Meditations On the Gospel of John 1:35-42

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John 1:35–37

35Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples, 36and he looked at Jesus as He walked, and said*, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 37The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

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Two of John’s disciples saw and heard Jesus; they left John (they were his disciples) and followed Jesus. They must have recognized what John had been preaching: Jesus was the greater and John was the lesser. The disciples leaving John to follow Jesus was not an act of unfaithfulness to John, but truly an act of faithfulness to both John and Jesus. The very nature of John’s ministry and his hearts desire for all of his disciples was for them to recognize Jesus as the Messiah and to become His disciples. John knew that once Jesus came onto the scene, Jesus would become the greater and he would become the lesser. This was the goal for which John strove. John never tried to hang onto his disciples or his ministry for his own glory. The very nature of John’s ministry involved a handoff to the Savior of all who followed him.

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John 1:38–49

38And Jesus turned and saw them following, and said* to them, “What do you seek?” They said to Him, “Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are You staying?” 39He said* to them, “Come, and you will see.” So they came and saw where He was staying; and they stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.

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Without identifying Himself to them, the two disciples (just by hearing Him speak) recognized Jesus as a teacher. There is a two-fold statement being made in these verses. First, Jesus taught by the power and inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Second, when the spirit speaks, all recognize His authority, even those who do not follow Him. The wicked try to hide from Him and even try to convince themselves that they don’t believe in him, but all recognize Him. We see this when Jesus sailed with His disciples to Gerasenes (near Galilee) and was approached by the man possessed by a legion of demons; the demons recognized Jesus and called Him the Son of the most high God (Luke 8:27-28). We also see this when we are told that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow in heaven, on earth, and under the earth (Philippians 2:9-10).

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John 1:40–42

40One of the two who heard John speak and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41He found* first his own brother Simon and said* to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which translated means Christ). 42He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John; you shall be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).

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After being with Jesus for just one day, Andrew recognized Him as the Messiah.

Jesus once again demonstrates His deity in knowing Simon without being introduced. Jesus did not merely know who he was but He knew him; this is indicated by the way Jesus renamed Simon, Cephas (Peter). Before even speaking to him, Jesus knew that it was upon this man Cephas (Peter, which means rock) that He would build His church.

Matthew 16:18 (18) And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

This was not a lucky guess on Jesus’ part; this was not a hunch based upon Simon’s physical appearance; this was foreknowledge that only God Himself possesses. It is this same foreknowledge that God has regarding each one of His elect.

Ephesians 2:10 (10) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Meditations On the Gospel of John 1:29-34

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John 1:29

29The next day he saw* Jesus coming to him and said*, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

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Jesus came to us when He was born a human and accomplished our salvation on the cross. He comes to us at the moment of our salvation for it is He who seeks us not us who seek Him. Jesus also comes to us and is truly with us every second of every day in His Holy Spirit. Do we constantly “see” Him in our lives and acknowledge Him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world?

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John 1:30

30“This is He on behalf of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’

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John continues to speak of Jesus’ deity in saying that “He existed before me.” John reiterates confirmation that Jesus is God at many times and in many ways throughout this book. Anyone who refutes the deity of Jesus Christ will have a very difficult time explaining the many passages John has given us through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

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John 1:31-34

31“I did not recognize Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water.” 32John testified saying, “I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. 33“I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’ 34“I myself have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

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John states here that he did not recognize the Lord prior to His baptism and the Holy Spirit descending upon Him as a dove. In Matthew 3:13-17, John is clear that he did recognize Jesus as the Lord before His baptism.

Matthew 3:13-17 (13) Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. (14) John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" (15) But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he consented. (16) And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; (17) and behold, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."

This is not a contradiction. John received his assignment from God, as we all do. He did not arbitrarily decide on an assignment himself. He was given the grace (spiritual gift) by God to recognize the messiah before he was even born. When Mary (pregnant with Jesus) came to visit her cousin Elizabeth (pregnant with John), John leapt within Elizabeth’s womb when he was in the presence of the unborn messiah. God gives confirmation of the authenticity of Jesus as messiah through John’s declaration. John declares to his disciples, that it is not by his own testimony that they should believe Jesus is the Christ, but by the declaration of God Himself. God declared that Jesus is His son by having a dove descend upon Him at His baptism and by speaking the words “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” In the same way God gave John his assignment and the grace to perform it, He gives us all the ability, through our spiritual gifts, to perform the assignments He gives us.

Meditations On the Gospel of John 1:24-28

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John 1:24–25

24Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. 25They asked him, and said to him, “Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

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The priests and Levites recognized baptism as identification with their faith in, and covenant with, God. They were questioning John’s authority to baptize, and into what he was baptizing people. The Pharisees, Priests, and Levites were knowledgeable in the scriptures, and knew and understood the prophecy that Isaiah had made regarding one preceding the Messiah.

Isaiah 40:3 A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”

The question was most likely a result of the Pharisees lack of knowledge regarding John’s ministry, not a lack of knowledge of the scriptures.

The Pharisees had sent priests and Levites to John to question Him. In those days there were many self-proclaimed religious cult leaders who would rise up and call themselves sacred. The Pharisees could not personally investigate every one. Most were short lived and never received the attention of the Pharisees. When one would last longer than usual or gain more attention than usual, the Pharisees would begin by sending delegates with certain questions that would help the Pharisees gauge whether or not there was any real threat. The majority of the Pharisees were so self-absorbed that they probably did not seriously consider that any of these cult leaders were Biblically legitimate. The appropriate response from educated religious leaders would have been to go to the scriptures first to see if any particular cult leader bore any Biblical relevancy. The questions sent to John the Baptist were probably pretty routine questions. The answers the Pharisees received were most likely less common and certainly not anticipated. We see in later accounts that the Pharisees themselves visited John and asked Him questions personally. What we can learn from this is that even though we are no longer looking for or anticipating the coming of the Messiah, we should view all of our life circumstances from a Biblical perspective first. We must realize that all of life’s circumstances are ordained by God for our growth and sanctification. We would probably avoid most of our difficulties and problems if we maintained this perspective.

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John 1:26

26John answered them saying, “I baptize in water, but among you stands One whom you do not know.

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John states that he baptizes in water. In verse 33 he speaks of the Lord who will baptize in the Holy Spirit, emphasizing that this is a greater baptism. Baptism in water is the sign and symbol that identifies us as belonging to Jesus. It is important, even critical, but it does not change us. Baptism in the Holy Spirit changes us; it draws us into true communion with God. Baptism in the Holy Spirit is God dwelling within us; it has been God’s goal and purpose from the beginning to dwell with His people. Christ’s accomplishment of redemption on the Cross has made it possible for God to dwell in us as Holy Temples.

John boldly proclaims what he was sent to proclaim. He does not consider or worry about the social or political impact it might have on him. He also, as in so many other accounts, gives all the glory to God alone. Throughout John’s life and ministry, he had many opportunities to build his own little “kingdom”, but he never wavers from his assignment or his role. This must have had a lot to do with the Lord himself exalting John to the position of being the greatest man alive.

Matthew 11:11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

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John 1:27–28

27“It is He who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” 28These things took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

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The same as in the preceding verses, John acknowledges his assignment and position. He does not take advantage of an opportunity to exalt himself above the position in which the Lord has placed him. What a great lesson for so many of today’s shepherds. So many of today’s Pastors and Church leaders lose sight of this principal and fail in this respect. I know of local churches that do many good and wholesome things, but put little (or no) emphasis on discerning the Lord’s specific assignment for their lampstand and focusing on that. Unfortunately there are many churches today that put very little focus on the basic principals of the purpose for the Church God has laid out in His Word. One area in which this becomes painfully obvious is in the structure of church government most churches today have adopted.

Meditation On the Gospel of John 1:19-23

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John 1:19–23

John 1:19-23 (19) And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?" (20) He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ." (21) And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No." (22) So they said to him, "Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?" (23) He said, "I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said."

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This is a very interesting and meaningful portion of scripture than can easily be dismissed as insignificant and irrelative to our lives today. During his ministry, John had many disciples and he had multitudes coming to him confessing their sins and seeking to be baptized. When an individual has this type of popularity and what we would refer to today as fame, the temptation to give into pride is great. John must have felt the tug of pride tempting him to take at least some of the glory that he was proclaiming as his own. We have a record of Satan tempting Jesus in this area, I know that I have been tempted in this area many times; I’m sure John was not impervious to it. He may have been tempted but he did not fall. Mark the first chapter, verses 4–8 record John’s view of his own assignment.

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Mark 1:4-8

(4) John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. (5) And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. (6) Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. (7) And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. (8) I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

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John viewed his assignment from the Lord’s perspective; not from his own, and not from the worlds, but from the Lord’s.

How often do we see today in the wider Body of Christ that men, whom God has called to serve Him, end up serving themselves? Pastors push the Lord aside to build great buildings that by design don’t look like churches, they structure services to attract the masses and not offend anyone by teaching too long, teaching about the sinfulness of man, or the need for the blood of Jesus. Worship songs are constructed without the use of minor keys because they don’t make people “feel” good, and the words are watered down to eliminate anything about God that the masses might not find palatable. All of these things draw people closer to whom, God? No, these are specifically designed to draw the masses to the people who are leading them.

There is a flip side to this temptation also; just as we can over-inflate our calling, we can under-inflate it also. One example in our society today that comes to mind is women who choose to spend all or the majority of their time making a home, caring for their husbands, and teaching and training their children—homemakers. It is a sad but true commentary that these women are not honored, revered, and justly rewarded by our society; they are mocked, ridiculed, and treated as lower-class citizens. An even sadder testimony is that the Church generally treats them the same as society does. What an overwhelming temptation it must be for these courageous women to buy into the lie and feel lowly about themselves; to be embarrassed to say what they do out loud, or to make excuses.

John the Baptist gave us a model of the perfect balance between not thinking too highly or too lowly of our calling. He modeled for us viewing our assignments from the Lord’s perspective.

Another very interesting element of this portion of scripture is that the priests and Levites were not able to determine who John was by the scriptures; or at least they did not suggest that to him if they had thought of it. They were in the unique position as men educated in the scriptures to not only discern who he was but to testify from the scriptures of his legitimacy. Again, how often do we see this same scenario being played out in today’s church environments. God’s Word is watered-down, manipulated, or out-right ignored, because it does not line-up with the objectives of those in leadership.

Meditations On the Gospel of John 1:15-18

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John 1:15

(15) (John bore witness about him, and cried out, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.'")

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John acknowledges that Jesus is greater than Himself and that Jesus’ ministry is greater than his own ministry. That which comes first is greater than that which follows. The teacher is greater than the student; the master is greater than the apprentice. John also testifies of the eternalness and deity of Jesus. Each human being begins his existence at the moment of his conception. Prior to conception, a person just simply does not exist. John is older than Jesus yet he testifies that Jesus “was” before he (John) was, even though John was born (and conceived) first. Jesus clearly existed prior to John, which means Jesus existed prior to His own conception.

God becoming man was a unique event in history. Even in God’s created order, He has never had one type of created being become another type of created being (e. g., an angel has never become a human being). He has had angels appear or manifest themselves as men, but their essence remained that of an angel. This unique event of God becoming man was necessary in order to procure atonement for mankind because only a man could pay the price of sin for mankind; only a man free of any and all sin; a truly spotless man. This perfect man would also need to be eternal in nature since the offense committed against God (sin) is an eternal offense. Mankind was completely unable to procreate a man free from sin and eternal. An angel, or any other created being, could not simply manifest himself as a man and then offer himself as atonement because he would not be a man in nature but just a manifestation of a man. Any create being is also not eternal in nature. This seemingly circular equation could only find its answer in the one truly perfect, spotless, and eternal being in existence: God Himself.

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John 1:16–17

(16) And from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. (17) For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

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Fullness is translated from the Greek word pleroo, which means to make full or to complete. Jesus came to complete or fulfill the law, not to replace or abolish it. The Law and Jesus are not juxtaposed but are truly complimentary. The Law, by its very nature and design, was incomplete. From the very beginning, it needed to be completed or fulfilled; Jesus, from the beginning was that fulfillment. Likewise He came to complete us in a way that only He could. We could never complete ourselves or restore ourselves to the glory in which we were originally created. We (i.e., believers) were created and predestined to salvation for a specific purpose. From the moment of our conception until the moment of our salvation, we existed but not in the fullness of God. When the Father drew us to Christ and replaced our heart of stone with a heart of flesh, we were made full—in Christ! God’s sovereign grace is unending. We are given His grace in order to believe in Jesus and be saved. He continues to extend His grace throughout our walk; He extends grace, we fail, He extends grace, we fail, He extends grace, etc., etc. His grace is truly never-ending. His never-ending grace was (and is) given for His purpose, not for our purposes, enjoyment, or entertainment. We derive a tremendous amount of pleasure and enjoyment as a result of His grace, but that is not His purpose. He has had a purpose for each one of our lives from before creation; His grace empowers us to accomplish all of which He has assigned to us throughout our lives.

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John 1:18

(18) No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.

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God is invisible and remains invisible. God is glorious in His nature beyond the point of where we are able to look upon Him. Since God never changes, it is us who must change in order to see God face-to-face. This change in us will take place through the grace of God at the end of history. Any attempt at placing a visible image onto God or assigning any type of visible image to represent God is offensive to His very nature. This is the essence of the second commandment.

Exodus 20:4-6 (4) "You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. (5) You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, (6) but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Jesus reveals, to those who know Him and listen to His voice, all that we in our current state are able to know and understand.

Meditations on the Gospel of John 1:14

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John 1:14

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

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John has been describing, supporting, and demonstrating what he summarizes and crystallizes in this verse—God became a human being. The creator entered into and willfully became part of His own creation. From the very beginning, God desired to dwell among His people. Under the Old Covenant and through the rituals of the Old Testament sacrificial system, God dwelt among His people but He had to veil Himself because of their unrighteousness. In this action of becoming part of His own creation, He will forever remove the veil between Him and His people by imputing His own righteousness onto His people through the sacrificial death and resurrection of His son Jesus Christ.

The Greek word (doxa) translated to glory, literally means opinion. The glory that Jesus shone—that John describes here—is literally the Father’s opinion of Jesus (Matthew 3:17 “…and behold, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.") Jesus was absolutely perfect in every respect; in a way no other human being could ever be.

His grace and His truth is what we were able to see in the person of Jesus Christ. In Genesis when the Lord gave Moses and (by extension) Israel the second set of tablets containing the Ten Commandments, He did so out of covenant-keeping gracious love. It is this abundant love and grace that is now revealed in Jesus. Jesus goes on to do what the Law, and the Old Covenant sacrificial system, could never do; provide for His people a way of salvation from their own sin.

John links grace and glory; emphasizing Jesus’ deity (ultimate and sovereign power and authority) and His grace upon His creation. God Himself was the only being qualified to atone for the sin of mankind (i.e., glory), and He chose to do it because of His great love for us (i.e., grace).

Meditations on the Gospel of John 1:11-13

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John 1:11-13

(11) He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
(12) But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
(13) who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

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John is referring to all of the world and to all of Israel when he says “his own”. He is speaking from a particular perspective when he says this. Jesus came to live and die for the sins of those specific people the Father draws to Jesus; those whose hearts of stone are removed and replaced with a heart of flesh; those whose names were written in the Book of Life from before creation; the elect. Jesus also came to be a light to the entire world and to all of Israel; this is the perspective from which John speaks. Jesus came first to Israel, but all of Israel did not accept Him; the leaders especially. They were expecting and anticipating and wanting a different type of Messiah. They wanted a Messiah bigger than life. A king clothed in battle clothes ready to fight, conquer, and destroy. One who would come with force and deliver them from the oppression of Rome. Instead, Jesus came as a humble man by humble means; the son of a carpenter; a nobody. He was not received by most. But to those who did recognize Him; those who did receive Him; those whom the Father drew to Him; those are the ones for whom Jesus came and lived and died and rose again.

The entire world belongs to Jesus’ just as all that a man possesses belongs to him to use and posses; his car, his house, his money, etc. Believers belong to Jesus in the same way a man’s wife and children belong to him; to love, care for, and enjoy.

The reference to Jesus “coming” to Israel as “His own” and Israel not receiving Him implies that there was an expectation for Israel to receive Him. Israel had the oracles of God, His written Word. They were told beforehand when to expect Him, where to expect Him, through what tribe and family to expect Him, and even through what circumstances to expect Him. Israel should have recognized and received Him before He ever spoke a word, but they did not. Even after His teaching, clear explanation, and even signs and wonders, they did not receive Him. Only those whom the Father specifically called and drew to the Lord; those born not of man’s will but those (born again) of God’s will received Him. It is those to whom He granted the gift of becoming children of God.