Mark 1:7 NKJV
And he preached, saying, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.”
John the Baptist’s recognition of the greatness of the Messiah reveals both his reverence for Christ and the depth of his intimate relationship with God. Well before his physical encounter with the Messiah, John said, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose”, as in our text. Hallelujah! Notice the timing of John’s ministry, where the voice of a prophet had last been heard in Israel over 400 years before, and the fame he had, where “…Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him [in the wilderness]” (Mat 3:5 NKJV), were not a mean feat.
If, despite his admirable mightiness at such a time in Israel, John indicated that the One coming after him is “mightier than I”, certainly, his audience must have been left in wonder at how mightier the Messiah would be. Indeed, they were not disappointed: “…immediately His [Christ] fame spread throughout” (Mar 1:28 NKJV), He came as “…a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people” (Luk 24:19 NKJV), and at one point, Christ’s own disciples marvelled at His deeds and said, “What kind of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?” (Mat 8:27 AMP). Hallelujah!
Yes, John the Baptist was right in saying that “There comes One after me who is mightier than I.” Earlier in history, David the Psalmist expressed a similar reverence towards God and said, “Hear my cry, O God; Attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You, When my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I” (Psa 61:1-2 NKJV). Hallelujah! David also recognized that there is “the rock that is higher than I.” Though he was the greatest earthly king of Israel, David saw One “higher” than himself, who is the Rock of ages! Beloved, Christ Jesus is the mightiest and the highest of ALL. In Him we find our truest identity, both in this life and hereafter.
Pst. Emmanuel