John, after beginning his gospel with a statement of our Lord’s nature as God, proceeds to speak of His forerunner, John the Baptist. The contrast between the language used about the Saviour, and that used about His forerunner, ought not to be overlooked. Of Christ we are told that He was the eternal God,–the Creator of all things,–the source of life and light. Of John the Baptist we are told simply, that “there was a man sent from God, whose name was John.”

We see, firstly, in these verses, the true nature of a Christian minister’s office. We have it in the description of John the Baptist: “He came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.”