John 1:6-8; 19-28
"BE A MAN OF GOD"
Heavenly
Father, in whom we live and move and have our being, we humbly pray You so to
guide and govern us by Your Word and Spirit that in all of the cares and
occupations of our life we may not forget You but remember that we are ever
walking in Your sight; through Jesus Christ we pray.
"There was
a man sent from God." The evangelist John reminds us that the LORD God
had a mission and a purpose for John's life. He had a destiny and was sent for
that purpose. A divine purpose. In our time, we need to find our purpose and
meaning for life as well. Our text for this morning should help us find the
purpose and meaning to our life today.
People need a purpose for living. Have you ever
considered the purpose for which you were born? What is your destiny? What is
your purpose and aim in life? Many ask themselves this question. Who is asking
this question? People from every walk of life, all the way from the college
student who is contemplating changing her major to the man in his mid-forties
who is considering a change in his career. It's the retiree who looks back at
40 years of service to a company who has said thanks but now has to wake up
every morning and think to himself "what's next?"
All these and so many more are seeking for meaning and
purpose in their lives! What should be my goal in life? Meaninglessness of life
is based upon seeing no reason or purpose for living, which sometimes can lead
to depression. We might ask, "Is that all there is?" to this life. In
the life of John the Baptist, we can see how his reason for living could also
be our reason for living as well. Let's see how God used John to be His man.
How can you be a man or woman of God? John tells us how.
1 Have a God
- given mission (Have a purpose of
life) "There was a man sent from
God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the
light, that all men through him might believe." – Vv. 6-8
John the Baptist was a man sent from God. He is not
alone in this. Every person has a divine destiny. God has a purpose and plan
for every life, for your life! This gives us a purpose and meaning for living.
What we do is more than mere tasks that someone has to perform. There is a
profound meaning in what we do. We are not here to dream, to drift, and to
play. There is a mission to accomplish. There is an assignment, a charge that
we are given. Some in this world do not know why they were sent to the world or
what God wants them to do with their lives.
John has a keen sense of knowing his mission. Like
John, we are to live for the One who has redeemed us. We are to share Christ
with our families, or neighbors and friends. We are to point to Christ the
Savior of the world, or one and only redeemer. John knew his purpose. What is
your purpose today?
2 To be a
person of God - be God's voice. (This
is our identity) "And this is the
record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask
him, 'Who art thou?' And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not
the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am
not. Are thou that prophet? And he answered No. Then said they unto him. Who
are thou? That we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of
thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness. Make straight
the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias." – Vv. 19023
The delegation sent to interview John asked a direct
question, "Who are you?" Certainly, they knew his first and family
name. They knew his birthplace and parents. They could see that he was a
prophet. But who are you, really? It is a case of self-identity.
Many are in the position of the man who was asked by a
little girl, "Who are you?" He replied, "I wish I knew." To
know who you are you need to know whose you are! John the Baptist knew who he
was because of his call to be the forerunner of Christ. You, like John, are a
child of the king. You are a sheep of His fold, a lamb of His flock, a sinner
of His own redeeming!
John the Baptist identified himself as a voice.
Throughout the passage, there is evidence of a voice. John "gave testimony", "witnessed", "Confessed". The voice proclaims the
truth of Christ.
Out of the heart the mouth speaks, the Bible tells us.
What we believe in our hearts we are to confess with our lips. Witnessing is a
natural, spontaneous expression of faith in Christ. A true Christian needs not
to be commanded, exhorted, or trained to witness. The Christian cannot help but
tell of Christ at all times. We share and live Christ on a daily basis. That is
our identity.
3 Be God's
witness (work!) And they, which were sent, were of the Pharisees. And they asked him,
and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then if thou be not that Christ, nor
Elias, neither that prophet? John answered them, saying, I baptize with water:
but there standeth one among you whom yet know not; He it is, who coming after
me is preferred before me, whose shoes latchet I am not worthy to unloose.
These things were done in Bethpage beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
– Vv.24-28
It is assumed that Jesus was in the crowd John the
Baptist was addressing. Yet, John the Baptist told them that one about whom he
was witnessing as greater than he was there and they did not know him. Perhaps
many in the crowd knew about Jesus of Nazareth, but they did not know Him. We
are called to have a connection with Christ on a personal, interment level.
Illustration:
The Germans have two words for knowing.
These two words are "wissen " and "kennen". The
former “wissen” is knowing certain facts; the latter “kennen” is knowing a
person with whom you have a connection. It’s the difference between a faith of
the head and a faith of the heart.
In this latter
sense, the people did not know Jesus. But John did; he pointed to Jesus saying,
"Behold the Lamb of God who takes
away the sin of the world!"
The Advent wreath has the pink candle burning this
morning. It is the candle that calls us to rejoice in this season. We are to
rejoice at the coming of Christ. For us as Christians happiness does not depend
on possessions or good fortune.
A Christian is the happiest person in the world because he has been freed from sin and now experiences the fullness of life. He knows who is coming at the end of time. This is our reason for our rejoicing - the coming One brings us victory, peace and love. Jesus Christ, He is our purpose in living.
Passive Sentences –9%
Readability – 86.6%
Reading Level – 4.0
Advent image copyright © Ed Riojas, Higher Things
Collect for Guidance, Lutheran Service Book © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis
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