John 1, verses 28 through 51

John 1, continued.

²⁸ These things were done in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

²⁹ On the morrow he seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world!

You know something? I love that line. Maybe it appeals to my sense of drama. Behold! Or, in the vulgar tongue, “check this out!” See this. Take a good long look, because this is important. Behold the Lamb of God. This instant, right here, is significant for a few reasons. Here’s one: Jesus, subject of this history, has just appeared onstage. Here’s another: John, the voice crying out in the wilderness, Herald on the Word, is in this moment doing the thing he was put on earth to do. If you were to reduce his life to a single purpose, a single goal, this would be it. He’s announcing the coming of the one who cometh after him. After this scene, his role in the chronicle seems to be pretty much over. This is his moment, the thing he was born for. Maybe Neil Armstrong felt the same thing, stepping on to the Moon’s surface. Maybe Emperor Norton felt it the day he knelt in prayer before an angry mob (but you don’t know that story, do you? Another time, then.) Quite possibly Stephen felt it when they dragged him outside Jerusalem and gathered up their stones. In this moment, your purpose is fulfilled.

But beyond that, look at what it is he’s proclaiming. The Lamb of God. Who takes away the sins of the world. Earlier John quoted Isaiah: “Make straight the Way of the Lord.” Well, now the Lord is here. And He’s come to take away our sin.

John continues his introduction:

³⁰ This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man who is become before me: for he was before me.

³¹ And I knew him not; but that he should be made manifest to Israel, for this cause came I baptizing in water.

³² And John bare witness, saying, I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven; and it abode upon him.

³³ And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize in water, he said unto me, Upon whomsoever thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and abiding upon him, the same is he that baptizeth in the Holy Spirit.

³⁴ And I have seen, and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.

John is a Herald, and he is here to bear witness. His statement is thoroughly unambiguous: This is the Son of God, God’s Spirit is upon Him, and He will baptize with it. The Holy Spirit, when it shows up in the Book of Acts, descends one day upon everybody like fire. Now that Christ is here, we will be washed in righteous fire, so Jah seh.

³⁵ Again on the morrow John was standing, and two of his disciples;

³⁶ and he looked upon Jesus as he walked, and saith, Behold, the Lamb of God!

³⁷ And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

John the Baptist, like John the Evangelist who wrote this Gospel, is hammering the points home. And now, Jesus has two followers.

³⁸ And Jesus turned, and beheld them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? And they said unto him, Rabbi (which is to say, being interpreted, Teacher), where abideth thou?

³⁹ He saith unto them, Come, and ye shall see. They came therefore and saw where he abode; and they abode with him that day: it was about the tenth hour.

⁴⁰ One of the two that heard John [speak], and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.

⁴¹ He findeth first his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messiah (which is, being interpreted, Christ).

⁴² He brought him unto Jesus. Jesus looked upon him, and said, Thou art Simon the son of John: thou shalt be called Cephas (which is by interpretation, Peter).

⁴³ On the morrow he was minded to go forth into Galilee, and he findeth Philip: and Jesus saith unto him, Follow me.

⁴⁴ Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter.

⁴⁵ Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.

⁴⁶ And Nathanael said unto him, Can any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.

⁴⁷ Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!

⁴⁸ Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.

⁴⁹ Nathanael answered him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art King of Israel.

And now, four or five. And one of them is Peter, of whom more later. Jesus here demonstrates a knack for knowing things he couldn’t, by ordinary means, have known. As miracles go it’s pretty much a parlor trick, but again in other Gospels they haven’t even gotten to Jesus’ birth at this point. Signs and wonders come later.

⁵⁰ Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee underneath the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.

⁵¹ And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye shall see the heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.

See? There’s more to come.