Devotion:
For an audio version of this devotion, click here.
Read John 1:19-23.
We live in a world in which we are always checking our identity. You need identification to travel on a plane, a passport to cross a border, and a driver’s license not only to drive but to prove your identity in a variety of situations. Even to check my email on a computer I need to not only provide a password, but often go through an additional identity check (which usually prompts an additional email that asks “Is this you?”). Our scripture for today makes clear that checking identification is not just a modern invention; we have been asking those questions of each other since the beginning of time. Who are you? Where are you from? And perhaps most poignantly, Whose are you? Who do you belong to?
John the Baptist was not exempt from these questions - his ministry was so sensational that he attracted not only followers but also lots of attention and curiosity. And lots and lots of questions, such as “Who are you? Elijah or one of the prophets?” John only deepens their curiosity by answering, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.” (John 19:23b) Those questions are still being asked today. How would you answer?
Personal Worship Option:
How do you respond to the questions that John was asked? Who are you and who do you claim Jesus to be in your life?
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