Jesus Reassures John

Luke 7:18-23

¹⁸The disciples of John reported to him about all these things.

 ¹⁹Summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, "Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?"

 ²⁰When the men came to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, to ask, 'Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?'"

 ²¹At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind.

 ²²And He answered and said to them, "Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM.

 ²³"Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me."

Although John the Baptist had declared that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah, things hadn’t panned out the way he expected.  For one thing, John was sitting in a dank, dark prison (Matt. 11:2).  Like many Jews of his time, John expected a triumphant Messiah who would overthrow Rome and reign over the entire Earth.  However, this was not Christ’s mission during His life here on Earth.  Jesus was building the foundation of the kingdom of God, a spiritual kingdom and not an earthly empire.  Therefore, doubt began to creep into John’s mind because of his messianic misconceptions and false expectations.

Often, we as Christians become disappointed because God does not meet our false expectations of Him.  We must understand that the will of God supersedes our idea of how things should be.  This is why it is crucial for us to continually test our beliefs and assumptions about God against the scriptures.  In this way our minds can be renewed and we will better know the revealed will of God, avoiding the doubts which can arise from false expectations.

Jesus tells the disciples to tell John about the signs being performed: the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead live, and the good news is preached to the poor.  These were no random set of miracles, they were predicted to be a part of the Messiah’s ministry by the prophet Isaiah (Is. 356:5-6, 61:1), and gave testimony that Jesus was indeed the Expected One. Jesus then encourages John not to lose heart, because anyone who is not ashamed of Jesus, the humble, suffering savior, is truly blessed.

Luke 7:24-30

²⁴ After John's messengers left, He began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swaying in the wind? ²⁵ What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft robes? Look, those who are splendidly dressed  and live in luxury are in royal palaces. ²⁶ What then did you go out to see? A prophet?  Yes, I tell you, and far more than a prophet. 2⁷ This is the one it is written about:

    Look, I am sending My messenger ahead of You;  he will prepare Your way before You.

²⁸ I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John,  but the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." ²⁹ (And when all the people, including the tax collectors, heard this, they acknowledged God's way of righteousness, [d] because they had been baptized with John's baptism.  ³⁰ But since the Pharisees and experts in the law  had not been baptized by him, they rejected the plan of God for themselves.)

Jesus had nothing but praise for John.  What did the people go out into the wilderness of the Jordan to see?  A fickle, wavering man whose message changed with the wind of popular opinion? A man dressed in fine clothes?  No, they went to see a prophet of God boldly proclaiming God’s word.  John was more than a mere prophet.  He was privileged above all the other prophets because it was he who announced the arrival of the expected Messiah.  The common people and the despised tax collectors were the ones who accepted John’s message of repentance, but the Pharisees and religious leaders had rejected God’s message given through John.

Luke 7:31-35

³¹ "To what then should I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to each other:

    We played the flute for you, but you didn't dance; we sang a lament,but you didn't weep!

    ³³ For John the Baptist did not come eating bread or drinking wine,  and you say, 'He has a demon!' ³⁴ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!  ³⁵ Yet wisdom is vindicated  by all her children."

Although John and Jesus had the same message, their ministries were opposite in approach.  John led a life of rigid abstinence, dwelling in the wilderness on a diet of locusts and honey.  The Pharisees rejected John and accused him of being possessed by a demon.  Jesus on the other hand,  ate and drank as a normal man, and the Pharisees called Him a glutton.  Ironically, the very qualities the Pharisees wished to see in Christ’s ministry were prominent in John’s, whom they had rejected.  Like little children who did not want to play wedding or play funeral, they were discontent and unbelieving, which revealed the hardness of their hearts.