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Teach me to love thy truth, for thou art love, O Spirit.
John chapter 1, please. Last Lord's Day we began the study of this gospel, this fourth gospel in our New Testament. We're going to be here a while, I suspect. We're going to cover three verses today. Last week we covered six, I believe.
No, five verses last week, three today. I counted up the verses in John last night. There's 877 in John's gospel, so I'm thinking we're going to be here a while, I suspect. If we don't pick up the pace, I don't know.
We mentioned last week that the main doctrine or teaching of the gospel of John is his Christology. In other words, his doctrine of Christ. And at the heart of this doctrine of Jesus Christ is the deity of the Lord Jesus.
This is a special emphasis of the gospel of John. Arthur Penk, who died in 1952, all of his books are online, however. They're not copyrighted, they're all available. He wrote in his commentary on the fourth gospel,.
Each book of the Bible has a prominent and dominant theme which is peculiar to itself. Just as each member in the human body has its own particular function, so every book in the Bible has its own special purpose and mission.
The theme of John's gospel is the deity of the Savior. Here is nowhere else in Scripture so fully that Godhood of Christ is presented to our view. That which is outstanding in this fourth gospel is the divine sonship of the Lord Jesus.
In this book, we're shown that the one who was heralded by the angels to the Bethlehem shepherds, who walked this earth for 33 years, who was crucified at Calvary, who rose in triumph from the grave, and who for 40 days later departed from these scenes, was none other than the Lord of Glory.
And the evidence for this is overwhelming. The proof's almost without number. And the effect of contemplating them must be to bow our hearts in worship before the great God and our Savior, Jesus Christ, as Paul expressed in Titus.
Well, on this second Lord's Day, in our study of the gospel according to John, we desire to address in some detail verses 6 through 8 of chapter 1, in which we read of the calling and the ministry of John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Savior.
Now, these verses 6 through 8 are a part of the prologue to the gospel, which is John 1, 1 through 18. The purpose of the prologue, how does it serve the narrative, how does it serve the gospel, is to establish at the outset of the gospel that the invisible God, the eternal God, was working within history through his word to save his people from their sin.
That's what's asserted, reinforced in the prologue. We were introduced to the word of God last Lord's Day, and the beginning was the word. The word was with God, the word was God. And so we address that in some detail, verses 1 through 5.
And so John the Baptist is a witness to the word, and he set forth in verses 6 through 8. And so here's a statement regarding this matter of switching over from the word to John the Baptist. The invisible word was introduced, and now something visible is introduced, that being a man.
In order to remain informed of our progress through this gospel, last week we addressed, and we're beginning this outline of John's gospel, the prologue of the gospel, verses 1 through 18. And then again, last week we addressed the introduction of the word, verses 1 through 5, and today we'll consider the witness of the word, verses 6 through 8.
Introduction of the word last week, the witness to the word here in verses 6 through 8. There's only three verses in this prologue that address John the Baptist, and these verses read, There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the light, that all through him might believe. He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. And there's John the Baptist and his witness.
And so John is introduced here, John the Baptist, not the writer of the gospel, but John the Baptist. By the way, he will re-enter the gospel story as it unfolds in different places. So more precisely, it could be said that verse 6 introduces John, and then verses 7 and 8 explain John's ministry.
John is set forth as a witness to the word of God. The word, which was set forth in verses 1 through 5. John is a witness to that word. And Lord willing, our contemplation of John as a witness to the word will enable us to be better witnesses to the Savior to whom we owe all things.
May we be a faithful witness to the word as John the Baptist was a faithful witness to the word. And I love that description of him. John did no miracles, but everything he said of the Lord Jesus was true.
May that be so of us. And so let's first consider verse 6. Very simply stated, in John's gospels, the vocabulary is quite simple, the sentence structure is quite simple. Verse 6 reads, there was a man sent from God whose name was John.
John the Baptist was a man, but he was a very special man. On one occasion, after the ministry of the Lord Jesus had been conducted for some time, John had his doubts about the identity of Jesus as the Messiah, so he sent some of his disciples to Jesus, asking Jesus, are you the Messiah?
Are we looking for another? Some of Jesus' disciples might have thought less of John because of the nature of this doubting question that his disciples brought to Jesus. And so our Lord bolstered the name and character of John before his disciples after John's disciples departed.
Jesus said to them, what did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in king's courts.
But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. This is he of whom it was written, behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.
For I say to you, among those born of women, there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist. He's right at the top of the list, top shelf. And so the first words of verse six introduced John simply, there was a man sent from God.
He was a man, but his mission was not of human and divine origin. But not of human, but rather of divine origin. God had sent him. The forerunner's significance to the story is grounded in the fact that he was sent from God, assigned to this special task.
There was a man sent from God. We mentioned last week that one of the literary characteristics of the Gospel of John was that he would introduce a word or a theme, and then develop that theme throughout his Gospel.
And that's one of the difficulties of teaching John's Gospel rightly. And here the word sent introduces a theme that is quite predominant in the fourth Gospel. Now it's applied to John, but this word sent will continually reemerge in our study of the Gospel.
The primary idea of being sent in this Gospel has to do with the mission that God the Father entrusted to the Son of God. And so the idea of sent is mostly applied to Jesus. Here it's applied to John the Baptist.
God the Father sent his Son into the world in order to bring salvation to his people. And so the frequency of this idea of Jesus having been sent by the Father is extensive in the fourth Gospel. In fact, in John's Gospel, one scholar noted that there are 17 examples of the participle phrase, he who sent me.
That's a lot. Plus six occurrences of the expression, the Father who sent me. That's not with the participle, but rather a finite verb. This scholar noted 15 corresponding statements in which the synonymous verb apostelline, that's the Greek word, send out is used.
This phenomenon led Marinus de Jong to observe no other single Christological expression appears so often in the fourth Gospel. That being Jesus was sent by God. It is a very predominant theme in the Gospel.
The God the Father sent his Son into the world conveys several ideas that fill out our understanding of our Lord's ministry. Actually, the concept of being sent as a messenger on behalf of a sender was common in the ancient world.
You and I read that word sent or send and it doesn't mean a lot. It would have meant a lot to a reader of the Gospel in the first century. There were three basic elements in the sending of a messenger and these included first, the giving of news by the messenger to whomever he was supposed to deliver it.
The carrying out of the task by the one sent, accomplishing whatever it was he was sent to do. And thirdly, it would be the return of the messenger to the person who sent him, especially for the purpose of a report, returning and reporting back to the sender.
Well, with these three basic elements, there were two assumptions on the role and responsibility of the one sent. First, the messenger was viewed as the representative of the sender. And secondly, obedience on the part of the messenger is demanded.
Well, this infuses John the Baptist with a measure of authority. He was sent from God, God sent him. And so what can be said with regard to the authority of the one sent? Well, as one wrote, only on the basis of the assumed obedience of the messenger is it possible to view the messenger as the representative of the sender.
The combination of the two assumptions supplies a messenger with credibility, legitimacy, and authority. This position is embodied in the famous statement of Jewish halakhic law, one sent is as he who sent him.
John the Baptist was as God communicating his witness to the world. God sent John. And so the messenger is hereby granted authority and dignity by virtue of his bearing the status of the one who sent him.
He came with the status of God himself. God sent John. Now, just as we have been speaking of the credibility, legitimacy, and authority of the Lord Jesus because he had been sent to the Father into the world, we could also say it was forerunner John.
Again, verse 6, there was a man sent from God whose name was John. God sent him. God sent John the Baptist, and therefore his witness was credible and legitimate. He came with the authority of God who sent him.
John, too, was faithful in the mission to which he had been sent, and that he faithfully bore witness of Jesus Christ. The point of emphasis of John's gospel, the author of the gospel of John, is that God sent John, therefore John came forth with divine authority to bear witness to Christ, to the word.
John was a trustworthy and authoritative witness to the word of God incarnate. This authority to speak on behalf of God can be seen in the Old Testament in a prophecy concerning the coming of John the Baptist.
And so, for example, Isaiah 40, written about 700 years before the ministry of John, the voice of one crying in the wilderness. That's John crying out in the wilderness, and the wilderness being a barren desert, no trees, hardly any vegetation whatsoever.
It was a wilderness. Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God, every valley shall be exalted, every mountain and hill brought low, the crooked places shall be made straight, rough places smooth, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
The metaphor or analogy is that of an emperor, a king, coming in to inspect his land. And so in order to make his visit quick and efficient, he can move in, come through, visit, and leave. They were to prepare the road, fill in the valleys, make the path straight, the road straight, so when the king came, he would inspect things.
And basically the announcement was that God was coming. The kingdom of God was going to be established, and the king, God himself, was going to inspect the people. And so they need to make preparation.
And John the Baptist was called to prepare the people. By preparing the people, he was preparing the highway for God to come, as it were, the kingdom of God to be manifest. Now notice the voice of one crying in the wilderness in verse 3, but then it concludes this section, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
So there you have, again, a prophecy of John speaking, but it's actually God speaking. The mouth of the Lord has spoken through what John was proclaiming. And this is because God sent John. John was speaking on behalf of God.
Now, there are actually two places in the last book of the Old Testament that foretold the coming, in the ministry of John the Baptist. They're in Malachi. And, of course, we think of the Old Testament, you know, back there, but actually you look at these prophecies in Malachi, and you just flip a couple pages and you have the opening of Matthew's Gospel, and the ministry of John the Baptist, even though there is a 400 years separation between the end of the Old and the beginning of the New.
But two places in Malachi's prophecy that foretold the coming of John. And so the first of these is Malachi 3 .1, Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Again, this is God the King sending a messenger, preparing the people for the coming of God, the coming of the King.
And then the second reference in Malachi are the last couple of verses in the Old Testament. Malachi, chapter 4, 5 and 6, in which the declaration is made, Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord, and he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.
There's always a curse within a society or culture in which the family breaks down, particularly when the authority of dad is removed. The Lord Jesus himself declared these prophecies of the coming of Elijah were fulfilled in the ministry of John the Baptist.
John the Baptist came in the spirit of Elijah. John the Baptist was the fulfillment of this prophecy. I underscore this because there are many well-intentioned evangelicals who say, no, no, literal Elijah is yet to come before the second coming of Christ.
Jesus declared John the Baptist was that Elijah who was to come. But they say, no, no, Elijah, the literal prophet, is yet to come. The reason I mention that is I heard that this last week on the radio.
As I'm studying through this and then I hear this preacher on the radio and he gave these reasons why John the Baptist wasn't Elijah and why Elijah was yet to come before the second coming. And he was wrong, mistaken.
Jesus made it very clear that John the Baptist was the prophesied, promised Elijah to come. And we read a portion of that earlier, but here it is in the Gospel of Matthew, I believe. As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John, what did you go out in the wilderness to see?
We read this. A reed shaken by the wind. But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments. Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. But what did you go out to see? A prophet.
Yes, I say to you, more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it's written, behold, I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you. Now that's, I believe, the reference to Isaiah 40 that we read earlier.
Jesus went on, assuredly I say to you, among those born of women, there is not risen one greater than John the Baptist, but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. Positionally, certainly not morally, but positionally.
We are greatly blessed to be in the kingdom of God. John was the announcer, the kingdom was coming. And Jesus inaugurated the kingdom when he ascended and was enthroned. And as Christians, we're within that blessed kingdom.
And so positionally, we are even greater than John was, as great as he was. It's all due to grace. And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence and the violent taken by force.
For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And then Jesus said to this, if you're willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. John the Baptist was the fulfillment of the prophecy of the coming of Elijah.
Now it is said in verse 6 of John chapter 1 that the man that God sent, whose name was John, whose name was John. John was a divinely given name. Zacharias and Elizabeth did not choose John as the name of their son.
You may recall the situation. John's father was Zacharias, a priest that had the privilege and responsibility of serving in the temple. Performing the daily service and offering prayer on behalf of his people.
And oftentimes, this privilege fell upon a priest maybe once in his lifetime. Over the course of two weeks. He was a part of the course of Abijah, I forget now. And a lot fell on Zacharias. It was his turn.
It must have been an amazing moment. He went in the morning and trimmed the lamp stand in the temple. And then put the fresh bread on the table of show bread. And then he would put incense on the altar after he had taken some coals off the brazen altar outside.
And it was at this time, at this point, that the angel of the Lord appeared to Zacharias within the temple. Even Gabriel. And gave this announcement. And so the angel said to him, do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard.
And your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son. And notice the name is given. You will call his name John. His neighbors later wondered why they didn't call his name Zacharias after his father. Nobody in your family is named John.
And you'll have joy and gladness. Many will rejoice at his birth. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He'll drink neither wine nor strong drink. He'll be like a Nazarite from birth. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb.
He'll turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will also go before you in the spirit and power of Elijah. To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children. The disobedient to the wisdom of the just.
To make ready a people prepared for the Lord. And so clearly, again, John the Baptist being a fulfillment of the prophecy of the Elijah to come. And so God named John, John. The name John without any qualification is used 18 times in the Gospel of John.
Again, John the Baptist didn't write the Gospel of John. John the Apostle wrote the Gospel of John. And he refers to the name John 18 times in the Gospel. And every instance where he references John in the Gospel of John, it's referring to John the Baptist.
John, the writer of the Gospel, never called himself by his own name, John. He was a disciple whom Jesus loved. That's how he describes himself. By the way, in no place in the fourth Gospel is John the Baptist called the Baptist.
He's simply called John. What does the name mean? Well, John means Jehovah has been gracious. Gabriel said to Zacharias, John's father, you call his name John. It was an announcement that, again, the long promised kingdom of God was going to come into being, come into realization with the coming of the Messiah.
And John was the forerunner. God has been gracious. Jehovah has been gracious in sending John to bear witness of the Savior who would redeem souls from sin. The second verse of these three, this man came for a witness to bear witness of the light that all through him might believe.
We read in the first clause, this man came for a witness. Now, that's the New King James Version. The newer translation simply read he came for a witness. If you have the ESV English Standard Version, it probably reads he came for a witness.
I don't remember, but I think that's right. The New King James reads this man came for a witness. The Greek pronoun hutos, which is translated as this man, is technically the part of speech. It's a demonstrative pronoun, and it's often used to point to something, to give emphasis to something.
And so I actually think that the New King James translation, this man, is probably a better translation, showing forth this emphasis of the pronoun rather than simply the translation he. Although that demonstrative pronoun hutos can commonly be translated as he.
I think to give the emphasis that the word would have had in the first position, and the nature of the word, it should be this man. And then it said that this man came. Alright, this was the result of John having been sent by God.
God sent John, and then John came. It shows forth John as a servant of the Lord, an obedient to the Lord. He would fulfill his divine calling, being obedient to God who sent him. And then it said this man came for a witness.
Now in the other Gospels, John's ministry is set forth as preparing the people for the arrival of the king, and the kingdom of God, calling on people to repent and be baptized, with view to remission of sins, with view to the coming of the kingdom of God.
But in John's Gospel, there's no mention, no emphasis, there is mention, no emphasis on John as baptizing people. In John's Gospel, John's ministry is primarily what we have here in verse 7. He came as a witness.
In other words, to single out and identify this is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Now the word witness is another one of these words or themes that is important in the fourth Gospel.
It's introduced here, John was a witness. The Greek word witness, for witness, is the word martyria, and we get the English word martyr from this Greek word for witness, translated as witness. This word for witness is used more times in John's Gospel than any of the other three Gospels.
In fact, the noun witness, martyria, is used 14 times in John's Gospel, but only three times in Mark, once in Luke, and it's not even found in Matthew. A form of the verb to witness, now we just talked about the noun witness, but now the verb, the form of a verb to witness is used 33 times in John's Gospel, not once, however, in Matthew or Luke, or pardon me, it's found once in each of Matthew's and Luke's Gospels, but it's not found in Mark.
And so John used this word witness frequently, and throughout the Gospel, the idea of witness is set forth and then it's enhanced and expanded as well. And one of the concerns I have about working through this Gospel is that we're going to get to the point where it's going to sound rather repetitious and maybe redundant as we try and fill out these terms and ideas.
One wrote,.
John the Gospel often emphasizes a concept by the simple device of repeating it. He speaks of John as witness, and that only. In the Synoptist, that is Matthew, Mark, and Luke, John's preaching of repentance and his practice of baptism are noted.
In this Gospel, his one function is to bear witness to Jesus. We know him as John the Baptist, but in this Gospel, the references to his baptism are incidental. In other words, there's a reference here or there, but it's not really the major point.
It's perhaps significant that there's no mention of his baptizing Jesus. That's interesting. But there is repeated reference to his witness, and there are some verses cited there. For this evangelist, in other words, John's Gospel, John the Apostle, John's witness is what matters.
He came for witness and nothing else that he did can be compared to the importance of this. John the Baptist was a witness to the Word. Now, this Gospel identifies seven witnesses to Jesus. And by the way, seven is a number that is common in John's Gospel.
We're going to see that repeatedly. Who are these seven witnesses in John's Gospel? Well, you have three witnesses, including each of the persons of the Trinity, God the Father, God the Holy Spirit, and God the Son, Jesus himself testifies of Jesus.
In addition, fourthly, you have the works of Jesus that bore witness, and then the Holy Scriptures bore witness of Jesus. A sixth witness is John the Baptist, which is set forth in our passage, John 1, verses 6 through 8.
A seventh witness are human witnesses, and that's kind of a collective witness, a seventh. And so there are a number of these, including the disciples. The Samaritan woman was a witness to Jesus. And then the multitude is set forth as a character, a single character bearing witness to Jesus.
And so you have these witnesses, and John's one of them. The first clause of verse 7 identifies or defines John's commission. The second clause states what it was to bear witness. What is he a witness to?
The apostle John wrote, this man came for a witness to bear witness of the light. The light is Jesus Christ himself. Again, one of these words that's going to recur. Here, the verb to bear witness is in the aorist tense in Greek.
Now, that's a special tense, which just declares the fact. There's no time matter, it's just the fact. It happened in the past, but really the idea of past tense is not conveyed. It's just a matter of fact.
He was a witness. It describes the overall life and ministry of John the Baptist. That's what he was. He was a witness. John bore witness of Christ. That's what John the Baptist did, and that's what he accomplished.
He accomplished finished work. He bore his witness to the word, and there was nothing more that he could do. I remember in Luke's Gospel, at the end of John the Baptist's ministry, it says, and all the people were prepared.
John was a preparer, and the Lord accomplished that work. They were prepared for the coming of Jesus by John's ministry. John did not bear witness of himself. His witness was not a personal testimony.
A witness of what God had done in his life, and a lot of well-intentioned Christians think that they're preaching the Gospel when they go out and give their personal testimony. It's okay to give your personal testimony.
Paul gave his personal testimony three different times in the New Testament. But your personal testimony of what God has done in your life is not the Gospel. The Gospel is a witness about Jesus Christ, not a witness about you.
John was a witness to Jesus Christ, and that's what we should be. May the people we speak to look past us and be confronted with Jesus Christ. That's what John did. He didn't draw attention to himself.
He drew attention to the coming Messiah. Earlier in verse 4, the incarnate word was described as life, or the life. And then in verse 5, the word is said to be the light of men. And what the Gospel writer was declaring was that John's witness of Jesus Christ is the light, was that Jesus Christ, the eternal word of God, illuminated his hearers to the realm of their darkness of spiritual ignorance and error.
Jesus is the light, and when he turns on the light, you see that you're enveloped in darkness and sin and error and ignorance. John's witness of Jesus Christ served to give understanding with respect to the true God and with regard to our sinful condition, which is characterized as darkness.
He was light, you and I are darkness. And so Jesus Christ is the only way that sinful, ignorant people can come to see the true God and learn how to relate to him. Jesus is the only Savior of sinners.
Bible Christianity is the only true religion in the world, and we say that unapologetically. We would advocate all day long the glorious right that every person in this country has to believe in the religion they want to believe in.
And that's a wonderful thing. But just because you believe in something doesn't make it true. We're in a different world setting now. Today we're supposed to celebrate or acknowledge that every person's view is legitimate.
We can never say that. No, Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation. And although people are free to believe whatever they want and practice whatever they want, and we're happy about that, that doesn't make it right.
And it's our responsibility to tell them it's not right. People are enveloped in darkness, and Jesus Christ is the only light that comes from God to reveal the way of salvation. The third clause of verse 7 speaks of the purpose of John's witness.
This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the light, that all through him might believe. We might look at the phrase through him, and if you're like me and you read that, that all through him might believe, you might think it's a direct reference to Jesus Christ.
It's not. It's a reference to John, that all men might believe through his witness. That's what's being declared. Now certainly the Bible speaks of faith in God through Jesus Christ. And we can show different places where that's taught.
But interestingly, in John's Gospel, the emphasis never believing on God through Jesus Christ, the emphasis in John's Gospel is believing in Jesus Christ. I find that interesting. And so here the phrase through him is a reference to John the Baptist.
John's ministry was to bear witness of Jesus Christ as a source of all knowledge and life from God in order to lead people to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ for their salvation. And so I hope, you know, that each of us, through us, we might bring people to believe.
We then read thirdly, he was not that light. This is the third verse. He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. Verse 8, the question might be asked, why did the apostle John see the need to declare that John the Baptist was not that light?
He was not that light. He bears witness to the light. There are those who believe that in the first century, there were some who had come to think too highly of John the Baptist. Some even perhaps regarded John the Baptist as the Messiah.
It served John's purpose to say John the Baptist was not that light. One wrote, in pointing out that John himself was not that light, but a witness to that light, the evangelist, that would be John the writer, the gospel of John, may have had in mind a group of people surviving at the time when this gospel was written who looked back at John, that would be John the Baptist, as their founder and venerated him as the one through whom God made his final revelation to mankind, the last and greatest of the prophets.
We know very little about this group. If indeed it existed, it's somewhat speculative, but some emphases in the gospel would be especially appropriate if the evangelist knew of such people. He was not that light.
Don't think that he was. Now there were some, of course, we know from the scriptures, who had a very high view of John the Baptist. This is suggested in the book of Acts. In Ephesus, a city far from Palestine, which is now in the western shores of Turkey, right on the Aegean Sea, there were some there who had embraced the message of John the Baptist and they had been baptized according to John's teaching with view to the coming kingdom and the arriving of the Messiah.
And so they had believed on John the Baptist, but they had not heard that Jesus had arrived. And we read of this in Acts 19, 1 -7. It happened while Apollos was at Corinth that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus.
Finding some disciples, he said to them, Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? They said to him, We have not so much as heard. There was a Holy Spirit. He said to them, And to what then were you baptized?
So they said, And to John's baptism. Then Paul said, John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.
And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. See, their first baptism was illegitimate. It wasn't Christian baptism. And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them.
That validated the fact that they had become Christian. And they spoke with tongues, that is, in other languages that they had not previously known or studied. And they prophesied. They declared forth the word of God.
And now the men were twelve in all, about twelve. So this passage in Acts suggests the possibility there were groups of people who may have had a very high regard for John the Baptist, perhaps even too high a view.
And further, by the way, since John's gospel was probably written within Ephesus or the regions, it's possible that's what moved the writer John, the apostle John, to write forth rightly. He was not that light.
It seems to fit to me. It fits the context. He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. Yes, it's asserted earlier, as we asserted earlier in our notes, Our Lord declared of John the Baptist, Truly I say to you, among those mortal women, there has not arisen one greater than John the Baptist.
But John's true greatness was due to the one to whom he bore witness, Jesus Christ. Not in and of himself, but the one who sent him and the message he was to declare, the light of God. And so John's greatness was really derivative from his Savior.
John himself dispelled any notion or suggestion he was the promised one. He declared openly, I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming after me. The strap of whose sandals I'm not worthy to untie, he'll baptize you with the Holy Spirit, with fire.
But one would assume, because John the Baptist was a great man, the evangelist gives this warning, lest his excessive brightness might obscure the glory of Christ. For there were some who gazed so eagerly upon him that they neglected Christ, just as if a person enraptured with beholding the dawning of the day would not deign to turn his eyes towards the sun, wrote John Calvin.
And so as great a man as John was, he was put in a proper place. He was a great man, but it was derived because of the greatness of his testimony, his witness to the light. Now the evangelist declared he was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light.
However, later in John's gospel, we read of our Lord Jesus himself, saying of John the Baptist, he was a burning and shining lamp. Now John, the apostle writes here in John 1, he was not that light. Jesus says he was a bright and shining lamp, but it's a different Greek word.
The light in John 1 and the Greek word for lamp in John 5 .35. The apostle Paul in one place declared that all Christians are as light in the world. Ephesians 5, 8 and 9. For at one time you were darkness, that's true of all people born into this world, but now you're light in the Lord.
That's a reference to all Christians. Walk as children of light. The fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true. And so here in Ephesians 5, 8 and 9, Paul used the same Greek word, phos, that didn't come through in your notes I see in the Greek font, that John used to describe the Lord in John 1, 7.
He was the light and you're a light too as a Christian. But of course where the Lord Jesus emanates light from his own person, the light that characterizes you and me as Christians is derived from the Lord, not generated from us personally or individually.
And so we ought to be light within the world because we're bearing witness to the true light, Jesus Christ. Again John Calvin wrote, all the godly indeed are light in the Lord, because in consequence of their being enlightened by his spirit, they not only see for themselves, but likewise direct others by their example to the way of salvation.
The apostles likewise are peculiarly called light because they go before holding out the torch of the gospel to dispel the darkness of the world. But here the evangelist speaks of him who is the only eternal source of illumination as he immediately shows more clearly that being Jesus Christ.
And again the Lord Jesus himself is described by John the Baptist as light. John Gill wrote of John as this light, but to be distinguished from Jesus Christ, the one true light. Words of John Gill who lived in the 18th century.
He was a light, as John the Baptist. He was the forerunner of the son of righteousness, the phosphorus of the gospel day. He had great light in him. He knew that the Messiah was ready to come and declared it.
And upon his baptism he knew him personally, that is upon the Lord Jesus' baptism, and signified him to others. In other words, behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He had great light into the person and work of Christ and into the way of salvation by him and remission of sins through him and to the doctrines of the faith in Christ and of evangelical repentance toward God and into the abolition of the legal Mosaic Jewish dispensation and was an instrument of giving light to others.
Yea, he was a burning and shining light in whose light the Jews rejoiced, at least for a season. But then he was not that light, the word and wisdom of God, that uncreated light that dwelt with him from all eternity, nor that which was the light of men from the creation, nor that light which is of old promised to the saints and patriarchs of the Old Testament and shown in the ordinances and predictions of that state, nor that fountain and giver of light of every sort to men, not that light in which is no darkness and always shines, not that true light or son of righteousness, the Messiah, or that lightens every man that comes into the world.
So John was a light indeed, but it was derivative. And he was light in that he gave witness to the true light, being Jesus Christ alone. Arthur Pink also wrote on John 1 .8, he was not that light. No, John himself was not that light, for light like life is to be found only in God.
Apart from God, all is darkness, profound and unrelieved. Even the believer has no light in himself. What says the scriptures, for ye were sometimes darkness, but now you're light in the Lord. There's a statement found in John 5 .35, as it stands in the AV, in other words, authorized version of the King James, conflicts with what is said here in John 1 .8.
In verse 35, when speaking of John, Christ said he was a burning and shining light, but the Greek word used here is entirely different than the translated light in John 1 .8 and in the RV would be revised version.
It is correctly translated, he was the lamp that burns and shineth. The word used of John correctly translated lamp points a striking contrast between the forerunner and Christ as the light. A lamp has no inherent light of its own.
It has to be supplied. A lamp has to be carried by another. A lamp soon burns out. In a few hours, it ceases to shine. Well, we may conclude our consideration of verse 8 by drawing our attention to the second clause, which states the similar truth that we considered earlier.
It's written of John the Baptist, he was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. Here we read of the principal purpose and drive of John's life's ministry. Notice again the words, was sent.
That's underscored once again in verse 8. God sent him for this purpose, to complete this task, to fulfill this mission. John was to bear witness of that light, which is Jesus Christ. Now there's nothing unusually difficult or complex here, but there is some important matters here, principles here, that we should take to heart.
And let's just draw your attention to a few of them, then we'll close. First, some have used these verses 6 through 8 to set forth what should characterize every true minister of Jesus Christ. J .C. Ryle, who lived in the 19th century, did this in his commentary.
We see firstly in these verses the true nature of a Christian minister's office. We have it in the description of John the Baptist. He came for a witness, to bear witness of the light that all men through him might believe.
Christian ministers are not priests. The Bible nowhere teaches that there's a unique priesthood of ministers. Every true Christian is a priest, according to the New Testament. They are not agents into whose hands men may commit their souls and carry on their religion by deputy.
I can't live for you. They are witnesses. They are intended to bear testimony to God's truth, and especially to the great truth that Christ is the only Savior in light of the world. This was St. Peter's ministry on the day of Pentecost.
With many other words did he testify. This was the whole tenor of St. Paul's ministry, testified both the Jews and also the Greeks' repentance toward God, faith toward our Lord Jesus. Unless a Christian minister bears a full testimony to Christ, he's not faithful to his office.
So long as he does testify of Christ, he's done his part, and will receive his reward, although his hearers may not believe his testimony. See, it really doesn't matter whether any of you believe or not.
I've got a responsibility that I must fulfill. Until the ministers' hearers believe on that Christ whom they are told, they receive no benefit from the ministry. They may be pleased and interested, but they're not profited until they believe.
The great end of the minister's testimony is through him men may believe.
Amen.
Clearly we were affirmed, secondly, that these verses set forth the primary witness of the church should always be Jesus Christ. It isn't always, frankly. It might seem to be a given that everyone would affirm.
And maybe most would claim this is their aim. But is it the case that every church keeps their witness to Jesus Christ as their foremost purpose? As John saw as his foremost purpose to bear witness of that light, to bear faithful witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ?
I would say no. The fact is, it's a very easy thing for churches and people to depart from this central responsibility they have to bear witness of the light. Paul was surprised, we won't read it, Paul was surprised that the churches of Galatia departed from Christ so suddenly, so soon.
They departed to another gospel, to another Jesus. And then the Lord Jesus himself wrote to the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2. They were a church that was apparently burgeoning and seemed to be characterized by excited people, enthusiastic people.
I know your works, your labor, your patience. You cannot bear those who are evil. These are all good things about this church. Nevertheless, I have something against you. You have left your first love.
Churches can lose sight of Jesus Christ. And the fact is, you can go to churches and the Bible is open. The Bible is taught and preached. Principles are given, instructions given. And if you really sit back and you consider it, what's being given forth is simply moralistic sermons.
Jesus Christ is not the center. If you consider it carefully. Because I want to tell you something. People tend to want practical instruction. Pastor, just tell me what I'm supposed to do. But that's not what we're supposed to do.
We're supposed to bear witness of Jesus Christ. Because it's in knowing Jesus Christ that true spirituality, true transformation takes place. Thirdly, let us recognize that the Lord has sent us. And this brings us responsibility, but also authority.
God has sent us. God sent John. God has sent our church. I feel God has sent me. I believe in a unique personal calling to the proclamation of the word of God. If I didn't feel God personally called me, I wouldn't be standing up here.
But it comes with authority, but great responsibility. And then lastly, we want to consider fourthly. Again, I alluded to this already. It's through the preaching of Jesus Christ that we produce godly people.
That's the only way to produce godliness in people. Paul wrote of this in 1 Timothy 3. And he's writing to Timothy, a young minister who is about ready to pastor the church at Ephesus. These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly, but if I'm delayed, I write that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
Without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness. Godliness is an elusive thing. It's not all that clear how it takes place. And then he set forth in probably what was an ancient Christian hymn, God was manifested in the flesh.
He's talking about Jesus. Justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory.
What Paul.
Is declaring to Timothy, that godliness, the mystery of godliness, is found in Jesus Christ. This is the means, this is the way that God produces godly people through preaching Jesus Christ. It's not just me standing up here declaring a set of commandments to you, and then you go out and do them, and you become godly.
That's not what produces godliness. Only Jesus Christ produces godliness. Perhaps we should define what we mean by godliness. Godliness speaks of a person who is devoted to God, so as to be deeply concerned about knowing God, pleasing God, enjoying God, and making God known to others.
And that's not going to take place, me standing up here and simply giving moralistic sermons.
It can.
Only be done through proclaiming Jesus Christ. And Paul declared that godliness was a mystery, in the sense that it occurs beyond our natural comprehension. And that's why it's so wrong to measure preaching.
Did I get anything out of it? Is it practical or what not? All those things ought to be practical. But it's Christ being proclaimed, displayed, understood, examined, scrutinized,.
Embraced.
And it's the Holy Spirit who takes Jesus Christ and applies it to you and me that results in godliness on our part. It invigorates us, informs us, but inspires us and moves us. And so it takes place in a way that you kind of shake your head after a while, how did that happen?
You were passive in it, because God produced this within you. And whether you're aware of it or not, it was because the Holy Spirit was setting Christ before you. And that's what we are to do as a church, that's what I'm to do as a preacher, present Christ before you.
And to the measure and degree that the Holy Spirit enables you to see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, you're going to be transformed into one like Jesus Christ. It's a spiritual dynamic.
It's not a legal law kind of outcome. It's a spiritual dynamic that's produced by God himself and those who know and believe on Jesus Christ. John the Baptist was sent to be a witness of that light, and that's what I am, and that's what we are as a church.
And Lord willing, that's what you are as a Christian, that people see you and they see an example as well as a message of who Jesus Christ is. Amen? May the Lord bless us in this effort. Let's pray. Thank you, Father, for your word.
Thank you, Lord, for raising up men like John the Baptist who is a faithful witness to the true light, Jesus Christ. Help us, our God, as a church and as individual Christians to be faithful witnesses to the light of Jesus Christ.
And we pray, our God, that the blessed Holy Spirit, Lord, would make the life of Christ, the light of Christ, very vivid to our understanding that we might see him, might see his glory, that we might be illuminated to the truth that's in Jesus Christ as the source, Lord, of all life in this dark world.
And we'll thank you and praise you, Father, for this in Jesus' name.