It's a little lengthy... but I hope it helps!
It's sort of divided into parts....
Birth of John to Zechariah and Elizabeth
John and Jesus were both born in exceptional circumstances. John's parents were Zechariah and Elizabeth. They were an older couple who were childless because Elizabeth was barren. Zechariah prayed in the temple for a child to be born to them. The angel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah and told him that a child would be born; he should name the child John and John would be "filled with the Holy Spirit from birth." Gabriel said that John's purpose was "to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." Zechariah didn't believe that he would have a child and asked Gabriel "How can I be sure?" Because of his doubt, Zechariah was to remain mute until the birth of his son.
When Elizabeth was six months pregnant, the angel appeared to Mary and revealed the news of Mary's pregnancy. She was troubled because she was a virgin. But she accepted the news, saying "I am the Lord's servant."
Mary then went to visit Elizabeth in her home in Judea. When she greeted Elizabeth, John "leaped for joy" within Elizabeth's womb and Elizabeth was "filled with the Holy Spirit." Elizabeth recognized Mary as the mother of her savior. Mary stayed with Elizabeth for three months. (Sidenote: How interesting would it be to know what these two did together for three months? The mother of Jesus and the mother of John, having intimate fellowship before their sons were even born.)
Then John was born. As soon as John was named, Zechariah was once again allowed to speak. And everyone witnessed the power of God in the lives of this family.
Jesus is born. you know the story.
(Taken mostly from Luke)
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John Prepares the Way
John was preaching in the desert. He was clothed in camel hide with a rope around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. John preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. He said, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." In addition to this call, John preached many of the same lessons that Jesus would preach. He preached love and mercy and respect for your fellow humans. Many people came to him to confess and be baptized. But his teachings were constantly followed with the warning that "after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." John knew his purpose was to prepare the way for Jesus.
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Jesus and John
One day, Jesus came upon John baptizing in the Jordan river. John recognized Jesus immediately because the sign of the Lord was above him. John had been told that he would know the Son of God by the dove that was constantly with him. John saw this dove about Jesus and knew immediately who Jesus was. John was taken aback when Jesus asked John to baptize him. John said, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" But Jesus insisted. As he rose out of the water after his baptism, he saw the "sky torn open" and the dove descended. The voice of God was heard to say, "You are my son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
This seems to be the pivotal point in their relationship. The Bible gives no indication that the two men ever met before or again, though they communicated in other ways. The baptism event also seems to be the passing of the torch from John, who prepared the way, to Jesus, who was the way.
After the baptism, Jesus began his very public ministry. It is interesting that he even used the same words that John had used, saying "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."
Another thing that I find fascinating about this story, is that John is almost immediately taken out of the picture after this baptism scene. No mention is made of any ministry of John's after the baptism event. The next time we see John, he has been imprisoned by Herod. (And he'll eventually be beheaded.)
We do hear one more interesting thing about John, though. While he is in prison, he begins to doubt that Jesus is the long-hoped for Messiah. He sends a messenger to ask Jesus: "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" to which Jesus gives a very interesting answer. I'll quote the entire passage here because it's worth reading.
Jesus answers:
Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:
"I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you. (Malachi 3:1)"
I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear. "To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:
"We played the flute for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn."
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He has a demon." The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, "Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and 'sinners'." But wisdom is proved right by her actions. (Matthew 11:7-19)
Now here's a cursory explanation of the passage.
I think this reveals the essential difference between John (and indeed, all the prophets) and Jesus. It marks the difference between those believers who came before Jesus and those who would achieve salvation through Jesus. He says that no one
on Earth is greater than John, but even the least one
of heaven is greater than he. Jesus explains that the way to get to heaven is changing. No longer will the "forceful" men be able to get to heaven, it is only those who believe in Jesus as the Son of God. The law is also changing. No longer will the law be made by prophesy; the law is Jesus. People of the old way can believe that John was the new Elijah (the Messiah, essentially) but they will be wrong. The last section is kind of hard to understand. I have problems with it. But to me it seems to mean that, though John was pious and holy, the people thought there was something wrong with him. The same with Jesus. Though he came among the people as one of them, the people thought there was something wrong, when, in fact, both men would prove to be right. This seems to illustrate the unbelief of the people and their willingness to dismiss anything that doesn't fit into their definition, their expected result.
It's a hard passage to really get into, but I think it illustrates the relationship between the two men. It shows the way John prepared the path down which Jesus would walk.
Thanks for asking this question, Martha. It was a great exercise for me to reacquaint myself with the story (and actually to discover lots of new things). I hope my story/explanation helped a little bit, and I'll be glad to try and explain more!
~hippy
P.S. Here's a list of the verses to which I referred for information about John and Jesus:
Matthew 3; 11:1-19; 14:1-13
Mark 1:1-11; 6:14-29
Luke 1:5-25; 1:57-66; 3:1-20; 7:18-35
John 1:19-28; John 3:22-36
I find that Luke tends to consolidate the information of the other gospels and it's a good place to start when looking for anything