"Not Me, But Him": Pointing the world to Jesus
January 2, 2025 - Thursday, Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church
John 1:19-28
Every Gospel begins with the figure of John the Baptist. In the Gospel of Luke, his conception precedes that of Jesus, and in all the Gospels, his ministry prepares the people for the ministry of Jesus. John was the last of the Old Testament prophets and more than a prophet. He was the messenger of the Almighty, commissioned to prepare the way for the coming of God’s Son (see Luke 7:26).
The interrogation of John the Baptist in John 1:19–28 underscores the profound impact of his ministry. An official delegation, including priests, Levites, and likely Pharisees, was sent from Jerusalem to question his identity. The fact that John himself, as noted in Luke 1:5, belonged to the priestly tribe of Levi adds further significance to the inquiry. Their question, “Who are you?” stemmed from the people's growing expectation of the Messiah, as seen in Luke 3:15: “All were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ.”
The word Christ is the Greek rendering of the Hebrew word Messiah, meaning “anointed one.” In the Old Testament, two main groups were anointed before undertaking their service: kings and priests. After the Jewish nation ceased to exist in 586 BC, the Jewish people placed their hope in the coming of a unique anointed figure—a “Messiah”—who would restore the kingdom and reestablish legitimate worship in the temple.
The term Christ also links the Gospel to the first reading from the First Letter of John (1 John 2:22–28). While John the Baptist denied being the Christ and pointed everyone to Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah, some early Christians denied that Jesus was the Christ (see 1 John 2:22). The contradiction is striking: the Jewish prophet directs us to Jesus, while some within the Christian community mislead others away from Him. John the Baptist declares, “I am not the one; it is Him.” Yet certain Christians preached, “It is not Him; look for someone else.” This situation so infuriated the apostle John that he called such individuals “liars” and “antichrists” (see 1 John 2:22).
John the Baptist serves as a paradigm for missionaries. We should imitate him by preparing the way for Jesus to enter the hearts of the people in our world. Like John, we should desire that Jesus increase while we decrease (see John 3:30) and humbly recognize that, like the greatest man born of a woman, we are unworthy to untie the straps of Jesus’ sandals (see John 1:27). At the same time, we must avoid the error of those who deny that Jesus is the Christ. Instead, let us boldly proclaim, as John the Baptist did, that He is the one the world has been waiting for.
In a world searching for answers, let us be like John the Baptist—pointing beyond ourselves to Christ, the true hope of humanity. For only in Him do we find the fulfillment of every longing and the restoration of all that is broken.