The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! He is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘A man is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’ I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.” [John 1.29-31]
Why was John baptizing folks? In his own words above, it was so the Messiah could be revealed.
I guess there is more than one way to understand what John said, but it occurred to me today that John was looking for the One Who, when baptized God gave a miraculous sign. And, that is precisely what happened when John baptized Jesus.
Why then, would John continue to baptize people after he saw the dove descend upon Jesus? Simple: so that every person baptized after Jesus would only continue to prove that Jesus was the One.
Now, of course, there are other explanations for "Jesus being revealed to Israel," namely, that only after repentance can a person actually recognize Jesus. John's baptism was one signifying repentance.
The important thing is that WE recognize Jesus today.
But Jesus has been taken to heaven, how can we recognize Him today? Again, simple: we recognize Him in the lives of His followers who "do the works of Him." But that presents a real problem, doesn't it? Because, although many are called Christians, few of us actually look and act like Christ...
Father, forgive me for being so set on "being me" when the world desperately needs to see Jesus.
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