All eyes were on the bold man who appeared out of the Judean desert. John had the stare of an eagle and a voice like thunder. And when he ordered his hearers to repent,¹ strong men may have shivered and the smart ones held their tongues. Most figured they were looking at Him—the promised Messiah who would fulfill some 2000 years of biblical prophecy.² Now he was here—or was he?

John ended the speculation. “I’m not the Messiah—the anointed one.³ Why I’m not even worthy to untie His shoe laces.⁴” His task was to make an announcement—simply an introduction. The next day, John pointed at another man walking toward him. “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world."⁵ And there He stood—the One who would impact the next 2000 years of history more than all of the world’s newsmakers put together. Yeshuah Ha Mashicah. Jesus the Messiah.

What came from His mouth left us—the hearers—speechless. “I am the way, the truth and the life,⁶” “I am the resurrection and the life,⁷” “I am the good shepherd,⁸” “I am the bread of life.⁹” And the bombshell to those questioning His identity, “Before Abraham was, I am.¹⁰”

But He was more than talk. It was His touch that left people in shock. A leper with stinking, rotting flesh—healed in an instant.¹¹ A man not merely made blind, but born blind?!¹² Touched by Jesus and the incredible, the impossible—“Now I see!”¹³ A little dead boy and a broken hearted mama followed by a crowd of mourners—until Jesus stepped up to the casket and raised that child from the dead?!¹⁴ Oh, and the naked man so filled with hell’s demons that he scared the pants off strong men who tried to chain him?!¹⁵ One minute he was screaming hell’s curses, and the next he was sitting at Jesus’ feet with a new mind and a set of clothes!¹⁶ 

But it was more than just His words that spelled Jesus Christ’s authority. And it was more than the incredible miracle stuff that followed in His wake. It was that grace, truth—yes, love—that He seemed to be made of.¹⁷ Three years—just three years—marked His ministry. That was more than enough. That’s over a thousand days of seeing God in motion on planet earth.¹⁸ And all the great minds through the centuries—even those who chose to ignore His love and call—would not be bashful in telling the world what is so special about Jesus!

¹ Matt. 3:2

² Luke 3:15

³ John 3:28

⁴ Mark 1:7

⁵ John 1:29

⁶ John 14:6

⁷ John 11:25

⁸ John 10:11

⁹ John 6:35

¹⁰ John 8:58

¹¹ Matt. 8:2-3

¹² John 9:20

¹³ John 9:25

¹⁴ Luke 7:14-15

¹⁵ Mark 5:3-4

¹⁶ Mark 5:15

¹⁷ John 1:27

¹⁸ Acts 10:38

"Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ" (I Corinthians 11:1)
The ST. PAUL SCHOOL, with Frank Eiklor, Eileen Young and Cecilia Contreras