John The Baptist
The Gospel of John begins by introducing John’s readers to Jesus, and also to another John—John the Baptist. “Behold the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world!” both Johns would tell any and all.
John the Baptist is a remarkable fellow. His whole life experience is to point the way to Jesus, the Expected One. In this first chapter of the Gospel of John we find John meeting up the One he has been preparing for all his life.
In today’s reading, we’re skipping around a bit for the sake of brevity—but take a minute to read all of Chapter 1 of John’s Gospel today! Maybe read it several times. I don’t think you’ll be sorry.
There came a man, sent from God, whose name was John.
He came for a witness of the light, that all might believe through him.
He was not the light, but came that he might bear witness of the light.
There was the true light, which coming into the world, enlightens every man.
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.
He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,
Who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John bore witness of Him, and cried out, saying, “This was He of who I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for he existed before me…’”
Again, on the next day John was standing with two of his disciples,
And he looked upon Jesus as He walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”
And two of his disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.
And Jesus turned, and beheld them following, and said to them, “What do you seek?”
And they said to Him, “Rabbi (which means Teacher), where are you staying?”
He said to them, “Come, and you will see.”
They came therefore and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. (About 10 a.m.)
John chapter 1:6-15 … 1:35-39
John the Baptist’s main role, his big calling, the overarching goal for his life, was to point everybody who would listen to the Lord, the One coming after him. Only he didn’t know Who the Son of God was, at least not for sure. He just kept preaching to people, helping them to see the state of their souls, and preparing them for the One who was to come after John.
Perhaps John the Baptist suspected that his cousin, Jesus, was indeed the Lamb of God. After all, the stories of their miraculous births and the leaping in the womb bit (see Luke 1:39-45) surely might have been included in the family lore. You’d kind of think that the lads suspected that God was at work in their family.
And yet scripture is silent about their boyhood. And, after all, John the Baptist was in the desert for his special calling, while Jesus was not.
John the Baptist) or run headlong into the Light?
No doubt Andrew and John ministered to John the Baptist, learned from him, and were his friends, out there in the desert regions. Yet their teacher willingly let them go.
Andrew and John (not the Baptist)
Two former disciples of John (the Baptist) would follow Jesus for the rest of their lives. For they had met the Expected One; they had seen the Lord — face to face.
Notice the interaction between these two disciples and Jesus. These two men immediately followed Jesus, right after John’s declaration. Jesus noticed them following him, and He asks them an interesting question.
Jesus asks, “What do you seek?”
What Do You Seek?
What did they seek? Wasn’t it really, WHO did they seek? They just wanted Jesus.
Their answer was interesting…note how they actually evaded the question Jesus posed, by basically ignoring the question.
They had found Him. This was the One.
What more did they seek? How about more of Jesus, and more of Jesus, and more still?
So they ask Jesus a question in return: “Where are you staying?”
Did they just want to be wherever He is?
Come, and See
Jesus understood their desire to know Him, and invited them to “Come, and you will see.”
He invites all of us to Himself, as well. He knows what it is like, to live in our world. His people were under the boot of Rome. We are all of us under some boot or other.
Come, Light of the World
Here, in December, during the Christmas holiday, in the grief and the grey, the suffering and the weariness, we long for our salvation. In a cold, dark, drab world, color-starved eyes want the true Light, that lightens every person.
Jesus knows the melancholy of living our lives down here, out of the light. He invites each of us to come; come and see.
“See Me”, he offers. See Jesus, Who is the Light of the world.
In the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, Jesus says this about Himself:
Behold, I stand at the door and knock, if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with Him, and He with me.
Revelation 3:20
During this dark time of year, we are invited to draw near to the Light, to seek Him while He may be found. O that we all would decide to live within His light, today.