A Man Sent From God, Before Jesus Was Sent From God

John 1: 6-14                                                  January 20, 2021

⁶There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. ⁸He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. ⁹The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. ¹⁰He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. ¹¹He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. ¹²But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, ¹³who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God. ¹⁴And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.

            A man sent from God…in the Old Testament, we call this a prophet.  His name was John.  John the Baptist.  In current translations, his name and title are translated as “John the baptizer”.   This is to move John away from a denominational identity.  (John is not a Baptist).  This is John, the Cousin of Jesus (probably not a first cousin), and not John who wrote the Gospel.  The John referred to as the author of this Gospel is Jesus’ disciple, the one who wrote Revelations as well as 1 John, 2 John, and…surprise, surprise…3 John. 

            This verse cuts away from the first five verses of John.  That first paragraph is a contextual preface of God’s power into which John’s ministry is introduced.  The message that John is about to share is to be read in the context of the ‘preface’. 

            A man sent from God is going to introduce Jesus, the Word who was God.  For the gospel background of John, read Chapter 1 of the Gospel of Luke.  After a dedication of the Gospel in the first few verses, Luke 1 gives us John’s birth narrative.  But it is not a “Christmas” story.  It is the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth, John’s parents, that provides the story of God’s presence and miraculous intervention around the call of Mary to become the mother of Jesus.

            In his birth and in his ministry, John prepares the way for Jesus. 

Follow Through:

            The ministry of John will continue after Jesus’ ministry is up and running.  There is some communication between them, between their disciples.  It seems that John’s ministry turns to one of social commentary, as he calls into question the moral choices of the King.  And the King, always frustrated and angry at his critique is also, as the Bible implies, fascinated by him.  Whether he feels he cannot remove John because of public opinion or because of a personal interest in John, or from a combination of both, John goes on. (Bible Nerd Alert: This reminds me of the relationship between King Ahab and the prophet Elijah-see 1 Kings 17 for more details).

            It is not until Herod is tricked into making a public promise of a gift that he is called upon to provide John’s head on a platter.  Publicly backed into a corner, John will die, beheaded in prison.  That story will be shared as the Gospel unfolds.