Session 15
Q.
We had concluded our paraphrasing of John 1:29, ‘Behold the
Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.’ In John 1:30, Prophet John, son of Zechariahs
says, 'this is He of whom I said, ‘after me comes a Man who is preferred before
me, for He was before me'. I remember that we discussed this statement before.
Would you please revisit it briefly?
A.
When we paraphrased this verse before, also John 1:27, repeating the same
statement, we said that John, son of Zechariahs meant to refer to the
chronological order of the beginning of the ministry of each. The ministry of
the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His Name) started after John the Baptist
started to call for the preparation of the way of the Lord. As for the
expression, 'which is preferred before me', it refers to His position, in which
none is comparable to Him. The word, 'He was before me' speak of the eternal
existence of the Lord Jesus Christ in Himself (Glory be to His Name), as we
explained before. He has ever existed eternally. He has no beginning and no
end.
Q.
Dr. Nagi, if Prophet John the Baptist mentioned the same statement before in
John 1:27, why repeat it in verse 30?
Why describe the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His Name) that
meticulously? Wouldn’t that be
considered redundancy?
A.
This is exactly what John, son of Zechariahs came for: to bear witness to the
Lord Christ. He left no space to doubt that the Person of the Lord (Glory be to
His Name), not only in this verse, but also throughout all the verses in which
he refers to the Lord Christ; this is indeed not useless redundancy. The
greater the person portrayed, the greater the assurance given in reference to
His person. And the oddest the situation, the more there is need for various
verifications to substantiate the situation. Beside, the more a witness is
convinced of the truth of his case, the more determined he is to stress all
that he has seen. And the more he is well certain of the details, the more
specific he is in relaying events and portraying people.
Q.
Commenting on what you just said, it seems like John was quite certain of who
the Lord Christ was, thus he was keen on relaying the least details, repeating
statements that reflect this truth. This is clear from the verse we are
discussing. Not only this verse; verse 27 says of the Lord Christ, 'who, coming
after me is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I’m not worthy to
loose.’ Meanwhile verse 30 says, 'this
is He of whom I said, after me comes a man, which is preferred before me: for
He was before me'. Also in verse 29, John, son of Zechariahs says of the Lord
Christ, ‘Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the Sin of the world,’ and
verse 36 says, ‘And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, ‘Behold the Lamb of
God.’ John, son of Zechariahs also said in John 1:31, 'and I did not know Him,
but that He should be revealed to
A.
With regards to John the Baptist saying, 'I did not know Him', this does not
weaken his testimony for a very simple reason: knowing who the Lord Jesus
Christ is in reality is purely a Spiritual issue. It takes a revelation from
God Almighty directly, with no interference on the part of
Q.
Dr. Nagi is there proof from the Holy Bible that no one knew who the Lord
Christ was; and that this knowledge needed a Spiritual revelation from God
Almighty?
A.
First I would like to note that we are speaking about knowing Him Spiritually.
According to the flesh, all those around Him knew that He was the Son of Virgin
St. Mary, whom God Almighty had chosen above all the women of the world. Some
be believed Him to be the Son of Joseph (son of Jacob to whom His Mother,
Virgin St. Mary, was betrothed – addition from translator). The proof
to this is that when the Lord Jesus Christ asked His disciples saying, 'who
do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?’ So they said, "Some say John the
Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets," Matthew 16:13 and 14. But they
did not mention that anyone recognized Him to be the Christ. Then He further
asked them, 'but who do you say that I am?
Matthew 16:15. Simon Peter, His disciple answered Him and said, 'You are
the Christ, the Son of the living God'. Jesus answered and said to Him,
'blessed are you Simon son of (Bar) - Jonah, for flesh and blood has not
revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven”, Matthew 16:16 and 17
Even though the disciples knew who the Lord Jesus Christ was, according to the
flesh -being in and out with Him all the time, yet knowing that He was the
Christ, the Son of God revealed in human flesh, was only known to them through
revelation from God Almighty. That's why that John the Baptist did not know
Him, did not undermine his testimony; on the contrary, it caused the testimony
to be final, conclusive and not apt for questioning, having come directly from
the Almighty.
Q.
How could the Lord Jesus Christ be a blood relative to John the Baptist, yet
doesn’t know Him?
A. Do
you know all of your blood relatives?
Q.
No, I don’t.
A.
John the Baptist didn't know the Lord either. This could be ascribed to the
fact that he was not His brother, neither was he raised
in the same city where the Lord was raised. It is definite that John heard of
the Lord Jesus, but he had never met Him before. The Holy Scripture says that
the Baptist was a wild man who lived in the mountains. The Lord Christ wasn’t a
celebrity before He started His ministry and performed miracles. This meeting
between both was the beginning of the ministry of the Lord Jesus before He
became a famous prophet.
Q.
Dr. Nagi, John 1:32 states that the Baptist, being guided by the Spirit of God,
said, ‘I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove,
and He remained upon Him’.
What 'Spirit' is the Baptist referring to here?
A. The
'Spirit' referred to here is the Spirit of God Almighty. The Holy Scripture
says that 'He remained upon Him'. Had this been the spirit of man, the divine
revelation wouldn't have referred to Him by ‘He’.
Q.
Couldn't the reference here be meant for Angel Gabriel? The Holy Scripture
would’ve still referred to him by ‘He’.
A. No,
simply because word 'Spirit' mentioned in verse 32 is the same mention in verse
33. John 1:32 and 33 state that, ‘John
bore witness, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a
dove, and He remained upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to
baptize with water said to me, 'upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and
remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ The term 'Holy Spirit' is not
used except for the Spirit of God Almighty - meaning God Almighty Himself.
Q.
Why couldn't the term 'Holy Spirit' be used save for God Almighty alone? Beloved Muslims believe that the Holy Spirit
is Gabriel, the angel.
A. First, the term 'Holy' compounding
with Spirit - be it Holy or Holiness when we say Spirit of Holiness - denotes Holy in Himself,
above all sins and trespasses: Him who hasn't inherited the fallen, corrupt
human nature. These attributes could not be applied save to God Almighty alone,
and of course the Lord Jesus Christ, the essence of the Almighty, as we
explained earlier. Thus the word 'Holy' or 'Holiness' could only refer to God
Almighty. Also, the statement, 'He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit' referring
to the Lord Jesus Christ, denotes 'fills you, overwhelms you, and contains you
in the Holy Spirit’; it is therefore not possible that the mission of the Lord
Jesus Christ be to fill, overwhelm and contain believers with angels! Angels
are but limited ministering Spirits sent forth to minister for those who will
inherit salvation, as per the precious Holy Scripture states in the book
Hebrew; many a time God Almighty had sent angels to serve the Lord Jesus Christ
(Glory be to His Name).
Q.
Dr. Nagi, what use is it for the Holy Spirit, or the Spirit of the Almighty to
descend and remain on the Lord Jesus Christ in a bodily manner, so long as the
Almighty knows that the Lord Jesus Christ is God revealed in human flesh?
A. There
is indeed a great significance in the descending of the Holy Spirit, to remain
on the Lord Christ in this situation. I will state some examples to verify
this: First, to tell us who the Lord
Jesus Christ (Glory be to His Name) is; second, to
clarify to us the nature of the Almighty; and third, to declare His support of
the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ, and highlight His uniqueness over all
creatures.
Q.
Can you elaborate on those three points of significance of the descending of
the Holy Spirit on the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His Name)?
A. The
descending of the Holy Spirit or the Spirit of God clarifies to us the very
nature of the Lord Jesus Christ. Who else would God Almighty - through the Holy
Spirit - descend upon Him like a dove, remain upon Him, and bear witness to Him
that He has all the right, qualification, and competency to send the Spirit of
the Almighty to believers, and to baptize them in the Spirit. A person with all
these attributes has to be either God Almighty or person who is greater than
the Almighty, God forbids, since no one is greater than Him in heaven and on
earth. He is the One who has no partner, and none is comparable to Him. The Lord
Jesus Christ is therefore God revealed in human flesh.
Q.
What about the point related to revelation of the nature of the Almighty?
A. Here
we witness the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His Name), God Almighty revealed
in human flesh; the Holy Spirit descending like a dove also God Almighty; and
God Almighty, the Father above and beyond all that is perceptible; He who is
forever established on His throne. Here
we witness God Almighty the Father, God Almighty the Son, and God Almighty the
Holy Spirit, the three are One- Amen.
Q.
What about the third point?
A. It is
to for the Holy Spirit to support and confirm the mission of the Lord Jesus
Christ, and His uniqueness above all other creatures. By the coming of the Holy
Spirit in the bodily form of a dove, the Almighty seemed to have placed His
seal on the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ, coming to earth to redeem
Q.
What would have confused the Baptist, if the Spirit hadn’t descended in a
bodily form?
A. John,
son of Zechariahs was a great person; he received his mission from God
Almighty, calling unto people to repent and receive forgiveness of sins. Now
that another was sent out to earth, the Lord Jesus Christ, John son of
Zechariahs was supposed to turn the banner over to Him, that the latter may
pursue the journey. John was supposed to give in his place and vanish from the
scene. Therefore, to avoid confusion, God Almighty told John the Baptist, 'Upon
whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who
baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' John further says, ‘and I have seen and
testified that this is the Son of God’. John 1:33, 34.
Q.
Dr. Nagi, the testimony of John, son of Zechariahs is very obvious, saying in
John 1:34, ‘and I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.’ But why
did he testifying as such? He was
speaking to the fanatic Pharisees and scripts, and neither has asked him to
testify. What was in it for John son of Zacharias?
A. This
testimony is a sum up of what John the Baptist had come to announce to the
world; it was the core of his mission.
That’s why he was confirming to religious leaders, Scripts and Pharisees,
by various means, using proofs and evidences, that he was not the Christ, but
the one to prepare the way for Him; and that he was unworthy of loose the strap
of His sandals. He wanted to assert that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His
Name) was the ever eternally existing One; He was the One on whom the Spirit of
God came and remained. He was the One who has the ability and authority to
baptize people with the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of God Almighty. Eventually, he explained to them that all
what had been said confirms that the Lord Christ (Glory be to His Name) is the
Son of God, God revealed in human flesh.
Q.
But what is in it for John the Baptist to testify? How would he benefit from such a testimony?
A. First,
there is no benefit whatsoever to John, son of Zechariahs. On the contrary,
this testimony diverted the attention of people off John, on to the Lord
Christ. He was no more the center Prophet, but the Lord Christ. In fact this
asserts the credibility of John’s testimony. If he had had any benefit
whatsoever in this situation, it would’ve been odd. But for a great Prophet to
testify, without any benefits what so ever, does not leave any space to doubt
that the Lord Jesus Christ, is God Almighty revealed in human flesh. Second,
John, son of Zechariahs was a Prophet of the Almighty. Prophets do not lie,
change, or alter their revelations. They do not recount what pleases them or
fulfills their personal interests or inclination. This has never been heard of
in the Holy Bible; on the contrary, prophets stated what the Almighty had
dictated, even if it brought about torture and persecution.