Unworthy - October 31

Read John 1:24-28 (ESV) 

(Now they had been sent from the Pharisees). They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” John answered them, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” These things took place in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing. 

Reflect 

Why is it healthy spiritually to understand our unworthiness before a holy God? 

Our culture is obsessed with ourselves, especially in the area of self-care and self-esteem. We just want to feel good about ourselves. So our culture tosses around platitudes like, “You are worthy” and “You are enough.” But is making much of ourselves a biblical concept? 

Well, it certainly isn’t the type of character we see in John the Baptist. Even though he was given the enormous privilege of proclaiming the coming Messiah and preparing the way for His Savior, John didn’t make much of himself. He made much of Christ instead. 

Remember that a group of Jewish religious leaders came to John the Baptist to question him. John denied being the Christ, Elijah, and the Prophet promised by Moses. But he was baptizing people! So the Jews wanted to know where he received his authority to perform baptisms. 

They were also likely wondering why John was baptizing Jews. The Jews practiced baptism but it was for converts to Judaism, not ethnic Jews. People who were born Jewish were already God’s chosen people, so they didn’t view them as needing to be baptized. 

But John did not respond by defending himself. He didn’t point to his authority, worthiness, or “enoughness” to baptize others. Instead, he humbly put himself in his place and directed their attention back to Christ. He said that even though Jesus was born after him and started His ministry after him, John was still not worthy of Him. 

The phrase “the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie” may seem strange to us today. But in their time, only the lowest ranking servant would be asked to do such a menial task. People walked everywhere most of the time in those days and wore sandals. The roads were not paved and animals shared the streets with humans. All of these factors can only lead to one conclusion—feet were frequently filthy! Therefore, John is saying that he isn’t worthy to do even the lowliest act of service for Christ. But he was called by God to serve anyway so that is what he did. 

You see, Christianity isn’t about self-abasement or self-deprecation. We aren’t called to hate ourselves. But we are called to humble ourselves. John had a healthy view of himself in comparison to Christ. Next to the holiness of God, he understood that he was not enough. He wasn’t worthy. It is only because of Christ that any of us are worthy of anything! 

The people who accepted John’s call to repent were baptized because they also understood their own unworthiness. Even though they were born Jewish, they realized that they were not enough. They were just as unclean as everyone else! They were sinners who needed to repent and be baptized in order to prepare their hearts for their Messiah who John said was already among them, even if the Jewish leaders did not recognize him. 

All of us are unworthy of a relationship with a holy God. We are all sinners. We are all unclean. But thankfully, our salvation isn’t based on our worth and it’s not based on our works. It is based on His work on the cross for us. We aren’t enough. We are unworthy. But “worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” (Revelation 5:12). 

Respond 

Lord, I am not worthy of knowing You. I am not worthy of serving You. I am not worthy of salvation. But still You saved me. I thank and praise You because You are worthy. Amen. 

Reveal 

Invite a friend to read John 1:24-28 with you. Share honestly about your own unworthiness and Christ’s worthiness. Then commit to a simple act of service together—a neighbor, a coworker, or a church partner—and ask God to use your example to draw others to Him.