John the
Baptist: A Character Sketch
There
are few characters in the Bible as intriguing as John the Baptist. He was the only cousin of Jesus that we know
of. His life and work were predicted by
the prophet Isaiah 700 years before he was ever born and then again by the
prophet Malachi over 400 years before his birth. An angel of God named Gabriel physically
appeared to John’s father, Zechariah, and told him that his wife was about to
have a son. When he a baby in the womb
of his mother, Elizabeth, she described him as “jumping” with joy when the
voice of Mary the mother of Jesus reached her ears. When he was a young man he lived in the
desert, eating honey and locusts, dressed in camel skin. He was the first one we know of who baptized
people for the forgiveness of their sins.
Jesus calls him the second Elijah; he describes John as a prophet who
was “more” than just a regular prophet; Jesus even said, “Among those born of women there is no one greater than John” (Luke
7:28). John had crowds and crowds of
people flock to him every day; he had his own group of loyal followers; we even
read in the book of Acts that over 25 years after John’s death people still
were referring to themselves as his “disciples.” John was the official preparer of the Messiah
coming into this world - appointed by God himself. And after all of these things had been
accomplished, when John was finally beheaded by King Herod, he was only about
31 years old. John is one of the most
intriguing people in the pages of Scripture.
We might even say that he was one of the greatest by God’s own
standards.
Willing to Step
Back
And so
here we have this great New Testament prophet, a man who had specific passages
of Old Testament prophecies referring to him, a man who had built up a large
and passionate following through his preaching and teaching and baptizing, a modern-day
celebrity of sorts that says something like this: “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am
not the Christ but am sent ahead of him.’
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.”
“He must
become greater; I must become less.”
There was no evidence of an ego in this famous prophet. There was no noticeable selfish ambition for
praise and glory and fame in his words or actions. Instead, the great John the Baptist was
willing to give it all up. He was
willing to give up the throngs of passionate disciples that claimed him as
their leader. He was willing to give up
the crowds of people that lined the banks of his outdoor congregation every
day. He was willing to give up
everything he had become rightfully known for in an instant. Because it wasn’t about him. It was about Christ.
Notice how
John compared himself with his Lord: “I am not the groom; Jesus is. I am simply his friend and I rejoice that he
has come. My joy is completed. And I am more than willing to fade into the
background as Jesus takes center stage.”
John said similar things to the crowds earlier in our gospel reading: “Among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the straps
of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie” (John 1:26-27). John, no matter how great he may have been in
the eyes of the people that surrounded him and no matter how important his work
truly was for the kingdom of God, did not even consider himself worthy enough
to untie the sandal of his Savior. John
knew that what he had done didn’t really matter all that much; what mattered is
what Christ would do.
Egocentric
A couple
weeks ago was “Black Friday” - the day after Thanksgiving that has taken on the
infamous reputation of being the most frenzied shopping event of the entire
year. This year on Black Friday a man
was shot in a parking lot in an attempted robbery. A woman used pepper spray on her fellow
shoppers to prevent them from getting to the item that she wanted. Multiple fist fights broke out between both
men and women in electronic departments and at jewelry counters. A teenage girl was knocked down and stepped
on multiple times resulting in minor injuries.
And all of these incidents happened only at Wal-Marts across the nation
- not to mention anything about what happened at other stores in other
places.
These
examples, although extreme and a little out of the ordinary, are vivid
indications of how egocentric people
can be. “Egocentric” means that people
are centered on themselves. What they
want, what they like, and what they think they need takes precedence over
almost anyone and anything else. And
although you and I don’t usually take it as far as some of those shoppers did
on Black Friday, we are still very egocentric in our own right, aren’t we?
“This is
something I want and so I’m going to figure out a way to get it. This is something I like and so I’m going to
do whatever I can to enjoy it. This is
something I think I need and so I’m going to see to it that it works out my way.” A large portion of our lives are used to make
ourselves happy and to make ourselves comfortable, to make ourselves satisfied
and to make ourselves feel fulfilled. And
sometimes we are so focused on our own wants and likes and needs that we don’t
see or care about anyone or anything else.
But this
life isn’t about us. It’s not about you. It’s not about what you want. It’s not about what you like. It’s not about what you need or what you can
get or what will make you happy or comfortable or satisfied or fulfilled. Your goal in life shouldn’t be to have a good
life because this life isn’t about you.
It’s about Christ. But our
egocentric nature asserts itself strongly, doesn’t it! “I want what I want and I like what I like
and I really need what I think I really need.
What about me? Don’t I deserve
nice things? Don’t I get a few of the
things that will make me happy? Other
people are doing it, why can’t I? It’s
the American way, after all. If you want
it; go get it. You can do anything if
you put your mind to it. You can have anything
if you want it badly enough. I have to
make myself happy before I can make others happy!”
But that
wasn’t the attitude of John the Baptist, was it? He wasn’t interested in what he could gain or
achieve or keep. He was only interested
in one thing: Christ. And that’s the
difference between egocentric and Christocentric.
Christocentric
If
“egocentric” means that people focus on themselves, what do you think “Christocentric” means? It means, of course, that the focus is on Christ, on what he wants, on what he
likes, on what he says. A person who is
Christocentric no longer concerns himself with himself, but with his
Savior. And so when the Christocentric John
the Baptist was told that people were following this man named Jesus on the
other side of the Jordan River, John said, “That’s OK. He must become greater; I must become
less.” And when John’s disciples saw
Jesus walking by, John cried out: “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin
of the world!” And when the priests and
Levites were trying to credit John himself as a prophet or Elijah or some other
great man, John patiently explained, “No, I am nothing compared to Christ. In fact, I’m not even important enough to
touch his feet.” John was not concerned
about what he wanted or liked or needed.
Because it wasn’t about him. The only
thing he was concerned about was Christ and what his Savior was about to do.
It’s not
about you either. If Jesus had not
decided to come to this earth as a human being, anything that you wanted in
this life wouldn’t matter. It’s not
about you. If Jesus had not undergone
every temptation known to man and every suffering brought on him by sin, whatever
you like in this world would mean nothing.
If Jesus had not bled to death on that cross, remained in a grave for
three days, and rose from the dead as he promised, whatever you needed here
wouldn’t make a difference because the only thing you truly would need would be
out of reach. Who Jesus is and what
Jesus has done defines you as a Christian.
He is the very reason you exist and the only reason why you have a sure
hope for an existence that will last forever.
Jesus is your everything in this life.
It’s not about you. It’s about
him.
It’s All about Christ
And that’s
a good thing! It’s a good thing that
it’s not about you because if it were, this life would be hopeless! If all there was to this world was getting
what you want and enjoying what you like and somehow surviving on what you
need, what a miserable life that would be!
What a horrible way to live and what a depressing way to die! If it’s all about you and what you can do,
then good luck. If it’s all about me and
what I can do, then I’m out of luck. Because
I can’t ever seem to be satisfied with what I have. I can’t ever seem to remain happy all the
time. I can’t ever seem to comfort
myself and be at peace with myself at every moment. It’s a good thing it’s not about me! I want it to be all about Christ! I need
it to be all about Christ or I’m lost!
And it’s
something I need to work on too. Being
egocentric is so natural, so instinctual.
Being Christocentric on the other hand is so abnormal, so difficult to
do. To always focus on Christ and what
he wants and likes and says, while ignoring what I want and like and need isn’t
easy! But the more I read about his
cross and the more I am reminded about his empty tomb and the more I study his
Word and the more I am filled with his love, the more the Holy Spirit through
that powerful Word reminds me that it’s not about me; it’s about Christ. It’s not all about me. It’s all about my Savior. It’s not all about me. It’s all about the One who did it all for me.
Concentrate
on that this week. Better yet:
concentrate on that this entire Advent season.
Better yet: concentrate on this the rest of your life. Make that your motto. Keep telling yourself over and over again,
“It’s not about me; it’s about Christ.”
When you are upset at something a person does or says to you, tell
yourself, “It’s not about me; it’s about Christ.” When you are feeling a little down in the
dumps for one reason or another, remind yourself, “It’s not about me; it’s
about Christ.” When life gets hard and
stressful and overbearing, remember, “Life is not about me; it’s about Christ. He has saved my life, renewed my life,
strengthened my life, and guaranteed my life in heaven. He has done it all. There is nothing left that I could ever want;
there is nothing left I could ever like; there is nothing left I could ever
need that he hasn’t already given me.
And I don’t know what else to do but give back to him.” It’s not about you. And it’s not about me. It’s about Christ. And what a great life that is! What a great life that will be!
Amen.
“Worthy is the
Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and
honor and glory and praise!” - Rev. 5:12
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