John’s Confession
The narrative opens telling us that the Jews sent the Priests and the Levites from Jerusalem to found out who John was. The interaction John has with the Jews here seems to be a foreshadowing of how the interactions that Jesus has with the Jews will go. In one sense we see in the passage, that the Priests and Levites seem quite ignorant of the Scripture, though they would’ve known it so well. They are ignorant not in the factual sense of not knowing the Scripture, but in the spiritual sense, they don’t believe the Scripture in Faith
So they come out to John, who is out in the wilderness and ask him, “Who are you?” John is quick to say that He is not the Christ (or in other words the Messiah). All the Jews of course would’ve been waiting and looking for a Messiah as promised in the Scripture, and John promptly denies that he is that Messiah.
Upon this denial, then then ask, “Are you Elijah?” Why would they ask this? Malachi 4:5-6 contains a prophecy which says that before the “great day of the LORD” Elijah will come. This prophecy in Malachi concerning this “great day of the LORD” is a prophecy that I believe refers to the judgment upon Israel that came in the first century. This bit about Elijah really proves that as we will see momentarily.
Now, you might be thinking, “if Malachi 4 is about God’s judgment on the Jews in the first century, and not the second return of Christ, then did this prophecy of Elijah fail to take place since John denies that he is Elijah?” Excellent Question.
In Matthew 11:7-15 and Matthew 17:9-13 Jesus refers to John the Baptist as Elijah, referencing the prophecy of Malachi 4. You can go read those passages for yourself.
So how does John say that he is not Elijah, and Jesus say that he is? The prophecy of John’s birth to Zechariah in Luke chapter 1 gives us the key to understand this. Amidst this prophecy, Luke 1:16-17 says this about John the Baptist, “16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God,17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
So here in Luke 1, the angel of the Lord quotes directly from Malachi 4 and gives us further insight into Malachi 4 when he says that John the Baptist will come in the Spirit and power of Elijah. That’s what Malachi meant. Jesus understood that – that’s why He called John the Baptist Elijah.
The Jews were expecting a literal return of Elijah in the flesh, when the prophecy in Malachi wasn’t about Elijah’s literal and physical return, but about one that would come in the spirit and power of Elijah, preaching repentance in the wilderness. That’s why John says he’s not Elijah here – because the Jews are asking if he is literally Elijah. They misunderstood the Scriptures. The nature of prophetic literature is that it is filled with imagery and symbolic language. So from this we see that in Malachi 4, when it says Elijah will come, “Elijah” is symbolic, and symbolizes that the forerunner to Christ would be one who came in the spirit and power of Elijah. It’s like in Revelation when it talks about the beast – it’s not talking about a literal beast like something from beauty and the beast, some wild animal creature. Rather the beast is symbolic of what that character is like. Same idea here.
Upon the denial that he is Elijah, they next ask John, “Are you the Prophet?” Again we ask, what prophet are they talking about? Deuteronomy 18:15-18 tells of a prophet who is to come (go read for yourself).
John denies that he is the Prophet spoken of in Deuteronomy. But do you know who that Prophet was that was promised in Deuteronomy? Jesus Christ. In Acts 3 Peter references this Prophet as Jesus Christ, and in Acts 7 Stephen does the same before he is stoned.
Now, we’re not John the Baptist, but we can learn a great deal from him on many fronts. Like John, we must be ready to confess. If you want to allegorize this passage for a moment, there are times where we are in a spiritual wilderness, and the Priests and Levites, representing the law, come to question us. We are confronted by it, as it asks, “are you righteous? Are you a good person? Do you love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength; and your neighbor as yourself?” Like John, we must be quick to confess, “I am not righteous in myself. I am not a good person in myself. I have not loved God and neighbor as I ought.” Or maybe it’s not the law, but it’s the philosophy and philanthropy of the world that says we’re all good and special and awesome people. Those worldly thoughts come to you and try to get you to downplay sin and build up the goodness of man. I see all the time, the saying going around, especially geared to women, saying, “you are enough.” Don’t be fooled, that is worldly falsehood from the devil. If you are enough, then you don’t need a Savior. We can be honest and confess that we are not enough, but Christ is. What spiritual danger and blasphemy John would have put himself into if he would have said that he was the Christ. Likewise, let us not put ourselves in spiritual danger by allowing ourselves to think that we are something that we are not – for if we think and say that we are a good and righteous person, what need will we see and have for a Savior? The Pharisee looked to heaven thanking God he was not like the sinner. The publican beat his chest and cried, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Who made an honest confession? Who was closer to forgiveness? Who put himself in spiritual danger?
John’s Identity
After getting three confessions as to the fact that John is not the Messiah, Elijah, or the Prophet, the Priests and Levites express their need for an answer as to who John is so they can have something to say to those who sent them, who are later identified as the Pharisees. John answers by identifying himself as the voice crying out in the wilderness, referencing Isaiah 40. You can find that reference in Isaiah 40:3-5.
What’s interesting is that Malachi 3:1 also prophecies of John the Baptist, right before it prophecies of Elijah, as if it’s describing the same figure. Malachi 3:1 says, “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me.” It seems to be equating the messenger with the Elijah figure in Malachi 4.
So John identifies himself as the voice crying out in the wilderness according to Isaiah 40, the one preparing the way of the Lord.
In keeping with the theme of the “Word” in John 1, A. W. Pink says this, “…the voice is simply the vehicle or medium by which the word is expressed or made known. Such was John.” How humble John is, even when he makes a huge claim, claiming to be a fulfillment of Scripture. He says he’s just a voice, preparing the way.
This is what James Montgomery Boice says, “You cannot see a voice. You can only hear it. No one looks much at the workman who is only preparing the road for the coming of the king. Yet, this was what John the Baptist declared himself to be: a voice and a workman. The last thing in the world that he wanted was for men to look at him. He said elsewhere, ‘He [Jesus] must become greater; I must become less.’ John wanted men to forget him and see only the King.”
It’s also not insignificant that John is in the wilderness. First, it fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah 40 as we have seen. It’s also symbolic of the spiritual state of Israel. It’s also a bit of a sign of judgment from God that God has removed Himself from the Jewish leaders because they have forsaken Him.
Here is what A. W. Pink says on John being a voice crying out in the wilderness: “What a position for the Messiah’s forerunner to occupy! Surely his place was in Jerusalem. Why then did not John cry in the temple? Why, because Jehovah was no more there in the temple. Judaism was but a hollow shell: outward form there was, but no life within. It was to a nation of legalists, Pharisee ridden, who neither manifested Abraham’s faith nor produced his works, that John came. God would not own the self-righteous formalism of the Jews. Therefore, the one ‘sent of God’ appeared outside the religious systems and circles of that day. But why did John preach ‘in the wilderness?’ Because the ‘wilderness’ symbolized the spiritual barrenness of the Jewish nation. John could only mourn over that which was not of God, and everything about him was in keeping with this: his food was that which he found in the wilderness, and his prophet’s garment testified to the failure that was evident on every hand.”
So essentially we kind of see the foreshadowing of the shift, that the gospel is now going out to the places that did not have it, to the Gentiles who were a spiritual wilderness. The preaching of repentance now goes out to them! Do you see the mercy of God from this in your own life? Think of the condition of your heart before you became a Christian. It was a spiritual wilderness. Dead with nothing living, no water of life, and dried up. Yet by the sovereign grace of God, the gospel came to you, bringing life and living water, making our hearts into a garden in which the Spirit of God works, by planting, watering, pruning, and bringing forth fruit. Praise God for that.
Maybe you’re not a Christian. Maybe you’re more like the Pharisees, surrounded by the outward form of moralism or religion, yet in your heart, it’s a dry desert of death. Like we once were, the preaching of the gospel goes to you, to come to Jesus Christ. Fill your life with the substance of all true religion, the Lord Jesus Christ. Without him, religious deeds and works are empty vessels made for destruction, and the destruction of those like the Jews who were given so much light, will be so much more fierce.
If you want to again allegorize this passage for a moment, as we did earlier, just as we must be ready to confess our unrighteousness as John denied he was the Christ, we must be ready to say who we are, as John did. I love John’s example and answer in verse 23 when he answers who he is according to what the Scripture said he was. We must be ready to do the same. When we have confessed our unrighteousness before the questioning of the law, we can also be sure to say that though we are sinners, we are forgiven, for Christ died for sinners. We are in Christ Jesus, in whom there is no condemnation. I love Martin Luther’s famous line where he says, “When the devil tells me I am a sinner he comforts me greatly, for Christ died for sinners.” We can say that in Christ, we are adopted children of God, born again to life everlasting. What a great lesson this is from John: we must identify ourselves according to what the Scripture says about us. The world lies to us, our feelings and emotions lie to us, our hearts and minds can lie to us, but the word of God does not. It tells us who we are. It tells us we are sinners. It tells us that in Jesus Christ we are forgiven, and given every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, including the right to become children of God. Amen.
John’s Humility
John displays great humility in expressing that he is not worthy to even untie the sandals of the one coming after him. Such a task in those days would have been the lowly, dirty job of servants and slaves. People walked everywhere in sandals. Their feet would’ve been covered with dirt and possibly manure. The lowest of jobs, John declares he is even lower and unworthy to do it.
Great humility requires a clear understanding of who you are, and who Christ is. And so I ask you, do you know who you are? Do you know who Christ is?
In thinking about John declaring himself unworthy to untie the strap of the sandal of Christ, I cannot help but think forward to when Jesus washes His disciples feet, doing that lowly work of a servant. Like Peter, we may balk at that thought – no Jesus you can’t wash our feet! But that’s the gospel. Jesus does for us what we cannot do for Him. Debasing Himself to wash His disciples feet was nothing compared to the humiliation of the cross. The one who we are not worthy to die for died for us. The one whom we are not worthy to be called His servants, became the suffering servant for us.The One whom we are not worthy to serve, serves us. It shouldn’t be, but that’s the gospel.
Our message ought to be like John’s. “Who are you?” You are asked. “I am not righteous in myself, only a sinner.” But who are you? You answer, “I am a child of God who was born from above. A sinner forgiven. A dead man made alive. The one who died for me is greater than me. I am not worthy to be His slave, yet He calls me beloved. He is greater, and gave Himself for me. The one who I am not fit to serve, came to serve and provide for me.”
The outcome of this ought to be humility, wouldn’t you say? God’s people and preachers ought to be humble people. In fact, the more clearly we understand in faith who we are, and who Christ is, the more humble we will become. A prideful Christian is a walking contradiction. The sovereign grace of God is a humbling thing. It teaches us not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought, and to put others before us. God is the greatest and most glorious and worthy of all beings, and yet, in His Son, humbled Himself to the point of death, even death on a cross. He willingly allowed himself to be slandered, beaten, spit upon, hated, and crucified by His own rebel creatures – and here’s the thing – He didn’t have to do that – He was not obligated to save us. Yet, He humbly, willingly, was stripped down to nothing and His bruised and torn body was raised up on the cross and experienced the greatest humiliation. Why? Because He loved the glory of God, and He loved us. That should make us humble.
Let us also note from John the Baptist that humility is not to be confused with timidity. This man who was the most humble man to ever live, was also the most bold man who ever lived. He was the voice who cried out. He didn’t keep to himself thinking it was humility to not speak with boldness and force. No, he cried out! He cried out a very unpopular message – repent! Humility is not timidity. We can boldly tell sinners to repent, for we can boldly say that we ourselves are sinners who have found forgiveness in the One who is greater than all, and He demands our repentance. In fact it’s a humiliation to cry out to sinners to repent, if you know what I’m saying. When some of us go out street preaching, there’s an aspect of it that is humiliating. We know it looks crazy to the world. For you, it doesn’t have to be street preaching, but just in conversation, confessing the truths of the Scripture to an unbeliever can be humiliating in a sense. From the world’s perspective that is. It’s a very humble thing to boldly and confidently declare the truth to the world to repent and trust in Christ. Thinking of our Lord, doing far greater than that on the cross, can give us boldness to do so.
But oh how sneaky and deadly our pride is and can be. It is actually often the prideful man who won’t preach Christ and call for repentance. He is too prideful to debase himself to such a position of foolishness in the world’s eyes. Let us fight and kill our pride, lest it kills us and our neighbor. Or it is pride that will keep us from confessing our sins, and pride that keeps us from coming to Christ altogether. It’s prideful to not think that you need forgiveness of sins in Jesus Christ.
So I ask you, are you like the Jews who had the Messiah among them and yet they did not know Him? Do you know who Jesus is factually, yet you do not know Him in faith, as Savior and King? In this way, is He among you, and yet you do not know Him? Boys and girls, is that you? Young people? Adults? Do you hear about Jesus all the time, and yet not know Him in faith? Oh that you would hear the Word of the Lord, lay down your pride, and humble yourself as a child, repent of your sin, and believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ! Do it today! Christ has come among us here in the means of grace of the local church, willing and ready to forgive. Here today, in His Word, in His supper, He communicates His love to us.
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