WHAT IS YOUR TESTIMONY?

Scripture Reading

Open your Bibles to John 1:19-28

John 1:19–28 NASB95

This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” Then they said to him, “Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.” Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. They asked him, and said to him, “Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” John answered them saying, “I baptize in water, but among you stands One whom you do not know. “It is He who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” These things took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

INTRODUCTION

A. Illustration:

Many people are dis-satisfied with the way that God made them, so they undergo all kinds of dangerous and painful procedures in an attempt to undo what their creator has made. They are in a hurry to replicate the image of someone else, rather than to recognize that they are already fearfully and wonderfully made. See Ps. 139:14

Psalm 139:14 NASB95

I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.

B. Context of Text:

John the Baptist had no such problem in accepting who he was. Matthew let’s us in on the fact that John was no ordinary, run of the mill, garden variety kind of guy. He lived in the desert, dressed in camel’s fur, and his diet consisted of locust and wild honey. But, just as he was he proclaimed the message of the coming Messiah. In fact, it was his uniqueness and individuality that caused people to come and question who he was. See Matt 3:4

Matthew 3:4 NASB95

Now John himself had a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.

WHO ARE YOU

I want to suggest this morning that even more than John’s physical appearance, it was the contents of his message that raised the antennas of the religious leaders in Jerusalem. It was “what he was saying” that raised curiosity about “who was saying it.” I got a sneaky suspension that this may be a big part of the reason that many Christians fail to proclaim the message of Jesus Christ and salvation through his name; because they don’t want to have to answer the question “Who are You?”

It may be due to the fact that they have dirty laundry hanging out on the line, or they know that their own slip is hanging and they are not willing or ready to pull it up; It could be that they have skeletons in the closet that still haunt them like a ghost and they are afraid and ashamed to declare the message because they do not want people inquiring of them about their Person, Purpose, and Potentate.

SERMONIC CLAIM

We all have been subpoenaed and summoned to give testimony today. The message that we declare has raised the suspensions of those who oppose it; they have been sent to inquire in who we are; this text is tailored to teach us that should we, like John the Baptist, be called upon to testify about Our Person, Purpose, and Potentate we can respond that we are we are only voices crying in the wilderness.

“I AM NOT” (Vv.19-23a)

See Jn 1:19-23

John 1:19–23 NASB95

This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” Then they said to him, “Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

EXCLAIMING THE COMING KING (Vv.23b-26)

See Jn 1:23-26

John 1:23–26 NASB95

He said, “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.” Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. They asked him, and said to him, “Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” John answered them saying, “I baptize in water, but among you stands One whom you do not know.

NO ONE ELSE COMPARES (V. 27)

See Jn 1:27

John 1:27 NASB95

“It is He who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”

CONCLUSION

A. John does not claim to be someone or something other than who and what he was. The modern day tendency to think more highly of oneself than we ought to causes individuals to be to burdened with issues that you never were intended to carry. Can I help you today by telling you that if what Jesus has done is not enough…

If his humiliation is not enough

if his bloody scalp is not enough

if the open flesh of his beaten back is not enough

if his nail scarred hands and feet are not enough

if his spear pierced-side is not enough

if his death and burial are not enough

if his bodily resurrection is not enough...

There is nothing that you can do more!

B. We, like John, can always only answer that we are simply voices in the wilderness heralding the arrival of the soon coming king… and it anybody wants to question who we are; our response must be:

“I’m just a nobody, trying to tell everybody about Somebody, who can save anybody!

I better leave you now, but let me say:

I heard joyful sound, Jesus saves, Jesus saves. Spread the tiding, spread them all around, Jesus saves, Jesus saves.

To the utmost Jesus saves. To the utmost Jesus saves. He will pick you up and turn you around, hallelujah, hallelujah, Jesus saves. Hallelujah, hallelujah, Jesus saves.

Now if you're a liar or a cheater, don't leave, Jesus saves, Jesus saves. Maybe you need to go and get a friend, go and grab a neighbor, tell them that He saves, Jesus saves.

To the utmost Jesus saves. To the utmost Jesus saves. He will pick you up and turn you around, hallelujah, hallelujah, Jesus saves. Hallelujah, hallelujah, Jesus saves.