Dr. John Goetsch: Declaring the Gospel—John the Baptist

take your bible let's go to john chapter 1 if you will john chapter 1. as pastor mentioned we're going to look at the life of john the baptist and his declaration of the gospel and we'll look at several passages today so keep your bible handy but we'll start here in john chapter 1 and look with me at verse number 6. the bible says there was a man sent from god whose name was john the same came for a witness to bear witness of the light that all men through him might believe he john the baptist was not that light but was sent to bear witness of that light every christian in this room this morning has something very much in common with john the baptist now it's probably not your taste in attire nor your appetite for food the bible tells us in mark chapter 1 and verse 6 that john was clothed with camel's hair and with a girdle of skin around his loins and he did eat locusts and wild honey quite the guy i had the privilege of serving with evangelist joe boyd for a couple of years early in my ministry and dr boyd was an evangelist and i got to travel with him as his assistant and every week in churches where he'd preach he would do a john the baptist contest and he would take the adults on one side and the teens on the other side and and he would get them all excited about bringing visitors to the revival and so it was the teens against the adults it was a john the baptist contest and the loser the captain of the losing team he was the captain of one team i was the captain of the other team the loser had to eat dried grasshoppers a john the baptist meal now dr boyd was very competitive he was an all-american football player at texas a m won the national championship in 1939 and he was competitive and it just no matter what i did i always lost i think it had something to do with his math and counting every night but i always lost some some weeks he'd take the adults i'd take the teens the other weeks he'd take the teens i'd take the adults but he had a uncanny ability to figure out who was going to win before it started and i always lost and i had to eat those dried grasshoppers most terrible things i've ever eaten in my life most bitter taste i've ever put in my mouth i can't imagine this man john the baptist wearing camel's hair and a loin skin around his loins and eating wild locusts and honey i don't think we have much in common along those lines but what we have in common is our message our message of declaring the gospel in fact in verse 7 the next verse in mark chapter 1 the bible says and john preached saying there cometh one mightier than i after me whose shoelachet i am not worthy to stoop down and unloose john's whole ministry his whole purpose in life was to introduce the messiah to introduce jesus christ to this world john's purpose was to declare the gospel to declare christ as the savior for the world you know the world needs some john the baptist christians today you may be a bit odd to your neighbors you may look different than someone else you may seem a bit eccentric at times you may not always follow the norm of society but the world needs christians today who don't care how the world labels them the world needs christians today that don't care about the stereotypes of church-going people or how we're treated or who will like us but the world needs christians who will declare the gospel are you wanting to be someone the world likes or do you desire to be someone the world needs let's look today at three levels of commitment in the life of john the baptist as he declares the gospel three levels of commitment first we see john's humble place in ministry look at verse 19 here of john chapter 1. this is the record of john when the jews sent priests and levites from jerusalem to ask him who art thou and he confessed and denied not but confessed i am not the christ and they asked him what then art thou elias and he says i'm not art thou that prophet he answered no then said they unto him who art thou that we may give an answer to them that sent us what sayest thou of thyself he said i am the voice of one crying in the wilderness makes straight the way of the lord as said the prophet isaias and they which were sent were of the pharisees and they asked him and said unto him why baptist why baptize us thou then if thou be not that christ nor elias neither that prophet john answered them saying i baptize with water but there standeth one among you whom ye know not he it is who coming after me is preferred before me whose shoes latchets i am not worthy to unloose these things were done in betharaba beyond jordan where john was baptizing the next day john seeth jesus coming unto him and saith behold the lamb of god which taketh away the sin of the world this is he whom i said after me cometh a man which is preferred before me for he was before me and i knew him not but that he should be made manifest to israel therefore am i come baptizing with water now in this introduction to the life of john the baptist here in john we see his humble place of ministry we see a self-denial in verse number 20 he declares plainly i'm not the christ they were looking for the messiah during these days they were counting on this one that was going to deliver them and some perhaps thought this is he this must be the one and john said no i'm not the christ i am the voice he said in verse 3 of one crying verse 23 of one crying in the wilderness makes straight the way of the lord in verse number eight we saw it in our text he said he was not that light but came to bear witness of that light later on in chapter 3 he said he must increase i must decrease he that cometh from heaven is above all you see he was he was living a life of self-denial today we live in an age of self-exaltation we live in a day of the selfie people can't take a picture of anything anymore without being in it it's amazing to watch people take pictures they have to be in the picture the new buzzword now is self-care we've got to take time off from work to have self-care amazing can you imagine peter coming to jesus one day with james and john he said lord uh the three of us have been talking do you think we could have a couple days off for some self-care i don't think they would have asked that because jesus said if any man will come after me let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me you see we live in a world today that's all about self it's all about worshiping the creature rather than the creator it's all about us and we're concerned about self today but the message that john had and the message that we have today is not hey come and see lancaster baptist church hey come and see our preacher hey come and hear our choir hey come and look at our buildings no the message is not us we preach not ourselves but christ jesus the lord and ourselves your servants for jesus sake self always wants to exert itself it always wants to exalt itself it also wants to eva elevate itself all the time we're worried about self instead of self care we need self crucifixion i am crucified with christ paul said nevertheless i live yet not i but christ liveth in me and the life that i now live in the flesh i live by the faith the son of god who loved me and gave himself for me we see in john a self-denial but notice also a singular direction in verse 29 behold the lamb of god john's message was pretty simple jesus a savior the messiah the one that will die for you the one that will shed his blood for you the one that will go to a cross and redeem you from your sins the message of john was a singular direction look at verse 35 here in chapter 1 then jesus turned and saw them following and said unto them what seek i'm sorry verse 35 and again the next day after john stood and two of his disciples these are john's disciples and looking upon jesus as he walked he john saith behold the lamb of god and the two disciples heard him speak and they followed jesus let's think about this for a minute here's john the baptist he's had an amazing ministry to this point he has hundreds of followers and one day as he's standing there with two of his disciples jesus walked by and john says to his two disciples two of his followers behold the lamb of god and those two disciples followed him when people get around us do they desire to follow us or do they desire to follow jesus a singular direction in a world today that prides itself with how many followers we have about being one of the influencers on social media john the baptist was telling his followers stop following me follow him follow jesus you see friends jesus is the answer we're not the answer church is not the answer religion's not the answer jesus is the answer i even i am the lord beside me there is no savior jesus saith unto them i am the way the truth and the life no man cometh unto the father but by me neither is there salvation in any other for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved whosoever shall call upon the name of the lord shall be saved believe on the lord jesus christ and thou shalt be saved as many as received him to them gave he power to become the sons of god even them that believe on his name he that hath the son hath everlasting life he that believeth not the son shall not see life but the wrath of god abideth on him god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have ever last in life that's the gospel jesus says the gospel jesus is the answer paul said moreover i declare unto you the gospel by which also you are saved if you keep in memory what i preached unto you unless you believed in vain for i delivered unto you first of all that which i also received how that christ died for our sins according to the scriptures how that he was buried how that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures it's all about him friends a singular direction christianity salvation having your sins forgiven going to heaven it's all about a person and that person is the lord jesus christ end of sentence end of story end of book john's humble place in ministry but notice secondly this morning john's heated principles in ministry turn if you will to matthew chapter 14 in your bible let's see another account of this man by the name of john the baptist now this account takes place a little bit later after john and it involves herod and the bible says in verse 1 of chapter 14 of matthew at that time herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of jesus and he said unto his servants this is john the baptist he's risen from the dead and therefore mighty works do show forth themselves in him see john the baptist at the time of this account in matthew chapter 14 is dead and all of a sudden jesus is doing these powerful miracles he's preaching this powerful message and herod is thinking who is this guy this reminds me of someone the the you know from history this reminds me of john the baptist ah is he risen from the dead and and herod is is is kind of trying to figure this out so now in matthew chapter 14 here the bible goes back in verse 3 and following and reminds us how john the baptist died look at verse 3 for herod had laid hold on john and bound him and put him in prison for herodius his brother philip's wife sake for john said unto him is not lawful for thee to have her and when he would have put him to death he feared the multitude because they counted him as a prophet but when herod's birthday was kept the daughter of herodias danced before them and pleased herod whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask and she being before instructed by her mother said give me here john baptist head in a charger and the king was sorry nevertheless for the old sake and them which sat with him at meade he commanded it to be given her and he sent and beheaded john in the prison and his head was brought in a charger and given to the damsel and she brought it to her mother and his disciples came and took up the body and buried it and went and told jesus notice john's hated principles in ministry we see here a principled conviction you know the world doesn't care as long as we're talking about heaven or we're talking about love or we're talking about peace we're talking about joy the world's fine with our message but culture doesn't want you preaching against sins john the baptist preached against herod's adultery he took someone else's wife and john called him on it this wasn't john's preference about marriage this wasn't john's personal persuasion about what he thought his preaching against this act of adultery was based on the precepts of god's word for john the baptist knew god's word and the ten commandments are pretty plain when it comes to adultery thou shalt not commit adultery do you have a commitment to god's word do you have a commitment to god's word no matter how contradictory it is in your culture because with every passing day this is getting more controversial in our culture what you and i are called to declare is getting more and more contradictory to the way people are living and many christians today they don't want to they don't want to take up this man until john the baptist they they want they don't want to anger the culture let's just talk about love let's just talk about forgiveness let's just overlook all this other stuff we don't want to name sin anymore adultery drunkenness drugs lying cheating pornography gossip pride laziness homosexuality greed oh boy now people are getting nervous the internet's blowing up as i speak when we declare god's truth it's going to fly in the face of a culture that's living contrary to that truth you see the word of god is quick it's powerful it's sharper than any two-edged sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit and of the joints and marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart today we want a bible that accommodates our sin we want a message in church that makes us feel good about our sin we want the church to pat us on the back say we love you we want a bible that kind of vacillates with us just kind of rolls with the culture but the bible has already stated its position the grass withers the flower fadeth but the words of our god shall stand forever heaven and earth shall pass away but my words shall not pass away forever o lord thy word is settled in heaven thy word is true from the beginning every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever it's easier for heaven and earth to pass than one tittle of the law to fail you see the scriptures john said cannot be broken here was a principled conviction and it was coupled with a predetermined commitment john died for declaring the truth john was beheaded for simply following one statement in the old testament thou shalt not commit adultery and he wasn't going to cave or compromise on that statement regardless of who was on the throne if we're unwilling to die for what we believe then i'm not sure we really believe it and in this culture today we better be ready to die for what we declare it's fun to talk about declaring hey let's get the message out hey let's declare the gospel it's wonderful we get excited about it we better be ready to die for what we declare the apostle paul as pastor preached about last week he was he he and his friends turned the world upside down with the gospel because they were willing to die for what they declared i mean they came to paul his friends came to paul one day and they said paul don't go down to jerusalem they'll throw you in jail if you go down there you know what paul said what meaning to weep and break my heart i'm ready not only to be bound to jerusalem but also to die for the lord jesus you see he said in acts 20 none of these things move me neither count on my life dear unto myself that i might finish my course with joy and the ministry which i have received of the lord jesus to testify of the gospel the grace of god for to me to live is christ to die that's a promotion i'll take it i am now ready to be offered he wrote timothy in second timothy 4 and verse 6. i'm ready to be offered that word offered that comes from the the root word marty ology it has the idea of martyrdom paul knew he could hear the clinking of the chains of the soldiers they came to his cell to take him off to be beheaded paul said i'm ready to be offered i fought a good fight i finished my course i have kept the faith a predetermined commitment we see john's humble place of ministry we see john's hated principles in ministry but i love this last point john's heavenly praise for ministry maybe what i'm preaching this morning is discouraging you you're thinking boy i don't think i signed up for this i'm not sure i'm quite ready for this we'll turn to luke chapter 7. luke chapter 7 see one more account today with me in the life of john luke chapter 7. and let's read a little bit starting in verse number 10. i'm sorry verse 18. luke chapter 7 and verse 18. and the disciples of john showed him of all these things and john calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to jesus saying art thou he that should come or look we for another when the men were come unto him they said john baptist has sent us unto thee saying aren't thou he that should come or look we for another and in the same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues and of evil spirits and many that were blind he gave sight then jesus answered and said unto them go your way and tell john what things you have seen and heard how that the blind see the lame walk the lepers are cleansed the deaf hear the dead are raised to the poor the gospel is preached and blessed is he whosoever shall not be offended in me and when the messengers of john were departed he began to speak unto the people concerning john what went out into the wilderness for the sea a reed shaken with the wind what went he out for to see a man clothed in soft raiment behold they which are gorgeously appareled and live delicately are in king's courts but what went he out for to see a prophet yea i say unto you much more than a prophet this is he of whom it is written behold i send my messenger before thy face which shall prepare thy way before thee for i say unto you among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than john the baptist but he that is least in the kingdom of god is greater than he we see here in john the baptist a wavering confidence john is discouraged john is beginning to wonder was he really the messiah by the way it's not wrong to talk about the human side of this we're all humans we all have vulnerabilities we all have weaknesses we are all prone to wander lord i feel it we're sheep and sheep tend to go astray the trials the difficulties the temptations in life oftentimes batter us they batter our minds they batter our hearts and we wonder is this worth it it's really going to pay off is this really the way to live is god real is the bible true is jesus really coming back amen is there really a heaven the psalmist wrote of his vulnerability he says but for me but as for me my feet were almost gone my steps had well and i slipped for i was envious at the at the foolish when i saw the prosperity of the wicked you ever looked around and thought why why do all these people that commit all these crimes why are they being rewarded why why are these people that are living contrary to god's word why do they seem to prosper why do they seem to get all the breaks and here i am trying to be faithful to god i'm trying to serve god i'm trying to go to church i'm trying to read my bible i'm trying to be faithful in my witness to my family and friends and it just seems like time after time after time it just ends up hitting a brick wall the psalmist in that passage said when i thought to know this it was too painful for me until i went into the sanctuary of my god then i understood the end and that's what john's doing here john is is wavering john is is vulnerable he's being attacked what does he do he sends messengers to jesus go and ask him go and ask him art thou the christ he said in verse 19 ask him art thou the one that we're looking for do we seek someone else are you the messiah or not and we see a witness confirmation you know it's interesting jesus never answers the question the messengers came and said hey john wants to know are you the messiah or not are you the one we're looking for or not i mean that was the question john gave him a specific question to go ask jesus and they asked jesus but jesus never answered the question in verse 21 when jesus was asked that question it says in the same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues and have evil spirits and unto many there that were blind he gave sight then jesus answered and said to them go your way and tell john what things you have seen and heard how the blind see the lame walk the lepers are cleansed the deaf here the dead are raised and the poor of the and to the poor the gospel is preached seems like a kind of roundabout answer to the question why did jesus respond this way because he knew john the baptist was a person of this book they asked jesus are you the messiah or not john wants to know and jesus ignores the question he heals some more of the sick touches the eyes more of the blind helps the lepers walk then he says go tell john what you've seen and heard tell them how the blind see the deaf here the lame walk the gospel is being preached and he knew that would be all john needed because john had read isaiah chapter 32 in isaiah chapter 45 where it said the messiah would open the eyes of the blind he would open the ears of the deaf he'd make the lame walk and he preached the gospel of the poor you know some of you are discouraged this morning because all you do is watch the news how much times you spend in here this week you'll never be encouraged by the good or bad in politics you'll never be encouraged by the uptick of of things morally or whatever in this country you've got to get your encouragement from this book john the baptist that's all the answer he needed that confirmation when it came back to him they said jesus didn't answer the question he just said to tell you that we saw some blame being healed we saw the black and john said thank you it's him because that's what they said he would do and a lot of this stuff that's going on in this culture right now it all makes sense when you read this i mean are we really surprised at what's happening it's all right here evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse deceiving and be deceived but continue thou the things you've learned been assured of knowing of whom you've learned them get in your bible we fear all this controversy all this all this uncertainty all this chaos as the rain cometh down the snow from heaven and returneth not thither but watereth the earth and maketh that bring forth and bud so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth it shall not return unto me void it shall accomplish that which i please and prosper in the thing where to i sent it every promise god ever gave every prophecy god ever gave in this book it has come true or will come true you can have confidence in this book you don't need to read the news get rid of that news app on your phone get a bible app get in this book it's all happening just as he said it would happen how in the world is the antichrist going to take over this world if this stuff doesn't happen it'll happen right on schedule our job is to be faithful to god and look at the worthy commendation the lord gives him in verse 28 i say unto you among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than john the baptist wow you think of the prophets i mean you think about elijah that pretty great guy elisha isaiah jeremiah there were some amazing prophets in the old testament but jesus said there's none of a there's not a greater prophet born of women than john the baptist why did he say that you know why because john the baptist declared the gospel john the baptist was the prophet that came right before christ and john the baptist was the forerunner he was the voice he was the one crying in the wilderness make straight the way of the lord john the baptist had that unique privilege of declaring jesus christ and that's our privilege this morning the only thing that will matter when it's all over friends is what god says about us you can live your 70 years for the applause of man if you wish or you can live your 70 years here on earth to hear that affirmation well done from the one that really matters i know the world laughs at the gospel that doesn't surprise me because jesus said they would the preaching of the cross is them that perish foolishness the world laughs at the gospel but the question is do you want to be in heaven someday or do you want to be in hell someday maybe your friends can laugh you out of heaven but they can't laugh you out of hell the world laughs at us we're going to church today the world laughs at our message the world laughs at this salvation in jesus christ they laughed but do you want to go to heaven or do you want to go to hell christian the culture thinks we're crazy culture thinks that that people like us we have problems we we we are sick we need help they're labeling us all kinds of things just like they did john the baptist they thought he was crazy but do you want the praise of god or the praise of men there's only two choices on the cell on the shelf pleasing god or pleasing self i miss brother weaver he always sat right back here with his wife dee the weaver is a great man went home to be with the lord this summer i thought about him a lot this summer the weaver got quite ill last year lost a lot of weight as some of you know it's hardly recognizable honestly the last service brother weaver attended lancaster baptist church was in january long after everybody went home brother weaver came to the lobby and like said i it was just hard to comprehend what was happening in his body so quickly now remember he he said brilliance my family told me not to come today the doctors told me not to come today but he said i haven't missed a revival meeting in this church since i started coming he said i don't really care anymore what the doctors say or my friends say i only care about what god says a john the baptist and god's looking for more he's looking for you do you want to be the kind of christian the world likes or do you want to be the kind of christian the world needs the world needs john the baptist christians

Channel: Lancaster Baptist Church

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Rating: 4.8518519 out of 5

Keywords: lancaster baptist church, lancaster baptist, baptist church, paul, chappell, paul chappell, pastor paul chappell, Dr. John Goetsch, John 1

Id: p_fRFS70jS8

Length: 37min 54sec (2274 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 18 2021