John - Week 2

Clear the Way 

READ 

John 1:19-23 

19 This was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders sent priests and Temple assistants from Jerusalem to ask John, “Who are you?” 20 He came right out and said, “I am not the Messiah.” 21 “Well then, who are you?” they asked. “Are you Elijah?” “No,” he replied. “Are you the Prophet we are expecting?” “No.” 22 “Then who are you? We need an answer for those who sent us. What do you have to say about yourself?” 23 John replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah: “I am a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Clear the way for the Lord’s coming!’”  

Continuing on in John 1, we read about what John the Baptist said when questioned about who he was. He denied he was Elijah or the Prophet the Jewish leaders were expecting. The priests and Temple assistants then asked: “What do you have to say about yourself?” John’s statement in verse 23 is a reference to Isaiah 40:3, The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” This shows Jesus is God. 

REFLECT 

Do you believe what the Bible teaches about Jesus being God? If not, what is the basis for your opinion? 

RESPOND 

If you believe Jesus is God, have you trusted in Him for salvation? Have you told others about Him? Make it your desire to do so. 

 John the Baptist 

READ 

John 1:24-28 

24 Then the Pharisees who had been sent 25 asked him, “If you aren’t the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet, what right do you have to baptize?” 26 John told them, “I baptize with water, but right here in the crowd is someone you do not recognize. 27 Though his ministry follows mine, I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandal.” 28 This encounter took place in Bethany, an area east of the Jordan River, where John was baptizing.  

The Pharisees did not like John’s answer so they questioned him further: They were accustomed to many washings and religious rituals. They thought that only Messiah, Elijah, or “the Prophet” had authority to baptize to announce the coming of the Messiah. The baptism practiced by John the Baptist looked ahead to the coming of the Messiah. Christian baptism looks back to the Messiah who has come and is a way of showing identification with Jesus and His followers.  

REFLECT 

After trusting in Jesus for your salvation, have you been baptized to show your identification with Jesus and His followers? 

RESPOND 

John emphasized the worthiness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Do others hear you say things that honor Him? Talk with a friend about how you both can do better in saying things to honor the Lord.  

The Lamb of God 

READ 

John 1:29-31 

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 He is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘A man is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’ 31 I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.” 

John the Baptist explained his reason for baptizing when he saw Jesus coming toward him. He said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” Jesus took sins away forever, not just covering them. The writer of the book of Hebrews said of Jesus in Hebrews 7:27, “Unlike those other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices every day. They did this for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. But Jesus did this once for all when he offered himself as the sacrifice for the people’s sins.” 

REFLECT 

If you have trusted in Jesus for your salvation, have you thanked Him recently for taking away your sins? Praise Him for what He has done for you. 

RESPOND 

As you talk to others about Jesus, help them see that Jesus is greater than any earthly priest or any human being. Read 1 Timothy 2:5 to be assured Jesus is the only mediator between us and God. 

The Chosen One of God 

READ 

John 1:32-34 

32 Then John testified, “I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. 33 I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.”  

John tells how he recognized Jesus as the true Messiah. Here all three persons of the Godhead are present: God the Father sent John the Baptist to baptize; God the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove at this baptism and rested on God the Son, Jesus. These three persons comprise the one Godhead, known as the Trinity. As a result of seeing all this, John the Baptist exclaimed, “I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.” 

REFLECT 

Historic Christianity teaches that God exists in three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Is this also your belief? 

RESPOND 

Read Matthew 28:19. Notice what word is singular even though all three persons of the Godhead are mentioned. This is an indication of the unity in the Trinity. 

They Followed Jesus 

READ 

John 1:35-39 

35 The following day John was again standing with two of his disciples. 36 As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and declared, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!” 37 When John’s two disciples heard this, they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus looked around and saw them following. “What do you want?” he asked them. They replied, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” 39 “Come and see,” he said. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon when they went with him to the place where he was staying, and they remained with him the rest of the day. 

Notice what happened the next day. There is no indication that John the Baptist felt disappointment or jealousy when two of his disciples left him to follow Jesus and stayed with Him the rest of the day. Neither should you be disappointed when someone whose life you have invested in decides to follow another person. That is true as long as the other person is teaching the Bible and honoring Christ in his or her life. 

REFLECT 

Are you encouraging others to follow only those who are teaching the Bible and honoring Christ in their lives? Tell of an occasion when you did this? 

RESPOND 

Describe how you would have felt if you had been those disciples and were able to spend a day with Jesus. Talk with a friend about this. Then remind each other that believers today have even a greater privilege of Jesus living in them, as Colossians 1:27 says.