Witness to Christ: John the Baptist John 1:29–34

Grace, mercy and peace to you, from God our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who takes away the sin of the world.

Our midweek Lenten series this year is entitled, Witnesses to Christ. We’ll take a look at some well known and some lesser known people involved in the ministry and passion of Jesus. 

Next Wednesday, we’ll go to the home of Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus, whom Jesus raised; and we’ll see Mary’s witness as she pours perfume  on the feet of Jesus, anointing Him for His burial.

The following Wednesday, we’ll go to Gethsemane, and see Jesus being arrested, and Peter lashing out with a sword, cutting off the ear of Malchus, a servant of Caiaphas, the High Priest.  We’ll see Jesus reach out and touch it, and see it healed.

The next Wednesday, we’ll go to the courtyard of the high priest, where Jesus is being illegally held and assaulted. We’ll see Peter warming himself by the fire. Three times we’ll hear curse and deny Jesus; and then we’ll hear the rooster crow, and we’ll see Peter weeping in shame, and Jesus later restoring him.

The following Wednesday, we’ll go to Pilate’s judgment hall, and see him trying to convince the people to ask for Jesus. But instead, we hear them cry for Barabbas to be released, and for Jesus to be crucified.

And on our last midweek service, we’ll talk about Pilate’s vain attempt to assert his innocence, trying to justify his actions by washing his hand, as Jesus is taken away to die, like a lamb led to slaughter, Scripture says.

Tonight we go to the Jordan River, and we see and hear John the Baptist, bearing witness to the Lamb of God.  

When we think of John the Baptist, it may conjure up images of a wild man, eating locust dipped in honey, wearing clothing made from camel’s hair. But he was far more than that.

The Gospel of John presents him as a man on a mission, a man who knew exactly what God had sent him to do. 

Chapter 1, verses 6 and 7, of the Gospel of John tell us, There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. [In history he came to be known as John, the Baptist.] He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him”. 

Fourteen times in John’s Gospel, the word witness is connected with John the Baptist. That tells us a lot about his ministry.

John the Baptist’s mission was to, “bear witness about the light.” 

John, chapter 1, verses 7 and 8, say, “He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was still coming into the world”. 

John the Baptist wasn’t the message; He was the messenger. Jesus was the message. 

Likewise John was not the light. Jesus was the light. Jesus said in John 8:10, “I am the light of the world.”                                     

In chapter 1, verse 20, John the Baptist plainly said, “I am NOT the Christ”.

In verse 27 he said, “I am not worthy to untie His sandals.”.

And in John 3:30, John the Baptist told his disciples, “He [Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease.” 

John’s job was to get the people’s attention, not for himself, but for the One who would immediately follow him, the Messiah.

To that end, we’re told in John 1:29-34: 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.” To prepare His way.

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 [God} 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.”. Jesus, the Messiah.

John the Baptist’s witness can be summarized in verse 29, Look, [behold], the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 

Tonight, Ash Wednesday, as we repent of our sin, we forget our sin. We hand our sins over to Jesus. He knows exactly what to do with them. He makes them go away, sends them away forever.

Since Jesus suffered and died to make our sin go away, and to no longer condemn us, let us not us not try to bring them back.

If you could take something back, or do it over, what would it be? What would be your list of things that you regret, and wish you could do over in life?

It’s like the milky way commercial, when a guy is getting a tattoo that’s supposed to read, “no regrets”, and when it’s finished, it says, “No regerts.” 

There should probably be a sign in all tattoo parlors that says, “Think before you ink.”.

Not surprisingly, tattoo removal has become big business. More and more people with tattoos are experiencing what’s called “tattoo regret syndrome.                                 

If all our sins and mistakes in life were tattoos, how marked up would we be? How would we ever be able to forget them and move on in life? 

Dig around in the basement of your life, and what do you find? All the woulda, shoulda, couldas of your life? All your regrets, and guilt, and shame?

Whatever you might find, give it all to Jesus. Let Him reduce it all to ashes, and watch it blow away.

Years ago in a confirmation class, I had the students write on a small piece of paper the sins that were bothering them, that they felt so ashamed of. Then we took the pieces of paper outside, lit a match to them, and watched as they burned up and blew away. 

That’s what Jesus does for us. As far as the east is from the west, Psalm 103 says, so far has He removed our sins from us.

Jesus died to make the guilt of our sin go away; to make us “not guilty”, innocent, justified by faith, declared righteous for Christ’s sake. When we trust and repent in Christ, God forgives us of everything, forever.

God sent John the Baptist to point us to the One who would do that for us, the Lamb of God, who takes away our sins by suffering and dying for them all, for the sins of whole world.

We look to the Lamb, and see our guilt and sin and shame disappear. 

Tonight as we receive His body and blood with repentant hearts, Christ takes our sins and forgives them all. And He doesn’t give them back. He buries them in the tomb. 

So let us not try to pick them back up, to remember and regret them. Let us not relive them all over again.  

Let them be, if I may say, in the words of the movie, “gone with the wind!” Because that’s where they should go; that’s where they belong.

In Greek, the word for wind is also the word for breath or breathe, and for spirit. 

Let the Holy Spirit blow away our sin, and breathe God’s holiness in us, that our sins are replaced with godly deeds of holy love.

Thanks be to God for the Lamb, who takes our sins away; and for the Spirit, who replaces them with godly deeds.

As we look to the Lamb, and live in His grace, may the peace that passes understanding, guard our heart and minds, in Christ Jesus, the Lamb of God who has taken our sins far away. Amen.