A Study of John's Gospel

John 1:6-8: Sent to Bear Witness About the Light

The gospel of John provides a series of witnesses beginning with the witness of John the Baptist. John the Baptist (J the B ) was sent by God as a witness, to prepare the hearts and minds of the people for the coming of Christ, the Light. Normally, no witness is needed to call attention to light in a dark space; it is usually very obvious. The need for J the B's witness of the Light shows how darkened the minds and spiritual eyes of mankind are that a witness of the Light was needed. Although the darkness has not overcome the Light, it still persists today and we who follow Christ have also been sent as witnesses to bear witness about the Light of the world, Jesus Christ, so that, as with the witness of J the B, all might believe through our testimonies. Of course not everyone will, a person must be called by God and respond to that call. Within God's total sovereignty we are given a choice and held responsible for our choice. Many choose to reject Christ but our mission is to deliver the message clearly and graciously, and the results are in the Lord's hands.

In verse 8 John the apostle takes care to state J the B "was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light." This was important to state because although J the B's life ended with beheading, his ministry work had been well received by many, and was known far and wide. His birth was a miraculous one, not the miraculous virgin birth of Christ, but still miraculous. His parents were very old, and an angel told his father Zacharias, who was a Jewish priest in the temple, that he and his wife would conceive a son. When Zacharias did not believe but questioned further, his ability to speak was taken away until the birth of J the B. J the B's ministry involved calling the people to a baptism of repentance and to believe in Jesus Christ who was coming after him. Even still, there were people who followed the teaching of J the B after the death and resurrection of Jesus, but had not yet heard of Jesus as we read in passages like Acts 18:24-25, 19:1-7. For these reasons John the apostle clearly states that J the B was a witness of the Light and not the Light himself.

And this is an echo of J the B's words about himself as well in what is perhaps one of the most concise statements of what the Christian life should look like when he said of Jesus, "...He must increase, but I must decrease..." in John 3:30. While we know of him as John the "Baptist," he is shown here to perhaps be better known as John the "Witness". The focus of his life was to bear witness about Jesus Christ in the manner God had called him to. Now, his calling probably looks different than ours. We are likely not going to be called to live off of locusts and honey in the wilderness and wear animal skins like J the B, we may, but that is unlikely. But just as J the B was sent by God to bear witness about Jesus, we who are in Christ have all been sent by God to bear witness about Jesus. Whether we are at work, home, a hospital bed, the city or the rural backcountry, wherever we are, whatever circumstances we find ourselves in, we are never "stuck", we are "sent" by God to a specific time and place to bear witness of Him and His free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.

This will often not be easy. Being a faithful witness for Christ will cost comething. J the B lived in the wilderness and his reward on earth was imprisonment and execution, but his reward in heaven is eternity with the Light, Jesus Christ, in whose presence there is fullness of joy and at whose right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm. 16:11). We must count the cost rightly when we come to Christ and pick up our cross to follow Him. Our faith will cost us temporal comforts in this world. It will cost us friends, relationships, career opportunities, it may even cost us our lives, but He is worthy, and the temporary cost we pay in this world will lead to an eternal reward.

When you feel the weight of the beam on your shoulder as you witness for Christ, the weight of the world's derision and maybe even violence, lift your eyes to Christ and ask yourself, "Is He worthy? Is He worthy of this?" My hope is that in studying the gospel of John and learning of the majesty of the Lord Jesus Christ, we would all come to the place in our hearts where we say, "Yes, He is worthy. You are worthy O Lord to receive blessing and honor and glory. You Lord Jesus are worthy of this. You carried a cross for me, please now, by the power of your Spirit, give me the strength to bear this cross for the glory of your name. You must increase, but I must decrease."

"He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep for that which he cannot lose"

-Jim Elliot (A martyred , faithful witness of the True Light, Jesus Christ)

Application (How does this change how I think, act and pray?):

From this passage we learn Christians are sent by God to bear witness, or in other words, tell people about Jesus Christ. For this reason, out of love for Him and a desire to see others experience His love, we should graciously tell everyone we can about Him. We should be praying for and on the lookout for opportunities to bear witness of Christ with both our words and how we live. In all this we should pray regularly for God to grant repentance and saving faith to the people we witness to, for although God uses us to witness, it is only by His power that a person believes and is rescued from slavery to sin and the Devil (2 Timothy 2:24-26). And importantly, while it may cost us something to be faithful witnesses for Christ, He is worth it. He is worth everything.

Self Reflection:

How can I grow in being a faithful witness of Christ to the people around me?

Is it worth the cost to be faithful to Jesus and bear witness about Him?

Is my motivation in all that I do to make the name of Jesus known or my name known?

#witness #TheTrueLight #believe #JesusChristisLord #biblestudy