Sermon - Rorate Coeli 2023 - John 1:19-28

Saint John the Baptist Pointing to Jesus, Bartolome Esteban Murillo, circa 1655

Our identity is revealed when Jesus’ identity is revealed.

1. John is the Baptist, preparing the way of the Lord.

2. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

3. We are Christians, baptized into Christ.

“Who are you?” That’s the question asked of John the Baptist. The religious establishment, the Sanhedrin, “sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him.” It’s not necessarily a rude question or a controversial one, it’s really just a basic legal question of authority. A man is out in the country preaching and performing religious rituals, speaking on behalf of God and the church. So the religious authorities sent delegates to determine by whose authority he was doing these things. It’s only responsible to examine any and every preacher and make sure they’re not a false prophet or a false-christ, especially since John was drawing large crowds. If John were a false prophet or a false-christ, then the religious authorities would have to speak against him and try to silence him in order to protect the people.

What’s more, his appearance and behavior was very unusual, and the people were expecting someone to come as promised in the scriptures. So is John the Christ, long foretold since Genesis 3:15, who would crush the Serpent’s head? John said: “I am not the Christ.” Is John actually Elijah, who was prophesied by Malahi to return? John said: “I am not.” Is John the Prophet whom God would raise up like Moses, as we heard promised in Deuteronomy today? John said: “No.”

John left no ambiguity, no room for confusion, since he answered plainly and bluntly. The reason John was so clear about not being the Christ is because of who John is: “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”  John is not the Lord, instead John is the voice in the wilderness preparing the way of the Lord. He came preparing the way of the Lord through a baptism of repentance.

How appropriate this text is for today, the day before we celebrate Christmas, the last day of advent. Throughout this holy season of advent, John’s work of preparing the way of the Lord has continued among us, as we have gathered in repentance twice a week during this season. Our crooked hearts have been made straight through the hearing of God’s Word, confessing our sins, and taking the precious medicine of immortality in the sacrament. Daily we’ve fasted, prayed, and read advent devotionals, in addition to our regular devotions. This morning we stand on the cusp between Advent and Christmas, no different than the rest of our life where we daily stand on the cusp between this life and the life to come.

John declared to the unwitting Pharisees: “Among you stands One you do not know, even He who comes after me.” Among the Pharisees in the throng of people gathered to hear John the Baptist, apparently stood the Christ, the Prophet promised to be one like Moses. Nobody recognized Jesus as anything special yet, all attention was turned to John’s preaching for the time being. What a powerful moment that must have been to be standing among the crowds and to hear that someone in your midst is the Christ!

The very next day John the Baptist made all of this clear, when: “he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because He was before me.’ I myself did not know Him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that He might be revealed to Israel.’” Indeed, John came baptizing and preaching in order to reveal Jesus’ identity as the Christ, the Son of the living God. 

John came as a great confessor of the Christ. “He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed.” He confessed not himself, not his own private identity, but he confessed of Jesus and bore testimony, witness, that Jesus is the Christ. What a stunning and powerful witness! John’s message is none other than the central message of all Christianity and the greatest news in the history of the world: Jesus is Christ! John wasn’t the promised Savior from Genesis 3:15, but Jesus is! John wasn’t the Prophet like Moses, but Jesus is! 

Don’t take this message for granted! This is the important message which our world needs to hear. Fewer and fewer people come to church on Christmas Eve, and hardly anyone comes to church on Christmas Day, the actual Holy Day which this season is all about. Tomorrow is called Christ Mass, literally, according to the simple meaning of the words, it’s a communion service celebrating that Jesus is Christ. You can’t celebrate Christmas apart from Christ and the Mass. Anything else is just a random winter themed party at the end of December. 

But people not going to church on Christmas is only a symptom of the deeper issue underlying it all: Many people do not know Jesus as the Christ and as their Savior. The power of darkness is growing in our land because of that. Many people mock the nativity of our Lord as a fairytale, mock the virgin birth, mock Mary being pregnant as a teenager, and use Christmas for their own political agendas. Demon possessions are becoming more common in the US. Our own capital in Iowa permitted a satanic altar to worship demons to be erected as a Christmas display, and many supposed Christians didn’t see a problem with that. 

Among this unwitting world stands One they do not know, namely: Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world and conquers the power of darkness, casts out demons, and crushes Satan’s head beneath His nail-pierced feet! Jesus’ virgin birth, the entire nativity account, Jesus’ miraculous ministry, and death and resurrection are not quaint fairy tales, but are in fact the Gospel which brings hope alive to a depressed and despairing world. That’s why this message is just as important as ever today.

Who is this Jesus? He is our Savior and redeemer. Like Isaiah said, He is called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. He is no mere mortal, although He looks like one of us and is perfectly relatable. He is God in the flesh, and He comes to forgive the sins which we repent of in dust and ashes. He has come to set His people free from the power of darkness. He comes to give His people abundant life.

Once we know the identity of Jesus, we know our identity. Who are you? You are Christians, baptized into Christ! That is who you are, that is your identity. In times of grave persecution for Christianity, when Christians were asked their names and tortured, the Christians would refuse to give up their name so that they could protect the other Christians. So when asked their name, who are you, they would respond: I am a Christian. Even if we’re not being tortured for information this should be our primary identity, this should be how we think of ourselves: I am a Christian.

That identity of Christian is yours because you have been baptized into Christ and His name has been placed upon you. The pastor poured the water over your head and said: “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Baptism is like being born again, where you are born of your mother, the holy church, and you’re given your heavenly Father’s name: Christ-ian. You are not your own, instead you were bought with a price, the very blood of Jesus.

Because of who you are, perhaps the world likes to mock you just as they mock our Lord. But on the other hand, because of who you are, you have certain benefits and privileges that belong only to God’s children. Your sins are taken away by the Lamb of God, the Holy Spirit lives within you, demons flee from you, you can have mastery over your sins, you’re an heir of paradise, and God promises to show you His divine favor unto eternity. What a powerful truth to know as we celebrate Christmas tomorrow. Who are you? Jesus is the Christ, and I am a Christian.