Sermon – Part One: Who I Am Not
Scripture: John 1: 19-27
19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders[c] in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.” 21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.” 22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”[d] 24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 “I baptize with[e] water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
In John 1, John the Baptist is asked, “Who are you?” In verses 20 and 21, he tells them who he is not. People today will tell you who they are. I am a banker, a brick layer, and lawyer, a car washer, a teacher. The list goes on and on. But the real question is who are you really?
Are you a follower of Jesus Christ?
Do you believe Jesus is God’s Only Begotten Son, the Lamb of God, The Messiah, the light for the world?
Some will say yes but their words have no meaning. What does Jesus mean to them? If they do not love or study the Word, and there is no forgiveness in their life, they practice or worship a religion of self-gratification.
What is your real agenda?
The priests and Levites sent the Pharisees to question John the Baptist about who he was, not about who he was serving. But their real agenda was to find out why so many people were coming to hear him preach and be baptized in the wilderness.
The Jews did not baptize. Their duty as guardians of faith caused them to want to investigate any new preaching. (Deuteronomy 13: 1-5 and Deuteronomy 18: 20-22). Deuteronomy tells them to beware of false prophets who encourage worship of other gods.
In questioning John the Baptist, they wanted to find out if he had the credentials of a prophet. John’s popularity was growing to the point that his followers were leaving them for John. They were jealous.
The Pharisees had four questions regarding John the Baptist’s identity:
- Was he a prophet foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18: 15)?
- Elijah (Malachi 4: 5)
- The Messiah, a high priest
- A false prophet
John denied being the first 3 personages. He called himself, in the words of the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”
The Pharisees kept pressing John to say who he was because they were expecting the Messiah. The Pharisees were Jewish leaders educated in the Jewish law, religious prophecy, and the Book of Isaiah telling of the voice of him crying in the wilderness, preparing the way of the Lord.
These same priests rejected Jesus Christ, the Messiah, when He came. The Pharisees missed the point. They wanted to know who John was but John wanted them to know who Jesus is.
Read the Entire Chapter of the Scriptures Referenced:
Read Other Sermons from The Gospel Mailman:
What Would God See From Heaven Today?
Return Next Week to Read Part Two of the Sermon, Who I Am Not