Jesus answers him, not with a “Yes, I am” or “No, keep looking,” but with instructions for the disciples to relay a message. He says, "Go and tell John what you hear and see." This is not a time for Jesus to keep his cousin John guessing. They don’t have the luxury of playing some kind of “20 questions” game back and forth. John is in prison, not in small part due to his religious fervor for these statements that he’s made about someone with great power who is to follow him. He needs to know definitively – Is Jesus the one?

To us, the answer seems cryptic; to John, maybe not so much. Jesus says, “Tell him what you see and hear. The blind receive their sight. The lame walk. The lepers are cleansed. The deaf hear. The dead are raised. And the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense to me.”

If you didn’t know it before, I’m letting you know now; the bells should go off for us here. Even though there were those who expected a King in the line of David, or a conquering hero, or a prophet to beat all prophets; those who were students and followers of the Messianic hope would hear and see in Jesus’ actions a resounding, “Yes, this is the one.” Maybe it is a bit of proof-texting – but past testimony is clear – the one who comes from God will always come to bear good news. Psalm 146: The Lord sets prisoners free, opens blind eyes, lifts up the lowly, watches over strangers, and upholds orphans and widows. Mary’s song, the Magnificat – probably known well to cousin Elizabeth and her baby John: he has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he fills the hungry with good things and sends the rich away empty. Scripture is highly redundant on this matter – indeed God is powerful, but God’s greatest power is in mercy.

What the disciples were seeing and hearing was the fulfillment of many past texts. The true Messiah, of course, would have everything in common with God. The Lord is attributed with the powers to set people free from disabling conditions from the very beginning. The Lord also sides with the poor – indeed the South American Liberation Theology movement cites this repetition as God’s “preferential option for the poor.” The Lord has been known to humble the powerful and lead God’s people out of the conditions of slavery.

Jesus knew John well enough to know that this would offer him hope in his jail cell – perhaps more hope than if he had been full of himself to the point of bragging that he was the Messiah. John was no coward. Jesus says to those who overheard the exchange, “What did you go out there to see – a reed shaken by the wind?” The soft robes of leadership are to be found in the palaces. John’s ruggedness indicates that he is a true prophet that won’t be deterred by false pretenses of power. Clean fingernails and a cushy lifestyle won’t be temptation enough for him to change his story!

So, we find out Jesus is the one. Jesus is the powerhouse sent from heaven to change the world. John may be powerful among human beings, but Jesus has the power of heaven at his command. How does he use that power? He heals. He raises the dead. He comforts the afflicted. And, sure enough, he’s going down the path of afflicting the comfortable. He does exactly what God would do.

Jesus comes to a particular generation in a particular time and place. He is an historical figure, a baby who was born in a stable, lived as a teacher, died as a criminal, and was raised by the power of God. We may be able to look at what he did, how he lived his life, and be assured that he was the one. But how do we see God at work now through the resurrected Christ, through the Holy Spirit?

Jesus talks about the generation that prompted his arrival. He says, “To what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.’” It is a cynical generation, a hopeless generation, a generation of consumption, and a generation that denies the future for its own needs. Every generation can see some of itself in this picture. We are all greedy to some extent – wrapped up in our own concerns rather than recognizing the concerns of others. We don’t dance enough with our children. We don’t weep deeply when the world is in pain.

Jesus comes for this generation. Jesus is born for us. Jesus is at work now healing us, pruning what’s dead in us, comforting us when we need it, shaming us when we deserve it. His work on earth is not over. John and Jesus both were criticized and condemned for who they were. We prefer powerful gods who side with power. We try to create them in our minds and in our churches. We mistrust a powerful God who sides with the powerless. But the wisdom of God is always vindicated. God’s wisdom is consistent, true, and offers hope.

Meditation: Recognizing the Messiah