John 1:29-34. John the Baptist’s Gospel
This passage has been an eye-opener for me. The apostle John loves to include in his book stories about how different people reacted to Jesus. This article describes what John the Baptist understood about Jesus.
The language he uses is that of a court of law; John is imagining that he is in the witness box giving evidence.
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”
32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.” John 1:29-34
A reliable witness
Before a witness in a court of law gives his evidence he has to take the oath,
“I swear that the evidence that I shall give, shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God.”
It is striking that in the whole section about John the Baptist the word ‘witness’ or ‘testify’ comes again and again. The same basic Greek word, marturia, from which we have obtained our word ‘martyr’, someone who suffers because they have been a witness to their faith, is used repeatedly. This is clearly deliberate. The truth of this evidence is vital. We see it in the following verses,
“ . . . John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light. John 1:7
“He himself was not that light, he came only as a witness to the light.” John 1:8
“John testified concerning him . . .” John 1:15
“Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was.” John 1:19
“Then John gave this testimony . . .” John 1:32
“I have seen and testify that this is God’s Chosen One. John 1:34
The discussion with the Jewish leaders makes it clear that, right from the beginning, there was a question whether John the Baptist might be the Messiah. John the Baptist, however, points to Jesus and says clearly that it is Jesus who is the Messiah, God’s Chosen One.
In the past some have suggested that John’s gospel is more interested in teaching spiritual ideas than factual truths. The evidence suggests the contrary; John includes many specific details strongly suggesting that eye witness accounts have been recorded.
“All this happened at Bethany, on the other side of the Jordan where John was baptising.” John 1:28
“The next day . . .” John 1:29
“ . . . John saw Jesus coming towards him . . .” John 1:29
“Then John gave this testimony, ‘I saw . . .’” John 1:32
A self-effacing witness
The character of a witness affects whether they are likely to be believed. Arrogant, self-opinionated, proud people who are full of themselves are not trusted as much as a self-effacing witness. Furthermore a witness who has nothing to gain and all to lose by their evidence is likely to be reliable.
John the Baptist refuses to take centre stage, preferring to promote Jesus all the time. Although he was a famous, popular, national figure he said,
“A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.” John 1:30
He disclaims any special powers or perception,
“I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptising with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.” John 1:31
“And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptise with water told me, ‘the man on whom you see . . .’ John 1:33
John the Baptist is saying that he had no special insight, that he didn’t understand, and then all he did was teach and offer water baptism.
It is significant that false teachers tend to to be self-centred and pretentious. They often claim that they have been given special gifts or revelation by God. Too often they influence people largely by their magnetic personalities that seem to mesmerise the crowds to follow them unthinkingly. Such ‘prophets’ have troubled the church since the earliest times. In contrast John does not want people to see him but wants them to recognise Jesus for who he really is.
In the last century there have been many sect leaders who have drawn people to their movement by warning people that the end of the world is fast approaching and tell them ‘to flee from the wrath to come’ by joining their group. They often point out as evidence ‘the wars and rumours of wars’ that abound today. It is worrying that such leaders do attract a following when Jesus himself warned of this problem and taught the opposite.
“Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen. Nation will rise against nation . . .” Mark 13:6-8
We must all learn from John the Baptist to always point people to Jesus and not to ourselves.
A clear witness
One of the reasons many people today find it hard to talk about Jesus is that they do not know what to say. Many preachers could learn from the emphasis of John the Baptist. Everything he said centred on Jesus. It is Jesus that matters to him. But please note what he says Jesus can do for us. It is difficult to find two better sentences to summarise the gospel than the two that John the Baptist uses.
“Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” John 1:29
“He is the one who will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.” John 1:32
“This is the Son of God.” John 1:34
This is the Christian gospel in a nutshell. Jesus, who was sent to this earth by his heavenly Father, came to forgive our sin and to empower us to live a new godly life.
a. Sin is our greatest problem
The greatest work of God was to send his son to repair the broken relationship between us and himself, a relationship that has been broken because of our natural rebellion against him, our sin. This rebellion, called sin, results in many different symptoms called sins. These include selfishness, pride, lying, stealing, promiscuity and the like. In the Old Testament this rupture was symbolically repaired by the offering of animal sacrifices. A lamb would take responsibility for the sin of a people or family and would then be killed as their substitute. This reminded people that sin, rebellion against the one true God, was the most serious of all their failings but that a final remedy was coming in the form of God’s Messiah. This is a problem that we are all born with.
“There is no-one righteous, not even one; there is no-one who understands, no-one seeks God.” Romans 3:10-11
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23
“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hid his face from you, so that he will not hear.” Isaiah 59:2
b. The only remedy is Jesus the Christ
John the Baptist introduces Jesus as God’s own son who has come as the remedy for the problem of our sin. John the Baptist concluded,
“I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.” John 1:34
When saying how he was to be the remedy, he is surely alluding to the great prophecy in Isaiah that depicts what the Messiah, God’s suffering servant, would enter this world to do.
4 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished.
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Isaiah 53:4-9
If Jesus is not the God who created us and has entered his world in the flesh, then his death cannot atone for our sin. Only the person sinned against can forgive.
Jesus said to a paralysed man, just before healing him,
“Son, your sins are forgiven.” Mark 2:5
The teachers of the law who were present recognised the significance of what Jesus had said, saying,
“Why does this fellow talk like that. He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone.” Mark 2:7
The greatest need we all have is to be forgiven before it is too late, before we come face to face with our maker in judgment. Jesus alone has the authority to forgive us because of who he is. It is vital therefore to know for certain whether the penalty for our sin has been taken from us. To say, ‘I hope so,” suggests that a person is unsure and therefore at great risk. However, if Jesus has become the focus of our life and has taken control, he has given us the promise that we have been forgiven because he has already paid the price for our sin on his cross. John the apostle wants us all to be certain. At the end of his gospel John explained why he had written his gospel, he wants people to be certain they have been forgiven and reminds us how this comes about,
“But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” John 20:31
Jesus came ‘to take away the sin of the world’. Yet how many today pass by Jesus and his cross although this is their only hope.
c. Jesus empowers his people
The same divine Jesus, who takes responsibility for our sin, then drenches us in the life of God, he baptises us with the Holy Spirit. It is important to note that the two works of God in us come simultaneously. The ‘baptism of the Holy Spirit’ is not a second blessing. The work of Christ is both to forgive our sins and to baptise us with the Holy Spirit. When I come to Christ to be forgiven my sin, he gives me the gift of the Holy Spirit as evidence that I have been forgiven. No-one is yet forgiven if the life of the Holy Spirit is not developing in them. The apostle Paul wrote emphatically,
“If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.” Romans 8:9
Forgiveness and empowerment go together. Although we call John, ‘John the Baptist’, it is in reality Jesus who is the Baptist. John only baptised symbolically with water, whereas Jesus gives us the reality, the power of God to live new godly lives for him.
There is much confusion about what the Bible teaches about the work of the Holy Spirit and the evidence of his presence, so an addendum to this article of this subject has been added at the end.
d. Jesus is for all
The apostle John has already made it clear who the message about Jesus is for,
“The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.” John 1:9
It is clear throughout the Bible that this message about Jesus being the ‘Saviour of the World’ is for people of all nations and for all classes of society.
How do people receive these gifts of forgiveness and empowering? The answer is simple, by entering into a personal relationship with Jesus, asking him to be both your Saviour and Lord. His empowering then enables us to live this new life with him in control. The apostle explains this,
“Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed on his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” John 1:12
This new life as a member of God’s kingdom begins with an individual coming to Christ, recognising their sin.
The tragedy is that most people do not know of this because we have not shared it with them.
People may have received water baptism, perhaps as a baby, but are uncertain whether they have been forgiven, and are not being changed by the Holy Spirit into becoming like Jesus, with his character and ambitions. It is irrelevant whether we carry an Anglican, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Methodist or other label, these groups cannot save us, only a personal relationship with Jesus can do that.
God has given us his Holy Spirit so that our lives will be on fire for him. Isn’t this why, at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came down on the whole church as ‘tongues of fire’?
There are some who have asked Jesus into their life but have not noticed a great change. Many years ago, a short man called Mr Falconer was working as a missionary to the sailors at Port Chalmers in New Zealand. He had just finished a short service for the seamen, which was held in a large loft used to store the ship’s sails. A young sailor, Frank Bullen, stayed behind to talk. Frank explained that he did believe and had prayed a prayer of commitment to Jesus as his Saviour and Lord, but no obvious change had occurred. He felt no assurance that he had been accepted by God. Mr Falconer read him one of the important sayings of Jesus:
“I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.” John 5:24
‘Ah, I see how it is,’ exclaimed Mr Falconer, ‘you are waiting for the witness of your feelings to the truth of him who is himself the Truth. You dare not take him at his word unless your feelings, which are subject to a thousand changes a day, corroborate it. You must believe him in spite of your feelings and act accordingly.’
Frank Bullen recorded many years later:
’In a moment the hidden mystery was made clear to me, and I said quietly, “I see, sir; it is the credibility of God against the witness of my feelings. Then I believe God!”
’Let us thank God,’ answered the little missionary and they knelt down and prayed. Little more was said. There was no extravagant joy, or effervescent enthusiasm, but just a quiet satisfaction of having ’found one’s way after a long groping in darkness and misery’.
The real proof that the Holy Spirit is active is the presence of a new priority—a desire to live for and with Jesus! If anyone is unsure about how they stand with God, start again and open or reopen your life to God. He wants you to know that your sin has been forgiven, that you have been obviously given the gift of the Holy Spirit, so that you can go out confidently into God’s world to live for him.
BVP
Who has the Spirit of God?
A lady in her early thirties, covered with tattoos, developed an aggressive breast cancer. She had a wide excision of the tumour, clearance of some involved axillary nodes and had subsequently chemotherapy and radiotherapy. During her treatment I asked her if she had any faith to help her cope with all this or whether she wasn’t sure about such things. She gave an interesting reply.
“I wish I still had. During my early twenties I started to go to a Pentecostal church and got carried away with all they did. One day I asked an elder of the church how I could know if God had accepted me, whether I really was a Christian. He asked to hear me speak in tongues, which I was able to do for him as I had heard others in the church do this. He reassured me that if I can speak in tongues I must have the Spirit of God in me. However I short time later I stopped going to any church and have not been back for many years.”
She then determined to discover what life was for and whether God could forgive her for the life she had led and the way she had treated him. She joined us at a ‘Christianity Explored’ Group and for the first time understood the gospel. She understood who Jesus was and what he had done by dying for her on the cross. She did commit her life to Christ and her life changed markedly. She came to love him, was thrilled at being forgiven by God and started to live for him, joining a church.
This gives rise to two important questions,
When does a person receive the Holy Spirit?
What is the evidence of the Holy Spirit’s presence?
When does a person receive the Holy Spirit?
I committed my life to Christ in my first year at university and became very involved in the Christian Union, attended an excellent Bible teaching church and began to grow as a Christian. I then decided to formalise my commitment to Christ by getting confirmed. During the confirmation service the Bishop of Ely told us that he was about to give us the gift of the Holy Spirit. I was aghast and nearly walked out as I knew that the Spirit of God was already changing me. It was only that I did want to be formally confirmed that kept me in my seat! This issue led me back to the Bible to see what it teaches about when people receive the Holy Spirit.
“And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ." Romans 8:9-10
Clearly the apostles taught that to have the Spirit was the same as being a Christian. This is not just a doctrinal belief. Surely it is eminently practical. If a person does not demonstrate something of the character and love of Christ, showing his Spirit, then we should question whether we really have faith in Him.
In his letter to the Galatians Paul is concerned that the church is compromising with Jewish practices, even to the point of suggesting that they are essential for Christians. He reminds them that they now belong to Christ and now everything in the church should centre on living for and obeying him.
“Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort.” Galatians 3:2-3
Paul is here emphasising that we begin the Christian life when we receive the Holy Spirit into our lives. That happens when we first put our trust in him.
There has been some confusion over the names given to this third person of the Trinity. Should he be called ’Holy Spirit’ or ‘Holy Ghost’? In Old English the word used for ‘spirit’ was ‘gast’, which became ‘ghost’. The equivalent word in German is ‘geist’ where it still has the broader sense of the word. Thus they speak of ‘zeitgeist’, which means ‘spirit of the times’. Nearly all modern translations use the modern English word, ‘Spirit’.
When we become Christians we receive the full privileges of being Sons of God, a title previously reserved for the Jewish people, and Paul repeats that this includes the gift of His Holy Spirit.
“God sent his Son . . . that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, ‘Abba, Father.’” Galatians 4:4-6
The letter to the Ephesians teaches the same message.
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” Ephesians 1:3
It is clear that because we are in Christ we have everything God wants to give us and this includes the Spirit of Christ. So lack nothing in the spiritual world.
“Having believed you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, . . .” Ephesians 1:13-14
This is written to all Christians – we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit of God in us that assures us of our future with God in heaven.
Being saved and being given the gift of the Holy Spirit are the same in apostolic thought.
“He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour.” Titus 3:5-6
Yet the presence of the Holy Spirit in us does not mean that we are the finished article! How we need to grow in wisdom and in the knowledge of God.
“I keep asking that the God of our lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you may know him better.” Ephesians 1:17
Paul brings these two ideas, of having everything in the spiritual realm yet being incomplete, together.
“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” Ephesians 3:16-17
What is the evidence of the Holy Spirit’s presence?
Quite soon after I had committed my life to Christ, fellow Christians in my college suggested to me that now I needed a second blessing from God which would be associated with the gift of power, and evidenced by ‘speaking in tongues’. How I longed to experience such power. I was told that some are given the power to heal, others to raise the dead, others will be given supernatural gifts of knowledge. Although |I longed to be a more effective powerful Christian and would love to have one of those supernatural gifts, something worried me about this teaching. I noticed that many of my friends who talked in this way were not warmer Christians than those who didn’t. I did not notice that they demonstrated any gifts that differed from other Christian friends. Their emphasis seemed on this ‘gift of speaking in tongues’. However even this was problematic. When God first baptized his church with the Holy Spirit at the beginning of Acts, this was not just an emotional experience, it was associated with a strong wind and the appearance of fire that divided and rested on all the Christians. They then spoke the gospel to visitors in Jerusalem in their own languages, which they had not learned. This was clearly a miracle indeed. It seemed so different to what I was told to expect. And when I heard their ‘speaking in tongues’ it appeared to me to be just meaningful gibberish and not a real language at all.
When I started to get to know the New Testament, I noticed that the gift of tongues and miracles is not mentioned in any of the epistles other than the one to the very troubled church at Corinth. Even here Paul emphasized that the Corinthians were lacking the real evidence of the Spirit, a practical love for others.
“If I speak in tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move all mountains, but have not love, I have nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:1-2
Jesus himself taught that the exhibition of spiritual gifts guarantees nothing. At the last judgment some religious leaders will find themselves excluded from heaven even though they demonstrated spiritual gifts.
“Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you, depart from me, you evil doers.’” Matthew 7:22-23
If our spiritual gifts or activities are no guarantee of salvation, what is? I love to ask people, ‘What is the evidence that a person has the Holy Spirit?’ This is not a difficult question. If we have the Spirit of Jesus we are beginning to turn from thinking and behaving as the world does to exhibit aspects of Jesus’ character.
“The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21
The presence of the Holy Spirit is demonstrated by very different features; he is especially seen in our relationships with other people.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. . . Those who belong to Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.” Galatians 5:22-24
The prophet Isaiah knew that when the Messiah came to this earth he would give his people the Spirit of God.
“ . . . till the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest. Justice will dwell in the desert and righteousness live in the fertile field. . . The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence for ever.” Isaiah 32:15-17
What a shame it is when Christians do not live in this ‘peace of God.’ Many are stressed and anxious about so many things. When we have been forgiven and know that we are loved by the creator of the universe because we belong to his Son, we should be thrilled. How we also need this Spirit to change our lands that are too often like spiritual deserts, into a vibrant forest of justice and righteousness.
BVP
