Sermon Tone Analysis

Passage

Introduction

Main Idea: Christ is worthy of witness because He is the light who gives life to them who did not know Him.

Question: Why should we share the gospel?

This is a question that I believe hasn’t been asked enough.

Even by us who emphasize the gospel as a daily necessity.

The question of why should we share the gospel immediately asks deeper question.

Question: Do we share the gospel?

Do you share the gospel?

Do you share the gospel because of wanting to see people come to Christ?

Do you share the gospel because it is commanded?

As we live in a post Christian culture we are seeing that evangelism and discipleship have become foreign categories or they have mistakenly become replaced with comfortable approaches to evangelism and discipleship.

These aren’t wrong if the answer was yes.

But there can be a problem when we think in terms of what is foundational.

I believe this is a result of lacking true witness to the gospel.

Many do not commit to actual biblical witnessing because they have not been convinced.

There can be no conviction without being convinced.

In our text today John, the writer of this gospel, was fully convinced that Jesus was God from the very beginning.

And the purpose of him writing this gospel is found in

We will see in our text today why we should witness which is the purpose of every Christian and every church.

We will see in our text today why we should witness which is the purpose of every Christian.

We may not all be evangelist but we all must do the work of an evangelist!

Outline

Outline

1.

The witness of Christ (v.6-8)

2. The light of Christ (v.9-11)

3. The work of Christ (v.12-13)

1.

The witness of Christ (v.6-8)

Verse 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

4. John the Baptist, of the priestly order, his father, Zacharias, being a priest of the course of Abia or Abijah (1 Chron.

24:10), and his mother, Elisabeth, being a daughter of Aaron (Luke 1:5).

His birth was foretold by an angel sent from God, and is related at length in the first chapter of Luke’s Gospel.

It preceded by six months that of our Lord.

John was ordained to be a Nazarite from his birth (Luke 1:15).

He dwelt by himself in the wild and thinly-peopled region westward of the Dead Sea; his dress was that of the old prophets, a garment woven of camel’s hair (2 Kings 1:8), attached to the body by a leathern girdle; his food was such as the desert afforded, locusts (Lev.

11:22) and wild honey (Ps.

81:16).

And when he came forth to begin his wonderful work as the herald of the Christ he attracted universal attention and awakened the profoundest interest.

His foreannounced birth, his hard, ascetic life, his reputation for extraordinary sanctity, and the widely prevalent expectation that some great one was about to appear, sufficiently account for the multitudes that thronged to him from “Jerusalem and all Judæa, and all the region round about Jordan” (Matt.

3:5).

He preached the doctrine and administered the baptism of repentance, whilst bearing the clearest testimony to the superiority of that baptism, accompanied with the gift of the Holy Spirit, which our Lord afterward ordained (Matt.

3:11, 12).

When he baptized our Lord he noted the remarkable attestations of the Messiah—the symbolical descent of the Holy Spirit and the recognition from heaven of the divine Son (Matt.

3:16, 17)—and he inferred therefrom that his work and mission were accomplished.

Such, indeed, proved to be the fact.

In daring disregard of the divine laws, Herod Antipas had taken to himself Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip; and when John, with a noble fidelity to truth, reproved him for this and other sins (Luke 3:19), Herod cast him into prison.

The place of his confinement was the castle of Machærus, a fortress on the eastern shore of the Dead Sea.

At this castle a court-festival was kept in honor of Herod’s birthday.

After supper Salome, the daughter of Herodias, came in and danced before the company, and by her grace of manner and beauty of person so charmed Herod that he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she should ask.

Salome, prompted by her vicious and vindictive mother, demanded the head of John the Baptist.

Herod gave the order to an officer of his guard, who went immediately to the prison-vault where John was confined, and soon returned bearing on a large dish the ghastly face and head of the murdered man.

His death is supposed to have occurred just before the third passover in the course of our Lord’s ministry, A.D. 28.

His life is marked throughout with the characteristic graces of self-denial, humility, and holy courage.

Upon him our Lord pronounces the noblest eulogy ever pronounced on man (Luke 7:28).

Here it is speaking of John the Baptist.

John’s father, Zacharias comes from a priestly order.

And his mother from the lineage of Aaron.

John the Baptist

, of the priestly order, his father, Zacharias, being a priest of the course of Abia or Abijah (), and his mother, Elisabeth, being a daughter of Aaron ().

His birth was foretold by an angel.

We see this in the first chapter of Luke’s Gospel.

It preceded the birth of Christ by six months.

His birth was foretold by an angel.

We see this in the first chapter of Luke’s Gospel.

It preceded the birth of Christ by six months.

John was ordained to be a Nazarite from his birth ().

He lived by himself in the wild region west of the Dead Sea and He dressed like the old prophets.

He wore garments made of camel’s hair.

He dressed like the old prophets.

He wore garments made of camel’s hair.

He lived in the wilderness where he ate locusts and wild honey.

He was the forerunner of Christ where he announced of the One coming who was greater than he.

Meaning that he was sent by God to prepare the way which was prophesied about.

He would baptize with a baptism of repentance in preparation for the Lord’s appearance.

In Jesus said of John that “among those born of women none is greater than John.”

None were greater because he would witness Jesus and he would be the forerunner preparing the way for him!

Luke 7:

attached to the body by a leathern girdle; his food was such as the desert afforded, locusts () and wild honey ().

ocusts () and wild honey ().

He dressed like the old prophets, a garment woven of camel’s hair (), attached to the body by a leathern girdle; his food was such as the desert afforded, locusts () and wild honey ().

And when he came forth to begin his wonderful work as the herald of the Christ he attracted universal attention and awakened the profoundest interest.

His foreannounced birth, his hard, ascetic life, his reputation for extraordinary sanctity, and the widely prevalent expectation that some great one was about to appear, sufficiently account for the multitudes that thronged to him from “Jerusalem and all Judæa, and all the region round about Jordan” ().

He preached the doctrine and administered the baptism of repentance, whilst bearing the clearest testimony to the superiority of that baptism, accompanied with the gift of the Holy Spirit, which our Lord afterward ordained (, ).

When he baptized our Lord he noted the remarkable attestations of the Messiah—the symbolical descent of the Holy Spirit and the recognition from heaven of the divine Son (, )—and he inferred therefrom that his work and mission were accomplished.

Such, indeed, proved to be the fact.

In daring disregard of the divine laws, Herod Antipas had taken to himself Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip; and when John, with a noble fidelity to truth, reproved him for this and other sins (), Herod cast him into prison.

The place of his confinement was the castle of Machærus, a fortress on the eastern shore of the Dead Sea.

At this castle a court-festival was kept in honor of Herod’s birthday.

After supper Salome, the daughter of Herodias, came in and danced before the company, and by her grace of manner and beauty of person so charmed Herod that he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she should ask.

Salome, prompted by her vicious and vindictive mother, demanded the head of John the Baptist.

Herod gave the order to an officer of his guard, who went immediately to the prison-vault where John was confined, and soon returned bearing on a large dish the ghastly face and head of the murdered man.

His death is supposed to have occurred just before the third passover in the course of our Lord’s ministry, A.D. 28.

His life is marked throughout with the characteristic graces of self-denial, humility, and holy courage.

Upon him our Lord pronounces the noblest eulogy ever pronounced on man ().

2. (116) Now, some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod’s army came from God, and that very justly, as a punishment of what he did against John, that was called the Baptist; (117) for Herod slew him, who was a good man, and commanded the Jews to exercise virtue, both as to righteousness towards one another, and piety towards God, and so to come to baptism; for that the washing [with water] would be acceptable to him, if they made use of it, not in order to the putting away [or the remission] of some sins [only], but for the purification of the body; supposing still that the soul was thoroughly purified beforehand by righteousness.

(118) Now, when [many] others came in crowds about him, for they were greatly moved [or pleased] by hearing his words, Herod, who feared lest the great influence John had over the people might put it into his power and inclination to raise a rebellion (for they seemed ready to do anything he should advise), thought it best, by putting him to death, to prevent any mischief he might cause, and not bring himself into difficulties, by sparing a man who might make him repent of it when it should be too late.

(119) Accordingly he was sent a prisoner, out of Herod’s suspicious temper, to Macherus, the castle I before mentioned, and was there put to death.

Now the Jews had an opinion that the destruction of this army was sent as a punishment upon Herod, and a mark of God’s displeasure against him.