The Chosen + BibleProject | Season 3 Reading PlanPrøve

Jesus’ fiery, zealous cousin, John the Baptizer, starts out in the gospel stories as an intensely committed supporter of Jesus. When Jesus first shows up, he falls to his knees, saying he shouldn’t even touch Jesus’ sandals because he’s so unworthy. Jesus doesn’t accept this treatment from John and instead asks John to baptize him in the river. This is the first moment when John begins to realize that Jesus is not going to fit into his expectations. Still, John declares that Jesus is the “Lamb of God” (John 1:29), and he preaches favorably about him.

Why, then, does John come to a place where he wonders if he had it all wrong about Jesus? Have you ever felt that way, like Jesus isn’t really showing up the way you had hoped? John sends his apprentices to get some answers, and Jesus’ reply is like a window into God’s own heart. We look at him, and we’re seeing the one true God, even if the picture is difficult to understand at first.

Why is John confused about Jesus’ identity? What is Jesus doing or not doing that makes him wonder if he truly is the Christ, the anointed one whom the prophets predicted? It may have something to do with the things Jesus didn't do as the anointed one.

One thing Jesus did not do is wage war with Rome, Israel’s occupying oppressors. He did not put together a military force or even speak out against Rome. Instead, he goes around loving and caring for all people, enemies included. John is looking for someone to claim the title “Messiah” (which is the same as “Christ”) by leading a political revolution. But Jesus responds to John’s messengers with an Old Testament phrase: Tell him “what you hear and see.” This phrase often accompanies statements about the time of salvation. Jesus doesn’t need to claim a title; his actions prove well enough who he is and what he’s about. He explains that this is the time the prophets talked about.

“Go and tell John what you hear and see,” Jesus says to John’s apprentices. “The blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news proclaimed to them. Blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”Jesus is telling John the Baptizer that he is the anointed one without telling him that he is the anointed one. His hope is that John, as well as other onlookers (including us), would be able to see that he is the true Messiah, rescuing his people from the forces of death and destruction.

Jesus didn’t meet the people’s expectations of the messiah winning a violent war against Rome. And Jesus probably doesn’t meet all of our own expectations about what he should do or how he should do it. And that’s okay because the thing he is doing is far greater than John the Baptizer or anyone else could imagine.

Reflection Questions

1. When John asks if Jesus is truly “the one to come,” he’s asking if Jesus is the anointed one, or the Messiah. After watching the BibleProject video about anointing, what new thoughts or questions do you have about anointing? What do you find most challenging about this description?
2. John needed Jesus to remind him that “anointed one” doesn’t just mean “cosmic priest” or “heavenly king.” It also speaks to the way that this powerful ruler will operate. As the anointed one who was to come, Jesus acts according to God’s life-giving Spirit. How does Jesus’ response to John help to recalibrate John’s (and our) expectations about how God is working in the world today?