When the Messenger Is Not the Attraction

When the Messenger Is Not the Attraction

John the Baptist, the Cost of Obedience, and the Call to Follow Christ

A Voice in the Wilderness

This morning, before the rush of the day began, I sat quietly with my Bible open, listening to worship songs such as Holy Forever and What a Beautiful Name.

Then I read Mark 1:1–8.

John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching repentance and baptising people in the Jordan.

“John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” — Mark 1:4

And then Scripture says something remarkable:

“And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem…” — Mark 1:5

Just pause and imagine that.

People left their homes, their villages, their work, their ordinary routines, and travelled into the wilderness to hear a man dressed in camel’s hair, wearing a leather belt and eating locusts and wild honey.

John did not look like someone who had carefully built a public image.

He had no impressive stage.

No beautiful building.

No polished clothing.

No comfortable lifestyle.

No carefully prepared campaign designed to make people notice him.

And yet people came.

They came from Jerusalem.

They came from the Judean countryside.

Crowds went out into the wilderness because God was doing something among them.

How many people might that have been?

Hundreds?

Thousands?

Perhaps many thousands over the course of John’s ministry?

Scripture does not give us an exact number, but it makes one thing clear: this was not a small or unnoticed movement.

People heard the call to repent.

They confessed their sins.

They were baptised in the Jordan River.

The Messenger Was Never the Attraction

But the power was not in John’s clothing.

It was not in his unusual diet.

It was not in his personality.

It was not because John had made himself impressive.

The power was in God.

John had been appointed by God and sent to prepare the way for Christ.

Luke tells us that even before John was born, God had set him apart for this purpose:

“He shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.” — Luke 1:15

He Came to Point to Someone Greater

His entire life pointed away from himself.

John himself said:

“There cometh one mightier than I after me…” — Mark 1:7

And he continued:

“I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.” — Mark 1:8

John never tried to become the centre of the message.

He knew that he was only the messenger.

Christ was the One everyone needed to see.

The Gospel of John describes his calling beautifully:

“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.” — John 1:6

But Scripture immediately makes something very clear about him:

“He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.” — John 1:8

John was not the Light.

He pointed people to the Light.

He was not the Messiah.

He prepared the way for the Messiah.

He was not trying to build his own kingdom.

He was announcing the coming King.

“He Must Increase, but I Must Decrease”

Perhaps nothing summarize’s John’s heart more beautifully than the words he later spoke about Jesus:

“He must increase, but I must decrease.” — John 3:30

What extraordinary words.

John understood something that can so easily be forgotten:

The messenger is never supposed to become more important than the Message.

Even his unusual appearance may have reminded people of the prophets of old, but John never allowed the attention to remain on himself.

Everything about his ministry pointed forward to Jesus.

And when Jesus came, John was willing to step aside.

His purpose had never been to make people followers of John.

His purpose was to prepare them for Christ.

No Outward Majesty

And when Jesus came, He also did not arrive with the outward appearance people expected from a king.

Hundreds of years earlier Isaiah had prophesied of the Messiah:

“He hath no form nor comeliness… there is no beauty that we should desire him.” — Isaiah 53:2

This does not mean that Jesus was ugly.

It means that He did not come clothed in worldly splendour.

He did not arrive surrounded by royal luxury.

He did not possess the outward magnificence people expected from the Messiah.

He came humbly.

He walked among ordinary people.

The Son of God did not depend upon outward appearance to prove who He was.

His authority was in who He was.

His beauty was in His holiness, His compassion, His obedience, His mercy and His love.

Neither John nor Jesus depended upon outward impressiveness.

John’s rough clothing did not weaken the message God had given him.

Jesus’ humble appearance did not make Him any less the Son of God.

God Looks at the Heart

The world is often attracted to what is polished, successful, beautiful and impressive.

We notice the person with the largest following.

The finest clothing.

The strongest personality.

The most impressive platform.

But God has always looked differently.

When Samuel was sent to anoint a king, the Lord reminded him:

“Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.” — 1 Samuel 16:7

God does not need outward impressiveness to accomplish His purposes.

He uses ordinary people.

He uses unusual circumstances.

He calls those who are willing to obey Him.

And perhaps this is something we especially need to remember today.

A preacher does not become more anointed because he has a larger platform.

A teacher does not become more truthful because thousands of people follow her.

Beautiful clothing, eloquent speech, popularity and influence are not evidence that someone has been sent by God.

The question must always be:

Does the messenger point us toward Christ and toward the truth of God’s Word?

John did.

The Cost of Obedience

John’s life also makes me wonder about the cost of obedience.

Was it always easy for him to live in the wilderness?

Did he ever feel the weight of the life he had been called to?

Did he ever look at the ordinary lives of others and wonder what it might be like to live more comfortably?

Scripture does not tell us the details of John’s private struggles, so we should be careful not to invent them.

But John was human.

His calling required sacrifice.

He set aside comfort and an ordinary way of living in order to fulfil the purpose God had given him.

And that leaves us with a searching question.

Would You Follow If He Asked?

What would we do if God asked something difficult of us?

If God called you to live differently from the people around you, would you obey?

If He asked you to leave behind something comfortable, would you trust Him?

If He gave you words to speak that others might not want to hear, would you speak them?

If He called you to go somewhere unfamiliar, would you go?

Would you have one reason to obey—

or a million reasons not to?

Most of us will never be asked to wear camel’s hair, eat locusts and wild honey, or preach in the wilderness.

But every follower of Jesus will be asked to surrender something.

Our pride.

Our plans.

Our habits.

Our comfort.

Our need for approval.

Our desire to be noticed.

Our insistence upon doing life our own way.

Jesus Himself said:“If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” — Matthew 16:24

Following Jesus is not merely agreeing that He exists.

It is hearing His voice and responding to His call.

The Call to Repent

For those who have never repented, Jesus is still calling.

His call is not cruel.

It is not harsh.

It is the call of the One who came to save.

Jesus began His own ministry with these words:

“Repent ye, and believe the gospel.” — Mark 1:15

He calls us to turn away from sin and come to Him.

He offers forgiveness.

He offers new life.

He offers reconciliation with the Father.

He offers eternal life.

John prepared people for that message.

Repent.

Turn around.

Prepare your heart.

The King is coming.

The Shepherd Is Still Calling

And for those of us who have already answered that first call, another question remains:

Are we still listening?

Have we heard the daily call of the Shepherd?

Jesus said:

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” — John 10:27

Are we willing to leave what He asks us to leave?

Are we willing to change our thinking, our habits and our priorities?

Are we willing to become more like Christ?

To become like Christ, our hearts must learn to love what He loves.

To value what He values.

To desire what pleases Him.

To turn away from what grieves Him.

And this transformation is not something we accomplish through human strength alone.

Scripture tells us:

“It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” — Philippians 2:13

It is the quiet, faithful work of the Holy Spirit within us.

The same Holy Spirit who empowered John for the calling God had placed upon his life is still at work in believers today.

The question is not whether we look impressive.

The question is not whether we feel qualified.

The question is not whether others approve.

The question is whether we are willing.

The Vessel Is Not the Treasure

Paul later described something remarkably similar when he wrote:

“We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.” — 2 Corinthians 4:7

What a beautiful picture.

The vessel is not the Treasure.

John was the vessel.

Christ was the Treasure.

John was the messenger.

Christ was the One John wanted everyone to see.

The power was never in John’s camel-hair clothing.

It was never in his unusual diet.

It was never in his personality.

It was never in how many people came to hear him.

The power belonged to God.

And that remains true today.

May we never confuse the vessel with the Treasure.

May we never admire the servant more than the Master.

May we never trust the eloquence of a preacher more than the power of the Holy Spirit and the truth of God’s Word.

May our lives never draw attention away from Jesus.

May our words never make the messenger more memorable than the Message.

May we become less concerned with being noticed and more concerned with being faithful.

He Must Become Greater

Perhaps John has already given us the perfect prayer for all of this:

“He must increase, but I must decrease.” — John 3:30

Less of me.

More of Jesus.

Less concern about being seen.

More desire that He be seen.

Less concern about being admired.

More desire that He be glorified.

John did not make himself the attraction.

He simply obeyed God and pointed people to Christ.

May that also be true of us.

The Shepherd is still calling.

Are we listening?May we be able to say with John:

“He must increase, but I must decrease.”

The Shepherd is still calling.

Are we listening?

And when He calls us to follow,

are we truly willing to go?

Jesus & Mimi 🦋

If God calls, will I go? If obedience costs me something, will I still obey? If I am misunderstood or rejected, will I still speak what He gives me? Can I become less so that Christ becomes greater?

Isaiah 6:8 spirit: “Here am I. Send me!”