John 1:27- Jesus>Me

Listen to John's description of himself and Jesus:
1) John the Baptist says in verse 1:27, "I baptize with water, but among you stands one who you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie."

2) 1:20, "I am not the Christ...I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord, as the prophet Isaiah said.'"

John the Baptist understood who he was and who Jesus was.  Jesus was the show.  Jesus was the point.  John understood he was not.  He understood himself only as one who pointed to the real hope.

...Might you consider seeing yourself and Jesus in this way today?  Jesus>Me.

Romans 1:16-17

Verse 17 is particularly interesting.  Paul says it is "In the (gospel) that the righteousness of God is revealed." The gospel is Paul's shorthand for the "good news" of Jesus Christ.  Translation: God has made known who he is in Jesus Christ.

Paul is clear that you can know who God is through Jesus Christ.  There is no longer any guessing.  He has been revealed.  The Gospel is an "Open Secret," as Lesslie Newbigin has put it.  What have you ever wondered about God?  What have you wanted to ask him about who he is and what he is like?  Look to Jesus.

For further study...

1) If you are wanting to take this verse a bit further, look at the odd sort of wording at the end of 17a, "from faith for faith."  What types of faith is Paul talking about?  Is he saying that it is, "'from our faith to our faith' that the righteousness of God is revealed?"

Surely this reads a bit man-centered?  As Rick Warren says, "It's not all about you."  Maybe a better reading would understand that it is "from the faith-obedience of Christ" to our "faith-ing in Christ" that the righteousness of God has been revealed.  Could faith be a reciprocal word here, as the context suggests?  The result being, that Christ's faithfulness at the cross has revealed the righteousness of God to those who have faith in Christ.  Faith is about Christ and it is about us.

2) And if you really wanted to get crazy here... Look at the place of Habakkuk 2:1-4 in Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, and Hebrews 10:38.  Notice this verse is quoted in all of these passages, but with differing translations.  Who is the righteous or "righteous one" of Habbakkuk 2:4?

John 1

A few thoughts to consider as you read John 1 this week:

1) Consider how John is describing Jesus in this first chapter.  How is Jesus more than just a nice religious figure?  What difference does it make that he was, "In the beginning" and that "All things were made through him?"

2) John says that Jesus, "dwelt among us" (ESV) in verse 14.  More literally, it means he "tabernacled" or he "pitched his tent" in our midst.  John is alluding to the Hebrew idea of God dwelling among his people (Exodus 25:8-9).  The tabernacle was the place that God dwelled.  What is significant about the fact that God now dwells through Christ?

3) Where would it make a difference in your life today if the Jesus was the Creator of the universe and the one who came to "tabernacle" with you?  What does that mean for prayer?  Could it be that the God who draws close is also the God who has the power to create the universe?  Might he be interested and able to hear your cries today?

4) Who do you know that needs to hear the news that the Almighty God has given up heaven to know them?

Sticking Close This Summer

Following Jesus does not have an offseason.  It's a constant journey with him through the different times and seasons of our life.  We want to keep with Jesus even while the summer disperses us in different directions.  

Therefore, consider reading the Gospel of John and Romans with us this summer.  Then commit to getting on this blog and interacting over the world wide web with fellow journeymen.  We will answer questions, post thoughts and explore the Bible together, even as we are sometimes apart. 

Click here for the CPC summer reading plan.

~Alec Flynt