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You can turn with me in your 
Bibles to John's Gospel, John chapter 1. We just finished the prologue 
last week. That's the first 18 verses in 
John 1. And as we saw there, John sort 
of goes behind the scene. Before he deals with the work 
of Christ in terms of the salvation of sinners, he gives us Christ's 
relationship to the Father. In other words, he does theology 
before he gets into the economy of redemption. So I want to read 
this section. We'll begin in verse 1. I'll 
read to verse 34. In the beginning was the Word, 
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the 
beginning with God. All things were made through 
Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him 
was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines 
in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. 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. That was the true light, 
which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was 
in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world 
did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own 
did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, 
to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those 
who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, nor 
of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld 
His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, 
full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him and 
cried out, saying, This was He of whom I said, He who comes 
after me is preferred before me, for He was before me. and 
of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the 
law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through 
Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. 
The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He 
has declared Him. Now, 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? And he answered, no. Then they 
said to him, who are you? That we may give an answer to 
those who sent us. What do you say about yourself? 
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, make 
straight the way of the Lord, as the prophet Isaiah said. Now 
those who were sent from the Pharisee, I'm sorry, those who 
were sent were from the Pharisees. And they asked him saying, why 
then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor 
the prophet? John answered them saying, I 
baptize with water, but there stands one among you whom you 
do not know. It is he who coming after me is preferred before 
me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to lose. These things 
were done in Bethabara, beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing. The next day John saw Jesus coming 
toward him and said, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the 
sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, After 
me comes a man who is preferred before me, for he was before 
me. I did not know him, but that 
he should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with 
water. And John bore witness saying, 
I saw the spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and he remained 
upon him. I did not know him, but he who 
sent me to baptize with water said to me, upon whom you see 
the spirit descending and remaining on him, this is he who baptizes 
with the Holy Spirit. And I have seen and testified 
that this is the Son of God. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
Father, again, we ask for the ministry of the Holy Spirit to 
guide us and lead us and direct us to illumine our minds and 
our hearts as we see Scripture shine the light upon the person 
and the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, may it be the case 
that much would be made of him, that we would see him as that 
one that is able to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto 
God through him. And may it be the case that today, 
as this gospel goes forth, you would be glorified, that you 
would be honored, that you would be praised. strengthen and encourage 
our weary hearts and build us up in our most holy faith as 
we consider the testimony of John the Baptist concerning Jesus 
Christ our Lord. And we pray in his name, amen. Well, in the prologue itself, 
you'll see a couple of instances where John the Apostle refers 
to the testimony of John the Baptist. Notice specifically 
in verses six to eight, 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. So in the prologue, as he's setting forth the supremacy 
of Christ in relationship to the Father, he mentions the ministry 
of John the Baptist. He does that again in verse 15. 
John bore witness of him and cried out, saying, This was he 
of whom I said, He who comes after me is preferred before 
me, for he was before me. So now as he turns to the outworking 
of God's redemptive plan through the work of the Messiah on our 
behalf, he begins with John the Baptist. In many ways, this is 
introductory as well to the mission of the son of God relative to 
the salvation of his people. Well, as we look at this particular 
section, we'll see it break down into two sections in terms of 
John's testimony. In the first place, in verses 
9 to 28, we see a dispute with the Jewish leaders before Jesus 
arrives on the scene. Not that he had not arisen on 
the scene as of yet. John probably had already baptized 
Jesus, which is recorded in Matthew 3 at verse 16. He refers to that 
here in John 1 at verse 32, when the Spirit descended from heaven 
like a dove. But in terms of these leaders 
or this delegation that came from the leaders in Jerusalem, 
Jesus is not present. So John has this dispute with 
these Jewish leaders in verses 19 to 28. And then secondly, 
in terms of the testimony of John, he makes a declaration 
concerning Jesus in verses 29 to 34. So we'll just take up 
that first section this morning, verses 19 to 28. But if you look 
at chapter one, it is driven by, or rather sort of connected 
by references to days. In verse 19, we have now, this 
is the testimony of John. And then in verse 29, the next 
day, John saw Jesus coming toward him. That's repeated again in 
verse 35. Again, the next day, John stood 
with two of his disciples, and then it's repeated in verse 43. 
The following day, Jesus wanted to go to Galilee. So these are 
four days in the life of the Lamb. And the section we're dealing 
with specifically is the first day with reference to this dispute 
between the Baptists and between these persons sent by the Jewish 
leadership. So I wanna look at first the 
denial by John in terms of who he is, and then secondly, the 
affirmation by John in terms of who he is. So that's the bottom 
line. They come as a delegation, an 
official delegation. You see that in verse 22, they 
answered or they said to him, who are you? That we may give 
an answer to those who sent us. This official delegation is tasked 
with finding out who John is. not just his first name, not 
just who his parents are, not what city he lives in, not whether 
he's married, not whether he's an avid golfer, but they want 
to know with reference to his origin, his intention, and his 
message. Remember, this was a time in 
Israel's history that was without prophet. John is a voice crying 
in the wilderness. He is a prophet functioning under 
God. And so, of course, the leadership 
in Jerusalem wants to get to the bottom of this. So in terms 
of the denial by John, you see that in verses 19 to 22. It will do us well to consider 
the setting of John's ministry in verse 19. Notice what it says. This is the testimony of John, 
when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask 
him, who are you? Now, John does not, John the 
apostle, does not tell us the specifics that the synoptics 
do. Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell us that John was in the wilderness. He was on the east side of the 
River Jordan. He's in a wilderness environment. And with reference to a wilderness 
environment, the prophets often spoke of the wilderness as being 
a place of refreshment, of being a place of blessing. I read at 
the outset, Isaiah 35, the wilderness is a place where God meets His 
people. It hearkens back to the wilderness 
when God led His people out of Egypt. That was not a curse. 
That was not a punishment. Their time in the wilderness 
at times was misinterpreted by them, but God tells them in Deuteronomy 
1.31 that the wilderness was akin to a father carrying his 
child. So while they may have barked 
at that season in the wilderness, it was a time of renewal, a time 
of refreshment, and a time of protection and blessing from 
God Almighty. So it's no wonder that the prophets 
looking forward to the messianic age often point to a wilderness 
as a place of blessing. You see that, as I said, in Isaiah 
35, you see it in Jeremiah 2, Hosea, the prophet, chapter 2. 
Now John the Baptist, or rather John the Apostle, does not give 
us the content of the Baptist message. The synoptics do. Matthew, 
Mark, and Luke tell us that the Baptist was about preaching, 
repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. In other words, his 
was a ministry of preparation. His was a ministry of announcement. 
He was a herald. to call out the arrival of the 
coming king. We'll see more about that in 
just a moment. But then with reference to this 
delegation, again, it's official. And it ought not to be interpreted, 
at least at the beginning, as if they were having some sort 
of a nefarious end. They were out to just squash 
and destroy and crush everything. No, it was probably initially 
a fact-finding mission. But of course, in the synoptic 
gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, Matthew and Luke especially, 
John the Baptist calls these men to repent. The religious 
leadership, he calls upon them to repent, which indicates for 
us the larger context of Israel at the time. It needed repentance. It was in a messed up state. 
They needed to believe the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. They 
needed to receive the Messiah and they needed to come out of 
that darkness by God's grace in the marvelous light. One man 
describes this delegation. He says, this was an official 
visit with religious and political implications. In a world that 
was without prophets, John was a prophetic voice, and his sudden 
and unexpected appearance had created quite a stir. The people 
had been listening to John, so an official delegation was sent 
to provide a report. So again, this isn't unofficial, 
it's not just, hey, what is this guy doing? We wanna know your 
origin, we wanna know your intention, and we wanna know the specific 
message. Now notice how John responds in verses 19 to 21. In the first place, he denies 
that he's the Messiah. He's not even asked the question 
and he denies it. Notice in verse 20, before they 
ask, are you Messiah? They simply ask, who are you? 
And verse 20, he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, 
I am not the Christ. The denial is made without a 
specific question. question because messianic expectation 
was very high. Remember, there had been a period 
of about 400 years of prophetic silence, but that did not invalidate 
the prophetic word that it announced to Israel that Messiah was coming. 
There was a champion. There was one who would come 
in the fullness of the time. He would be born of a woman. 
He would be born under the law. He would redeem those under the 
law. All that was announced in the 
Old Testament. So by the time of Jesus, by the 
time of John the Baptist, in the first century AD, there was 
a heightened messianic expectation. Now, by way of a real practical 
sort of application here, we ought to observe John's humility. John isn't like so many celebrity 
preachers. He's not like those kinds of 
preachers who have church members that have pictures of the preacher's 
face on their shirt. And it says things like, so-and-so 
is my homeboy or something like that. John is a humble servant 
of the living and true God. John does not try to take for 
himself or arrogate unto himself. glory and honor and praise. In fact, the capstone of his 
message is found later in John three, when he says concerning 
Christ, he must increase, but I must decrease. I think I've 
explained that to you before. He doesn't say he must increase 
and I must increase a little bit. He must increase and I must 
stay the same. No, he must increase and I must 
decrease. When John alludes to this custom 
of the slave untying or tying the master's sandal latchet, 
he is saying, in essence, I'm not worthy to do the most menial 
task with reference to this master. In other words, he so far transcends 
me, he is so far more glorious than me, he is so far more wondrous 
than me, I'm not worthy to get next to his feet simply to tie 
or untie his shoe. Matthew Poole makes this observation 
at this point. He says, the diligence we shall 
constantly observe in the servants of God in holy writ to avoid 
the irrigating of that honor to themselves, which is due only 
to God in Christ. And this together with John's 
steadiness and plainness does very well become all professors, 
not college professors, but professors of faith in Jesus Christ. And 
then he says, but the ministers of the gospel, especially. We 
have whole prophets in the Old Testament. We know nothing about 
them. We know that Micah hails from 
Moresheth, but we don't know that he's married. We don't know 
that he has children. We don't know what sort of achievements 
he's had outside of life. We don't know if he's a good 
farmer or anything like that. In the midst of the morass of 
the wicked kings in Israel, listed for us in 1 Kings, around chapter 
16, we have all these wretches, all these men that had occupied 
the throne in the northern kingdom, and they were vile, they were 
wicked, they co-opted Baalism and brought it into Israel. And 
then we have the appearance of Elijah the Tishbite in 1 Kings 
chapter 17. Again, no announcement, no pedigree, 
no, this is the kind of fellow that he was. That's not the point. The point in that particular 
context is that when evil flourishes, God has his man. And God sends 
the Tishbite in order to call these wretches to repentance 
and faith. The same sort of thing here with 
John the Baptist. He doesn't try to take glory 
for himself. Look at the Apostle Paul. If Paul put on a job resume 
for today, what he does in the letter to the Corinthians, we 
wouldn't hire him. Because he says, I was with you 
in much meekness and fear, with much trembling. We'd say, oh 
no, we can't have that kind of a man. We need the bold sort 
of fellow. We need the kind of guy out there 
that is able to lead this congregation, you know, being eight foot tall 
and bulletproof. We would never hire Paul based 
on today's expectations. Probably we wouldn't hire John 
the Baptist either because he doesn't fit our understanding 
of a servant of God. We have met in the last, I don't 
know, however many hundreds of years, these celebrity preachers, 
these men about whom everything is about them. They are selfish 
men, they are arrogant men, they are proud men, they're very rich 
men at times, and they are men that are not like John the Baptist, 
saying that Jesus must increase, but I must decrease. So he's 
a great example for us in the church and in the ministry in 
terms of that. So he denies that he's Messiah, 
but then notice secondly he denies that he's Elijah the prophet. 
Verse 21, And they asked him, What then? Are you Elijah? He 
said, I am not. That's an interesting question. 
Why Elijah? Well, if you're familiar with 
2 Kings 2, verse 11, Elijah was taken up bodily into heaven. 
Elijah didn't die. Elijah, along with Enoch, entered 
into heaven without first passing through physical death. And in 
the prophet Malachi, both in 3.1a and then in 4.5 and following, 
there is a promise that God is going to send Malachi. Well, 
what does that mean? Well, as far as these Jews were 
concerned, it meant bodily. It meant sort of a reincarnation, 
as it were, not a reincarnation, but perhaps he'd fall out of 
heaven in bodily form and appear to him. So they had this expectation 
concerning Elijah. They had a misunderstanding in 
terms of the nature of the reappearance of Elijah. But it is the case 
that John the Baptist does fulfill what Malachi spoke. In Luke 1.17, 
it says that he, John the Baptist, will go before him, God, 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 a people prepared for the Lord. Matthew 11, 14, 
Jesus says the same thing. After extolling John as the best 
of the prophetic class, he says, and if you are willing to receive 
it, he is Elijah who is to come. And when he says that he's more 
than a prophet, he's not denigrating Isaiah or Jeremiah or Ezekiel. He's rather saying that by virtue 
of John's place in redemptive history, he's that unique link 
between old and new covenants. He's that unique one that not 
only announces the arrival of Messiah in terms of his coming, 
but is able to actually point to him physically and say, Behold 
the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So he occupies 
a unique place in redemptive history, and it's in that vein 
that Jesus extols him as being, yes, more than a prophet. But 
as well, turn to Matthew 17, because the disciples understood 
this also. They had an Elijah expectation 
also, in light of Malachi the prophet. It is the Mount of Transfiguration 
in the first part of Matthew 17. Remember, Peter, James, and 
John accompany the Lord Jesus on the Mount, and Jesus, as it 
were, shines forth his divinity. And they are just amazed by this. They hear the voice of God Most 
High, according to verse 5. While He was still speaking, 
behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them. And it was Moses and Elijah 
that appeared to Him on that Mount of Transfiguration. But 
notice in verse 5. While he was still speaking, 
behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them. And suddenly a voice came 
out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved son, in whom I 
am well pleased. Hear him. And when the disciples 
heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. 
But Jesus came and touched them and said, Arise and do not be 
afraid. When they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus 
only. Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded 
them saying, tell the vision to no one until the son of man 
is risen from the dead. Now notice the question from 
the disciples. And his disciples asked him saying, 
why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first? That's 
the reading in Malachi 3, not Malachi 4, where it's this promise 
that an Elijah-like figure is going to come to turn the hearts 
of the sons back to the fathers and the fathers to the sons. 
But in Malachi 3.1, there is this messenger who comes to announce 
the arrival of the messenger of the covenant. In other words, 
John the Baptist, then the Messiah. And so they've seen Messiah transfigured 
right before their eyes. They've beheld the glory of God. 
The glory of the only begotten Son of God. And now they're asking 
the question. But we didn't see Elijah first. 
And it's in that vein and in that context that Jesus gives 
them this response. Verse 11. Jesus answered and 
said to them, indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore 
all things. But I say to you that Elijah 
has come already. And they did not know him, but 
did to him whatever they wished. Likewise, the son of man is also 
about to suffer at their hands. Then the disciples understood 
that he spoke to them of John the Baptist." So there is this 
expectation of Messiah to come. John says, I'm not him. There 
is this expectation of Elijah and John says, I am not him. 
I've just said that he is him. Not in the manner in which they 
asked the question. He's not bodily Elijah who fell 
out of heaven to re-engage in ministry. He's come in the spirit 
and in the power of Elijah. He has come as the forerunner 
of the king. Now notice the next question, 
the denial by John that he was the prophet. Verse 21, again, 
are you the prophet? And he answered, no. So what 
prophet are they expecting? What is the context for this 
expectation? It is likely Deuteronomy chapter 
18. Deuteronomy chapter 18, the Lord 
God through Moses is teaching the people of Israel not to engage 
in the customs around them. In other words, don't seek out 
witches, don't seek out soothsayers, don't find necromancers, don't 
try to communicate with the dead. You have priests to regulate 
the temple, and you have prophets to communicate the word. And 
there is this promise concerning a prophet in Deuteronomy 18, 
15. The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me 
from your midst, from your brethren, him you shall hear. That's why 
in the Mount of Transfiguration, when the father gives his approval 
of the son, he says those words, hear him. It was another way 
for them to understand the coming of the Messiah. In fact, we see 
that question posed to Jesus in John's gospel at 614 and at 
John 740. Are you the prophet? They had 
this expectation of Messiah. They had an expectation of Elijah. 
They had an expectation of the prophet. And so when this delegation 
comes to John the Baptist, this is the issue. Are you that guy? Are you the one we're waiting 
for? Are you the one we're looking for? And in each of these three 
instances, John says, no, it's not me. It's not me, not me, 
not at all. I'm not the Messiah, I'm not 
Elijah, and I'm not the prophet. And then we turn our attention 
to what he does say. Look at their response in verse 
22. Then they said to him, who are 
you that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do 
you say about yourself? And there's two things we ought 
to consider here. First, the fulfillment of prophecy. And 
secondly, he is the baptizer with water. But notice with reference 
to the fulfillment of prophecy. I'm not a prophet, but I'm certainly 
a subject of prophecy. I am not the great Messiah that 
was to come, but I am one to herald his arrival. I am not 
Elijah in bodily form, but I've come in the spirit and power 
of Elijah in terms of the prophet Malachi's program concerning 
Messiah. Notice what he says. He said, 
I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, make straight 
the way of the Lord. Now, in terms of the context, 
Isaiah 40 is starting the book of consolation. It's starting 
the book of hope. It's starting the reality of 
the messianic age. And again, this idea of wilderness 
isn't bad. Wilderness isn't wretched. Wilderness 
isn't bleak. Wilderness is revival. Wilderness 
is renewal. Wilderness is where God meets 
with his people. So it begins a section of consolation, 
specifically a message to the exiles that they would return 
from Babylon. And then the explanation concerning 
the messianic age follows. That's what Isaiah 40 to 66 is 
riddled with. There's four servant songs concerning 
Jesus in chapters 42, chapter 42, 49, 50, and then again in 
53. We get these servant songs of Yahweh, which give us various 
facets of the Messiah that is to come. The most obvious one 
or popular one in our minds is 53. It's the suffering servant 
who comes to atone for the sins of his people. So that whole 
context, Isaiah 40 to 66 is about Messiah. Now there's obviously, 
that's not the only thing it's about, but that's the main reference 
point. And so what is John saying here? 
John is saying that I am the one that Isaiah spoke of. He 
said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, make straight 
the way of the Lord. Now, if you're using an English 
translation, which most likely you are, because you're all English 
speakers, notice how, at least in the New King James, it capitalizes 
the L-O-R-D. Well, that reflects the Old Testament 
sort of capitalization scheme in these English translations. 
And what that capitalization is, is what's called in Hebrew, 
the convention is called the Tetragrammaton. It's the four 
letters for the official name of God, Yahweh. And so what is 
John the Baptist declaring? What is John saying? John, by 
his testimony as a prophet in history, is saying what the Apostle 
John has already told us in the prologue. In the beginning was 
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was what? The 
Word was God. So the apostle John has talked 
of the co-eternality of the son with the father, the distinction 
of the son from the father, and the consubstantiality of the 
son with the father. He's of one substance with the 
father, of one being with the father. They have the same divine 
nature. They have the same divine essence. 
They have the same divine substance. So notice again, he said, I am 
the voice of one crying in the wilderness, make straight the 
way of the Lord. In Isaiah 43, the messenger was 
going to come and announce the way of Yahweh. That's precisely 
what the Baptist does. He is confessing the deity and 
divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, RT France makes this 
observation. There is a remarkable Christological 
claim involved in applying Isaiah's depiction of God's forerunner 
to the man who prepared the way for the coming of Jesus. So it 
is underscoring what we've already been taught concerning the divinity 
of the Word. John's going to make that explicitly 
clear in verse 34 when he says that this is the Son of God. 
So John the Baptist is doing what John the Apostle has already 
done. He is introducing us to this 
divine one, this man that has come from God in order to save 
his people from their sins. But it's not just this prophecy 
that we should concern ourselves with at this point. But turn 
to Luke 1 for just a moment. Luke 1 is a prophetic statement 
concerning the Baptist that I know I haven't given fair attention 
to that I hope to correct right now. The prophecy of Zacharias. Remember, Zacharias was the father 
of John the Baptist. And Zacharias was a priest ministering 
in the temple to God. Zacharias received this message 
from the angel that his son would be the forerunner. His son would 
be the announcer. His son would be the one that 
Isaiah the prophet spoke of in Isaiah 40 at verse three. Well, 
of course, Zacharias has a bit of struggle with that, and so 
the angel strikes him, I don't think physically, but made it 
such that he was mute. He was unable to speak. But then 
after the son is born, and after he writes down, call his name 
John, his tongue is loosed. So he goes from this place of 
mute to this place of prophet. So let's look at his prophecy 
according to Luke chapter 1 at verse 67. Notice, now his father 
Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied. So 
this isn't like us, you know, we have a baby and we see it 
and it's cradle, it, because I don't know if it's a boy or 
girl, not because it's an it. But we see that, baby, and we 
hope for great things. We hope that, you know, there'll 
be leaders of men. We've got a bit of a joke with 
the new addition in the Butler household, not household proper, 
but my son and his wife had a son named Samson, and we reckon he'll 
be killing Philistines one day when he's grown up. You know, 
you have this hope. I don't mean that physically. 
People don't go out, oh, he's a serial killer. He wants his 
grandchildren to go out and hurt people. No, no, no. But you have 
these thoughts concerning your spawn. You have these thoughts 
concerning your children. You have these thoughts that 
are hope-filled. Oh, I'd love him to be a Major 
League Baseball player here in Canada. I'd love him to play 
in the NHL. I'd love her to be just a great leader, whatever 
it is we think or we hope. This isn't a hope. This isn't 
sentiment. This isn't Zacharias saying, 
come on son, buck up and be all you can be. He's prophesying 
by the Spirit concerning the ministry of the son, John the 
Baptist. So what he says here isn't up 
for grabs, what he says here isn't up for debate, what he 
says here isn't up for argument, what he says here is declarative. 
It is by the Spirit that he speaks these things concerning both 
his son and the one his son points to. Notice the mission of the 
Messiah. That's where he comes first. 
Verse 67, Now what he does there is a convention that is utilized 
throughout the Old Testament. The Apostle Paul does the same 
thing in Ephesians chapter one. It's called a barakah, which 
means in Hebrew, blessing. Blessed be the God and Father 
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual 
blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. Ephesians 1, 3. And 
then he outlines the reasons why God should be praised. Verses 
three to six, the sending of the Son. Verses 13 and 14, the 
sending of the Spirit. All for what? The redemption 
of our guilty souls. Well, Zacharias does the same 
thing. He takes that convention and 
he speaks it back to God. When we talk about blessing, 
we get blessed by God in terms of provision, in terms of multiplication 
of good things. But when we bless God, it is 
to speak well of him. It is to glorify him. It is to 
honor him. And that is precisely what Zacharias 
does. Notice the nature for which he 
blesses God. Blessed is the Lord God of Israel 
for, He has visited and redeemed His people. In other words, I 
am blessing God for so great a salvation. I am blessing God 
for His work of redemption on my behalf, not just mine. He 
is speaking prophetically in terms of the nation. Now notice 
he highlights that the Messiah is the Savior from the house 
of David. He has raised up a horn of salvation 
for us in the house of his servant David. Look back in chapter 1 
at verse 30. Then the angel said to her, Do 
not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And 
behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a son 
and shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be 
called the son of the highest. And the Lord God will give him 
the throne of his father, David. And he will reign over the house 
of Jacob forever and of his kingdom. There will be no end. The second 
Samuel implications here, the Davidic kingdom or Davidic covenant. God promises to David that from 
David's line, there will be one that rises up to build a house 
for God. That's Jesus. And Zacharias acknowledges 
that. Not just broadly salvation, but 
the Savior comes from the house of David. Notice as well that 
Zacharias celebrates what we in the New Covenant Church need 
to get about. We don't celebrate deliverance 
from our enemies the way that Old Covenant, or not even Old 
Covenant, New Testament saints do. Look at what he says in verse 
70, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets, who have 
been since the world began, that we should be saved from our enemies 
and from the hand of all who hate us. We praise God for that. We rejoice in God's goodness. 
2 Thessalonians 1, the Apostle Paul says it's right with God 
to pay with tribulation those who have troubled you. In Revelation 
19, after the fall of Babylon the Great, what do the saints 
in heaven do? Oh, that's terrible, God. You 
actually showed your vindication. No, they praise God, fourfold 
hallelujah. Why do you think in Revelation 
21 and 22, we learn that the dogs and the cowardly and the 
unbelievers and the wretches are outside of the holy city? 
Because the people of God then are safe. The people of God then 
have been vindicated. The people of God then have been. 
blessed and delivered by their enemies. For Zacharias, this 
fares large in his rehearsal of God's redemptive benefit. 
Notice as well, he goes on to consider the fulfillment of the 
promises to Abraham in the life of Jesus. Verse 72, to perform 
the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant, 
the oath which he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us that 
we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve 
him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him 
all the days of our life. So as he goes from this place 
of muteness to this place of prophesying, he spends his time 
first on hailing the mission of Messiah. This is what Christ 
will do. Now he turns his attention to 
the babe. Now he turns his attention to 
his dear son. Again, it's not a hope-filled 
wish, it's not a sentiment, but it's a prophecy concerning the 
mission of John the Baptist. Notice verse 76, and you, child, 
will be called the prophet of the highest. Don't you love that 
name for God? Most high or highest. It shows his majesty, his supremacy, 
his glory, his excellence, and his power. It doesn't try to 
bring God down to our level. It doesn't try to remake God 
into our own image. It rather recognizes the great 
distance that obtains between God and us. He is the infinite, 
and we are the finite. He is the creator, and we are 
the creature. And in Zacharias' confession, 
he says that the Baptist is going to be the prophet of the highest. In context, that highest is our 
Lord Jesus Christ. Notice that the Baptist will 
prepare the way of the highest. Verse 76, for you will go before 
the face of the Lord to prepare his ways. Isaiah 40, verse 3. Malachi chapter 3, verse 1a. 
But then as well, notice that the Baptist mission is not simply 
to highlight the necessity of repentance. He does that. We 
see it in Matthew and we see it in Luke. But do you know that 
John the Baptist also preached justification by faith alone? We have to read the entirety 
of the Bible and understand that what John is saying isn't simply 
revolved around repentance. When the Apostle Paul meets disciples 
in Ephesus who had been baptized by John the Baptist, he says, 
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. I argue there that John's baptism 
is Christian baptism. There's not a distinction between 
the two. They weren't re-baptized because 
John's was somehow deficient, but what we have in the proclamation 
of John the Baptist is an announcement of the kingdom. It is the announcement 
of the arrival of the king, but it's also the announcement of 
justification by faith alone. In other words, he's preaching 
the gospel. He's preaching the good news. 
Notice that that is teased out by Zacharias. You, child, will 
be called prophet of the highest. Verse 76. For you will go before 
the face of the Lord to prepare his ways. Now notice, to give 
knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission of their 
sins. Prior, Zacharias praises God 
for his salvation that involved a deliverance from enemies, probably 
physical enemies, probably Philistines, probably Hivites, probably Hittites. But it doesn't stop there. He 
praises God and acknowledges that Christ delivers us from 
that enemy that holds us down at the level of spirit. that 
enemy which is sin, that enemy which is death, that enemy which 
is the devil. In other words, Christ hasn't 
simply come to vindicate Israel from her external enemies. He's 
not come simply to subjugate the Roman Empire, which he doesn't. 
He doesn't come to offer them some temporal kingdom and a geopolitical 
sort of prestige. He comes to save his people from 
their sins. And the Baptist announced that. The Baptist testified concerning 
that, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission 
of their sins. How does that come? Well, it's 
through the one that the Baptist proclaims. Notice verse 79. through the tender mercy of our 
God. That's the theological context 
or arena. Our confession, when it highlights 
the work of God in creation and providence, tells us that the 
work of God in creation and providence manifests His power, His wisdom, 
and His goodness. Well, certainly redemption does 
that, but it also magnifies His mercy. It magnifies His grace. It magnifies that guilty, vile, 
helpless we, spotless Lamb of God was He. Full atonement, can 
it be? Hallelujah, what a Savior. So 
what John's father Zacharias is acknowledging is that the 
context of the redemptive plan of God is through His mercy. But notice in verse 78b, with 
which the day spring from on high, has visited us. That is a reference to the Messiah. In other words, God has this 
abundant mercy, but he doesn't hold on to it alone in heaven. But it has come to us through 
the visitation of the day spring into our arena. Sounds like the 
prologue as well, doesn't it? The law was given by Moses or 
given through Moses, but grace and truth came through our Lord 
Jesus Christ. Not that grace and truth was 
absent at the time of Moses, but it comes to fruition and 
fulfillment and realization in the new covenant of our Lord 
and Savior, Jesus Christ. He's preaching the gospel here. 
Through the tender mercy of our God, with which the day spring 
from on high has visited us. And then notice in verse 79, 
again, you'll hear the, you know, reminiscences of the prologue. In him was light and the light, 
he was the light and the light was the life of man. Notice in 
verse 79. to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow 
of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. So the child 
grew and became strong in spirit and was in the desert still the 
day of his manifestation to Israel. So going back to John chapter 
1, John the Baptist denies that he's the Christ. He denies that 
he's Elijah. He denies that he's the prophet. 
but he affirms that he's the subject of prophecy, both Isaiah 
and Zacharias. And everything that Zacharias 
says, everything that Isaiah says concerning John the Baptist 
comes to pass, it comes to realization. And the overarching theme there 
is what John the Apostle does in the prologue. to set forth 
before us the supremacy of Jesus, to set forth before us the preeminence 
of Christ. That is conspicuous in what John 
goes on to say in verses 24 and following. Notice. Now those 
who were sent were from the Pharisees. And they asked him saying, why 
then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor 
the prophet? Why are you engaged in this ritual? 
Why are you engaged in this religious washing? Why are you doing the 
things that you're doing if you're not one of those three? So how 
does John respond to that? Well, in Matthew and Luke, he 
makes a distinction between the baptism with water and the baptism 
with the Holy Spirit and fire. He doesn't do that here. Later 
on, it gets hinted at, but here the comparison is between John 
and Jesus. between John and Jesus. Notice 
what he says, or they say, why do you baptize if you're not 
the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet? John answered them saying, 
I baptize with water, but there stands one among you. That doesn't 
mean he was physically present. He's absent until the next day 
when John says, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin 
of the world. When it says that he stands among 
you, I think it's in light of verse 10 in the prologue. He 
was in the world and the world was made through him and the 
world did not know him. In other words, the day spring 
from on high has visited us. In that sense, he is among you. So again, the contrast isn't 
John's water baptism and Jesus' Holy Spirit slash fire baptism. Rather, it's at the level of 
John and Jesus. So verse 26, John answered them 
saying, I baptize with water, but there stands one among you 
whom you do not know. What an indictment. You should 
know him. He's your Messiah. You should 
know him. He's prophesied. You should know 
him. He comes to his own. But unfortunately, 
his own do not receive him. Why? Because they misread it. 
They wanted the subjugation of the Roman Empire. They wanted 
geopolitical prestige. They wanted this sort of carnal 
kingdom. That's not why he comes in the 
first coming. It is so that he may save his people from their 
sins. And not that this was a brand 
new concept in the scheme of Messiah. Again, Isaiah 53. Why does he suffer? Why is he 
a man of sorrows? Why is he acquainted with grief? 
Why is Yahweh pleased to crush him and to put him to grief? 
It's not so that Israel could be a geopolitical power and the 
Roman empire be licking their feet. No, it's so that we could 
be saved from our sins. It's so that we could enter into 
heaven, that we could gain acceptance with a holy God through the blood 
of the Lord Jesus Christ. So John the Baptist says, I baptize 
with water, but there stands one among you whom you do not 
know. And it's at this point that he sets forth the preeminence 
of Jesus. It is he who coming after me 
is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy 
to lose. Brother, I don't think this is 
convention on the part of the apostle. I don't think he's just 
this sort of self-effacing guy. He's not got some sort of complex. 
Oh, I'm just so, you know, wretched and weak and lowly and all of 
that. He's honest. He's serious. He knows the dignity 
of Messiah. Look again at verse 15 in the 
prologue. John bore witness of him and cried out saying, this 
was he of whom I said, he who comes after me. He came after 
him physically from the womb. The Baptist was six months older. 
As well, he comes after him in terms of redemptive history. 
Malachi prophesies that first the Baptist comes and then Messiah. But notice what John the Baptist 
goes on to say in verse 15. This was he of whom I said, he 
who comes after me is preferred before me. Why? For he was before 
me. John the Baptist knows the prologue 
as well as you and I do. He knows that in the beginning 
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 
Nicaea didn't make this up. Nicaea rightly understands what 
the Baptist and the Apostle testify concerning the Savior. John the 
Baptist says as much at the end of verse 34. This is the Son 
of God, not by adoption the way that we are according to Galatians 
4, but by nature. He is the only begotten of the 
Father, full of grace and truth. The Baptist understood this, 
the Baptist confessed this, and the Baptist testified concerning 
this so that glory wouldn't be given to him, but all glory would 
be given to Jesus. And in this vein, John the Baptist 
sounds like a few passages in the Old Testament. Remember, 
Abraham before God. He says, indeed now, I who am 
but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the 
Lord. Again, he's not got some complex 
or syndrome or he's got some deficiency in terms of his mental 
alertness. He is simply in the presence 
of the most holy God. He's in the presence of the highest. 
See, there's this idea that God appeared to me and we just had 
this conversation. That's not biblical. When God 
makes appearances to the Old Testament prophets, they don't 
say, hey, how you doing, big buddy? They fall down as dead 
men. When John the Apostle on the 
island of Patmos, for the testimony of Jesus, is confronted with 
the glorified Christ, what does John the Apostle do? Hey, buddy, 
how are you doing? We're not supposed to bring the 
deity down to our level. The fact that Jesus comes to 
our level, takes on our humanity, lives for us, dies for us, and 
is raised again for us, ought to promote the fear of God. It 
ought to promote joy in the spirit. It ought to promote fresh gratitude 
and appreciation. But man has been attempting since 
the fall to bring God down to his level. But when you meet 
people in the Bible who are confronted with the divinity, with the deity, 
they don't do that. Job 42, 5 and 6, he says, I have 
heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eyes see 
you. Therefore, I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes. 
That's the way it is, brethren. I'm always very suspicious at 
a variety of levels for those people that have seen God. Well, 
what happened when you saw God? There's a famous preacher in 
California that had the story that he was shaving his face 
and Jesus came to him and started talking to him. MacArthur heard 
that and said, what did you do? You don't keep shaving your face 
if Jesus is really there. You fall down as a dead man. 
That's the response when confronted with God Most High. Remember 
those men of Beth Shemesh that wanted to open up the Ark of 
the Covenant? How'd that work out for them? How did that go? Was that a blessed, happy day 
and afternoon for them? Absolutely, positively not. They probably wished that they 
had never gotten near. Well, they do. That's what the 
Philistines do. The Philistines get to the point 
where they send the Ark of the Covenant back. Remember, they 
capture it in battle in 1 Samuel 4. Oh yeah, we've bested Israel. We have their Ark of the Covenant. 
Good job, geniuses. How's that going to work out? 
The Ark of the Covenant goes into Philistine territory and 
nothing but bad happens. The Philistines finally wake 
up and smell the coffee and say, we got to get rid of this. We 
got to send it back. How do we do that? This is the 
reality when men are confronted with the holiness of God. They 
don't just keep shaving. They don't just keep conversing. 
They don't just keep talking like it's some fellow or some 
equal. But they say with the Baptist that this one is preferred 
before me. This one, I'm not worthy to even 
get down in the lowest task that a slave has to tie or untie the 
shoe. That's beyond my privilege. That's beyond my capability. 
We have come into the presence of the Holy One of Israel, and 
shall we treat Him as if He's our fellow, or we treat Him as 
if He's just another? Isaiah 40, verse 17, all nations 
before Him are as nothing, and they are counted by Him less 
than nothing and worthless. I realize this is an affront 
to the self-esteem and the delicate psyche that we face on a regular 
basis in the world today, but why are we facing it in the church 
today? The people of God need to humble 
themselves under God Most High. He is not our fellow. He is not 
our equal. He is the highest. And we are 
the lowest. And it's from that vantage point 
that true worship is conducted. Not arrogance, not pride, not 
this bravado attitude, but the reality that we enter in to the 
presence of the majestic God of heaven and earth. I was talking 
to some brothers about this the other day. Why do some in evangelicalism 
end up in potpourri or in Eastern Orthodoxy? Why is that? Well, 
maybe they're sick and tired of chatty pastors with holes 
in their pants while they're sipping their latte, telling 
little anecdotes about their lives, narcigening scripture. I'm not suggesting that Popery 
in Eastern Orthodox is somehow correct, but there's something 
through that liturgy that actually speaks something concerning majesty. Again, it's false, it's heretical, 
they got huge issues, but what have we done in evangelicalism 
today? What's being done in reform circles 
today? We're bringing God down, trying 
to make Him cool and being hip around Him. That's not our mandate, 
brethren. Fear and trembling is our mandate. reverence, joy, unspeakable and 
full of glory to be sure, but that joy is consistent with the 
fear of God. Remember those disciples running 
from the tomb after they had witnessed the emptiness of it. 
They were running, they were trembling with joy. That's what 
David demands from the kings and the judges around Israel. 
Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. We've missed that. We think that 
rejoicing and trembling are inconsistent. No, they are perfectly consistent 
when the object of our trembling and our joy is God Most High. 
See, it's frivolity, it is levity, it is jocularity to somehow treat 
God as if he's just a hipper version of us, and we're just 
all cool, and we're going to just keep our hands in our pockets, 
and we're going to sip our lattes, all in the conduct of the most 
highest expression of the creature's privilege before God, which is 
worship. Worship Him, Jesus says, in what? In spirit and in truth. That is absolutely requisite 
on the part of the church. And I would hope and pray that 
John the Baptist serves for us as a model of a right respect 
for the dignity of the Messiah. Well, in conclusion, I wanna 
look first at the ministry of the Baptist. We looked at him 
a few, I don't know, a couple of months ago. He's a great example 
of courage too. Something that the church desperately 
needs today. Courage. Not courage to go out and right 
every wrong. Not courage to jump over tall 
buildings with a single bound. Not courage to run as fast as 
a locomotive and take bullets. No, not that. Courage in our 
context is to show up. Right? Show up. Just show up, 
obey God. When God says gather for worship, 
obey Him, do what He says. That's a courageous stance nowadays. But in terms of the ministry 
of John the Baptist, the redemptive historical, he was the forerunner 
of Jesus. But in terms of his preaching, 
emphasis on faith in Christ and emphasis on repentance unto life. 
In our studies, in the book of Acts, you see those terms used 
synonymously. Repent and believe are used synonymously. 
They are two sides of the same coin. Repentance in the first 
instance is a change of mind. The fruit of repentance is what 
happens after you've changed your mind. So faith and repentance 
is coming to Jesus Christ. We call that as well, conversion. But with reference to some practical 
observations concerning the Baptist, he was humble and promoted the 
glory of Christ. In the final analysis, brethren, 
that's why we've been saved. It's not just for us. I know 
we like to think that. Well, I get to go to heaven. 
I don't have to go to hell. I get all these benefits. I'm blessed 
beyond measure. Yeah, but in 1 Peter chapter 
2, when the apostle talks about God calling us out of darkness 
into his marvelous light, there's a purpose clause attached to 
that. That that, here's the purpose clause, that we may proclaim 
the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into marvelous 
light. In other words, we need to function in the capacity of 
John the Baptist. He's the one you should be looking 
at. He's the one you should be preferring. He's the one. you 
should be bowing to. He's the one you should be believing 
on. He was, in the language of Jesus in Matthew 11, not a reed 
shaken by the wind. Matthew 11, verse 7. He was not 
a reed shaken by the wind. He was a man of conviction who 
would never back down. Royal commenting there says, 
a bold, unflinching witness to the truth. I think I've told 
you before, at the gravesite of John Knox, that great Scottish 
reformer, Regent Morton said, here lies one who neither flattered 
nor feared any flesh. He, John Knox, followed in the 
train of John the Baptist. He didn't fear nor flatter any 
flesh. When he comes to deal with Herod 
about the indecency, rather the perversion, of Herod's having 
his brother's wife, it says in the Lucan account that he told 
him all the things that he had done wrong. Imagine that. And 
I think that's what Jesus is speaking about when he says in 
Matthew chapter 11 that he was not a court prophet. He wasn't 
in soft clothing. He wasn't pampered. He wasn't 
a yes man in the court serving the king. No, when the king was 
out of line, which Herod was, vis-a-vis the seventh commandment, 
and from what we surmise a lot of other commandments, the Baptist 
didn't shrink back from declaring that and telling him that he 
was in sin. In John 5, verse 35, you're there, 
you might as well look at this passage concerning the Baptist. 
John 5, 35, he was the burning and shining lamp, and you were 
willing for a time to rejoice in his light. Burning and shining 
lamp. Brethren, if I could spiritualize 
or allegorize or depart for a moment, if there's two things that are 
lacking in the Christian pulpit today that must be present, it's 
light and heat. There's a lot of heat. Guys bluster 
and yammer on about a whole bunch of stuff. They don't know what 
they're talking about. We need light. We need the truth. We 
need exegetical savvy. We need accurate exposition of 
scripture, but it can't come out in a suggestive manner. It 
can't come out in a chatty fashion. He is the voice of one crying 
in the wilderness, make way or make straight the path of the 
Lord. What's the prophet told? I think it's in Isaiah 59 at 
verse one. It may be 58 one. Cry aloud, 
spare not, lift up your voice like a trumpet. Why? Because 
sleepy sinners need the voice of God most high to ring in their 
ears. That's the bottom line. Pray 
that men training for gospel ministry, men that God will raise 
up. It doesn't mean they have to have volume, but they have 
to have the ability to make known the word of God, not in a suggestive 
way, not as if it's one recommendation amongst another, but it's in 
the context of preach the word. Be ready in season and out of 
season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and teaching. 
I preached that last Sunday night. My brother made a good observation. 
We can never divorce 4.2 in 2 Timothy from 4.1. 4.1, the only reason 
I did separate it was for a matter of time. I wanted to get all 
those three texts in there. What's 4.1 say? Before Paul gets to 
the admonition or exhortation or command to Timothy in 2 Timothy 
4, that he is supposed to preach the word, 4.1 gives us the context. I charge you therefore, before 
God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and 
the dead at his appearing and his kingdom, preach the word. 
In other words, when you undertake to speak for God, that means 
you've been qualified by God. That means it's demonstrable 
in light of 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. That means it's been confirmed 
by the church that you're a part of. It means that in God's providence, 
He's provided a place for you to do that. Understand that when 
you stand in that pulpit and you preach that word, it's not 
this that ultimately matters, it's Him. It's God and the Lord 
Jesus Christ who will judge us at His appearing. This is why 
James 3.1 says, let not many of you become teachers. Why? 
We will receive a stricter judgment. When we put men into Christian 
ministry that are not qualified, men that aren't light, men that 
don't have heat, men that can't interpret scripture or preach 
it, we're doing an injustice to God, we're doing an injustice 
to God's people, and we're hurting the poor slob himself. He should 
go do something he can do. If God intended for Behemoth 
to fly, he'd put wings on him. That's what Spurgeon says, and 
he's 100% right. If there's not light and not 
heat in a pulpit, there's going to be death in the pews. John 
the Baptist, in the language of John Gill, His light of pure 
doctrine and of unholy and exemplary conversation shone very visibly 
and brightly before men. And he burned with strong love 
and affection for Christ and the souls of men and with flaming 
zeal for the honor of God and true religion and against all 
sin and profaneness, which he was a faithful reprover of and 
for which he lost his life. He did. Remember that sermon? 
Ralph Barnard calls his sermon on that, the sermon that cost 
a preacher his head. That's exactly what happened, 
isn't it? It cut his head off. Why? Because he didn't shrink 
back. He didn't say, well, I'm sorry 
if I've offended you, Herod, for actually insinuating or telling 
you that you've broken God's law. He's not going to do that. 
He's going to do what God calls him to do. He's going to shine 
as a light. He's going to burn with heat. And he's going to 
set forth the glory of Jesus Christ. And that, my brethren, 
is the final application in this message. John was about Jesus. John was about the preeminence 
of Christ. John the Apostle is in the prologue. 
John the Baptist is in his historical testimony. It's all about Jesus. If you're not a Christian here 
this morning, it's not about John the Baptist. It's about 
the one to whom John the Baptist pointed. It's about Jesus. He is the Lamb of God who takes 
away the sin of the world. We'll see that, God willing, 
next week. He is the one that came to live. And He lived for 
us just as much as He died for us. Why do we need His life? 
Because we're miserable sinners. We're disobedient to God. We've 
transgressed His law. Remember I mentioned in Galatians 
chapter 3, at least alluding to it, the demand of God's law 
is to do all things that are commanded by it. We do none of 
the things that are commanded by it. So in the life of Christ, 
He obeys the Father. So that when he is done with 
that redemptive work, it's the life of righteousness. It's imputed 
to us and it's received by faith alone. So we need the life of 
Christ and obedience to his father, but we need the death as well. 
The Apostle says in Hebrews 9.22, without the shedding of blood, 
there is no remission. This is why the Baptist calls 
Jesus the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. All 
of that captures what the Old Testament knew. We don't enter 
into the presence of God except through a bloody knife and a 
smoking altar. We don't enter into the presence of God without 
blood atonement. We don't enter into the presence 
of God without first having been cleansed. And so the life of 
Christ answers to our need for a righteousness that avails with 
God. The death of Christ avails for our need to be forgiven for 
the sins committed against God. But lo and behold, Christ does 
that and he's raised the third day because death had no dominion 
over him. So if you're not a believer here 
today, my message to you is not go out and try harder. Go out 
and be better. Go out and do what God's law 
says. Now there's a sense where everybody 
should do that, but that's not the way of salvation. Believe 
on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. That's why 
it's good news. That's why it's not good advice. 
It's not self-help. It's not moral reformation. It's 
not try a little bit harder, but it's the good news of Christ 
having been crucified, having been raised such that those who 
look to him in faith will be saved. Let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank You for Your Word, and we thank You for this testimony 
of the Baptist concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, and what a 
glorious Christ He is, and what a wonderful mission He accomplished 
in that first coming. And we look forward to His second 
coming again in glory to judge the living and the dead. And 
our desire, our hope, and our prayer is all that we know and 
love would be believing on Him that we would be covered in His 
righteousness, that we would have been forgiven of our sin, 
and that we would hear ultimately that acceptance by the Father 
on that day of judgment, not because of our good works, not 
because of what we've accomplished, but because of what Jesus Christ 
has done for sinners. God, may people believe this 
by Your grace and for Your glory, and we ask in Jesus' name, amen. We'll close with a brief time 
of meditation.