Isaiah 40:1-3 (KJV)
All Flesh Shall See the LORD
1 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
2 Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins.
3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
John 1:19-42
19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”
21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”
He said, “I am not.”
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.”
22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”
23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”
24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
26 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
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 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”
32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”
So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.
40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).
John 3:22-36
22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized. 23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were coming and being baptized. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.) 25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26 They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”
27 To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ 29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30 He must become greater; I must become less.”
31 The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33 Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.
Matthew 11:2-19
Jesus and John the Baptist
2 When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”
4 Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.6 Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”
7 As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8 If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written:
“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’
11 Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. 15 Whoever has ears, let them hear.
16 “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:
17 “‘We played the pipe for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”
In all four gospels the authors write of John the Baptist...He was a teacher, and had his own disciples...Being a Rabbi, he would teach in a broad way, sometimes vague, but most of the time John was to the point...
John knew Jesus was the Messiah and he was the Messenger for the Messiah...John the Baptist was also baptizer...He baptized many in the Jordan River...He was an odd sort, wearing odd clothes and lived in the wilderness...Isaiah prophesied about a Messenger for God...John the Baptist was that voice in the wilderness that the Prophet Isaiah wrote about hundreds of years before Jesus' arrival...The Messenger John who would prepare the way for the Lord and the Messiah, who was coming...And the Messiah would make a straight path in the desert for a highway to our God....John denied to others that he was the Messiah, but he reminded and testified to others the Messiah was coming...And He spoke out about Jesus and Him leading the way...
One day when John saw Jesus and called Jesus the Lamb of God...John said the Lamb would take away the sin of the world!...The Lamb would be this highway, the road, and the Way to God...And John was clear to us about Jesus...
And when I think of people with faith, and those who were around Jesus...I think of His Disciples, and I also think of John the Baptist...And John the Baptist would speak a lot who Jesus was...And Rabbis often answered questions with questions and John sometimes would speak in story form and make us think...John says he is not the Messiah, but was sent ahead of Him...John added that, "The bride belongs to the bridegroom...The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice...That joy is mine, and it is now complete...He must become greater; I must become less."...The Lamb would become greater than he...
John spoke many things about Jesus and it is clear and distinct in his mind that Jesus is the Messiah...Jesus is the Lamb of God...Yet, Jesus, who also was a Teacher and Rabbi hardly ever spoke clear and frank...Jesus spoke often in parables...He answered many questions with a question...And His parables were often not simple parables, these were probing parables...And His questions were deep questions that made and make us think...And they made those think a lot about who He actually was...And because He spoke in this humble, yet probing way one would have to be a great listener to follow everything Jesus would say and teach and ask...
Even John the Baptist who introduced the Messiah to the world, ask Him if He was the One to come -should we expect someone else...John was asking Jesus, if He was the Messiah...This is interesting because John has been going out for quite some time and introducing Jesus as the Messiah, and the Lamb of God...And this may have been because Jesus never used straight, cut through the chase speaking and teaching...Jesus always left this mystique around Himself, in much of His dialogue...And Jesus does not answer John's question clearly and frankly...Instead Jesus answers vaguely and not to the point and wants John, to reflect on it and think about it...And this is in spite of John being in prison...
So when I think of John the Baptist and how he felt about Jesus from a feelings standpoint, I think John would struggle with His feelings about Jesus...I think John did struggle with how he felt about Jesus...But John who would not be around and see the resurrection must use his mind to reflect and think the resurrection...John's faith, I think, was not with how he felt emotionally about Jesus, but what he rationally thought who Jesus was...And Jesus knew this, of course...Was He the Messiah?...John the Baptist's faith had to be a thinking faith and not an emotional faith...That was what Jesus wanted John to do...He wanted John to think about the question he original had sent his disciples to ask Him...Reason and faith and faith and reason may go hand in hand...When we think about Jesus, it makes for good reason that it is truth, and He is Truth...
We are to learn from this and Jesus' response back to John the Baptist, in His long dialogue...I have learned there is still this great mystique about Jesus...As we read we feel His mystery...We have seven questions in His response...Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor...Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”...As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see?...A reed swayed by the wind?...If not, what did you go out to see?...A man dressed in fine clothes?...No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces...Then what did you go out to see?...A prophet?...Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet...This is the one about whom it is written: “‘I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’...Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he...From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it...For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John...And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come...Whoever has ears, let them hear...“To what can I compare this generation?...They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: “‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’...For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’...The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’...But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”...
I learn the over time wisdom and Truth are proved right by their deeds...