Christ’s Introduction
v19. (Is 40:3)
v21. The Prophet is also the Messiah.
v25. Why did John baptize? Where did it come from? (Zech 13:1, Ez 36:25)
v27. The role of a minister is to direct people to Christ.
v29. Jesus was returning from 40 days and nights in the wilderness, where He had been tempted. John had baptized Him previous to that.
Lamb of God – John was saying that Jesus would be the atoning sacrifice. (Col 2:14-15)
v30. Jesus was younger that John, but this speaks for Jesus’ eternal being (divine nature).
v31-33. John did not know that Jesus was the Messiah until he saw a sign. This marks the beginning of Christ’s ministry.
v34. (Matt 3:13-17)
First Followers
v37. They gave up themselves to be ruled and taught by Jesus. We are supposed to do the same thing.
v38. They wanted more time to get to know Jesus.
v39. Do you think He had the best accommodations? No. They would see that there were no riches or material worth to gain by following Him.
The KJV translates stay to dwell. Christ’s actual dwelling is the throne of God. Could this also have been Jesus saying, come and I will show you the way to the Kingdom of God?
v48. How did Jesus know this in His human nature? The Holy Spirit.
v51. Like Jacob’s ladder. Jacob has that dream while he was being driven out of the land because Esau wanted to kill him for taking his birthright. Esau was the firstborn. In the dream Jacob sees God at the top of a ladder connected to him, with angels ascending and descending. What does the dream mean? This is God’s promise to Jacob to be with him and to bring him back into the land, and that God would protect him. Jacob then goes to a foreign land, finds a wife and then comes back with his wife and an entourage. He finds that Esau has been reconciled. It seems from O.T. records, that the second born son usually gets the blessing (i.e. Able, Isaac, Jacob, etc.). (Ex 4:22) If Israel is God’s firstborn, what does that make Jesus? His second born son. Does this sound strangely familiar? The second born with the blessing, being driven out of the land because His brother kills Him. He then goes to a foreign land, takes a wife and returns with a great multitude. He is then reconciled to His brother.
Jesus is the ladder!