Knowing Jesus
Read John 1:29-34.
"I'll know it when I see it!" Have you ever said those words? You're looking for something and you're not quite sure what, but, you boldly proclaim, you will know it when you see it. We believe we'll have some innate sense that THIS (whatever THIS is) is what we were looking for all the time. I think we have that sense about heaven. Whatever we might envision it to be (and it's probably not like what we envision), we have this sense that we'll know it when we see it. We'll know we are home.
John had this sense about the Messiah. We do know (from Luke's Gospel) that, in the womb, John recognized the Messiah (who was his relative), even while the Messiah (Jesus) was still in the womb (Luke 1:41). But, by his own testimony (twice in this passage), he had not met Jesus yet. He didn't know what he looked like. Though they hadn't grown up that far apart geographically, this wasn't a time when people traveled a lot or had big family reunions. Until this moment, these cousins had never met.
When Jesus approached John for baptism, he didn't have Mary or the rest of the family with him. There was no way for John to know that this man was any different than anyone else who had been coming to him for baptism. Except the Spirit of God whispered in his Spirit what John had to declare: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" He knew. He just knew, and that knowing was confirmed a bit later when the Holy Spirit rested on Jesus in the form of a dove (1:33).
God will often whisper truth to our spirit; Paul reminds us he does this in particular to assure us who we are: "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children" (Romans 8:16). God will do what he has to do to point us to Jesus, just as he did with John. "Everything you've been working toward, John, everything you've hoped for—here it is, wrapped up in a simple carpenter from Galilee." And yet, because of that carpenter, the world is forever changed. That time of changing all began with a whisper in John's spirit.
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I would be remiss if I didn't also acknowledge the death of one of God's faithful servants, who passed from life into new life last night. Billy Graham was a lion of a man, a stalwart defender of the faith. Not everyone liked his brand of preaching and not everyone liked his politics, but no one can deny he was a man of integrity and a man of singular focus. It was my privilege to hear him preach several times, not the least of which was at Urbana '87, a conference during which God began to call me into ministry. No matter where he was, no matter what he was doing, he was always Jesus' servant. He was a man the likes of which we may not see again, for he unfailingly pointed people to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Thank you, Rev. Graham, for your ministry and for untold numbers of souls who were saved because you were faithful to your call.
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| Renewal of Baptismal Vows in the Jordan River, 2017 |
John had this sense about the Messiah. We do know (from Luke's Gospel) that, in the womb, John recognized the Messiah (who was his relative), even while the Messiah (Jesus) was still in the womb (Luke 1:41). But, by his own testimony (twice in this passage), he had not met Jesus yet. He didn't know what he looked like. Though they hadn't grown up that far apart geographically, this wasn't a time when people traveled a lot or had big family reunions. Until this moment, these cousins had never met.
When Jesus approached John for baptism, he didn't have Mary or the rest of the family with him. There was no way for John to know that this man was any different than anyone else who had been coming to him for baptism. Except the Spirit of God whispered in his Spirit what John had to declare: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" He knew. He just knew, and that knowing was confirmed a bit later when the Holy Spirit rested on Jesus in the form of a dove (1:33).
God will often whisper truth to our spirit; Paul reminds us he does this in particular to assure us who we are: "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children" (Romans 8:16). God will do what he has to do to point us to Jesus, just as he did with John. "Everything you've been working toward, John, everything you've hoped for—here it is, wrapped up in a simple carpenter from Galilee." And yet, because of that carpenter, the world is forever changed. That time of changing all began with a whisper in John's spirit.
+++++++
I would be remiss if I didn't also acknowledge the death of one of God's faithful servants, who passed from life into new life last night. Billy Graham was a lion of a man, a stalwart defender of the faith. Not everyone liked his brand of preaching and not everyone liked his politics, but no one can deny he was a man of integrity and a man of singular focus. It was my privilege to hear him preach several times, not the least of which was at Urbana '87, a conference during which God began to call me into ministry. No matter where he was, no matter what he was doing, he was always Jesus' servant. He was a man the likes of which we may not see again, for he unfailingly pointed people to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Thank you, Rev. Graham, for your ministry and for untold numbers of souls who were saved because you were faithful to your call.
Jesus definitely speaks into our spirits if we’re willing to listen.
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