Did John the Baptist not believe Christ was the Messiah?

[kanakattack]

Did John the Baptist not believe Christ was the Son of God?

If you read Matthew 11 you'll notice first of all that John the Baptist had disciples of his own. This had never occurred to me that John had disciples. At first I found that surprising but then I realized that it makes sense since John the Baptist was himself a chosen prophet of God and he would need disciples of his own to bear witness of the message he was sharing and to help John spread that message throughout the land.

The second odd event you'll notice from verses 2 & 3 is that John sent two of his disciples to observe Christ and ask him if he was indeed the Messiah that had been prophesied to come. I know when I first read those verses it seemed like John didn't believe that Christ was really the Messiah. This was confusing to me especially since John had already baptized Christ and had testified then and other times before this occurrence that he knew that Christ was the Son of God.

After some research however I discovered that these verses are actually about John trying to teach his followers, including his close disciples, that it is Jesus Christ they should know and follow instead of him. Up to this point John the Baptist had gathered quite a number of followers who came to him to learn about the Gospel and also to be baptized as had been taught to do by then. However when Christ began his ministry there was apparently some resistance from John's followers to go see this Jesus that they had heard about and listen to his words. Realizing the situation that had been understandably created he took the time to encourage those of his followers to visit with Christ so that they could hear his words and see the miracles he performed. What is really neat from these verses is that he did it in a way that allowed those he sent to build their own testimony of the Savior instead of just taking John's word for it that he was the Messiah and blindly following him.

A very insightful chapter to read if you get a chance.

 

[Davy]

Hi Kanakattack, this is a very good question.

Although you have quoted the account in Matthew 11, I prefer the account in Luke 7:18-23. This says in the NLT: "18-The disciples of John the Baptist told John about everything Jesus was doing. So John called for two of his disciples, 19-and he sent them to the Lord to ask him, "Are you the Messiah we've been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?" 20-John's two disciples found Jesus and said to him, "John the Baptist sent us to ask, 'Are you the Messiah we've been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?'" 21-At that very time, Jesus cured many people of their diseases and illnesses, and he cast out evil spirits and restored sight to many who were blind. 22-Then he told John's disciples, "Go back to John and tell him what you have seen and heard--the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. 23-And tell him, 'God blesses those who do not turn away because of me.'"


It does appear to suggest that John the Baptist was having a crisis of faith, however, this is not the case. John like many of the other disciples believed Jesus was going to establish his kingdom on earth very shortly. (Acts 1:6) Thus many were confused as to why he was delaying, and that is why John asked this question. He knew Jesus was the Messiah, as he was told that when he baptised Jesus. (Matthew 3:13-17) John like many of them did not see the bigger picture, in fact it was only after Jesus died did they begin to understand.

Notice what Jesus said in verse 23, "God blesses those who do not turn away because of me." The (TLB) Bible renders this verse as: "And tell him, 'Blessed is the one who does not lose his faith in me.'" Why would people turn away from following Jesus on account of what he was doing? Although many wanted Jesus to establish his kingdom and bring an end to their suffering and persecution, and in Johns case his forth coming execution. They did not understand Jesus had to die to provide the ransom sacrifice, which would redeem all of mankind to come. Jesus could not step in and help John the Baptist, or the other disciples who were suffering greatly, because he had to die alone and abandoned by his followers to fulfil bible prophecy. That is why he said, "Blessed is the one who does not lose his faith in me."

It is interesting to note a similar situation exists today. Many want Armageddon to come and destroy all the wicked on the earth, so that Jesus can begin ruling over the earth for 1000 years. We have to endure many hardships and persecution, while waiting for the appointed time for Jesus to begin directly ruling over the earth. So, blessed is the one who does not lose his faith in Jesus, because they are having to wait patiently. Sadly, some have grown tired of waiting and have abandoned their faith, perhaps even asking, is Jesus really the messiah to come? Let us never waver in our expectation of what Jesus promised.

 

[Brad Huber]

I believe John knew initially that Jesus was the Christ, but after things went poorly for him, his culture which taught that earthly things would become great, after the coming of the Christ, made him question what he once knew. He did not have the perfect faith, that Jesus did, but it was still no doubt greater than most of what we consider devout Christians in this day and age.

 

[B-A-C]

I think many Jews were expecting the "deliverer/king" to be a military leader that would deliver them from Roman occupation and restore Israel back to it own kingdom.
Many of them {like many of us today} are looking at the wrong kingdom.
Yet Matt 11:11; and Luke 7:28; seem to indicate John got his faith right before he literally lost his head over it.Matt 14:10-11;

 

[kanakattack]

Thank you to everyone that has given comments and insights to this topic and scripture. It is always a good experience to have dialogue and questions on gospel topics.

I just wanted to clarify that in my original post title I asked the question, "Did John the Baptist Not Believe Christ Was the Messiah?" rhetorically in order to grasp attention and intrigue from others into the topic. My comments after that as well as the scriptures I shared were to prove that John the Baptist did in fact know that Christ was the Messiah and that the behavior presented in the scriptures I shared were merely to help his disciples also gain a testimony that Christ was the Messiah.

I most definitely welcome everyone's personal insights and opinions on the topic. I just wanted to clarify that I personally believe that John the Baptist knew that Christ was the Messiah. I just wanted to cover the topic in case there were those who have come across this account and were confused or intrigued about it.