Gospel of John – Week 6

John 1:19-34 (NRSV)

19This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.” 21And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” He answered, “No.” 22Then they said to him, “Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23He said,

“I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,

‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’”

as the prophet Isaiah said.

24Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. 25They asked him, “Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?” 26John answered them, “I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, 27the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.” 28This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.

29The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the

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

What from the Scripture this week resonates with you or encourages you to think or live differently?

What a dense and rich passage! I’ll give you just a couple of things to chew on this week that play a significant role throughout the rest of this Gospel narrative.

First, almost every time John refers to “the Jews” he is not speaking of all Jews. The vast majority of the time he speaks of the Judean leadership that was antagonistic towards Jesus’ ministry. What was it about John and Jesus’ life that was so threatening and/or rousing to the Jewish leadership?

Second, notice how emphatic and clear John is in his witness. Three times he denies being who they think he is. He is humble, never taking the glory that belongs to Jesus alone, but then there is a turn in the narrative. In verse 23, John cites Isaiah 40. Think about that for a moment. Think of the boldness! Think of the sacredness of his words! John, in the face of his accusers, claims the Word and says, “I am the voice in the wilderness…”. This is a radical statement. He is claiming to be a fulfillment of scripture. Notice too that this “I am” statement is similar to many that Jesus will make in this Gospel. John truly saw himself as one who would pave the way for Jesus. He would lower the mountains and raise the valleys in order to make the way smooth for Jesus.

Is there a verse in the Bible that you could claim to be enacting or reenacting? Why or why not?

Is it fair to say that we too are “voices in the wilderness” for our time and age? Why or why not?

Finally, notice how the Spirit plays a role in John’s testimony. What was the role of the anointing of the Spirit in the Old Testament? How long did it last? Who can you think of that was anointed? How is the Spirit coming upon Jesus different than it had ever been before? How is it different for us?

Emmanuel Presbyterian Church – -