the authority to baptise people. Who said you should do this?

And his reply is interesting, isn’t it? He doesn’t really answer their question. Instead he turns their attention away from himself and towards the one who was coming after him. So, they want to know about John. And John is trying to make them see that he’s not really very important. So, don’t spend all your time thinking about me. Focus on the one who is to come after me. Among you, he says, stands one you don’t know, but he’s the one who comes after me and I am not worthy to untie his sandals. He’s referring, of course, to the Lord Jesus. And he’s saying that the Lord Jesus possesses dignity and honour and majesty. The Lord Jesus is glorious. And John is nothing. He’s not even worthy to be the Lord’s slave.

And why does the Lord Jesus possess dignity and honour and majesty? Why is he glorious? Go back to verse 23 where John quotes from the prophet Isaiah and applies it to himself. Who is John? He’s that voice crying in the wilderness, telling the people to get ready for who? He’s telling them to get ready for the Lord.

We’ve been going through the Nicene Creed on Wednesday evenings and a few weeks ago we were thinking about the line in the Creed where it says that we believe in ‘one Lord Jesus Christ’. And I explained that, in the Old Testament, the title Lord is used for God. In fact, in the Old Testament, when it appears in our English Bibles as LORD in capital letters, it’s not so much a title as a name. It’s God’s special covenant name, which speaks of his commitment to his people and how he has bound himself to his people with a promise to be our God and to care for us. And throughout the Old Testament we learn that the LORD is great and good and that he created the heavens and the earth and that he is the Saviour of his people and he’s committed to his people.

So, in the Old Testament the word LORD refers to God. And in the New Testament, the very same word is applied to the Lord Jesus. And that means that everything the Old Testament tells us about the LORD, the God of Israel, applies to the Lord Jesus. He is God. He’s great and he’s good. He is the Creator. He is the Saviour of his people. And he’s committed to his people.

And that’s why John the Baptist said that he was unworthy to untie his sandals. He’s not worthy, because the Lord Jesus is God in the flesh. He is Mighty God, the Most High God. And Mighty God, the Most High God, has come to earth as one of us to save his people from our sin and misery and to give us eternal life in his presence. So, don’t focus on me, says John. Focus your thoughts on him. The Lord Jesus is God!

Day 2

And so, we come to Day 2. And on that day, John the Baptist saw the Lord Jesus coming towards him. And John said — presumably to whoever was standing around him — that there’s the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Everyone in those days was familiar with the idea of lambs and other animals being offered up to God as a sacrifice. And the meaning of the sacrifice was that the lamb was taking the place of the people. The people deserved to die, because the wages of sin is death. But the lamb was killed in place of the people. The lamb was killed so that the people could live.

Or think of the story of Abraham and Isaac. Abraham was about to offer up Isaac as a sacrifice to God, when God stopped him. And God showed him a ram that was caught in a bush. And the ram was killed instead of Isaac. The ram died so that Isaac could live.

Or think of night of the Passover when God’s people were slaves in Egypt. That night God sent his angel through the land of Egypt to strike down the firstborn son in every home. But the Israelites had been told to slaughter a lamb and to paint its blood around the door of their homes. And when the Lord’s angel saw the blood on the door, he passed over those homes and the firstborn sons inside were spared. So, the lambs were killed in place of the first sons. The lambs died so that the sons could live.

And then, of course, there’s the Suffering Servant Song in Isaiah 53 where we read about the one who was led like a lamb to be slaughtered. It’s a song about the one who was killed in our place for our sins. The Suffering Servant died as a lamb so that God’s people could live.

All of those images are in the background to what John says now about the Lord Jesus. He’s saying that the Lord Jesus is the true Lamb of God and all previous references to lambs in the Bible are fulfilled in him. And by saying he’s the Lamb of God, John means he’s the Lamb which God has provided. He is God’s Lamb which God has given for our salvation. But it’s even more than that, isn’t it? The Lamb is not only God’s Lamb, but the Lamb is God. Jesus Christ is God in the flesh and he became flesh like us so that he could suffer death in our place to pay for our sins.

And since he came to take away our sins, then that means that the Lord Jesus is for everyone. There’s not one person anywhere who can say that the Lord Jesus is not for me. He’s for everyone. If he came to save us from poverty, then his coming would be great news for the poor, but he’d have nothing to offer those who are rich. If he came to save us from oppression and injustice, then his coming would be great news for the oppressed and downtrodden, but he’d have nothing to offer those who are free. If he came to save us from ignorance, then his coming would be great news for those who are slow to learn and who are uneducated, but he’d have nothing to offer those who are smart and educated. But he didn’t come to save us from any of those things. He came to save us from our sins. And since we’re all sinners, since we have all fallen short of doing what is right, then his coming is for everyone.

And he came to take away our sin. Because we’re sinners who sin against God continually, we deserve to be punished with death away from the presence of the Lord, because the wages of sin is death. But he came to take our sin away so that instead of being condemned and punished, which is what we deserve, we receive forgiveness and peace with God and the hope of everlasting life in the presence of God. He took our sin from us and he took it upon himself and he died in our place so that we can live and live for ever.

And John went on to say that the reason John came and baptised the people with water was to prepare them for the coming of the Lord Jesus who is the Lamb of God. And he refers to the time of the Lord’s baptism when the Holy Spirit came down from heaven in the form of a dove and rested on the Lord Jesus.

Now, this is the first time that John has mentioned the Spirit. So, he’s mentioned the divine Word, who is God’s Only Begotten Son. And he’s mentioned the Father and how the Son came from his bosom to make the Father known. And now he refers to the Holy Spirit who is the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. In the words of the Nicene Creed, he is the Lord and Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son and who, with the Father and the Son together, is worshipped and glorified. He is worshipped and glorified with the Father and the Son because he too is God like them. They are not three gods, because there’s only one God. But the one God we worship and glorify is the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

And at the time of the Lord’s baptism, the Holy Spirit came on the Son in a visible way to make clear that he is indeed the Christ, the Spirit-Anointed and Conquering King sent by God the Father to save us. And the Holy Spirit enabled him to be and to do everything necessary to save us from our sin and from the condemnation we deserve because of it. And he now baptises us with his Spirit in the sense that he pours his Spirit into our hearts to enable us to turn from our sin in heartfelt repentance and to turn with faith to the only Saviour of the world.

Conclusion

And so, you have the Father, who sent the Son into the world and who also sent the Spirit onto the Son. And you have the Son who came into the world as one of us. And you have the Spirit, who came on the Son to equip him for the work. And so, all three persons of the Trinity worked inseparably to accomplish our salvation.

This is our God. As I said this morning, he has all life in himself as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. But he does not keep that life to himself, because out of the fullness of his life, he not only gave us life in this world, but he works inseparably as Father, Son and Spirit to give us eternal life in the world to come.

And he is the eternally blessed God. That is, he is the eternally happy God. And he does not keep his happiness to himself, because he works inseparably as Father, Son and Spirit to give us everlasting happiness in his presence.

And he gives us this life and happiness freely. It’s his free gift to us which we receive by faith. It’s his free gift to us which we receive freely by faith, but at the cost of his Son’s human life, who gave up for our salvation. This is our God who worked inseparably to save us and at such a great cost. And every day we should turn away from our sins and we should turn to him for mercy. And having received his mercy, we should give thanks to him for his kindness to us. And with grateful obedience, we should live our lives for him.