A Jot about John

John the Baptist

Matthew 11:1-19, Luke 7:18-35

In Matthew 11:2-3, John the Baptist sends his apostles to go to Jesus Christ. He tells them to ask Him the following question:

"Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?"

Or maybe in other words: John asked us to see if you really are the Christ, or should we just keep looking? This is very confusing to a lot of folks. They wonder: 'did John really second guess the Savior?' However, the question is not as important, as is the reason behind it.

At that time, the apostles clung on very hard to John as a prophet. They were obedient and faithful, but had a hard time letting go of him and attaching to Christ. By John sending them out to Christ to ask this question, it actually gave those men the ability to see for themselves. John the Baptist knew that if they were able to see Him, and witness is divinity, that they would gain a knowledge sufficient to reroute their loyalty. And it did exactly that: Christ performed miracles, taught and gave blessings. He spoke directly to them, with all the wisdom, humility and patience you would expect. Then they left to go find John.

If I had been in their shoes, I would have run straight over to John, and would probably have been freaking out. I can't imagine how they felt, or how they contained themselves! I would first describe to John the feeling that filled my heart when Christ spoke right to me, as he testified of His divine role.  Then I would try to describe the directness, love and the meaning that is hidden within His words. And lastly, I would tell John all about the miracles that I had witnessed: people healed, taught and administered to. I can't imagine how those two apostles felt after being there to witness all of that!

Later on in Matthew 11, after those two apostles left, Christ proceeded to tell the multitudes of people about John. In verse 11, he told them that "Among them that are born of women thee hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist...." Joseph Smith explained this with three reasons:

“First. He was entrusted with a divine mission of preparing the way before the face of the Lord. Whoever had such a trust committed to him before or since? No man.

“Secondly. He was entrusted with the important mission, and it was required at his hands, to baptize the Son of Man. Whoever had the honor of doing that? Whoever had so great a privilege and glory? Whoever led the Son of God into the waters of baptism, and had the privilege of beholding the Holy Ghost descend in the form of a dove, or rather in the sign of the dove, in witness of that administration? The sign of the dove was instituted before the creation of the world, a witness for the Holy Ghost, and the devil cannot come in the sign of a dove. The Holy Ghost is a personage, and is in the form of a personage. It does not confine itself to the form of the dove, but in sign of the dove. The Holy Ghost cannot be transformed into a dove; but the sign of a dove was given to John to signify the truth of the deed, as the dove is an emblem or token of truth and innocence.

“Thirdly. John, at that time, was the only legal administrator in the affairs of the kingdom there was then on the earth, and holding the keys of power. The Jews had to obey his instructions or be damned, by their own law; and Christ Himself fulfilled all righteousness in becoming obedient to the law which He had given to Moses on the mount, and thereby magnified it and made it honorable, instead of destroying it. The son of Zacharias wrested the keys, the kingdom, the power, the glory from the Jews, by the holy anointing and decree of heaven, and these three reasons constitute him the greatest prophet born of a woman."

I talked to my mom, who is a a wealth of knowledge of all things scripture, because I didn't understand what was meant by #3 of Joseph Smith's reasoning. She explained to me that in those days, the Law of Moses was still in affect. The Law of Moses, she said, was initially created by God, but the leaders down the line added their own laws and requirements. Because there was not separation of church and state, John was recognized as someone that they were legally liable to. This, as Joseph Smith and my mom said, was only upheld by the Jews. Now, not only was John the Baptist a legal authority, but he also held the keys to the Aaronic Priesthood for the power of Baptism. Thus, mom explained, John was a legal administer, as well as a spiritual leader. Thank goodness for Moms!

I can see why his apostles were so deeply attached to him! They witnessed him fulfill his callings in life, and saw his great work. They probably loved John for his sacrifices and his faith. And still, John needed to help them to love and respect Jesus as the Christ. 

Finally, in complete humility, John, in verse 30 of chapter 3, says:

"He must increase, and I must decrease"

He knew that his disciples would not stop clinging to him, but he knew that he needed them to follow and have faith in Jesus Christ. And so... he knew that he needed to fall back and let the Savior take the lead.

This is a great example for all of us of perfect humility. Do we let the Savior have the total lead in our lives? Do we allow Him to increase, while we decrease our own will? I think this is a particularly hard thing to do for our generation. It is much easier to trust a Google search, than it is to listen for the quiet whisperings of the Holy Ghost as it so reverently sends us the answers to our questions.

I am grateful for the work of John the Baptist, and for his different callings to prepare the world for the Savior. I am especially grateful for Jesus Christ, and for the feeling that I get in my heart when I read His words. I know that He is my Savior, because I can feel it when I take the time to study.

And thank you mom!