“Behold, the Lamb of God,” John 1:36
John the Baptist had uttered this statement the day before, but nobody appeared to respond to it. The second time he said it two of his own disciples, John (the writer of the gospel) and Andrew, left the Baptist and followed Jesus.
The Baptist knew that his calling was to point people to Jesus, not to gather a crowd of disciples for himself. This was the first manner of testimony and should be the pattern that all Christians should follow.
It is Christ that is to be exalted, not a particular church or denomination.
It is Christ who saves, not the sacraments of baptism, or communion.
It is Christ who saves, not a person or a ministry.
It is the Lamb of God who is to be worshipped, and He is the one we should be pointing people to.
In John the Baptist’s day, some listened, but many didn’t. But that didn’t stop John from declaring what he knew to be true. He pointed people to Jesus and was happy that they stopped following him, a mere man, and started following Jesus the Lamb of God who came to bear away the sin of the whole world.
People love to have a following, be it on Facebook, Twitter or a Blog. The more followers, the more acclaim, the more self-worth. John wasn’t interested in followers. His goal was to direct people to follow Jesus. He could not save them from their sin, but he knew who could, so he testified of Him.
It is a simple pattern to follow. We must point people to Jesus, for only Jesus can save people from the penalty due to their sin.