A Man Named John

Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

This morning's message: A Man Named John.

And we're reading from the - if I can find it here - first chapter of the Gospel according to John, verses 6 through 9 and verse 15.

There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to bear witness about the Light that all might believe through him. He was not the Light but came to bear witness about the Light. John bore witness about Him and cried out: "This was He of whom I said, He who comes after me ranks before me because He was before me."

So, in those verses, do we get any sense of who John the Gospel writer is writing about? I mean, does he distinguish this man John from John the Gospel writer or John the Baptist? If you were just a new believer, or not even a believer, you're in the hotel room and you reach for that Gideon Bible, and it flops open to the Gospel of John, and you're reading, would you know that John is speaking about John the Baptist?

If you would, I'll tell you you're much brighter than I am. Cuz I have to confess for all of my years, even going through college, it wasn't until Seminary, well latter part of college, that I really got it straight that John here in the beginning of speaking about John the Baptist. If he'd only say John the Baptist, like all the other Gospels do, it would be so easy, but he says John. And, of course, we're looking at the first page and it says, The Gospel according to John. So, you could see why there might be some misunderstanding as to who we're talking about.

But yet, the description of John the Baptist early in this first chapter of John applies equally to John the Gospel writer. And it would apply equally to you and I, even though our name isn't John. And what complicates things are even more is that John isn't a Hebrew name. You know the story of John's birth, and Zechariah is speechless because he didn't believe the Angel. And the people, then, finally asked "what's his name?" And Zechariah asked for a board, and he writes out his name is John. And everybody's like what? There's nobody in the family named John. But that's the name God had told Zechariah through the angel to name him. And John comes to bear witness to the Light. The Light that was coming into the world. And that's John the Gospel writer's language for Jesus, the Christ. And the purpose of John the Baptist's witness was that people would believe that this Light coming into the world was the Son of God. He was there to prepare the people for them. And so he witnessed to Jesus.

Now, there's also another character that's kind of looming in the background. And we'll call him the bully. The bully. Whether you admit it or not, you're probably - every one of us here bullied at some point in our school days. That's just part of that human, sinful nature that somebody is going to be a bully. And I'd also suggest that at various times in our lives, not just school aged years, but even to present, there are times when we are acting a little bullyish, aren't we? In our thoughts and our words and in our actions.

In my day, I guess compared to today, bullying look pretty innocent. Although, it was just as difficult to bear up as bullying today. It was just as much hurtful. I suppose, if I'd really thought it through, I'd have stacked my locker against those who were going to stack my locker so that the books would have fallen out on them instead of on me. Or I would have doctored up my sandwich lunch with some ghost pepper, maybe. So that the one eating it instead of me would get a taste of - hey, somebody knows what you're up to, and they're onto you. I wasn't that bright, and it wouldn't have fit my nature to do the same, anyways.

But this bully, the devil, the devil, the bully's been around since Adam and Eve, since creation time. And he bullies people. Bullies people. And uses other people to be bullies. And when we read through the Old Testament, we read about all these peoples that were bullying God's people. You know, first there was the brotherly bullying between, like Cain and Abel, and then Jacob and Esau. And then the Egyptions and God's people. And then all those Canaanite tribes and the Philistines. All bullying God's people. And yet, God defended them. And yet, they sometimes - lots of times - turned away from God. And so, sometimes, God used those bullies to teach His people a lesson. To discipline His people.

Want to know about an up-and-down sort of relation between God's people and God and the bullies, read through the Book of Judges. Things are going good. The people forget about God, things go bad, bullies come. They remember God, they cry out to Him. He saves them. Everything goes good, and the cycle continues again. We're no different.

But this man named John - John the Baptist, to be clear - he was sent from God. And he came to witness to the Light, that all might believe through him. Now, that they might believe through this Light. But God would work through that word. We saw in our reading from Luke that that word that John proclaimed produced action in the people's lives. They were made aware of their sin, and they came and they asked John, now what should we do?

You see, it wasn't just simply enough to be baptized to show that you had repented of your sin. This word of God worked in the people such that they needed to show that repentence. So they asked John, what should we do? But be mindful that it wasn't their action that gained their brightness with God, justified them before God. No. It was their faith in the One who was coming into the world. Jesus. Just like it's the same for you and I. It's not the things that we do that are pleasing to God that justifies us before God, but our faith in Jesus. The Light who was coming into the world. But that word works in us so effectively that we also want to show that, that contrition, that repentance in our actions.

That word of God was effective. That witness of John's was effective. People believed. Now, did everybody that John spoke to believe? Of course not. It would have been nice if they would have. But it isn't any different today. Not everybody that hears the word of God believes it. Or keeps it.

And so He came into this world, this Light. But John bears witness. Everything John says points not to himself, but to Jesus. And he goes on, then, in verse 15: "This is He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me ranks before me because He was before me.'" Now, I would suggest that's a good tongue twister. And imagine having to translate that out of the Greek. Making sure you get all those things right.

But Jesus was before John. And his mission, his mission is simply to point the people to Jesus, that they might believe in Him and have eternal life.

That's how John the Gospel writer begins his gospel - that the people might believe through Him, this Light that was coming into the world. And again, and again, that's the kind of the resounding message through John's Gospel - that the people would believe in Jesus. In the third chapter, he's talking with Nicodemus, and he says that the one who believes in me might not perish, but have eternal life. To those who are feeling condemned by their sin, he doesn't come to speak condemnation, but salvation.

And John bears witness, and his greatest witness, perhaps, is one day when Jesus - now an adult - is walking along the River Jordan. And Jesus pauses, and John speaks: "Behold, the Lamb of God who is taking away the sin of the world!" Notice that - "who is taking away the sin of the world," that's present, active. It's not something in the past. "Behold, the Lamb of God, who has taken away the sin of the world." Or something future: "Behold, the Lamb of God, who will take away the sin of the world." No. Who is taking away the sin of the world. Everything Jesus does in this world is part of His taking away the sin of the world.

And two of his followers - that is John the Baptist's followers - follow after Jesus. And many others. Jesus is the one who is taking away the sin of the world. He's taking away the sin of the world. He's done it in our presence this morning. You confessed your sin. And God forgave you that sin for the sake of Jesus. Jesus took away your sin. Now, silly, as it may seem, some of us may want to pick up that bag of sin that we just left and Jesus took and want to take it back from Him and walk out of the building with it. But we don't have to. Nor why would we? But Jesus is taking it away from us. And everything He does - not just dyingo n the cross, as important as that is for our salvation - but everything Jesus does takes away the sin of the world.

The perfect, obedient will to His Father, in exchange for your and my half-hearted attempts at trying to keep the perfect will of God, which failed miserably.

That which Jesus does to fulfill the Father's will is just as important for your salvation and mine. And that belief, that faith, it comes through the word. It wasn't anything that John did that made those people hear that word and be affected to the point where they wanted to be baptized for the repentance of their sin, any more than it's anything that I do that makes you take to heart the word that comes from this pulpit week after week and put it into action in your lives. That's purely the work of the Holy Spirit. The work of the Holy Spirit.

John's mission was to bear witness to Jesus. John's message was all about Jesus: Behold the Lamb of God, who is taking away the sin of the world. Granted, John was beginning to question in prison whether or not what he had been preaching was the truth. In fact, he sends messengers to Jesus, asking are you the one to come, or should we be looking for someone else?

And Jesus says, "Tell John the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, the dead are raised, and the captive is set free."

Those were words that John would know, because they were words that Isaiah had prophesied would take place when the Savior came into the world.

And then, Jesus goes on: "And blessed is the one who does not stumble in his expectation of me." Meaning, "John don't stumble. Don't be looking for something that I am not. Remember, I came into this world, and I'm taking away the sin of the world. That's my mission. That was your message and God will bring it to pass."

That bully is still out there. He bullies you and I through other people. Sometimes, they're family members, aren't they? Ridicule our faith. Ridicule our devotion. "Oh, it's so yucky outside. Just stay home." That's not to say there isn't reason to stay home if you need to stay home. "All this Christmas stuff." They'll mock it, but they'll enjoy having the days off, won't they? "Why do you always wear that cross? Does it mean anything to you?" Or they'll bully you in other ways.

And the message to those of us who are being bullied is that a man named John came into the world, to announce to the world and those being bullied by the world and the prince of this world that Jesus was come into the world. And Jesus would take care of the bully. He would take care of the bully. And He would take care of that bully on the cross. Oh, it looks like the tables are turned and Jesus is defeated, but it's really Jesus who is defeating the devil.

Oh, he still has some effect on us, but ultimately, he's powerless. And he still raises his ugly head here and there in our world, but the day will come when the bully will be dealt with once and for all.

I think if I were doing a paraphrase of a, you know, what heaven is like, you know, "There's no weeping. There's no crying. There's no sadness. There's no hunger. There's no death." I guess I'd add in there: "and there will be no bullying." They'll be no bullying. We will all get along the way God intended for us to get along.

But for you and I, we now have the mission to go out and witness to the Light. So that those still in the darkness might come to believe in the One coming into the world. Believe in that Light. And the message is the same. It's all about Jesus. The message is not about the messenger, nor is the messenger the message. Like John says, "I must decrease so He may increase."

And so, too, the messenger needs to decrease. We need to fade to the background so that the Christ, whose message we share, to be front and center.

In the end of John's Gospel - by this time, believe me, there's no doubt as to which John we're talking about, because John the Baptist is beheaded early on. But John the Gospel writer says, "These things were written so that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ. And by believing in Him, you might have eternal life." Guess what? That word of blessing has been fulfilled in your life. As you heard the witness and message about who Jesus is, and you have believed it and have attained the salvation of your souls through Jesus Christ.

And John the Baptist - even though he has been long gone - still bears witness to the Christ. As his testimony is recorded in the Gospels and shared. And as we are reminded that we now are the John the Baptists and the disciples and the apostles and the evangelists of our day.

John the Baptist was not an Apostle, but yet he was an apostle with a small "a" because small "a" apostle - that word simply means "the one sent." And John was sent by God to bear witness to the Light. You and I, we're also small "a" apostle. For we, too, are the ones sent by God to all different corners of life. Different highways of life. Different intersections of life. To bear witness, also, to that Light. That that Light came into the world. He takes away the sin of the world. And He's coming again.

And at that time, there will be no time for conversions. Because He'll come as the Judge. And the time for conversions, well that's today, while it's still light.

So, God sent a man named John. And He continues to send out men, women and children to proclaim the message to those who are being bullied by Satan and the world and those of the world. That we have a champion who defeats the bully. Christ Jesus, the Lord. Amen. And now, may the peace of God, which surpasses our understanding, keep our hearts and our minds in faith in Christ, Jesus, unto life everlasting. Amen.