Josh Benner

Category: Bible

  • Who is John the Baptist? Studying John 1:19-22

    Who is John the Baptist? Studying John 1:19-22

    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?”
    -John 1:19-22

    Early in the Gospel of John, a group of religious leaders comes to visit an eccentric religious figure who is most often referred to as John the Baptist. They’ll ask John if he’s come to fulfill various Old Testament prophecies associated with the coming Messiah.

    Who are you?

    John 1:19: And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”

    It’s reasonable that they would want to find out who he is. I think it’s important to understand the time in which they lived. For centuries, the Old Testament had pointed forward to one sent from the Lord. People had all sorts of expectations for the type of ministry that this sent one would have. 

    This was fulfilled in Jesus but people didn’t yet know Jesus. So all they had were their expectations and assumptions. What Jesus actually did was not quite what anyone expected. 

    A lot of people expected a great religious teacher. Jesus certainly was that but he was ore than that. But his purpose was to bring freedom not law. A lot of people expected a great king. Jesus is that too, he’s the king of kings. But he did not have the mighty earthly kingdom that people expected. Others expected a great general who would lead Israel to victory and back to a restoration of their land in the face of Roman oppression. Jesus is the one who leads his people to battle evil and leads us to Spiritual victory. 

    And people believed various ideas from those categories. 

    So you suddenly have this man who’s calling people to repent, who’s baptizing. In the other gospels, we see John calling out religious authorities.

    And so people are curious. 

    Maybe he’s connected to the promised savior. Maybe he IS the promised savior. Others might have been skeptical and thought it would lead nowhere. 

    Before Jesus, there had been people who claimed to be the promised savior of the world. 

    “Who are you?”

    They ask. 

    Are you the Christ?

    John’s first response to the Jewish leaders is given in verse 20: He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”

    First thing John confirms. He is not the savior. One thing that’s important to understand. The word “Christ” is not Jesus’ last name. It’s his title. 

    Jesus’ parents were not Joseph and Mary Christ. 

    Jesus is The Christ. 

    Christ comes from the Greek word “Christus” which means “anointed.” It’s the Greek word for the Hebrew word “Messiah.” They both mean the same thing: anointed. 

    The significance of that is that in the Old Testament, various divinely assigned offices such as the king and the high priest would be anointed with oil at the beginning of their term. Some of the Old Testament prophets were also anointed. 

    There are also passages in the Old Testament which were understood as pointing forward to a future deliverer who was anointed. John the Baptist had an important ministry. 

    But he was not the Lord’s anointed, he was not the Lord’s Christ, and so he’s quick to point that out. He’s not the anointed savior. 

    Verse 21:And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.”

    Are you Elijah?

    Elijah was a prophet in the Old Testament. 

    Much of his ministry revolved around calling people to faith and proper worship of the Lord. 

    He was obedient to the Lord in his life and ministry. 

    There are several miracles that God does during the time of Elijah’s ministry. 

    Two more things that are noteworthy about Elijah. 

    The Old Testament tells us that God brought Elijah directly to heaven without dying. 

    2 Kings 2:11: And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven

    Secondly, the book of Malachi, which is the last book found in our Old Testament concludes with these verses from Malachi 4:5: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”

    So God says that he will send Elijah before the great and awesome day of the Lord. 

    So some expected a literal second coming of Elijah. For those reasons, it’s a pretty reasonable question for the leaders to have asked this of John. 

    He tells them no. 

    John is not Elijah however it should be noted that John’s ministry is really fulfilling this prophecy about Elijah. John is not a reincarnated version of Elijah or a second coming of Elijah, but he is the one who is sent from the Lord with a divinely given ministry to call people to repentance. 

    But John confirms that he is not Elijah. 

    So they try again: 

    Are you the prophet?

    Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”

    When they ask John if he’s THE prophet, they’re actually referring to a specific passage. Deuteronomy 18:15 tells Israel about a successor to Moses. This passage also came to be understood as pointing to a grater prophet. 

    Verse 15: “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen—

    They wonder if John is this person. In reality, that passage is ultimately pointing forward to Jesus. But once again, John answers the question in the negative. He is not the prophet. 

     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?”

    John isn’t the Christ, he’s not Elijah, he’s not the prophet. 

    So then who is he? Continue reading.

    Thanks for reading! If you liked, please share and subscribe.

  • Background on John the Baptist for the Gospel of John

    Background on John the Baptist for the Gospel of John

    I’m in a series of articles studying the Gospel of John. Several times in the first chapter, the author makes reference to a man named John. The Apostle John (the author of the gospel) is referring to a man named John the Baptist. 

    But as we study the Gospel of John, who is John the Baptist, and why does he matter? 

    He’s often called “John the Baptist.” That title is referring to what John did rather than a denominational affiliation. It’s not that we had John the Baptist, Peter the Presbyterian, and Paul the Methodist. 

    Next thing. He’s mentioned in all four gospel, and in all of the gospels, he’s introduced prior to the ministry of Jesus. So he’s pretty important. 

    Between the gospels, they give us accounts of both John’s birth and death. I can’t think of any other New Testament figure besides Jesus where that could be said. 

    We find out in the Gospel of Luke that John’s mom, Elizabeth is a relative of Mary which means that John the Baptist is related to Jesus. And John is a few months older than the Lord. 

    After John the Baptist is born, his father gives a prophecy to his son’s life. 

    Luke 1:76-77: 76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins,

    Luke chapter 1 ends with an interesting note about John: 

    Verse 80: And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

    He was in the wilderness until the day of his publican appearance in Israel.

    There’s not a whole lot of elaboration on that. 

    We know nothing about his formative years. He was in the wilderness. Some scholars suggest the possibility that John may have actually be raised within a small community within the wilderness. That’s speculation, but it would make historical sense. 

    John is related to Jesus, but the gospels tell us nothing about how well they may have known each other. It doesn’t seem like they grew up going to a family dinner every week.  

    When his ministry began, it quickly grew in popularity. Matthew 3:5-6: 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

    Several years after John’s death, the Apostle Paul is ministering in Ephesus in Acts 19. Ephesus is several hundred miles away from Judea but people talk of the baptism which John practiced, showing that his name and reputation were known throughout the region. 

    John also faced persecution during his life. He was arrested and later executed under the Romans in Matthew 14. 

    Thanks for reading! This article is part of a series in the Gospel of John! If you liked it, please share and subscribe.

  • The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Studying John 1:14

    The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Studying 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.

    -John 1:14

    In his commentary on John, the late New Testament Grant Osborne says of this verse “In my opinion, this is the single greatest sentence ever written in the history of human language, the deepest theological statement ever written. No finite human being could ever enter the realm of God and join his family. It could only come to pass if God himself were to enter the realm of humanity.”

    The Word is referring to Jesus. And it says that Jesus became flesh and dwelt among us. 

    The God who created the world came into the world to save the world. The eternal God of creation became flesh and blood, skin and bone. 

    Jesus’ divinity matters but so does his humanity. 

    It is because of his divine nature that he has the power to withstand and to bear the weight of sin. Our sin is an affront to God and no mere mortal is capable of redeeming himself before a Holy God, let alone redeeming humanity. 

    But it also matters that Jesus is human because it is humanity that has sinned. And in being fully man, Jesus is like us in our humanity. Jesus entered sinful humanity, though he himself is without sin. 

    His sinlessness matters because it took a sinless, perfect, and righteous sacrifice to pay for sins. His humanity and divinity make Jesus a worthy sacrifice and atonement for sinful people. 

    Our verse says that the Word became flesh. God became man. 

    Colossians 1:19 says: For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell

    The glory of God came to earth through the Lord Jesus. There’s one word in particular in this verse that brings it to a climactic point in this passage. 

    Dwelt. 

    The English doesn’t truly convey the meaning of what’s being said here. Let’s take a step back. 

    In the Old Testament, people originally exist in perfect fellowship with God. That’s what Eden was. It was a holy place. A perfect place. A sinless place. 

    Because of sin, fellowship with God was tarnished. The unencumbered closeness to God was lost due to sin. 

    We were no longer holy. But the story doesn’t end there. Throughout the Old Testament, we see God bringing redemption to his people. 

    God makes a covenant with Abraham. We see God’s continued faithfulness to his covenant. 

    The Tabernacle

    The Israelites were held in captivity in Egypt. After God had miraculously freed them, and while the Israelites were wandering in the desert, God gave them instructions for a structure called the tabernacle. The tabernacle was a tent that the Israelites were to travel with and it was a symbol for God’s presence with his people. 

    Sometimes it’s called the tabernacle. Sometimes it’s called the tent of meeting. 

    Exodus 40:34-35: 34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 

    Exodus spells out very specific instructions on how the tabernacle was to be built, what types of items would be placed inside the tabernacle, etc. The instructions are so specific because it is a sacred and holy place. 

    Again, it represented the very presence of God in the world.  But this was pointing forward to something greater. 

    The temple. 

    When the Israelites entered the land, part of their purpose was in constructing the temple. As the tabernacle had been portable, the temple was meant to be permanent.

    The overarching purposes were still the same. Most notably, it was where God met his people in the word. It was his presence in the world. The temple was the place where sacrifices were made. 

    For the priests, there were specific instructions on what they had to do to prepare to enter into the Temple It was a sacred place. 

    As with the tabernacle, not just anyone could go into the temple. 

    The priest couldn’t just go into the temple any arbitrary way they wanted. It was a holy place. The temple was completed during the reign of Solomon 

    1 Kings 8:10-11 says: 

    10 And when the priests came out of the Holy Place, a cloud filled the house of the Lord, 11 so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord. 

    In both places, when the presence of the Lord comes into the temple, people can’t even stand in it because the presence is so glorious. 

    The temple is hugely important in the Old Testament. The specific instructions for the temple are important. But this points forward to an even greater temple. To an even greater example of God’s presence with his people. 

    And that is the significance of John 1:14. 

    The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory.

    The word translated as “dwelt” more literally means that Jesus tabernacled among us, that Jesus pitched a tent among us. It’s the same word for tabernacle that was used centuries before Christ when the Old Testament was translated from Hebrew to Greek. 

    The true tabernacle

    Jesus is the tabernacle. He is the greater temple. He is the presence of God with his people because Jesus IS God with his people. 

    So it’s not simply saying that Jesus dwelt among us. But rather: in Jesus, we see God became flesh and tabernacled with his people.  Instead of a tent or a building, we have a person, we have God himself. The greater tabernacle, the greater temple. 

    And he’s greater because he’s everything these places were meant to represent. It was only the priests who could go into the tabernacle and the temple. A priest serves as a mediator between man and God. Jesus is the greater priest. It is he who restores our relationship with God. 

    These man made structures were where sacrifices were offered. Jesus himself is the sacrifice. 

     And as I’ve said, the tabernacle and the temple represent the presence of God with his people. Jesus is God himself who has come to his people. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. 

    The Word made his dwelling among us. He pitched a tent among us. He tabernacled among us. 

    The God who created the world came into the world to save the world. There was no other way for a sinful people to be reconciled to the Lord than through God himself coming into the world. 

    But because of his love for us. Because of his goodness. Because of his grace…

    The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. 

    The creator entered creation.

    Righteousness

    How do you make yourself right before a Holy God? How do you earn standing before a perfect God? How do you deserve blessings before an all powerful God? You don’t and you can’t. 

    God became one of us so we could be with him. He is a personal God. It doesn’t get more personal than Jesus entering his creation. Sometimes it can be tempting to doubt if God really knows what we’re going through when we’re struggling. It can be tempting to wonder if God really cares.  

    He knows. He knows what it’s like to live in a sinful world. He knows what it’s like to have people oppose him and not like him. He knows what it’s like to be hated for no reason. He knows what it’s like to be slandered. He knows what it’s like to cry. He knows what it’s like to be let down. He knows what it’s like to be betrayed. He knows what it’s like to suffer and feel pain. He knows what it’s like to face injustice. 

    He knows. 

    It can be be easy to focus on Christ’s glory and divinity to the point where we forget his humanity. But we see his humanity in this passage. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. 

    It’s often said of people in politics who have opinions on public policies. We feel like they can’t relate to the average person. There’s the old saying not to judge a person until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes. 

    Jesus lived a lifetime in our shoes. 

    Sometimes God can seem distant. He’s a personal God who invites us to know him. 

    He joined us in our humanity. He came to earth so that we could have heaven. He died so that we could have life. He was forsaken so we could be children of God. 

    The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. 

    Thanks for reading! If you liked this post, please share and subscribe! This article is part of a series on the Gospel of John. 

  • All things were made through him. Studying John 1:3

    All things were made through him. Studying John 1:3

     All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.
    -John 1:3

    John 1:3 is speaking to the divinity of Jesus. All things were made through him. All means all. 

    The ground, the trees, the sand of the beaches, the stars in the sky, the air we breathe, the materials we use to build things, all of it was made by Jesus. 

    He made every person. Each of us has billions of cells in our bodies. Incredible complexity and structure just within our own bodies. 

    The universe is incredibly big. 

    Size of the universe

    So the distance between the earth and the sun is 93 million miles. 

    If that distance was represented by the width of one sheet of paper, the distance of our entire galaxy would be a stack of papers 453 miles high. 

    One stack of papers a mile high is about 15 million sheets of paper. 

    Times 453 miles. 

    With each sheet of paper representing 93 million miles. 

    And that’s just our galaxy. 

    There are one hundred billion galaxies. 

    If you could have an atlas of every galaxy in the entire universe and each page represented an entire galaxy, and if you spent just one second on every page and continually turned pages in the atlas, it would take you more than 31,000 years to flip all the way through the atlas. 

    The universe is incredibly, unfathomably big. There are more stars in the sky than there are grains of sand in all the beaches of the world. Yet there are more trees on earth than there are stars in our one galaxy. 

    And that’s just looking at the amazing size of of our universe. 

    There is amazing creation within our world. 

    New species of animals are still being discovered. 

    Did you know that? And they’re not all insects or really small animals. Since 2000, there have been new species of primates discovered. We don’t even yet know everything on our own planet. 

    Jesus the creator

    Yet Jesus made it all. 

    There are other passages in the New Testament which speak to this fact. 

    Colossians 1:16: For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.

    We see this language as well in the opening chapter of the Book of Hebrews. Hebrews 1:10 referring to Jesus says: You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands;

     Jesus is the creator. He made everything. And John states it both ways. He made everything.

    And also there’s nothing that he didn’t make. 

    All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

    He’s a mighty God. It’s a lofty passage. It’s a confrontational passage. You affirm these truths or you don’t. 

    Our society often likes to treat Jesus as something you can take or leave. Gravity isn’t something that you can take or leave. Arithmetic isn’t something that you can take or leave. Breathing isn’t something that you can take or leave. 

    Jesus isn’t something you can just take or leave. Jesus isn’t just a nice person or a nice idea. He’s the Lord of creation. Many cherry pick certain teachings. Others treat him as a great teacher or a great religious leader. 

    Jesus isn’t one good teacher among other great teachers. He’s God. 

    The sages of other major religious traditions were born. Buddha wasn’t there in the beginning. Mohammad wasn’t there in the beginning. 

    But in the beginning was the Word. 

    There have been great leaders in the world who have influenced nations and movements. Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Gandhi. Some like to just act like Jesus was a wise peace maker who came with a good message. 

    Jesus isn’t simply a great man. Jesus gave life to all of these people. And that’s not true the other way around. Any person, any thing who has ever lived or existed, lived and existed because Jesus created it or gave them life. 

    Thanks for reading! If you liked, please share and subscribe. This article is part of a series studying the Gospel of John. 

  • In the beginning was the Word. Studying John 1:1-2

    In the beginning was the Word. Studying John 1:1-2

    In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
    -John 1:1

    It’s interesting in comparing the beginning of John’s gospel to the beginnings of the other three.  

    Mark’s gospel begins with the ministry of John the Baptist as the one who points to Christ.  

    Luke’s gospel goes back further with the birth of John the Baptist and the birth of Jesus.  

    Matthew’s gospel goes back further still to the family line of Jesus and takes us back to Abraham, back to the beginning of God’s covenant with his people.  

    John’s gospel goes back even further, back to the very beginning, back to eternity.  

    It’s the same way in which the Bible opens up, the first words in Genesis are: in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.  (Genesis 1:1)

    John starts with: in the beginning was the Word.  

    Now, it’s interesting that John says “the word.” 

    He doesn’t say “in the beginning was Jesus” or “in the beginning was the Christ” or “in the beginning was the Lord” but “in the beginning was the Word.”  

    But, in the beginning was the Word. 

    Why use the word Word? 

    Borrowing an idea from D.A. Carson in his commentary on John.  

    From the beginning of the Bible, we see references to God’s word. God is a talking God. He speaks in Genesis. “Let there be light,” and the text says “and it was so.” 

    God calls things into being by the power of his word, and what he calls into existence exists.  

    Psalm 33:6 says: By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.

    God’s word is attached to deliverance.

    We see God’s word in his covenants and promises. Genesis 15:1: After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”

    The word of the Lord is mentioned numerous times in the Bible with respect to divine revelation given to prophets. Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel say “the word of the Lord came to me.” 

    The Word of the Lord is seen as a key to truth and enlightenment.  

    Psalm 119:105: Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

    And we could go on and on and on.  There is power in the word of God. 

    Given that in the Old Testament, God’s word is tied to creation, salvation, healing, and deliverance, the incarnation of Jesus is God’s greatest and most spectacular form of expression to the world. The Word is an appropriate title for Jesus because it is through this Word that we have ultimate truth, eternal life, future hope, assurance of God’s promises, and God’s greatest revelation of himself to the world.  

    And we learn from our passage this morning that this Word was in the beginning.  

    This Word is not some abstract idea or force. This Word exists. 

    “And the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” 

    But just to sum up what verse 1 is saying is that Jesus is eternal, he has always existed in fellowship with God, and that he himself IS God. That’s really the major theme of John’s Gospel. Jesus is the Lord.  

    Thanks for reading! If you liked, please comment and subscribe! 

    This post is part of a series in studying the Gospel of John. Recommended resources:  Carson, D. A. (1991). The Gospel according to John (pp. 113–117). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B.