John 1:6-8, Isaiah 9:1-7, Isaiah 53:1-12, Luke 24:25-47, Acts 1:8, Matthew 3:16-17

Summary: In John’s prologue of his Gospel, he refers to the person and work of the forerunner of God’s Messiah. John the Baptist had the honor of being that individual and was one of a long line of biblical witnesses to the promise of the coming Redeemer.

John the Baptist is described in the opening verse of John’s Gospel as a man who was sent from God to bear witness of the Light that is the Lord Jesus Christ. John made it clear, however, that the Baptist was not that Light. There had been disciples of John the Baptist who carried his message of repentance to the people of Israel and honored him over the One whom he was presenting to the world as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (1:29-34).

The late pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, Dr. W.A. Criswell (1909-2002), wrote in his autobiography, “Standing on the Promises,” that his doctoral dissertation covered the topic of John the Baptist’s work and those that followed him in relation to the growing work and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. While John’s work is notable and honorable in terms of the plan of redemption that Almighty God put into place before the foundation of the world (Matthew 13:35), it is he who told his followers to turn to Jesus and follow Him; for he said that his work had to decrease in relevance (John 3:27-34).

John the Baptist was on the scene for probably no more than a year or two, and he knew his role was not to draw attention to himself but to point the people back to God and to repent in spite of heritage, nationality, status, or alleged religious fervor (Matthew 3:7-9).

Salvation starts with conviction and sorrow for our sins and the need to make things right with God, which is initiated by the Holy Spirit (John 6:44, 16:7-15). We must regard ourselves as sinners unable to redeem ourselves (Isaiah 64:6; Romans 5:6-11; Ephesians 2:8-9) and that we are in need of a Savior. And the only One who can provide that is the Sovereign LORD God Almighty (Isaiah 35:4, 45:22; John 3:17; Acts 4:12, 16:30-31; 1 Timothy 1:15; Titus 2:13; 2 Peter 1:11; 1 John 4:14).

John the Baptist was to bear witness of the Light in order that all might believe; the same reason why John wrote his Gospel (1:7, 20:31). Others before John also bore witness (Isaiah 43:10, 52:12-53:12), and others would do so afterward (John 15:27; Acts 1:8, 5:20-21, 18:9-10; 22:14-15). Who are these “witnesses”?

There is the witness of the Old Testament prophets who foretold of the mission and suffering the Messiah would undertake, and of the glory that was to follow (Isaiah 7:14, 9:6-7, 53:4-6; Micah 5:2). There are more than 300 prophecies concerning Christ and His redemptive work. Jesus reminded the two travelers on the road to Emmaus of these Scriptures as well as the apostles (Luke 24:25-27, 44-47).

God the Father bore witness by His promise of a Redeemer after Adam and Eve violated His commandments by listening to the deceptive words of the serpent in Eden (Genesis 3:15). He bore witness to Jesus’ work through the signs He performed and even as Nicodemus and the man born blind realized (John 3:2, 5:36-37, 9:32-33, 10:25, 37-38). God spoke from heaven and declared that Jesus was His “beloved Son” in Whom He was well pleased” at His baptism, the time of His Transfiguration, and the final week of His ministry prior to the crucifixion and resurrection (Matt. 3:16-17, 17:5, 12:27-30).

By raising Him from the dead, God the Father declared Jesus to be the Son of God with power and the One who will judge the world, as He taught on the Mount of Olives (Matthew 25:31-44; Acts 17:30-31; Romans 1:3-4; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Philippians 2:9-11; Revelation 20:11-15).

The testimonies and witness to the apostles attested to what Jesus said about Himself. They witnessed His miracles, His teachings, and the continual confrontation with the Pharisees. They saw Him give life to the dead, and John witnessed Jesus’ death on the cross alongside Mary, His mother, and a handful of mourners. The other apostles saw the resurrected Christ appear in the flesh and confirm to them that He was indeed God and Lord, as Thomas declared, forever silencing his own doubts and grief.

Their transformed lives and fearless preaching of the Gospel were the foundation of the early church and the canon of Scripture. They confronted and rebuked false doctrines and apostate teachers. Never once did any of them hold back, compromise, or deny their LORD, even under the threat and process of persecution that ended their earthly lives. Their changed lives and powerful work done in the might of the Holy Spirit transformed the hardest hearts and hopeless lives.

Because of their faith and unwavering devotion to the message and person of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are heirs of that testimony and witness today. As the world grows more depraved and the hatred of all things sacred turns even more vile and blasphemous, we must look to these witnesses within both Scripture and the testimonies of those throughout history who stood firm for His cause and carried His message to wounded hearts and empty souls here in America and around the world.

We cannot afford to falter or be silent in these last days. The witnesses of those before and with us who have stood firm for Jesus Christ show us the way. Let us walk in it and get into the Word more than ever.

donaldwhitchard@gmail.com

www.realitycityreverend.com

My YouTube broadcasts titled “The Reality City Review” will be posted on Facebook, GETTR, Parler, and on my website when completed. My main area of discussion will be on the basics of the Christian faith but will also deal with prophetic issues and other topics as the Lord impresses upon me to handle.

Psalm 18:1, “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”

We are living in unprecedented times. No need to describe it because it is obvious- it’s falling apart. At this time in history, people are scared and confused because of how quickly life and freedom are changing. What we can be assured of is that regardless of what is happening, God is still with us and is still the Rock that we can stand on and not fear the happenings around us.

Every day there are occurrences of things going awry, or those things happening are getting worse. People are scared and frightened with the “new norm” that seems to change every day. A great number of secular people inherently know something is coming, but not knowing God, they are left to seek out the responses from the secular world of what is coming.

Just based on my little sphere in life, I see the same emotions happening to believers. They, too, are scared. Why? I can only guess that this stems from bad preaching or just being nominal Christians that are not in tune to the spiritual battles happening and what Bible prophecy says.

I agree that the world is falling apart socially and politically, but God is unchanging. As bad as things are getting, He is still our Rock. He won’t fail us or abandon us or leave us to fight alone.

The fear being perpetuated by the world and those of the world can become contagious to believers if they let their guard down. This does not have to be so. When we stand with our Rock, we are more aware of the times and intents of the world and the evil that is rampant.

Remember that God is our Rock! Do not give in to the ways of the world. Do not let yourself get caught in the snare of the lies and fearmongering happening in the world. Christians, we are in battle and are at the front lines of this battle. We will be weary, but we must not give up in the fight. We are in round 12 of this match and need to stay on our feet until the bell rings and we are victorious with Christ!

We must evaluate, through self-reflection, if we are living our lives on the sand or on the Rock. Sure, we say we are on the foundation of God, our Rock; however, it seems that as life in this world is falling to evil ways and people, some believers realize they have built their lives on the sand. And they either continue to live blindly on the sand or climb onto the solid and sure foundation of God, our Rock, which our faith calls for.

When we stand on the Rock and increase our faith and hope, we do not need to fear what is happening, nor will we be blinded by the evil schemes from Satan and those he controls to turn people away from turning to God. It is a fight to the end, even though victory on His part is sure.

There are many sitting on the fence of redemption today with all that is happening. They are not sure of what is going on in the world and are frightened. Some will turn to the world for relief, and some will jump to the side of the fence where there is redemption. This depends on if they respond to the call to come to Christ.

Christ calls each one of us. If we heed His call, accept Him and believe in Him, we are in Christ. If they do not accept but reject the call to grace through Christ, they are destined to hell. Period – no in-between, no halfway there. All in or all out.

Jesus calls unbelievers to grace continually. He knocks on the door of man’s hearts, and if one opens their heart to Him, accepts Him as their Lord and Savior, they become adopted sons or daughters of God through Christ. If they don’t and reject Him, their hearts will become black and hard, and they will no longer heed the call of Christ, nor will He seek them.

When one accepts Christ, He becomes their Redeemer to stand firmly in faith on. They no longer need to rely on the wishy-washy world for stability and comfort for a better future.

No longer is there a need to build their hope and lives on the sand, but they can stand strong on Christ’s death and resurrection, if they believe.

There is only one condition needed to stand on the Rock and the safety and surety that comes with it; it is receiving the grace offered by Christ. There is no cost for this; it is a free gift, no strings attached. It is a life and eternal changing event when one accepts Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Satan will do his best to draw people away. That voice in their head and pull in their heart towards our Rock, Satan will try to drown out through the world. He will do his best to lead them away and quiet the calling voice to salvation by trying to convince them that they are either not good enough for salvation, or that God is not real, or that there are other ways to heaven other than through Jesus.

For those of us who believe — whether new to the faith or mature — regardless of what is happening right now in this world, in this chapter of history, He is still our Rock. He is all-powerful. He is never-ending. He will not leave us to suffer with the unbelievers when He judges the world.

Please don’t forget that God is our Rock. Through Christ, we became adopted sons and daughters of God. This is a contractual transaction, one of many in the Bible. God does not lie and will not break a contract, or covenant, if you wish to call it that. Once we come to Christ, we are bound together with God.

Many believers are weary. They are tired. They are beaten down. Don’t forget that we stand with the greatest Warrior in the universe. He will give us bread and water to keep us going, even when we don’t think we can. He will pull us and hold us through these tumultuous times until He calls us home or raptures us up with Christ.

Standing on the Rock assures us of victory for eternity. Building our lives and faith on the Rock ensures we will not fall victim to the plight of Satan and his minions as he influences the world to believe and practice actions contrary to the edicts of God, as found in the Bible.

Not well-versed in God as the Rock? Pick up that Bible and start reading. When we do this, we gain knowledge, wisdom, and confidence in God and our faith. Do this regularly. Satan is wily and will do his best to trick and turn us from God to him, but when we learn what the Bible says, we are able to contradict Satan’s lies and tricks and will be able to discern truth from falsity.

Put your faith in action, and don’t hide in the shadows. Stand with God in this end-time battle. Be strong and courageous because we are near the finish line of this race. We may be tired, we may be scared at times, but we can be confident that victory is ours, and we can rest on that truth.

johnflysaught@gmail.com