Bible Verse of the Day Thursday October 26th, 2023

John 1:6-8   There was a man sent from God whose name was John.  He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

God's Holy Spirit, John the Baptist, came upon John to introduce the Lamb of God to the world. God has always and will commission certain people to carry out His missions on earth. Some great examples are Moses, Joshua, Elijah, and the list could go on and on. It is a great honor and a tremendous blessing to realize that God has a special mission for us, as His children, to carry out. It is no coincidence that we are here at this time and place.

The Holy Spirit suddenly introduced John the Baptist at an extraordinary historical moment. He came upon the world's stage with the transitional purpose of moving from pre-messianic to messianic times. God sent him on his mission for this purpose. God specially commissioned him for this purpose.

One of the great missions God has for all of his believers is to be a witness for Him through the entire world. A witness is aware of what they saw and what they think about it. Our role in God’s master plan is to tell others about the saving grace of Christ Jesus. A good witness will never draw attention to themselves or their causes but only witness the facts of the situation. God will never leave Himself without a witness for the gospel of Christ Jesus on this earth. As followers and believers in Christ Jesus, we should always stand in the witness box. Once we have surrendered ourselves to the master plan of God, in Christ Jesus, we cannot remain neutral about him. Once we surrender ourselves to Christ, we have publicly proclaimed who Jesus is and his mission for all people on earth.

John was the spark that lit the lantern of light of the world, Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior. A lantern does not have its own light; someone must transport it. That is the role of every child of God; we are all gospel ministers. The world's true light has always been and always will be Christ Jesus. It was important for John the Apostle, the gospel writer, to clarify that John the Baptist was not the light, only the one who pointed it out to the entire world.

If and when we take the witness stand in a court of law and testify to a specific incident, we are no longer neutral in the case; we have taken a stand on one side or the other. The Apostle John lets us know that there have been and will always be those willing to commit themselves to be a witness of Christ and to spread His gospel to the ends of the earth.