Title: The Greatness Of John the Baptist
Scripture: Matthew 11:11, John10:41,42
Jesus in Matthew 11:11 says among those that are born of women there has arisen none greater than John. Now John the evangelist in his script says opposing words about him, he says many came and performed miracles but John the Baptist came and performed no miracle.
How can Jesus say that he is great when he performed no miracles? Many interpretations have been given about the greatness of John, but what really was the greatness of John?
What was the greatness of John? Was he great because he carried the mantle of Elijah? Was he great because he was a forerunner of Jesus? Greatness today is defined in many ways, nowadays greatness is defined by the degrees’ they hold (not saying that degrees are bad). Today greatness in a church is defined by the number of members you have in your, by the cars we drive or the conferences we are invited to preach, some by the positions they hold in church or in the community.
In Pentecostal charismatic circles greatness is defined by miracles, tongues, casting out of many many demons and healing the sick but John the Baptist never did any of these but Jesus says among those that were born of women none has arisen who is greater than John.
2. Elijah: He declared one day and said no rain will fall until I say so, and for three years there was no rain because of a mere man. On mount camel he caused fire to come down. He ran past the chariots of Ahab but yet in all this Jesus saying none has risen that is greater than John the Baptist.
3. Joshua: He was a man of war and at one point he caused stones to rain. He stopped the sun and the moon yet Jesus is saying of those born of a woman no one is greater than John the Baptist.
Scriptures must interpret scriptures. It is not what theologians say that interpret scriptures but what the word says. In the revelation of John the evangelist there is a clue, John says he never performed a miracle but all that he said concerning Jesus was true and accurate.
THREE POWERFUL MAN BORN OF WOMEN:
1. Moses: He was so powerful, he had a stick that performed wonders, in Egypt he turned water to blood and by the grace of God divided the red sea. Moses solved disputes amongst the Israelites and through the aid of God fed them. But in all these Jesus is saying John the Baptist is the greatest yet he never did any miracles.2. Elijah: He declared one day and said no rain will fall until I say so, and for three years there was no rain because of a mere man. On mount camel he caused fire to come down. He ran past the chariots of Ahab but yet in all this Jesus saying none has risen that is greater than John the Baptist.
3. Joshua: He was a man of war and at one point he caused stones to rain. He stopped the sun and the moon yet Jesus is saying of those born of a woman no one is greater than John the Baptist.
Scriptures must interpret scriptures. It is not what theologians say that interpret scriptures but what the word says. In the revelation of John the evangelist there is a clue, John says he never performed a miracle but all that he said concerning Jesus was true and accurate.
It is Johns testimony about Jesus Christ that made him be great and outstanding. My question today is what is your testimony about Jesus Christ as a prophet, apostle, or a preacher of the word, many powerful people are no longer testifying Jesus, they are no longer saying anything about Jesus but rather they are now saying everything else and no longer preaching Christ. They are preaching healing breakthroughs but never saying anything about Jesus. Today I have a message to you, what made john great was his testimony of who Jesus was. (1corinthians1:22-24).
The time has come for us to preach and proclaim Jesus. (Matthew 16:13-18) Life has a way of bringing you to the borders and Jesus has a way of bringing you to the borders as well. Borders are places of questions and no one can cross the border if they do not answer the questions correctly. Life will bring you to the border of your marriage, relationships and business and there you will have to answer questions for you to pass. At the borders, it is not what others say but what you say that matters.
After the disciples in Matthew 16 answered for others Jesus diverted the question to them and all of them were confused and could not answer, but thank God for Peter who said,” you are Christ the son of the living God.” He did this by revelation and the time has come for those that testify about Jesus to have the revelation of Christ. The time has come to know Jesus by revelation. Knowing Jesus through books is different from knowing him from a revelation. After that Jesus says,” your name has changed from Cephas to Peter a rock and on this rock, I will build my church.” Greatness is about knowing Jesus and accurate testimony of Jesus.
Transformation comes when you begin to know Jesus. There are some who came to church as thieves, womanizers, backbiters and so on and they are still doing it because they know about the church but they do not know about Jesus.
It is not about what your bishop says but the revelation that you have about Jesus 1corithians10:4
Refuse to be intimidated. If you know Jesus situation cannot shake you because you are established on this rock whose name is Jesus. What is your testimony when demons attack you when you are sick or generational curses follow? What John said about Jesus was true and made him unique, great and outstanding.
Refuse to be intimidated. If you know Jesus situation cannot shake you because you are established on this rock whose name is Jesus. What is your testimony when demons attack you when you are sick or generational curses follow? What John said about Jesus was true and made him unique, great and outstanding.
At that time John was the prophet of the time everyone was talking about john but when he saw Jesus he removed the attention of people from him to Jesus.
He says I did not know him but when you see a man whom the Holy Spirit rest upon, he is the one, he goes on to say that I am not worthy to tie his shoes and he must increase and I must decrease. (John 1:1 colossian1:15 -18). In all things he must have preeminence, in your business, finances, marriage, ministry he must have preeminence it simply means that in all things Jesus must be visible. In many ministries, everything starts and ends on the bishop.
But today I declare and say let glory ministries be all about Jesus and make him visible in the nation and the world. Our assignment is to make Jesus visible. Jesus is the king of kings and the lord of lords, he is the bright and morning star, the government of heaven is upon his shoulder and it is him who holds the keys of life and death.
He is the author and the perfecta of our faith, master and the soon coming King, he has a name above all names and at the mentioning of his name knees, they bow. This Jesus was crucified died was buried and on the third day he rose from the dead, he is your advocate and your intercessor.
This Jesus is coming back again. Are you ready he is coming back again!! (Acts 4:12). Let our testimony concerning Jesus be accurate and let Jesus be visible in all sectors of life. Jesus must increase and we must decrease. As you leave this conference everything about you must make Jesus known and visible. Others wrote about Jesus but john the Baptist ushered Jesus.
Is your life making Jesus making Jesus visible!
Is your life making Jesus making Jesus visible!
The Tiyambuke International Christian Convention (TICC) is an annual gathering of Christian believers from various denominations, organized by Glory Ministries under the leadership of Apostle Pride and Anna Sibiya.
With its inception in 2001, TICC has grown to become one of the largest conferences in Zimbabwe.
The convention's name, "Tiyambuke," meaning "Let Us Cross Over," reflects its mission to lead people out of ignorance, sin, and bondage into a life of knowledge, love for God, health, prosperity, and freedom.
