The Cast of Christmas: John

“The Cast of Christmas: John
I. Drama theme: the players in the Christmas drama
A. Joseph, Simeon, Herod, and then -- on Christmas Eve -- Jesus.
B. I love John the Baptist. I love to study his story and personality. Someday I’d like to do a series on him,
1. This is why I named one of my sons after him: Elijah John, for the John who came in the spirit and power of Elijah.
2. Of course, we are here to learn about Jesus, not John.
3. But that’s what I love so much about John. When you learn about John, you learn about Jesus.
II. John the Baptist
A. A harbinger: He came to announce and to signal the coming of the Lord Jesus.
1. In Isaiah 40, at the beginning of a string of prophecies about the coming Messiah, is this strange statement in 40:3 “A voice is calling, ‘Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.’” We now know this was a reference to John the Baptist, coming to prepare the way for the Lord – Mark 1:2-4.
2. And then in the final words of the OT God makes this promise.“I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great & terrible day of the Lord.” Malachi 4:5-6.
a. In Luke 1:17 Gabriel makes it clear to Zacharias that his son will be the fulfillment of this prophecy when he quotes the words of Malachi and says “It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah...so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
B. He was certainly the smallest prophet, the tiniest person marshaled by God to be His mouthpiece.
1. He was “filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb.” (Luke 1:15)
2. And yet Jesus said of him: "No one born of women is greater than John the Baptist." (Matt.11:11; Luke 7:28)
C. On the surface, John might seem to be a rather pathetic figure.
1. Matthew 3:4 Now John himself had a garment of camel's hair, and a leather belt about his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. (NASB)
2. Lk 1:80 And he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel.
a. probably over ten years of living alone in the desert, presumably after his parents, who had been elderly when he was born, had died.
3. his celibacy
4. Nazirite - Luke 1:15 "he will drink no wine or liquor."
5. Fasting – Matt. 9:14, Luke 7:33
6. Many enemies: eventually imprisoned, beheaded
D. And yet, his life was primarily characterized by joy. He was the prophet of joy, a joy – of course – connected to the coming of Jesus.
1. John 3:29 "The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. And so this joy of mine has been made full."
2. Only one thing made John happy. He had no joy but Jesus.
E. And, speaking of joy, John himself did only one thing in the Christmas story. He leapt for joy in his mother’s womb when Mary walked in his house, pregnant with Jesus. So, this joy in Jesus began very early in John's life.
1. Review story
a. Old Zacharias in temple, promised a son, goes home to tell his wife Elizabeth
b. Mary and Gabriel (6 months later)
2. Read Luke 1:39-45 “In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, 40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.’”
III. The leap
A. Do you think that John really leapt for joy? Just coincidence?
a. “Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit” & she said “the baby leaped in my womb for joy.”
b. Luke 1:15 "he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, while yet in his mother's womb"
B. How can a baby have joy over the presence of another?
1. Can an unborn baby have joy? God only knows!
C. How did John know that Jesus was near?
1. "he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, while yet in his mother's womb"
a. He was given special knowledge, and a special ability to declare that knowledge by means of this leap of joy.
2. So we see that John began his ministry of showing that Jesus was the Messiah and pointing the way to Him while he was still in the womb.
3. Apparently Elizabeth knew from John's great leap that Mary was carrying the Messiah. She had been told that the Savior was coming, but she knew not how or through whom He would come. It was John that told her, through his leap of joy.
4. No wonder she cried out with a loud voice, & said, "Blessed among women are you and blessed is the fruit of your womb!... For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy." (Lk1:42, 44)
5. In fact, it may even have been John that told Mary that the Savior was in her womb. We don't really know that she knew the baby was yet conceived when she went to visit Elizabeth. She most likely went to her cousin's house in order to verify what the angel had told her about Elizabeth and to share the fellowship of blessedness that only Mary and Elizabeth could really have together.
a. So, it is possible that even Mary learned of His presence in her womb from John's joyous leap.
D. A life of drawing attention to Jesus
1. Leaping in the womb set the pattern for John's whole life, a life of drawing attention to Jesus.
2. In the Bible’s story, John is the first one to draw attention to the presence of Jesus.
3. Thus, he began his ministry of being a crier or a herald going before the king.
4. He even had this ministry at his own birth with his father Zacharias.
a. Have you ever paid much attention to the speech that Zacharias makes when John is born?
b. Luke 1:67-79 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying: "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people, And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of David His servant-- As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old.
c. Having lived a life of disgrace because of childlessness, he is given a son, and yet is rendered mute for the duration of his wife’s pregnancy. And when he finally is given his voice back, what is it that first comes gushing forth from his mouth? What is it that has been bursting inside him through all those months of silence?
d. “I can’t believe you took my voice away!”?
e. “Thank You for giving me my voice back!”?
f. “Thank You for giving us a son!”?
g. No: “Thank You for sending us a Savior!” There was something greater and more wonderful to Zacharias than even the birth of his own and only son.
5. And this is the way that John spent the rest of his life.
a. See John 1:22-37:
(1) 27 "There is One who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie."
(2) 29 "he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, 'Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! "This is He on behalf of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.'
(3) 35-37 "Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked upon Jesus as He walked, and said, 'Behold, the Lamb of God!' 37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.
b. John 3:30 “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
c. Luke 3:16 "I baptize with water, but he will baptize with the Holy Spirit."
d. From birth to death, pointing the way to Christ.
IV. Is John one of the most privileged men of history, or was his a tragic waste of a life?
A. This, I suggest, is the debate between the world’s philosophy and the Bible’s.
B. One human being living his life for another human being?
1. What about all of John’s talents and dreams?
2. What about John being his own person?
3. John’s life was completely wrapped up in Someone else’s.
4. The world says that what’s important is who YOU are. But John said, “No, what’s important is who HE is.”
5. This is where the point of disagreement lies: the world says we find our happiness in being and becoming ourselves. The Bible says we find our happiness not in being ourselves but in being His, in belonging to the One who rules all.
6. The world says, “You’re just as good as everyone else.” The Bible says, “There is One who is greater than all, who’s sandals we are unfit to untie.”
7. The world says, “You are the one!” The Bible says, “He is the One!”
8. John 1:30 “After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.”
9. The greatest thing about John the Baptist is not that he was so smart or wise or powerful. The greatest thing is that He knew who Jesus was &kept pointing to Him and deferring to Him and acknowledging Him & drawing attention to Him.
10. The most important thing about you is not what talents you have or what you’ve experienced. The most important thing about you is that you know Jesus Christ, or that you don’t know Him.