The Star Witness (John 1:19-34 Jeff Kliewer)

I want to say good morning and come on in. It's awesome to have you here with us this morning sharing in fellowship. I was meditating a little bit this morning, this week on the first Passover. And I know we're going to be talking a little bit about that.

Drew's going to talk a little more at communion, but my imagination kind of goes kind of wild every now and then. And I was thinking what it was like for the families sitting in their house. Now they put the blood on the lintel and on the doorposts, and what were they talking about at dinner that evening?

I like to think that somehow God has encouraged them with thoughts of his sovereignty, of his provision, and maybe excitement. But here's the thing, we're here together this morning, and the table is being set in front of us.

In fact, as we talk, here comes some more of the elements. We're going to be able to fellowship together over the elements as we remember Christ's sacrifice. And I'm going to want us, as we come together, to remember the purpose, the excitement, the fulfillment of us being here in the very, very presence of God, knowing, I don't know about you, but knowing the depth of the sin that I carry, knowing that God knows that, and still he died on the cross for me.

That has to be an overwhelming and an amazing thought of encouragement as we get together. I want to open us up in Psalm 119. Your testimonies are my heritage, forever they are the joy of my heart. And when, as I was reading that, the word testimonies caught my eye, because in Psalm 119, you frequently read your law or your precepts, but here it says your testimonies.

Do you know what's going on there? It's the reality of who Jesus is being testified to my heart. This goes beyond just the words, it goes beyond the very truth, the very words of God, to a call to being with God.

Jesus said, it's recorded in John, you study the scriptures for in them you think you find eternal life, but they are those which testify of me. We get together, we read, we meditate, and it all is with the purpose and with the privilege of coming closer to our Lord and Savior, and that's what we're getting to do together this morning.

Few announcements I want to bring your way, it's gonna be a great week, it's gonna be a busy week as we move into August, moving into September. The first thing is going to be, and this flyer I think is on the back table, it's for our VBS.

It's going to be Thursday and Friday, I think it's at six o 'clock at night, the 11th and 12th. If you have children of age, if you have neighbors with children of age, family with children of age, whatever, this is a great opportunity for them to come have some fun, but to hear the word of God.

So I want to highlight our VBS, which is coming and be in prayer for it, and pray for those who will be speaking God's word. Then on Saturday is the Love Life Prayer Walk. What an important opportunity for us to sit in front of the throne of God and to be praying for these children that are at risk for never getting to experience the light of day.

These women, these men, who are potentially making a horrific decision, and we're in prayer. We are in prayer for these lives. I don't know if you saw an article, but Indiana has now passed, and the governor has now signed the law in Indiana following the reversal of Roe v. Wade that abortion, with very, very few exceptions, is no longer legal in the state of Indiana.

God is awesome. We continue to pray for that. The battle rages on. In a couple of weeks from now, on Sunday at three o 'clock, it will be the 21st, so that's in two weeks. We're gonna have an opportunity for people to come back in and just join together in fellowship and to proclaim the amazing blessings that God has been called a praise party.

That just means we're gonna come together and we're gonna lift up what God has done and we're gonna celebrate it right back. Do you know that at the end of times, after the millennial kingdom, we are going to sit in front of the Bema seat, those who are believers, and our works will be brought forth in front of the Lord and measured, and those which are of hay, wood, and stubble will be burned, but those which are of precious metals will be judged, and we'll be given crowns.

Do you know what we're gonna do with those crowns? We'll give them right back to God. We get to do that now as we express our praise for what we have done. If you see in your life the amazing blessings of God, share them with each other, and that will be in two weeks, so you can come for that.

Our regular schedule continues. Come back tonight for our prayer meeting, the women meeting with precepts on Mondays, the men with their apologetics class. So much going on. On small groups, we are getting ready to launch a couple of new small groups in September.

One of them will be another marriage matters for couples. The Bittles will be leading that. It's a limited attendance. If you're interested, see the Bittles, see Pastor Jeff if you are interested in it, if you can get into it.

That would be great. And then a new care group is going to start just north of Mount Holly at the home of Dan and Holly Wright, and so be looking for that. And with other opportunities to join together.

September we'll have baptism, and September we'll also have a new members class. So much, much going on. A little bit later today, right after the prayer time, we are going to recognize and pray for several of our youth, of our young adults, who are going to the mission field.

They think they're going to college. It's a mission field. And so we are going to pray for them, and so we'll have that opportunity after we pray together. So let's turn to prayer. Dear Father God, we do acknowledge you.

Your testimonies are my heritage forever. They are the joy of my heart. Pray Father that our hearts will be turned to you, will be turned towards your word. We'll be desiring that closer relationship with you, that seeing you and being with you is truly our joy.

We thank you for that. Lord, you have called us to be a witness and a testimony, to give your word to a dark world. We pray for the obedience of that. John the Baptist was an amazing, an amazing obedient servant.

Much that he did, we will learn today, that we can have it within our hearts to obediently seek after you. We pray in Jesus' name, and our missionaries around the world, two of them in specific this morning, the Hobsons in Manila, there is a health issue for both Steve and for the Director Jeff.

They're doing well, but we pray for the healing power of our Lord and Savior. And for many of the international students that they deal with needing to go to Manila, there's a need for visas and for funding to come through.

You are the great provider. For the Kamlins who are returning after 25 years, doing your work in Portugal, they'll be departing on the 16th. We pray for safety, but right now we also pray that as Terry comes home to the States, that she'll find those doctors that can continue to treat in her needs.

We also pray for the leaders that will take Terry and Gary's place back in Portugal. Lord, for the VBS that's coming up this week, the youth to hear your word to be changed in their hearts, we pray, Lord, for the power of your Holy Spirit.

Father, we do have many in our midst in need. You know them. We continue to pray for them. And Father, now as we prepare to hear your word from John to understand the power of John the Baptist, the voice crying in the wilderness, who proclaimed, this is the one, the Son of God, that we would also be obedient.

Prepare, Pastor Jeff, with your words and our hearts to hear. We pray these things in Jesus' name. And right now I'm gonna ask any of the youth who are heading to the mission field, you think it's college, but if you guys would come up so we can pray over you.

All right. And why don't we ask the college students to share, first of all, their name, and then also what school you're going to. I'm Rob Stock and I'm going to Rome. I'm Donovan Boone. I'm going to Rome, Cumberland County.

I'm Jack Reed. I'm going to Reformation Bible College. I'm Jacob Hook. I'm going to Reformation Bible College.

I'm Julianne Meyer. I'm going to Liberty University. I'm Maddie Navinger and I'm going to Liberty University. What a mission field God has prepared our youth to go to and has called them to. We need to be in prayer that God continues to instruct them, equip them, and protect them.

Let's pray. Father God, we thank you for each of these youth, this next phase of their life, which can be scary, but at the same time, it's an amazing opportunity. They're going to learn, they're going to grow, they're going to experience life in many ways.

Father, we pray that as they have been here at home with their families, as they've been here at Cornerstone with us, as they've been prepared with your word, that their hearts are filled with a deep sense of truth.

As they go into places where many confusing things are said, protect them from falsehood. As they go into world areas where there is darkness, give them your word and give them the courage to speak your word.

We lift them up for this next phase of their life that you would watch over them, protect them, send them. We pray in Jesus' name.

I'm going to pray as well. Father, we thank you for these young people. Lord, we know that your word says that nothing can snatch them out of your hand, and we claim that promise over them, Lord. Keep them by the power of your word.

Lord, we pray also that you would fill them with your Holy Spirit to send them out into this mission field. Where they go, Lord, we pray they go in your power to be witnesses. We pray that you would make them like John the Baptist.

Give them courage to be truth tellers, even if that truth is unpopular in the culture. We pray that you would take away any fear and anxiety that they might have and replace that with a spirit of courage and fortitude and strength and power in the Holy Spirit that they would go forth proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We pray that you would use each one of these young lives to bring others to saving faith. Help them to be teachers of your word. Give them the gifts of the spirit that they would walk as children of God and serve you all the days of their lives.

In Jesus' name we pray, amen.

Let's all stand, the light that shines in the darkness. As we come into your presence, we remember every blessing that you poured out so freely from above. Lifting gratitude and praises for compassion so amazing.

Lord, we've come to give you thanks for all you've done. Because of your love, we're forgiven. Our hearts are clean with songs of freedom. Forever we're changed because of your love. Because of your love, we're forgiven.

Because of your love, our hearts are clean. We lift you up with songs of freedom. We're changed because of your love. You turned into one in the eyes of the blind. There's no one like you. And in torture to die, on a cross crucified.

There's no one like you, not like you. Our God is greater, our God is stronger. God, you are higher than. Our God is here, our God, our God. They conquered the grave, paid all my sins and my shame. There's no one like you.

From death and alive, there's no one that is greater. You are higher, our God is healer. Awesome in power, our God, our God. And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God is with us, then what could stand against it?

If our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God is with us, then what could stand against? What could stand against? God is greater, our God is stronger. God, you are higher than. Our God is healer, awesome in power, our God, our God.

My sins are forgiven, my future is had. I praise God. Even death is dead and done, his life is over. He is risen from the, he's done, he's done. My sins are forgiven, my future is had. I praise God. You see, the father's will complete.

He reigns in victory. Sing his word, all the words he's done, he's done. To the song, my sins are forgiven. My future is had, I praise God. What he's done, what he's done. All the glory and the honor to the song.

My sins are forgiven, my future is had. I praise God. I praise God.

Communion and the Meaning of the Lord’s Table

Be prepared for the communion. We're gonna celebrate communion, and if there are any families still kinda looking for seating, there's a row back behind pastor. Nobody wants to sit next to the pastor, and I'm not sure why that is, but probably doesn't really mean anything.

Jen's with you, so that's good. We're gonna come before the table this morning, and before we talk exactly about what the table means and represents today, I wanna talk to you about just some basic things about our Lord and about the salvation that he has given to us in his son.

So God is holy. He is righteous. He is true, and he is pure. Everything he does is good, and he dwells in inapproachable light. That's our God in heaven. He is awesome. He is a God of justice, and sinfulness cannot stand in his presence.

Isaiah 59, two, Proverbs 11, 21, talk about sin, not being able to be in the presence of God, and him having to judge sin. All of us, we need to be honest about this, all of us are sinful, so that's a problem.

That means we right now are separated from God because of our sin. We have no fellowship with him, and if we die in that state, we would be forever separated from him in a place called hell. But God loves his creation, and even though we have sinned against him, he has a plan.

He had a plan in the Old Testament, which was to sacrifice a lamb for a guilt or sin offering, where you would bring the lamb before the altar, and that little life of that little lamb was poured out on the altar to cover your sins, to pay the price for your sins, but a lamb cannot pay the price for the sins of a man against the Holy God.

Only another innocent man can do that. So the continuation of that plan, because the lambs had to be sacrificed over and over and over again, the continuation of the plan was to offer up his only son, Jesus Christ.

Jesus was the spotless, sinless lamb of God who came and laid down his life willingly so that we now can have fellowship with God, that we are not separated with him, and not only now have fellowship with him, but fellowship with him all throughout eternity, which will never be taken away from you.

Jesus was willing to do that, and the father was willing to send his son to do that. And that's what we celebrate today. We remember what Jesus has done. I'm gonna read from Luke right now. Luke chapter 22 says this.

And when the hour had come, he reclined at the table and the apostles with him. And he said to them, I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.

And when he had taken a cup and given thanks, he said, take this and share it among yourselves. For I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes. And when he had taken some of the bread and given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them saying, this is my body, which is given for you.

Do this in remembrance of me. And in the same way, he took the cup after they had eaten, saying this cup, which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. And notice that Jesus said, this is the last Passover.

John talked about the first Passover before. This is the last Passover because there was no need for any more Passovers after this meal, because Jesus was the lamb of God who gave himself on that cross for our sins.

But notice that he says, do this in remembrance of me. That's what we're doing today. We are remembering what Jesus has done, what his body went through, what he was willing to suffer for our sakes to pay for our sins on that cross, to lay down his life, and not only that, but also the sin of the world being laid upon him and taking the wrath of God upon himself for our sake.

We remember that. But there's also not just a looking back, but also a present aspect of our communion today, which is we are proclaiming the Lord's death. We're proclaiming his victory today, his victory over sin and death.

And we rejoice in that because we do have a relationship with the Lord that is completed today and is restored. And one day when we see him face-to-face, it will be the end of our salvation. It'll be the continuation of our salvation, and it will be totally completed.

We will never be separated from him. So in the present, we rejoice with each other. We rejoice with the family of God. We rejoice with what the Lord has done. And then notice what Jesus said a few times.

He said, well, I shall never eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. And then he said, I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine now on until the kingdom of God comes. And we know that after Jesus was resurrected, he did eat fish with his disciples after his resurrection, but he is waiting now to complete the meal that he started on that last Passover night.

For we read in that Passover night that there were two cups. The first cup he took and shared with his disciples. And then he had another cup, which says, this is poured out for you, the new covenant in my blood.

So how many cups were there? Well, there was four cups at the Passover meal. There was the cup of sanctification, cup of judgment, the cup of redemption, and the, I don't remember the last cup, but that's the cup that the word is going to drink with us in his kingdom in heaven when we're with him.

Because he said, after that third cup, the cup of redemption, it seems like he stopped the meal at that point. And he's gonna continue the meal when we see him in the kingdom. The third cup, the cup of redemption is the one that he said would poured out for us for the forgiveness of sins.

The cup of redemption is what Jesus accomplished on the cross by his blood being poured out, the precious blood as of a lamb of God, spotless, without blame, poured out for our sins. So we look forward to the kingdom as well.

We look back at what Jesus has done. We rejoice in the communion we have with him and with each other right now. And we look forward to the kingdom when we'll all be together celebrating with the king himself.

So let's partake. And I'll have the guys come forward now if we could for the communion table.

Father, we thank you for what you have accomplished in your son Jesus Christ. Father, it is your plan to send your son and have him crushed on the cross, Father, that for his sins, for our sins, may he be proved righteous in his life.

Father, we remember what Jesus has accomplished and we thank you, Father, that by faith, anyone trusting in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I am without one plea

But that thy blood was shed for me Come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come I, just as I am and waiting not to rid my soul of one dark blot To thee, O Lamb of God, I come Thou will receive, will welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve Because thou promised, I believe, O Lamb of God Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind, sight, riches, healing of the mind

To thee, I find, O Lamb of God, I come Agony and blood, he fixed his languid eyes on me

As near his cross I stood, oh, can it be upon a tree The Savior died for me, my soul is thrilled, my heart is filled To think he died for me, never till my latest breath Can I forget that look, it seemed to charge me with his death Though not a word he spoke, oh, can it be upon a tree The Savior died for me, my soul is thrilled, my heart is filled To think he died for me, conscience felt and owned the guilt And plunged me in despair, I saw the sins his blood had spilt And helped to nail him there, oh, can it be upon a tree The Savior died for me, my soul is thrilled, my heart is filled To think he died for me, a second look he gave which said I freely all forgive, this blood is for thy ransom paid I die that thou may live, oh, can it be upon a tree The Savior died for me, my soul is thrilled, my heart is filled

To think he died for me, conscience felt and owned the guilt

And plunged me in despair, I saw the sins his blood had spilt And helped to nail him there, oh, can it be upon a tree. The Savior died for me, my soul is thrilled, my heart is filled To think he died for me, a second look he gave which said And now, Lord, as we come to open the bread of your word to receive life from your word, we pray that we would be trained by it, that your word would nourish us and strengthen us, correct us.

Lord, give us ears to hear, make us receptive to receive the bread of your word. Thank you that you're a God that speaks. You don't just leave us here to do whatever, but you direct us, you are with us.

So through the preaching of your word, the hearing of your word, Lord, we pray that you would strengthen us in Jesus' name, amen. I'd like to begin by sharing a short biography of a very unique person, an extraordinary life, unparalleled, and that is the life of John the Baptist.

Some may not realize, but his story actually begins hundreds of years before he's born, because Isaiah the prophet, in chapter 40, verses one to five, prophesied the coming of John the Baptist. A voice crying in the wilderness, make straight the way of the Lord.

Likewise, Malachi ended the Old Testament by prophesying of John the Baptist. In chapter three, verse one, and then in chapter four, verses five and six, Elijah the prophet, who will turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children.

Elijah will come. So consider this, first of all, that John the Baptist is unique because he himself was prophesied. The prophets foretold the coming of John the Baptist. Secondly, consider the way he was conceived, a miraculous conception.

Elizabeth was barren, and Zechariah and Elizabeth tried to have kids through all of the childbearing years, but they never did. Compound that barrenness with the fact that now Elizabeth had aged well beyond the childbearing years.

She was up maybe in her 60s or 70s, and it seemed absolutely impossible from a human perspective that she would bear a son, and yet that's precisely what happened. He was conceived. John the Baptist was conceived miraculously.

Third, consider that John the Baptist's life in the womb is recorded for us. Isn't that unique? Who else do we have in the Bible, or really, what do we know of what goes on in the womb? It doesn't seem like much would be happening there.

And yet we learn that John the Baptist was already praising God. He was rejoicing. He was filled with the Spirit from the womb, and we're even told that when Mary came into the room where Elizabeth was, both of them were pregnant.

Mary was pregnant with Jesus. Elizabeth was pregnant with John the Baptist. He leapt for joy in the presence of the Lord. So he was already praising while he was yet a child in the womb, which again, we can't stress enough, the child in the womb is a child, a living person.

His birth was likewise miraculous. He's born into the world in the ordinary way, but his father had been mute since the angel spoke and prophesied of his birth. When it came time to name John the Baptist, he would have been given a family name, but instead, Elizabeth said that his name would be John, and actually, Zechariah wrote that on a tablet, and as soon as he said his name is John, as soon as he wrote that, his tongue was loosed, and Zechariah began to praise God.

And the Bible tells us that this miracle, the opening of a mute man's tongue, began to spread all throughout Israel, and fear came upon every man. So even in his birth, the revival began. Fear, fear of the Lord spread across Israel in his birth.

He was unique as a child. As a young child, we're told he grew strong in spirit. Now, children are known for being weak, right? Kids are like, hey, wait a minute. No, the weakness of developing into adulthood, but that's also a spiritual development that needs to take place.

Children are not born into the world in the fullness of spiritual maturity. Rather, they're born children. In fact, dead in sin, they must be regenerated and grow as disciples like anyone else. Well, John the Baptist, even as a child, was called strong in the spirit.

I can picture this little boy walking around his house, praying and lifting his hands and asking questions and learning the scriptures. He was an eager student of God's word, even as a child, very unique.

And then as soon as he was old enough to sustain his own life, he left as a teenager. He left his home. He made a break with the world and he took off for the wilderness and began to live by eating locusts and honey.

He made prophet's clothes out of camel hair. And so he was a prophet. Living in the wilderness, quite unique at this point, all by himself, but meeting with God, communing with God. Well, his ministry then began.

Can you imagine if you were the first person to hear John's ministry? I mean, this guy's been living out in the wilderness by himself, it would be kind of intimidating. He's kind of like a wild man. And you go and he begins to call out your sin.

But strangely, the spirit of God comes over you and you feel conviction for sin and you go down into the water with this wild man in the wilderness, wouldn't that be a little intimidating? To go underwater, how do you know he's not just gonna hold you there?

And that will be the end of you. But it was the spirit of God drawing people into the water. And after that first man came, then another and another. And before long, all of Israel is coming out. And his ministry is powerful.

It's the work of God. And to the tax collector, he says, stop extorting money, take only what is owed. To the soldier, he says, be content with your wages and stop oppressing people. To the Pharisee, he says, you brood of vipers, who warned you to flee the coming wrath?

Here's a truth teller without fear. He calls the people to repentance. He's filled with the spirit of God. His ministry is marked by the power of God. I heard someone say, the sun will burn your eyes from 92 ,000 miles.

92 million miles, that's how far the sun is. If you stare directly into it. And yet you think you can go strolling into the presence of God flippantly? John the Baptist had the fire of God deep in his bones.

And he called people to look not at the physical sun, but to look at the son of God and to do so with fear and trembling. This was a prophet. And he spoke the truth. He was unafraid. In fact, he would even speak truth to power, politically.

He spoke to Herod, who at the time was the king over the area, over Galilee. This was not the original Herod who built the Herodian and the Masada, which you could visit in Israel. He built Caesarea Philippi and he rebuilt the temple, the great Temple Mount.

Herod, the first Herod, the great, was a great builder. His son, Herod Antipas, was like him. As a builder to some extent, but really in character. Herod was the one that killed all the babies of Bethlehem.

And Herod Antipas was likewise wicked. And so Herod Antipas had divorced his wife and married his brother's wife because he preferred her, Herodias. And John the Baptist in the wilderness began to speak out against Herod and said, it is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.

And before long, what happened? You know the story. He was arrested, thrown in jail. But see, his ministry was a call to repentance, but there was one aspect of his ministry that trumped all of it. He had a special role, a unique role, and that was to be the forerunner of the Messiah.

John came to introduce the Messiah, kind of like the introducer in the boxing ring. He's not gonna do any boxing. He just introduces the ones who will, right? John the Baptist is an introducer. And he says, behold, the Lamb of God.

He is the one who introduces the Messiah. Think about that. All the prophets had foretold the coming of Messiah. All of them, ending with Malachi. But it was John uniquely who got to see him and say, here he is.

What a special role John had. Well, where did that get him? We said it landed him in prison, but there came a day when Herodias, the wicked wife of Herod, brought out her daughter to dance in front of the party.

And the people of the party, the men were so pleased by her dancing that Herod said, I'll give you anything you want, dear girl. Ask for it and it's yours. And at the prompting of Herodias, who of course hated John the Baptist, she asked for John the Baptist's head on a platter.

And so Herod sent the executioner, and John the Baptist was killed. Was martyred for the truth that he was unafraid to speak. He gave his life preaching the truth. Church, this is what America has lost.

This is what the church in America specifically has laid down, and that is the prophetic mantle. We've lost that John the Baptist spirit that's willing to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Willing to say the hard things, the things that could get you killed, or at least ostracized in our present culture. John the Baptist came to rebuild families, and church in America today, the family is under attack.

We're all aware of BLM, the movement that swept through the country in 2020. Well, on their website, they advocated for the dismantling of the nuclear family. And in fact, if you look at the policies of this country, very often they're aimed at undermining the nuclear family.

Welfare is graded in such a way as to disincentivize family, and reward the breakdown of family. That's the welfare system that dominates our country. And the results of this is the breakdown of family, and wherever the family breaks down, you see all manner of devastation.

And that's why you see that in our country. In fact, there are other ways that the family is under attack. It is the state's goal to pull children out of the home as soon as possible, trying to push public funded preschools and kindergartens as early as possible to take kids away from the influence of fathers and mothers in the home.

In all of these things, the family is under attack. But when Elijah came, in the spirit of Elijah, John the Baptist, according to Malachi, the end of the Old Testament, Malachi 4, 5, and 6, he would turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children.

The church needs John the Baptist. We don't need him in the flesh. He's come once and for all to do his work, but the spirit, the prophetic spirit of preaching the truth and the whole truth of God needs to return to the pulpit and the classroom and the home, where Christian parents are raising their children in the fear of the Lord.

We have the gospel of grace, and there is much emphasis on that in our churches, but we have forgotten to teach or purposely neglected to teach the fear of the Lord, the fear of God, that God is a blazing fire.

And just like you can't stare at the sun, you cannot enter the presence of a holy God apart from the blood of the Lamb. And having come under the blood and come into relationship with God, there is an ethic, there is a morality that we must walk in.

John the Baptist restored Israel to that, calling tax collector and soldier and every common person back to the law of God, the moral law of God, to live in such a way as is pleasing to him. So this is what we'll see in John the Baptist.

Let's turn there now to John chapter one, verses 19 to 23. This prophetic fire in his heart, John's primary purpose is to exalt Jesus Christ, to make known the Son of God. Let's read about this. We'll read it in three parts, verses 19 to 23 first, and then two short sections after that.

Remember that John's gospel was written to reveal who Jesus is. In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Right away, verses six to nine, he calls on John as his witness, his star witness, the primary witness, to ground his argument.

Then he gives the offer to whoever believes would receive eternal life, would become a child of God. And he says, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And then he delights in grace upon grace that the Son of God has come.

And now we get into the kind of the flow of the story, and he picks up with that witness. So let's read it, verse 19 to 23. And this is the testimony of John. When the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, who are you?

He confessed and did not deny, but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, what then, are you Elijah? He said, I am not. Are you the prophet? He answered, no. So they said to him, who are you?

We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself? He said, I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, make straight the way of the Lord, as the prophet Isaiah said.

Isaiah said that in his 40th chapter. But let's look at this interaction because what's happening here is that the credentials of the witness are being established. Why is John so unique to be the star witness in the gospel of John?

What credentials does he have? Why is he believable? Well, let's look at it. In verse 19, the Jews asked that question. And in verse 20, the very first thing that John says is who he is not. I am not the Christ.