John 1: 31 I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 Then John testified, “I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. 33 I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.”
Recognition (def) - acknowledgment of something's existence, validity, or legality. Jesus is the Son of God, but the religious leaders missed Him. Here is what they were thinking would happen according to their interpretation of prophecy. Isaiah 9:6 For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen! John was preparing the way for the entrance of the Messiah and yet, He almost missed Him because Jesus did not look any different from others in line to be baptized by him. John says this in verse 31 31 I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.
John was looking for him and doing his part until God revealed the Messiah. The way John could recognize the Messiah was for the Spirit to descend upon Him, and until that happened, John would not be able to recognize the Messiah. The religious leaders looked beyond the appearance of the Messiah to what the Messiah would do when he came, and so they missed Him then and even today. If Jesus were to walk in your church service today, would you recognize Him? If He walked in His pre-glorified look, we might miss Him because He would look like you and me. We recognize Jesus in our midst by Him being revealed through the Holy Spirit. This all gets a little muddy when thinking about it all, but we can rely on scripture to make sense of it all because, like John, God speaks to us and tells us how to recognize the Messiah when He is in our midst.
Jesus shows himself to two followers walking to the village of Emmaus and scripture says He suddenly came and began walking with them. The following verses speak to this. Luke 24: 13 That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them. 16 But God kept them from recognizing him.
God did not allow them to recognize Jesus, and this was after the resurrection. Their conversation with each other is a poignant reminder that we sometimes miss Jesus when He is in our midst and we don't recognize Him, maybe because we aren't looking for Him. You may say, "Why do I need to look for Jesus?" I have to say, "Because God wants us to." Further, in the verse of Luke 24, Jesus says this to the two men walking to Emmaus 25. Then Jesus said to them, “You foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures. 26 Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?” 27 Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
The Son of God took them through all the Scriptures, foretelling His coming. The very Word of God was telling them the Word of God!! They did not recognize Jesus walking with them, but then here is what happened in verses 30-31 30. As they sat down to eat, he blessed the bread. Then he broke it and gave it to them. 31 Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And at that moment, he disappeared! Jesus wasn't through revealing Himself, and this meeting with the two on the road to Emmaus was a precursor to Jesus revealing himself to all the disciples in the following scripture 35 Then the two from Emmaus told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road, and how they had recognized him as he was breaking the bread. 36 And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. 37 But the whole group was startled and frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost! 38 “Why are you frightened?” he asked. “Why are your hearts filled with doubt? 39 Look at my hands. Look at my feet. You can see that it’s really me. Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost, because ghosts don’t have bodies, as you see that I do.” 40 As he spoke, he showed them his hands and his feet.
All that God said would happen did happen. God told John that the Spirit would descend on the Messiah, and the Holy Spirit descended like a dove. Jesus walks with two on the road to Emmaus and then appears to all the disciples. they think He is a ghost, and Jesus says to them the above scripture in verse 39. Do you recognize Jesus working in your life? Do you recognize Jesus working in your church? Do you recognize Jesus working in our world? We need to have our eyes opened to the truth of what God tells us in His Word. If you study the Word of God, you will have your eyes opened to the big picture of God working among us, and you will recognize what He is doing if you just believe. The writer of Hebrews says it this way in Hebrews 11:1 Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. 2 Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation. 3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.
We talk a lot of Jesus talk, but perhaps it is time to recognize that we are part of His plan and accept His call to follow Him as the Spirit leads. John 15: 26 “But I will send you the Advocate—the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me. 27 And you must also testify about me because you have been with me from the beginning of my ministry. That Advocate is God, and it is because of the blood of Jesus that we can even realize the power of this Advocate. You have been made right with God, but God has bigger plans than just "knowing" this truth. We are to live in light of this great truth from God's Word. You were made for more, and the more is recognizing the Messiah is present and working through His followers. PRESENT TENSE. Do you recognize the Savior? Look for Him as God says to look for Him, and like John, you will see Him. Then, acknowledge Him by pointing others to Him, just like John the Baptist did.
Today's Message
David Warren
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