John the Baptist sends 2 of his disciples to Jesus to ask a question. “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” Why do you think John sent them to ask this question? He had gone before the Lord to prepare the way for him. Shouldn’t he know the answer already?

One reason could be that John was looking for reassurance that he had given his life’s work to the right cause. He is in prison and will ultimately die because of his convictions. It is conceivable that his circumstances had allowed doubt to creep in and he just wanted to be sure.

Another likely reason could be that John wanted his disciples to hear from Jesus directly. John’s own words indicated that he was to fade into the background when he said, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John3:30) The message from Jesus to John was about all the things that had been happening as a result of his ministry. Only Jesus was capable of such things and worthy of being followed.

Jesus talks about John and the good things that he did. He even went as far as to say that among those born, none greater is than John. The problem for each was that they were ignored by many. What John didn’t do was a problem. What Jesus did do was a problem. They found issues with either. John came first preparing the way for Jesus to teach us about the Kingdom. It’s a shame that so many missed the truth that played out right in front of them.