1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:05,840 Well last week as we began our series entitled, Meet Jesus, we saw that our Lord Jesus Christ is 2 00:00:05,840 –> 00:00:14,160 the eternal, personal, divine, creating, life-giving, incarnate Son of God. We looked at the glory of 3 00:00:14,160 –> 00:00:20,799 the Lord Jesus Christ. We saw that he is with God, that he is God, and that he is the one who has 4 00:00:20,799 –> 00:00:27,040 made the Father known. That it is through him that we are able to know the God who no one has ever 5 00:00:27,200 –> 00:00:34,400 seen but God, the one and only, who is at the Father’s side has made him known. Today we’re 6 00:00:34,400 –> 00:00:40,959 going to move from the question how do I know who God is to the important question how do I 7 00:00:40,959 –> 00:00:51,520 know who I am? How do you know who you are? Who am I? Last year I got into an extended conversation 8 00:00:51,520 –> 00:00:57,200 with a friend who was struggling with his faith. He told me that he’d come to a place 9 00:00:58,000 –> 00:01:02,720 where he needed to know who he was and he didn’t want a Christian answer. 10 00:01:03,599 –> 00:01:09,279 So he had decided that he would work with a counsellor, a therapist, who was not a Christian. 11 00:01:10,879 –> 00:01:15,680 I asked him how that had gone and he told me that he had gone to this therapist who had 12 00:01:15,680 –> 00:01:21,040 got down to the question well who are you, and, of course, he spoke somewhat about his job to 13 00:01:21,120 –> 00:01:27,199 which the counsellor wisely said no no no, that’s what you do. We’re not here to talk about what 14 00:01:27,199 –> 00:01:32,800 you do, we’re here to talk about who you are. He talked about being a husband and about being a 15 00:01:32,800 –> 00:01:37,440 father. No no no, that’s the people you love, we’re not here to talk about who you love, 16 00:01:37,440 –> 00:01:45,279 we’re here to talk about who you are. So he said to me, almost with a note of conclusion about it, 17 00:01:45,839 –> 00:01:51,599 Colin, you can’t define yourself by your job or by your relationships. 18 00:01:52,559 –> 00:01:55,440 I absolutely agree with that, absolutely agree with that. 19 00:01:57,440 –> 00:02:01,680 And I said here’s the question I wanna know. At the end of all of that, who are you? 20 00:02:03,599 –> 00:02:12,720 And he said to me, I really don’t know. The work of deconstruction had been done, 21 00:02:12,720 –> 00:02:21,119 but nothing had been put in its place. My friend was not at that point, at a place where he was 22 00:02:21,839 –> 00:02:27,759 ready to hear a Christian answer. Though I’m glad to say that he has made some good progress 23 00:02:27,759 –> 00:02:34,800 since that time. But reflecting on the conversation, when I went to bed that night, 24 00:02:34,800 –> 00:02:41,039 I am sitting there with my iPad in the dark and I just wrote down, who am I, who am I? 25 00:02:42,000 –> 00:02:47,759 This is what I wrote. I am a creation of God who belongs to him and exists 26 00:02:48,399 –> 00:02:54,479 for his glory. I am a sinner who deserves nothing from God but looks to him for mercy. 27 00:02:55,919 –> 00:03:00,960 I am a new creation in Jesus Christ redeemed at inestimable cost 28 00:03:00,960 –> 00:03:04,720 despite all the struggles that arise from sin that remains in my flesh. 29 00:03:05,440 –> 00:03:08,240 And I’m a child of God destined for 30 00:03:08,240 –> 00:03:13,600 unimaginable joy through Jesus Christ my Lord and my Savior alone. 31 00:03:15,440 –> 00:03:18,000 And I thought to myself As I finished writing that in my iPad, 32 00:03:18,800 –> 00:03:25,440 If you take the Lord out of that, I have no way of knowing who in the world I am. 33 00:03:25,440 –> 00:03:27,940 Verse 16, 34 00:03:27,940 –> 00:03:30,639 and our series is called Meet Jesus. 35 00:03:31,759 –> 00:03:38,160 And we started by seeing together that it is in meeting Jesus that you come to know who God is. 36 00:03:38,160 –> 00:03:44,240 And what we’re seeing today is that in meeting Jesus you come to know who you are as well. 37 00:03:44,240 –> 00:03:47,759 It was John Calvin who said famously on one occasion, 38 00:03:47,759 –> 00:03:50,399 that nearly all the wisdom that we can possess. 39 00:03:50,399 –> 00:03:52,240 It all boils down to two things. 40 00:03:52,240 –> 00:03:53,679 It comes in two parts. 41 00:03:53,679 –> 00:03:55,119 It’s the knowledge of God. 42 00:03:55,119 –> 00:03:56,880 And it’s the knowledge of ourselves. 43 00:03:56,880 –> 00:03:58,720 You never get the one without the other. 44 00:03:58,720 –> 00:04:02,320 And when you meet Jesus you get both. 45 00:04:03,199 –> 00:04:08,399 Now please then open your Bibles at John in chapter 1 and verse 19. 46 00:04:09,279 –> 00:04:14,160 And we are introduced here to the testimony of John the baptist. 47 00:04:14,160 –> 00:04:17,200 Not John who wrote the gospel but John the baptist 48 00:04:17,200 –> 00:04:20,480 who was of course the forerunner of our Lord Jesus Christ. 49 00:04:20,480 –> 00:04:22,320 This is the man, John the baptist, 50 00:04:22,399 –> 00:04:26,720 introduced Jesus in his public ministry. 51 00:04:26,720 –> 00:04:30,959 And we’re going to see from these verses today what he says about himself 52 00:04:30,959 –> 00:04:34,000 and also what he says about Jesus. 53 00:04:34,720 –> 00:04:38,799 But to understand the significance of what he says and 54 00:04:38,799 –> 00:04:43,279 there’s huge significance in it what he says about himself and about Jesus. 55 00:04:43,279 –> 00:04:50,399 It’s really helpful to know just a little bit about this man and his remarkable ministry. 56 00:04:50,399 –> 00:04:52,880 So who was John the Baptist? 57 00:04:53,440 –> 00:04:54,880 A number of observations. 58 00:04:54,880 –> 00:05:02,880 First he was born through a very special intervention of God’s power. 59 00:05:03,760 –> 00:05:08,320 Look chapter 1 we have the story of how his father Zechariah and his mother 60 00:05:08,320 –> 00:05:13,679 Elizabeth, godly people advanced in years they did not have any children. 61 00:05:13,679 –> 00:05:19,440 And an angel of the Lord appears to Zechariah and says you’re going to have the gift of a child. 62 00:05:19,440 –> 00:05:22,880 A child born in the normal way and Zechariah knowing 63 00:05:22,880 –> 00:05:25,760 how many years had passed simply did not believe it. 64 00:05:26,880 –> 00:05:32,000 The birth of John came about in the usual way through the union of his father and 65 00:05:32,000 –> 00:05:36,320 of his mother but it did involve this unusual this remarkable 66 00:05:36,320 –> 00:05:38,079 intervention of the power of God. 67 00:05:39,279 –> 00:05:44,480 Second, John is described for us as a man who was sent from God. 68 00:05:44,480 –> 00:05:48,959 You have that in John chapter 1 in verse 6 that we read last week. 69 00:05:48,959 –> 00:05:52,320 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 70 00:05:52,320 –> 00:05:53,519 He came as a witness. 71 00:05:53,519 –> 00:05:59,839 He wasn’t the light himself, but he came as a witness to bear witness to the light of Jesus 72 00:05:59,839 –> 00:06:03,040 Christ, the one who was coming into the world. 73 00:06:03,760 –> 00:06:10,320 Third and very significant for us today, this man was filled with the Holy Spirit. 74 00:06:10,880 –> 00:06:12,640 Look chapter 1 in verse 15. 75 00:06:12,640 –> 00:06:18,079 In fact, we’re told, and it’s a fascinating phrase, that he would be filled with the Holy 76 00:06:18,079 –> 00:06:25,839 Spirit even from his mother’s womb, which does not, of course, mean that he was without sin. 77 00:06:25,839 –> 00:06:31,519 Even being filled with the Holy Spirit does not mean that a person in this world is without sin. 78 00:06:32,079 –> 00:06:37,839 But what it does mean is that Jesus Christ had laid hold of him early in life, that the 79 00:06:37,839 –> 00:06:42,799 Holy Spirit had got hold of him from the very earliest time, 80 00:06:43,359 –> 00:06:48,239 and that God had laid claim to him even before he was born. 81 00:06:48,959 –> 00:06:55,279 We’re told in scripture that he was a burning and a shining lamp. These are the words of 82 00:06:55,279 –> 00:07:02,399 Jesus about him in John’s Gospel chapter five and verse thirty-five. I love that description, 83 00:07:02,399 –> 00:07:07,119 it tells you something about the character of his ministry. He was a burning light, 84 00:07:07,119 –> 00:07:15,200 burning speaks of passion or of heat, and he was a shining light that speaks of clarity. 85 00:07:15,200 –> 00:07:21,519 For anyone who is a Herald of the Gospel, any time that you speak about the Lord Jesus Christ, 86 00:07:21,519 –> 00:07:27,040 here are the things that you want to seek, that you would have the light of a clear mind 87 00:07:27,040 –> 00:07:34,640 and that you would have the passion of a warm heart. Here’s a great prayer. Every time you 88 00:07:34,640 –> 00:07:38,799 would speak about the Lord Jesus, whether it be in public or whether it be in private 89 00:07:38,799 –> 00:07:45,040 or in a small group, Lord, let me speak of you with the light of a clear mind 90 00:07:45,040 –> 00:07:49,519 and with the passion of a warm heart. That’s John the Baptist, a burning 91 00:07:49,519 –> 00:07:56,959 and a shining light. And he was very simply described by our Lord Jesus himself 92 00:07:57,519 –> 00:08:05,200 as one of the greatest people that had ever lived. One of the greatest ever 93 00:08:05,200 –> 00:08:09,600 produced by the human race. Jesus says, Matthew 11, 11, 94 00:08:09,600 –> 00:08:15,559 Truly I say to you among those born of women there has arisen no one greater 95 00:08:15,559 –> 00:08:21,760 than John the Baptist. There were others who were also great, but no one was 96 00:08:22,079 –> 00:08:27,859 greater than this man, according to our Lord Jesus Christ. He was among the 97 00:08:27,859 –> 00:08:34,219 greatest people who had ever lived in the history of the world. 98 00:08:34,219 –> 00:08:40,679 Now by any standards, therefore, when we read about John we are reading about a 99 00:08:40,679 –> 00:08:46,260 remarkable and even an extraordinary and godly person. 100 00:08:47,260 –> 00:08:48,219 We know a number of other 101 00:08:48,219 –> 00:08:53,260 things about his ministry, some comments about his lifestyle, we’re told, for 102 00:08:53,260 –> 00:09:01,080 example, in the Gospel of Matthew, that he wore a camel’s hair and a belt – not 103 00:09:01,080 –> 00:09:07,039 terribly comfortable, I wouldn’t have thought. His diet was eating locusts and 104 00:09:07,039 –> 00:09:13,619 wild honey, so not the ordinary person that you meet in terms of his appearance 105 00:09:14,020 –> 00:09:18,979 in terms of his lifestyle. His location was out in the wilderness, hardly the 106 00:09:18,979 –> 00:09:24,780 most accessible place, people went to him out in the desert. His message in 107 00:09:24,780 –> 00:09:27,219 verse 23 is summarized in this way, 108 00:09:36,539 –> 00:09:38,280 Now think about what that means, 109 00:09:38,760 –> 00:09:46,719 what that means is God Himself is coming, you are going to meet with God. 110 00:09:46,719 –> 00:09:51,159 And so his message has an urgency about it. 111 00:09:51,159 –> 00:09:54,840 There is something that is going to happen friends, he would say, that 112 00:09:54,840 –> 00:09:59,479 has never happened in the history of the world before and you need to get ready 113 00:09:59,479 –> 00:10:06,719 for it. It was urgent, he was clear a single sentence captures what his 114 00:10:06,760 –> 00:10:12,039 message was and it’s a call to action, make straight the path of the Lord, got 115 00:10:12,039 –> 00:10:17,460 to clear the rubble, because he’s going to come near to you and it was a message 116 00:10:17,460 –> 00:10:21,260 that was filled with hope because he said come and be baptized for the 117 00:10:21,260 –> 00:10:26,820 forgiveness of sins, there’s forgiveness and mercy from the God who is going to 118 00:10:26,820 –> 00:10:28,700 come near to you. 119 00:10:28,700 –> 00:10:33,479 Now that was John’s ministry and it is very 120 00:10:33,960 –> 00:10:39,780 clear that there was a remarkable response to it. People came in vast 121 00:10:39,780 –> 00:10:46,320 numbers from Jerusalem, Judea, the surrounding area Matthew chapter 3 and 122 00:10:46,320 –> 00:10:51,880 verse 5, Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan, they were 123 00:10:51,880 –> 00:10:56,679 going out to him, there was a movement of people and they were making this journey 124 00:10:56,679 –> 00:11:02,679 in order to go and to listen to John and to respond to his message. It tells us 125 00:11:02,679 –> 00:11:08,099 something very significant I think. That there were many people then as surely 126 00:11:08,099 –> 00:11:15,099 there are many people today, who had an awareness that if they were really to 127 00:11:15,099 –> 00:11:19,039 meet with God they had better do something to get ready. Maybe that’s how 128 00:11:19,039 –> 00:11:24,500 you feel today. If I’m really going to meet with God someday I’ve got some 129 00:11:24,500 –> 00:11:29,559 confessing to do, I’ve got some repenting to do, I’ve got some forgiveness that I 130 00:11:29,619 –> 00:11:35,359 need. And perhaps there were many who were saying you know I believe in God, 131 00:11:35,359 –> 00:11:43,340 always have, but I’ve really not been walking with Him, I feel at a distance 132 00:11:43,340 –> 00:11:49,380 from Him, I don’t feel clean in regards to Him, things aren’t right between me 133 00:11:49,380 –> 00:11:55,700 and God, and I need to do something about this, I need to find some piece with God. 134 00:11:55,700 –> 00:11:59,960 Well here are people and they’re going out into the desert, why are they going? 135 00:11:59,960 –> 00:12:04,039 Because they’ve heard that there’s a man who’s talking about these things, and 136 00:12:04,039 –> 00:12:08,340 other people are being helped. Where is he? He’s in the desert. Hey kids, get 137 00:12:08,340 –> 00:12:11,039 packed up, we’re gonna make a trip into the wilderness, 138 00:12:11,039 –> 00:12:17,440 because that’s what we need to do. Now such was the response to John’s message, 139 00:12:17,440 –> 00:12:23,140 so many people coming to him in response to what he was saying that the Pharisees 140 00:12:24,119 –> 00:12:30,840 sent a delegation to find out what was going on. And I want us to see from these 141 00:12:30,840 –> 00:12:40,020 verses today two things. One, what John said about himself. And two, what he had 142 00:12:40,020 –> 00:12:46,919 to say to those who came and asked him about Jesus. And the importance of this 143 00:12:47,080 –> 00:12:57,520 is right here friends. The ministry of any person, and of any church, will be 144 00:12:57,520 –> 00:13:04,520 shaped in large measure by these two things. What we say about ourselves. And 145 00:13:04,520 –> 00:13:11,799 what we say about Jesus. And what we’re going to see today, is that John spoke 146 00:13:11,799 –> 00:13:20,020 very specifically in a way that humbled sinners and exalted the Savior. And that 147 00:13:20,020 –> 00:13:26,080 should be a hallmark of any gospel-centered church or ministry. The 148 00:13:26,080 –> 00:13:33,320 gospel always humbled sinners. The gospel always exults the Savior. People who are 149 00:13:33,320 –> 00:13:38,760 shaped by the gospel. It is their character to make little of themselves 150 00:13:38,760 –> 00:13:43,679 no matter what they have achieved and to make much of Jesus Christ who is their 151 00:13:43,679 –> 00:13:49,739 Savior and their Lord. To paraphrase James Denny who’s a writer that I often 152 00:13:49,739 –> 00:13:57,619 like to read and quote, we cannot communicate at the same time that we are 153 00:13:57,619 –> 00:14:05,799 great and that Jesus also is great. You just can’t communicate at the same time 154 00:14:06,200 –> 00:14:16,760 we’re great people and at the same time communicate Jesus is a great Savior. So I 155 00:14:16,760 –> 00:14:24,020 want you to notice what John says about himself. Look at verse 19. The Jews sent 156 00:14:24,020 –> 00:14:28,659 priests and Levites. Actually you’ll see in verse 24 more specifically with the 157 00:14:28,659 –> 00:14:33,780 Pharisees from among them. They sent priests and Revites from Jerusalem to 158 00:14:33,780 –> 00:14:42,179 ask him that’s John, who are you? Now notice what’s happening here there’s a 159 00:14:42,179 –> 00:14:50,280 clash. John has a very clear mission and ministry which is to speak about Jesus 160 00:14:50,280 –> 00:14:56,500 but the people who are coming out to speak with him, they want to know about 161 00:14:56,500 –> 00:15:00,039 him. You see the clash. I want to speak about 162 00:15:00,039 –> 00:15:06,760 Jesus. No no no we want to hear about you. Tell us about yourself. The world is 163 00:15:06,760 –> 00:15:12,500 always fascinated with people and that is why we make celebrities and then what 164 00:15:12,500 –> 00:15:15,599 we want to know, and thousands of magazines get sold doing this, you know 165 00:15:15,599 –> 00:15:19,559 what about their private thoughts? What about their private lives and so forth 166 00:15:19,559 –> 00:15:24,380 and so on. And you can see the clash John saying that I want you to know who 167 00:15:24,380 –> 00:15:28,520 Jesus is and the people are saying no no no we want to know more about you, we 168 00:15:28,559 –> 00:15:33,559 want to know who you are and the pressure is on for John to make all of 169 00:15:33,559 –> 00:15:39,840 this ministry about himself. Now I try and picture you know the journalist from 170 00:15:39,840 –> 00:15:45,059 the Jerusalem Chronicle coming out into the desert to do a featured article on 171 00:15:45,059 –> 00:15:50,780 John the Baptist and there she is and she has a her recorder and she has her 172 00:15:50,780 –> 00:15:55,900 microphone puts it under his nose and says to John, so Jon tell us this why do 173 00:15:55,940 –> 00:15:59,419 you think that your ministry is proving so successful why are so many people 174 00:15:59,419 –> 00:16:04,799 coming to hear you? Tell us about your experience of being filled with the Holy 175 00:16:04,799 –> 00:16:09,179 Spirit what does that feel like what does it feel like to be filled with the 176 00:16:09,179 –> 00:16:14,700 Holy Spirit? Lots of people want to know that maybe John you could tell us about 177 00:16:14,700 –> 00:16:17,780 the strange choice of clothing that you have are you trying to develop a new 178 00:16:17,780 –> 00:16:22,179 brand in camel hair or something and what did the world made you think of 179 00:16:22,179 –> 00:16:31,000 combining locusts with honey? Who are you? That’s the question that is brought to 180 00:16:31,000 –> 00:16:37,340 John by the delegation in the desert. Now notice what John says they want to make 181 00:16:37,340 –> 00:16:43,520 a big deal about him notice how he responds because what he says is so 182 00:16:43,520 –> 00:16:48,960 important and we must be very clear in making the same response with regards to 183 00:16:48,960 –> 00:16:57,760 what we say about ourselves number one he confesses that he is not the savior 184 00:16:57,760 –> 00:17:10,319 he confessed verse 20 and did not deny but confessed I am NOT the Christ now 185 00:17:10,319 –> 00:17:17,680 the very statement itself indicates that it was at least possible in the minds of 186 00:17:17,739 –> 00:17:24,339 the Pharisees that he might be I mean here is this remarkable person and he is 187 00:17:24,339 –> 00:17:30,660 filled with the Holy Spirit speaks with immense power has a remarkable following 188 00:17:30,660 –> 00:17:36,319 and hundreds of lives evidently are being changed by his ministry maybe he 189 00:17:36,319 –> 00:17:43,520 is the Christ but John gives this very clear in this very emphatic answer he 190 00:17:43,520 –> 00:17:53,239 confessed and he did not deny I am not the Christ I am not the Savior I am NOT 191 00:17:53,239 –> 00:18:00,359 the answer to the great needs of other people the answer does not lie in me 192 00:18:00,359 –> 00:18:09,319 could not be clearer now here’s the application to us when you love people 193 00:18:09,319 –> 00:18:17,040 when you serve other people it is easy to get the idea that in some way you 194 00:18:17,040 –> 00:18:24,079 are the one who can fix their problems and John’s words remind us you are not 195 00:18:24,079 –> 00:18:31,819 the Savior you are not the Savior of the person you are mentoring you are not the 196 00:18:32,579 –> 00:18:42,020 friend or of your husband or of your wife or of your children that is a role to be 197 00:18:42,020 –> 00:18:49,099 the Savior the deliverer that is a role that you cannot fill and it is a burden 198 00:18:49,099 –> 00:18:56,859 that you could not possibly ever bare. Second he confesses that he is not a 199 00:18:57,839 –> 00:19:01,199 they asked him you see they’re going down the list well if you’re not the Christ 200 00:19:01,199 –> 00:19:05,780 they’re thinking who is he and so they come to the next on the list, who then 201 00:19:05,780 –> 00:19:13,479 Are you Elijah? Well why did they go to Elijah? Elijah of course was the one who 202 00:19:13,479 –> 00:19:17,119 was memorable in the history of the Old Testament for having performed such 203 00:19:17,119 –> 00:19:22,500 remarkable wonders by the power of God. I mean Elijah he was the one who prayed 204 00:19:22,500 –> 00:19:26,640 that it would not rain again. Elijah said definitely going down is broken 205 00:19:27,540 –> 00:19:33,619 and the Scripture says it did not rain for three and a half years. Then he went 206 00:19:33,619 –> 00:19:37,859 into the home of a widow whose son had died and he stretched himself out on the 207 00:19:37,859 –> 00:19:42,479 Sun then he prayed for the mercy of God to be poured out and the son was raised 208 00:19:42,479 –> 00:19:48,660 to life again and he presented the son back to his mother. Then he goes to the 209 00:19:48,660 –> 00:19:52,900 top of Mount Carmel where there’s all this festival of pagan religion that’s 210 00:19:53,680 –> 00:19:58,319 he calls on God to send down fire from heaven and fire comes down from heaven 211 00:19:58,319 –> 00:20:05,219 and burns up the sacrifice that has been soaked seven times in water so 212 00:20:05,219 –> 00:20:09,579 maybe if you’re not the Christ- you are Elijah. Maybe you’ve come here to do 213 00:20:09,579 –> 00:20:14,060 remarkable and wonderful work. Did it not say that there would be an Elijah who 214 00:20:14,060 –> 00:20:17,859 would come before the Christ? Maybe that is who you are. Are you going to 215 00:20:17,859 –> 00:20:21,359 turn the hearts of the children to their fathers and the fathers to their 216 00:20:21,500 –> 00:20:33,839 children? And he said, I am not. I am not. Third, he’s not the Christ. He’s not the 217 00:20:33,839 –> 00:20:41,459 Wonder Worker. John did no miracles. Third, he is not the lawgiver. Are you 218 00:20:41,459 –> 00:20:48,780 the prophet they asked him? Now notice that they did not ask, are you a prophet? 219 00:20:48,780 –> 00:20:52,359 You notice what it says in the scriptures it’s significant? They ask the 220 00:20:52,359 –> 00:20:58,180 question, are you the prophet? And the reference here is to Deuteronomy in 221 00:20:58,180 –> 00:21:05,939 chapter 18 in verse 15, where God said to Moses, I will raise up for them a prophet 222 00:21:05,939 –> 00:21:12,020 like you. And this was a well-known Old Testament prophecy that in the latter 223 00:21:12,020 –> 00:21:16,780 days that would be a prophet like Moses. And so the delegation comes, they say 224 00:21:16,800 –> 00:21:20,380 well he’s not the Christ, he’s not Elijah, maybe he’s the prophet, maybe 225 00:21:20,380 –> 00:21:24,239 he’s the prophet like Moses. And so they’re asking this question, are you 226 00:21:24,239 –> 00:21:35,239 that prophet? You know, the one that is like Moses? And again John says, No. Now 227 00:21:35,239 –> 00:21:39,900 friends, these questions and John’s answers surely remind us of the three 228 00:21:39,900 –> 00:21:46,280 great temptations that always face the Christian church. The church has often 229 00:21:46,280 –> 00:21:56,680 been tempted to assume the role of the wonder worker, to focus on miraculous 230 00:21:56,680 –> 00:22:02,520 gifts, to present ourselves as the ones who are channels of divine power and 231 00:22:02,520 –> 00:22:11,180 they say to John, Is this what you are? And John says I am not, that’s not me. The 232 00:22:11,180 –> 00:22:16,119 Christian church will often be tempted to assume the role of the great lawgiver 233 00:22:16,119 –> 00:22:23,160 like Moses, to present ourselves as the custodians of the moral lifestyle, to see 234 00:22:23,160 –> 00:22:28,160 ourselves as the people who somehow are here to tell others what to do and how 235 00:22:28,160 –> 00:22:35,400 to live. And they say to John, Is that who you are? John says, No. Worst of all the 236 00:22:35,400 –> 00:22:41,040 Church may be tempted to put ourselves in the place of Jesus Christ himself. In 237 00:22:41,260 –> 00:22:48,040 Instead of saying that deliverance comes from him, to somehow suggest that if you 238 00:22:48,040 –> 00:22:53,920 attach yourself to the Church that deliverance will come from us. And when 239 00:22:53,920 –> 00:22:58,900 that happens you see how everything changes. We exchange the vertical for the 240 00:22:58,900 –> 00:23:04,280 horizontal and we end up suggesting that somehow 241 00:23:04,420 –> 00:23:15,540 salvation lies in our programmes, our sacraments, our counsel, or our ministry. 242 00:23:15,540 –> 00:23:26,380 What we say about ourselves matters. We are not the Christ. We are not able to 243 00:23:26,380 –> 00:23:32,119 answer the world’s problems. We are not in the business of trying to tell 244 00:23:32,319 –> 00:23:38,300 everybody in the world how to live. We need to stand with John today and be 245 00:23:38,300 –> 00:23:42,800 absolutely clear in our confession with him, we are not the Christ, we are not 246 00:23:42,800 –> 00:23:51,800 Elijah, we are not the prophet, like Moses. Hugely important. And a failure to 247 00:23:51,800 –> 00:23:57,459 make that critical confession ends up with churches simply exalting 248 00:23:58,260 –> 00:24:05,719 themselves. We really need this. What do you say about yourself? Second, notice 249 00:24:05,739 –> 00:24:11,739 what John says about Jesus this is marvelous verse 26-27 250 00:24:27,459 –> 00:24:36,439 I am not worthy to untie Now you see how clear John’s words are now 251 00:24:36,439 –> 00:24:45,439 here you’ve come out here and you’re interested to know about me. Well, here’s the only thing 252 00:24:45,439 –> 00:24:50,959 you need to know about me. I am about someone else, and that someone else that I am about 253 00:24:50,959 –> 00:25:00,099 but I am not worthy to untie his sandal. Now, here’s why we spent a few minutes just 254 00:25:00,099 –> 00:25:08,979 taking in who John was. And here’s where it is so significant. The man who says this 255 00:25:08,979 –> 00:25:15,660 is a man who was sent by God. The man who says this is a man who was filled with the 256 00:25:15,660 –> 00:25:21,459 Holy Spirit, he’s been filled with the Holy Spirit from birth, he was blessed with the 257 00:25:21,459 –> 00:25:26,959 most remarkable ministry of its time, a ministry that touched many, many people and changed 258 00:25:26,959 –> 00:25:32,020 many, many people’s lives. Crowds of people were making the effort to come out into the 259 00:25:32,020 –> 00:25:38,699 desert in order to hear him preach and to be baptised by him. He was, according to our 260 00:25:38,699 –> 00:25:45,339 Lord Jesus himself, one of the greatest people who has ever lived, and he says, I am not 261 00:25:45,339 –> 00:25:52,219 worthy to untie the sandal on the feet of Jesus. 262 00:25:52,219 –> 00:26:01,459 Doesn’t that strike you? The greatest Bible teacher you have ever heard is not worthy 263 00:26:01,459 –> 00:26:12,380 to untie the sandal on the feet of Jesus. The most spirit-filled believer you have ever 264 00:26:12,380 –> 00:26:26,439 met or admired is not worthy to untie the sandal on the feet of Jesus. The wisest counsellor 265 00:26:26,439 –> 00:26:40,520 you have ever sought and trusted is not worthy to untie the sandal on the feet of Jesus. 266 00:26:40,520 –> 00:26:52,739 The person you most love in this world is not worthy to untie the sandal on the feet 267 00:26:52,739 –> 00:27:02,699 of Jesus. Whoever you are, whatever you have achieved, you are not worthy to untie the 268 00:27:02,699 –> 00:27:11,859 sandal on the feet of Jesus. Now friends, this is a truth that we desperately need 269 00:27:11,859 –> 00:27:21,060 in our culture. It will help us to pull down the idols. And in a world that is infatuated 270 00:27:21,060 –> 00:27:30,920 with celebrities, we desperately need to hear what John has to say. When he says, I am not 271 00:27:30,979 –> 00:27:38,859 worthy, he is making this very important statement about himself, that a man even filled with 272 00:27:38,859 –> 00:27:50,219 the Holy Spirit, still says, I am not worthy! And that reminds us that, at our best, at 273 00:27:50,219 –> 00:27:56,619 our Christian best, what are we at our best? At my best, I am a sinner who depends on the 274 00:27:56,619 –> 00:28:02,040 grace and on the mercy of God. Whatever progress you have ever made or will make in the Christian 275 00:28:02,040 –> 00:28:06,640 life, your hope rests not in who you are, not in what you have accomplished, not in 276 00:28:06,640 –> 00:28:14,819 what you have become, but in Jesus Christ and in the mercy of God that flows so richly 277 00:28:14,819 –> 00:28:21,739 and lavishly to you through him. But I want you to notice that John, when he speaks about 278 00:28:21,739 –> 00:28:29,500 being unworthy, he’s not only making a statement about himself. He is also making a statement 279 00:28:29,500 –> 00:28:36,780 about ministry. He says, I am not worthy to do the least thing for the Lord Jesus. That’s 280 00:28:36,780 –> 00:28:45,459 what he’s saying. Always remember this, friends, ministry is a gift and not a right. 281 00:28:45,599 –> 00:28:53,579 You’ll find that in 2 Corinthians 4, in verse 1. Since by God’s mercy we have this ministry. 282 00:28:53,579 –> 00:28:58,560 You’re involved in ministry in some way. You lead a group, you serve with a team. It is 283 00:28:58,560 –> 00:29:04,060 by God’s mercy that you have this. This is a gift. This is an immense privilege. We do 284 00:29:04,060 –> 00:29:10,939 not have the right to a healthy and thriving church. If God were to withhold his blessing 285 00:29:11,020 –> 00:29:17,660 from any or all of us, everything we ever seek or imagine to do for him would come to 286 00:29:17,660 –> 00:29:22,800 nothing, unless the Lord builds the house. Those who labor, labor in vain. 287 00:29:22,800 –> 00:29:29,800 Here’s this great man. A man filled with the spirit. He doesn’t say what he does despite 288 00:29:31,000 –> 00:29:35,699 being filled with the spirit. He says what he does because he’s filled with the spirit. 289 00:29:36,060 –> 00:29:43,060 One of the greatest men who has ever lived. And by his own confession, the greatest thing 290 00:29:45,300 –> 00:29:52,300 about him is not anything that he did, but simply that he knows Jesus. Why? Because Jesus, 291 00:29:57,020 –> 00:30:04,020 Jesus, is the eternal, personal, divine, creating, life-giving, incarnate, Son of God. 292 00:30:06,699 –> 00:30:13,699 Now, who do you say that you are? And who do you say that Jesus is? I hope, and I pray 293 00:30:18,520 –> 00:30:24,900 this weekend that all of us will make John’s confession about ourselves and also about 294 00:30:24,900 –> 00:30:31,900 Jesus, that we will make the confession that he made our own. I really want to stand in 295 00:30:31,979 –> 00:30:38,979 a fresh way with John today and to say, I am not the Christ. The answers do not lie 296 00:30:39,020 –> 00:30:46,020 in me. They are found in Jesus, and I am not worthy to untie the sandals on the feet of 297 00:30:53,579 –> 00:30:59,119 Jesus. And when you’re there and when you see the 298 00:30:59,140 –> 00:31:06,140 glory of this eternal incarnate Son of God, it will be to you the most marvelous thing 299 00:31:08,380 –> 00:31:15,380 imaginable. That this Jesus Christ should want to call you His friend and that in His 300 00:31:18,660 –> 00:31:25,660 great mercy He should embrace you, counting you as brother, sister and that you should 301 00:31:26,280 –> 00:31:33,280 be able to stand with Him. You make John’s confession, I promise it will have these effects 302 00:31:36,140 –> 00:31:43,140 in your life. First obviously you will grow in humility. Then you will grow in worship. 303 00:31:43,920 –> 00:31:50,719 You know the reason why so many people find it difficult to engage in worship is often 304 00:31:51,479 –> 00:31:58,479 that we make way too much of ourselves and way too little of Jesus. And here is the marvelous 305 00:31:58,479 –> 00:32:03,560 thing too. It is right here in making the confession that John makes about who He is 306 00:32:03,560 –> 00:32:08,619 and about who Jesus is that you will discover hope. You see, what we have been learning 307 00:32:08,619 –> 00:32:15,619 today does more than humble the proud. It gives hope to the downcast. It lifts up the 308 00:32:16,619 –> 00:32:23,239 downtrodden. To the person that comes here to church today and says, I am not what I 309 00:32:23,239 –> 00:32:29,579 want to be. I do not have impressive gifts like other people that I see around me. I 310 00:32:29,579 –> 00:32:36,579 do not have wide spheres of influence. My life is not as I would want it to be. Nobody 311 00:32:36,579 –> 00:32:41,099 would ever say that I am among the great people who have ever lived in this world. No. John 312 00:32:41,839 –> 00:32:47,439 would say this to you. He would say, look, life does not lie in you. Life does not lie 313 00:32:47,439 –> 00:32:52,160 in you or what you have got, or what you have become, what you can do and even what you 314 00:32:52,160 –> 00:32:59,160 hope to accomplish. Life lies not in who you are. Life lies in who He is. And this gospel, 315 00:33:00,140 –> 00:33:07,140 John would say to you, is written, that you may know that Jesus is the Christ, and that 316 00:33:07,859 –> 00:33:14,859 by believing in His name, you may have life. Let’s pray together, shall we? 317 00:33:16,959 –> 00:33:22,599 Father, we live in a world that teaches us to love ourselves way more than we love you, 318 00:33:22,599 –> 00:33:28,160 to trust ourselves more than we trust you, and to think more of ourselves than we think 319 00:33:28,160 –> 00:33:34,699 of you and we see today that it’s all the wrong way around and we are wanting to take 320 00:33:34,699 –> 00:33:45,079 our stand with John. To confess what we are not and gladly and freely to confess all that 321 00:33:45,079 –> 00:33:55,160 you are so that we may find all that we will become not in ourselves but in you, the great, 322 00:33:55,160 –> 00:34:02,020 loving, eternal incarnate Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us and even now as 323 00:34:02,060 –> 00:34:07,060 we think of the grace with which you reach out to us in our unworthiness, sinners as 324 00:34:07,060 –> 00:34:20,699 we are. We are blessed to count ourselves yours and praise you. In Jesus name, Amen.