If there was a Hall of Fame for chapters in the Bible John 1 would be in there for sure; along with Psalm 119 and Revelation 10. And probably Joel 2, Revelation 1, Ephesians 1-3, Phillipeans 3, and John 17 too. Anyway, back to John 1.

I love the story where the priests come up to John the Baptist and ask him who he is.

The deal is that this guy is outside of town in the dessert and he’s got a lot of fans. He’s baptizing folks, he’s got his own descipleship program and he’s doing tons of open-air preaching.

He pops onto the local leadership’s radar and they want to know who he is. So they ask him. They assume that since he’s drawing a crowd he must be someone important like the Messiah, or at least a prophet or perhaps Elijah (see Mal. 4:5).

But John goes, “I’m just a voice.”

“What do you mean, just a voice?” They ask.

“I’m a friend of the Bridegroom. Just a guy who rejoices in the voice of the Bridegroom.”

John didn’t fit the “anointed” mold. He was something different than they had seen before. He was a guy who’s authority came from God. He was a man sent from Heaven. A seemingly nameless, faceless man who happened to be a burning and shining lamp testifying of Jesus.

John the Baptist was a forerunner. A friend of the Briedegroom. A man who’s anointing wasn’t given by men, or title, or by years logged serving at his local church. He got his anointing the only way we can ever really get the real anointing. Friendship with Jesus. Intimacy with God.

And once John got lit up by the fire of God everyone came to watch him burn. He had true authority. Like the apostles. They spent their days in prayer and then one day were lit up by the fire of the Holy Ghost. And then their very shadows would heal the sick.

We’re used to getting our “authority” by jockeying for positions and being recognized by other leaders and being invited into the special meetings. But what a waste of our time and everyone else’s.

It’s not a secret anymore that the Lord is raising up a whole movement of John the Baptists; foreruners; Friends of the Bridegroom. Guys and gals who are getting anointed in a manner we don’t have a mold for. They’re skipping lunch to memorize the Bible. They’re having prayer meetings instead of movie nights.

They are bypassing our systems and going straight to God and are then being sent from the throne as messengers and as burning and shining lamps. And as any true man or woman of revival knows, this is the only way to make any impact for the Kingdom of God.