John’s question

Matthew 11:2 relates the following incident from the life of John the Baptist: “When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples to ask him, ‘Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else? The gospel accounts make it clear that there was a great deal of controversy over whether or not Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah about whom the prophets had spoken. In fact, this same controversy surrounded John the Baptist when he first appeared on the scene, although he stated clearly that he was not the Messiah. (John 1:19-23)

In light of the fact that there was a general uncertainty about Jesus, it isn’t too hard to see why John the Baptist would ask Jesus outright if he was ‘The one’ or not. But this passage leaves out an important detail that is crucial if we are to get the full impact of this story. In John 1:29 we are told that John recognized Jesus as “The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” Then in verse 33 he testified that God had revealed to him that Jesus was the one who would baptize the people in the Holy Spirit. And finally, in verse 34, John testified that Jesus was in fact “The Son of God.”

It is obvious from this passage that John had a good idea who Jesus was. In fact, it was based upon John’s statements about Jesus’ identity that others decided to follow Jesus. (John 1:35-37) In light of the testimony that John gave concerning Jesus in John 1, it doesn’t seem to make sense that John later sent his disciples to ask Jesus if he was “The one” or not. But as we look at this incident a little closer, I believe we can get a very good idea why John would do this, an also learn a very powerful principle that applies to every one of us.

At the time John sent his disciples to ask Jesus this question, John himself had been imprisoned for rebuking Herod for sleeping with his brother’s wife. We are told later that John would be beheaded in prison at the wish of Herod’s wife who hated him fiercely. Even though we’re not sure how long John had been in prison when he sent his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the one, it isn’t to hard to see how, under these circumstances, John could be wrestling with doubts. Satan loves to attack us with doubts when our circumstances appear the darkest; and John’s circumstances were indeed dark. Bound, confined to a small lonely cell, and probably knowing that he was about to die, John was a perfect target for the tormenting tactics of the enemy.

But there is another plausible explanation for John’s question. The current thought of the day was that God would send three men to fulfill Old Testament prophecy: “Elijah”, “The prophet” and “The Messiah.” In reality, “The Prophet” and “The Messiah” both referred to Jesus, but no one understood this yet. And in Matthew 11:14 Jesus said that John the Baptist was “Elijah.” (See also Luke 1:17) And yet John 1:21 makes it clear that John himself did not know this about himself. The point I am making is that we can be rightly convinced of something God has revealed to us and yet not understand the full scope of that revelation. In the same way, it is possible that John never questioned whether Jesus was the “Lamb” or the “Son of God,” but only whether he was also The Messiah.

I also believe that as John sat in prison, with plenty of time to think, he had this gnawing question inside of him – was the life he had lived worth the death he was about to die? And I believe that in John’s mind there was only one thing that would make it worth it – knowing that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. Like the aged Simeon in Luke 2:29-30, John knew he could face death gladly if he could only say, “Lord, You are releasing your bond-servant to depart in peace… for my eyes have seen your salvation.”

Finally, notice that Jesus did not simply say, “Yes” to John’s question. Instead, he directed his attention to several Old Testament prophecies about The Messiah, which Jesus was fulfilling. While God will answer us in the dark times when we are struggling in our faith, he may not always do it directly – like a teacher who, rather than simply telling a student the answer to a math problem, directs the student to the chapter in the textbook that covers that problem. By directing John’s attention to the word, God was really saying, “John, you should already know the answer to this question – look, its in my word!”