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John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah
Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was.
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He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”
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questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
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The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).
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You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’
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The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
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“Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?”
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Here he is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying a word to him. Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Messiah?
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But we know where this man is from; when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.”
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Still, many in the crowd believed in him. They said, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more signs than this man?”
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Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee?
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Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?”
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His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, who already had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue.
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The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
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“Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”
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The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Messiah will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’ ? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”
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But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
