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The Gospel of John: The Voice in the Wild John 1:15-34

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  1. The Voice in the Wild

  2. John 1:15-34

    John 1:15–34

  3. When you’re driving to a place you’ve never been, road signs matter.

  4. But imagine pulling over, getting out of your car, and celebrating the sign:

  5. “Wow. Look at this sign. Incredible font. Great color. Let’s take a picture.”

  6. No one does that—because the sign isn’t the destination. It exists for one reason: to point you somewhere else.

  7. John the Baptist understood that. People kept asking him, “Who are you?” And he kept answering, “I’m not the point. I’m just the sign.”

  8. John knew his role wasn’t to attract attention—it was to direct attention. And in a world desperate for clarity, God is still looking for people willing to be signs. Today, be the voice in the wild—point others to Jesus.

  9. Last week we opened our study of John’s gospel seeing that Jesus is the Word, He is God, He is the creator of life, He is the light of the world. And that Jesus is God in the flesh.

  10. John 1:15-18

    John 1:15–18

  11. The apostle John now turns our attention to John the Baptist. But before introducing him fully, he does what John the Baptist himself always did—he points us to Jesus.

  12. John’s entire ministry had one purpose: to prepare the way for Christ and then get out of the way. From the very beginning, John made it clear that the One coming after him was greater—because He existed before him.

  13. This is the good news John announces: the Word became flesh and brought grace upon grace. What the law could not do because of our sin, God did by sending His Son. In Jesus, God did not remain distant—He made Himself known.

  14. Moses longed to see God and was only allowed a glimpse of His glory. But in Jesus, God came close enough to be seen, known, and followed. When we look at Jesus, we see exactly what God is like.

  15. John the Baptist’s role was simple but essential—to point people to the God who had come in the flesh.

  16. But when God shows up, not everyone celebrates. John’s message began to draw crowds, stir repentance, and disrupt the religious system. And when that happens, questions follow.

  17. So the religious leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask John a direct question: “Who are you?”

  18. That’s where we find ourselves in John 1:19.

    John 1:19

  19. John 1:19-28

    John 1:19–28

  20. They weren’t really curious about John—they were concerned about control.

  21. Who do you think you are? What authority do you have to do and teach these things? Are you the messiah? Are you Elijah returned? Are you the Prophet? All of which were associated with the coming of the messiah.

  22. But John wasn’t any of what the religious leaders expected. John answers, “I am not.” well who are you? John quotes from Isaiah, “I am a voice in the wilderness calling, make straight the way of the Lord.”

  23. John humbly says, I am not the messiah, I have come to prepare the way for the messiah. And He is here. He is greater than me and my baptism prepares the way for His baptism. Even though I am not the messiah He is here!

  24. John 1:29-34

    John 1:29–34

  25. The next day John sees Jesus coming. He knew now that Jesus is the one that he came to prepare the way for. The truth is that John knew this even before he was born. But John points the people to Jesus.

  26. Guys this is who I have been telling you about. This is him who I came to prepare the way for. Look, the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sins of the world!

  27. John knew for sure that Jesus was the messiah because he saw the spirit of God descend on Jesus when he baptized Jesus. He heard the voice of God declare this is my Son. Now John who had prepared the way for Jesus, now points everyone to Him. John becomes less so that Jesus can become greater.

  28. Now here’s why this matters for us. First we can learn to be humble like John.

  29. John 1:15

    John 1:15

  30. He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’

  31. John 1:27

    John 1:27

  32. He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”

  33. John 3:30

    John 3:30

  34. He must become greater; I must become less.”

  35. From the start John was humble, so that Jesus would be lifted up. Friends are we humble like John?

  36. Humility isn’t thinking less of yourself—it’s thinking of Jesus more and pointing others to Him. John’s humility showed up in real choices, real words, and real posture. So can ours.

  37. 1. Check Who You’re Competing With

  38. John knew Jesus “surpassed” him—and he wasn’t threatened by it.

  39. This week, pay attention to moments when you feel:

  40. • Overlooked

  41. • Replaced

  42. • Passed up

  43. • Unrecognized

  44. Instead of defending yourself or comparing, pray:

  45. “Jesus, help me celebrate what You’re doing—even if it’s not through me.”

  46. Humility begins when we stop seeing others’ success as our loss.

  47. 2. Lower Yourself in How You Serve

  48. John said he wasn’t worthy to untie Jesus’ sandals—the job of the lowest servant.

  49. Choose a hidden, inconvenient act of service this week:

  50. • Serve without posting

  51. • Help without being asked

  52. • Do something no one will notice

  53. Ask yourself:

  54. “Would I still do this if no one ever thanked me?”

  55. Pride looks for platforms. Humility looks for towels.

  56. 3. Change Your Language

  57. John consistently shifted attention away from himself and toward Jesus.

  58. Listen to how often you use:

  59. • “I”

  60. • “Me”

  61. • “My”

  62. Practice redirecting conversations:

  63. • “I’m grateful for what God is doing…”

  64. • “Jesus has been faithful in this…”

  65. • “Let me tell you what God taught me…”

  66. What we talk about reveals what we’re pointing to.

  67. 4. Practice Decreasing on Purpose

  68. “He must become greater; I must become less.” This didn’t happen accidentally—John chose it.

  69. Intentionally make space for Jesus to increase:

  70. • Start your day in Scripture before your phone

  71. • Fast from something that feeds your ego

  72. • Ask God daily: “Where do You want more of You and less of me today?”

  73. Spiritual growth doesn’t happen by addition—it happens by surrender.

  74. 5. Trust God With Your Recognition

  75. James 4:10

    James 4:10

  76. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

  77. Release your need to be noticed:

  78. • Stop self-promoting

  79. • Stop explaining yourself

  80. • Stop proving your worth

  81. Pray:

  82. “God, I trust You to lift me up in Your time—or keep me low for Your glory.”

  83. When we stop chasing recognition, we make room for resurrection power.

  84. That brings us to the second thing we learn from John. Not only was John humble, John was clear. He understood something we often forget: He was the witness to the Messiah—not the Messiah Himself.

  85. John never tried to keep people close to him. He never built a following around his personality. He didn’t make it about his ministry, his influence, or his platform.

  86. Instead, he consistently pointed away from himself and toward Jesus.

  87. “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

  88. That’s what witnesses do. They don’t create the story. They don’t save the day. They simply tell what they’ve seen and point to the One who can.

  89. And that’s exactly what Jesus calls us to be.

  90. Acts 1:8 says,

    Acts 1:8

  91. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…”

  92. Notice what Jesus does not say.

  93. He doesn’t say, you will be the Savior.

  94. He doesn’t say, you will fix everyone.

  95. He doesn’t say, you will have all the answers.

  96. He says, you will be My witnesses. Church, we are witnesses to the Savior—we are not the Savior. That truth should both humble us and free us.

  97. Jim Putman puts it this way:

  98. “God is not dependent on our perfection to win someone He is working on… We can't do God's part. We can't do the other person's part. We can only do our part.”

  99. That’s such good news.

  100. You don’t have to be perfect to point people to Jesus.

  101. You don’t have to have it all figured out.

  102. You don’t have to carry the weight of someone else’s salvation.

  103. Our job is not to change hearts. Our job is to point to the One who can.

  104. And our part—our simple, faithful part—is this:

  105. Point people to Jesus.

  106. That happens when all of us go out to build authentic relationships with the lost in our community and around the world and to communicate the gospel of Jesus. Each one reaching one.

  107. John didn’t save anyone—he simply pointed. And when people followed where he pointed, everything changed.

  108. So let me ask you plainly:

  109. Who are you pointing to Jesus right now?

  110. A coworker?

  111. A neighbor?

  112. A family member?

  113. A friend who’s far from God but close to you?

  114. John said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

  115. And friends, here’s the good news—

  116. If He can take away the sins of the world, He can take away yours.

  117. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says,

    2 Corinthians 5:21

  118. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

  119. And today, He is ready and willing to do that for you.

  120. If you’ve been trying to carry your sin…

  121. If you’ve been trying to fix yourself…

  122. If you’ve been trying to save yourself…

  123. You don’t have to anymore. Come put your trust in Jesus. Repent of your sins. Lay down the weight you were never meant to carry. And meet Him in baptism today.

  124. Don’t look to a preacher. Don’t look to a church. Don’t stop at the sign—follow where it points

  125. Look to the Lamb of God. He takes away sin. And He can take away yours—today.