Quote for the Day
“…he came only as a witness to the light.”
Today's Prayer
This week consider yourself a witness for the light. Ask Jesus to be the light through you, and allow only His light to shine (and nothing else) through your life.
John 1:6-18
John 1:6-18 (NIV)6 There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.15 John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’” 16 From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.
Message
As we began our review of John, we focused on Jesus as the light. Today I would like to focus on John as the witness of the light. We see clearly in several verses this week (and will see again many times) that John was very clear about his purpose in life. He knew he had a calling from God, and it was simple; tell people, “I am not the Messiah, but Jesus is, and He is about to show up.” What is great to see here is that John had taken his calling and fully embraced it. He was in a position that God’s power was in him and flowing through him, and because of that he was seen as a great man and a prophet to those he encountered. Talk about peer pressure! How do we react to praise and glory in our life? Is it drawn in, added to, and pushed back out? Or do we understand what we have been called to and simply allow Jesus to use us as His vessel of communication? John had a simple message yet an enormous task, announcing the immediate coming of the Messiah. John knew exactly where to obtain the power, humility, and strength to carry out his task: from God alone. (Read verses 15 and 16 two or three times and see God’s love flow through John.) Today we are in the same situation as John. God has given us each a calling. Jesus desires to be the power to ensure that calling is fulfilled. He needs us to be His vessel of grace. We are told in verse 16, “From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.”It is not about us doing God’s will and His plan in our life. It is about us entrusting our lives to Jesus so He might live out His will in our bodies which we have entrusted to Jesus. By entrusting our entire being to Christ, the Holy Spirit lives and works in us allowing us to be God’s very presence in the lives of those we encounter. John was a beautiful example of one who entrusted his all for the sake of Jesus and was used in a mighty way to proclaim Jesus to the world. We too have that same calling today, each by the power of Jesus in us working His grace so others may see Him alone.