John 1, Part 2

Testimony of John the Baptist

John 1:19–28 ESV

19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” 22 So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” 24 (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.) 25 They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 John answered them, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, 27 even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” 28 These things took place in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

1:19 When news reached Jerusalem that a man named John was telling the nation to repent because the Messiah was coming, the Jews sent a committee of priests and Levites to find out who this was. The priests were those who carried on the important services in the temple, while the Levites were servants who attended to common duties there. “Who are you?” they asked. “Are you the long-awaited Messiah?”

Bible Study Questions John the Baptist Denies Being the Christ—John 1:19–28

Who did the Jews think John was? (1:20–21)

1:20 Other men might have seized this opportunity for fame by claiming to be the Christ. But John was a faithful witness. His testimony was that he was not the Christ (the Messiah).

1:21, 22 The Jews expected Elijah to return to the earth prior to the coming of Christ (Mal. 4:5). So they reasoned that if John was not the Messiah, then perhaps he was Elijah. But John assured them that he was not. In Deuteronomy 18:15, Moses had said, “The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear.” The Jews remembered this prediction and thought that John might be the Prophet mentioned by Moses. But again John said that it was not so. The delegation would have been embarrassed to go back to Jerusalem without a definite answer, and so they asked John for a statement as to who he was.

Bible Study Questions John the Baptist Denies Being the Christ—John 1:19–28

What did John say about who he was? (1:20–22)

1:23 He said, “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness.’ ” In answer to their query, the Baptist quoted from Isaiah 40:3, where it was prophesied that a forerunner would appear to announce the coming of Christ. In other words, John stated that he was the forerunner who was predicted. He was the voice, and Israel was the wilderness. Because of their sin and departure from God, the people had become dry and barren, like a desert. John spoke of himself simply as a voice. He did not pose as a great man to be praised and admired, but as a voice—not to be seen, but only to be heard. John was the voice but Christ was the Word. The word needs a voice to make it known and the voice is of no value without a word. The Word is infinitely greater than the voice but it can be our privilege, too, to be a voice for Him.

John’s message was, “Make straight the way of the LORD.” In other words, “The Messiah is coming. Remove everything in your life that would hinder you from receiving Him. Repent of your sins, so that He can come and reign over you as the King of Israel.”

1:24, 25 The Pharisees formed a strict sect of the Jews who prided themselves on their superior knowledge of the law and on their efforts to carry out the most minute details of the instructions of the OT. Actually, many of them were hypocrites who tried to appear religious but who lived very sinful lives. They wanted to know what authority John had for baptizing if he was not one of the important persons they named.

Bible Study Questions John the Baptist Denies Being the Christ—John 1:19–28

Why did the Pharisees care that John was baptizing people? (1:24)

1:26, 27 “I baptize with water,” said John. He did not want anyone to think that he was important. His task was simply to prepare men for Christ. Whenever his hearers repented of their sins, he baptized them in water as an outward symbol of their inward change. “There stands One among you, whom you do not know,” John continued, referring, of course, to Jesus. The Pharisees did not recognize Him as the long looked-for Messiah. In effect John was saying to the Pharisees, “Do not think of me as a great man. The One you should be paying attention to is the Lord Jesus; yet you do not know who He really is.” He is the One who is worthy. He came after John the Baptist, yet He deserves all the praise and preeminence. It was the duty of a slave or servant to untie his master’s sandals. But John did not consider himself worthy to perform such a humble, lowly service for Christ.

1:28 The exact location of Bethabara (or Bethany, NKJV margin), is not known. But we do know that it was a place on the east side of the Jordan River. If we accept the reading Bethany, it cannot be the Bethany near Jerusalem.

Acknowledging the Lamb of God

John 1:29–34 ESV

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

1:29 The next day after the visit of the Pharisees from Jerusalem, John looked up and saw Jesus coming toward him. In the thrill and excitement of that moment, he cried out, “Behold! The Lamb of God who bears the sin of the world!” The lamb was a sacrificial animal among the Jews. God had taught His chosen people to slay a lamb and to sprinkle its blood as a sacrifice. The lamb was killed as a substitute and its blood shed so that sins might be forgiven.

However, the blood of the lambs slain during the OT period did not put away sin. Those lambs were pictures or types, pointing forward to the fact that God would one day provide a Lamb who would actually take away the sin. All down through the years, godly Jews had waited for the coming of this Lamb. Now at last the time had come, and John the Baptist triumphantly announced the arrival of the true Lamb of God.

When he said that Jesus bears the sin of the world, he did not mean that everyone’s sins are therefore forgiven. The death of Christ was great enough in value to pay for the sins of the whole world, but only those sinners who receive the Lord Jesus as Savior are forgiven.

J. C. Jones points out that this verse sets forth the excellency of the Christian atonement:

1. It excels in the NATURE of the victim. Whereas the sacrifices of Judaism were irrational lambs, the sacrifice of Christianity is the Lamb of God.

2. It excels in the EFFICACY of the work. Whereas the sacrifices of Judaism only brought sin to remembrance every year, the sacrifice of Christianity took sin away. “He put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.”

3. It excels in the SCOPE of its operation. Whereas the Jewish sacrifices were intended for the benefit of one nation only, the sacrifice of Christianity is intended for all nations; “it takes away the sin of the world.”

Bible Study Questions Jesus the Lamb of God—John 1:29–34

*Why did John call Jesus the Lamb of God? (1:29)

1:30, 31 John never grew weary of reminding people that he was only preparing the way for Someone greater than himself who was coming. Jesus was greater than John to the same extent that God is greater than man. John was born a few months before Jesus, but Jesus had existed from all eternity. When John said, “I did not know Him,” he did not necessarily mean that he had never seen Him before.

Since they were cousins, it is probable that John and Jesus were well acquainted. But John had not recognized his Cousin as being the Messiah until the time of His baptism. John’s mission was to prepare the way of the Lord, and then to point Him out to the people of Israel when He appeared. It was for this reason that John baptized people in water—to prepare them for the coming of Christ. It was not for the purpose of attracting disciples to himself.

Bible Study Questions Jesus the Lamb of God—John 1:29–34

*What did John mean that Jesus surpassed him because He was before him? (1:30)

1:32 The reference here was to the time John baptized Jesus in the Jordan. After the Lord went up out of the water, the Spirit of God descended like a dove and remained upon Him (cf. Matt. 3:16). The writer goes on to explain the meaning of this.

1:33 God had revealed to John that the Messiah was coming and that when He came, the Spirit would descend upon Him and stay on Him. Therefore, when this happened to Jesus, John realized that this was the One who would baptize with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a Person, one of the three Persons in the Godhead. He is equal with God the Father and God the Son.

Whereas John baptized with water, Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. The baptism with the Holy Spirit took place on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:5; 2:4, 38). At that time, the Holy Spirit came down from heaven to dwell in the body of every believer and also to make each believer a member of the church, the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13).

Bible Study Questions Jesus the Lamb of God—John 1:29–34

Why did the Spirit come down upon Jesus? (1:33)

1:34 On the basis of what he saw at the baptism of Jesus, John testified positively to the fact that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God who was foretold as coming into the world. When John said that Christ was the Son of God, he meant that He was God the Son.