JOHN 3:25-30 – Now a discussion arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification. And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.” John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. He must increase, but I must decrease.”
THEME OF THE DAY. JESUS INCREASES AND WE GET OUT OF THE WAY. Today’s scripture is familiar, and especially the last sentence – He must increase but I must increase. This is the classic statement when referring to John the Baptist. Yet, this was not something easy to do for John or any other follower of Jesus. Why? Our pride. Our craving for recognition. Our desire for glory. Our wanting appreciation. Remember that John had a large following of disciples. No doubt in His humanness he felt good to be important; to be needed and to give up this type of recognition was hard. Yet John not only made much of Christ and nothing of himself, he embraced this as his mission in life. And from his response and action, we learn some vital lessons for us to make much of Jesus and nothing of ourselves.
First, realize the relationship we have with Christ. He is our Master, and a great one, and we are His servants. Servants serve their masters with no thought of themselves. They are owned by their masters, cared for by their masters, and exist to serve their masters. It is simply unreasonable for a servant to be elevated above the master. We, as Christ’s servants exist to be at the beck and call of our Master, the Lord Jesus.
Next, the life of joy is found in living self-denying for our Master not in self-fulfilling ourselves apart from our Master. Notice what John says before his famous line, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” He took great joy in making much of the Lord Jesus – therefore this joy of mine is complete. When we make much of Jesus, our joy intensifies. Conversely, the self-centered Christian knows no joy in the Lord. It is only the believer who consistently says “No” to personal desires and wills that will experience the depth of joy the Lord desires for His people.
Finally, being able to say and have a life affirming our profession of “He must increase, but I must decrease” is not a work we do on our own. This is the Spirit of God at work in a teachable and humble heart. Our flesh wants nothing to do with dying, and it is only our personal resolve to submit to the work of the Spirit that will enable us to say and live “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Strive for this resolve because it is in making much of Jesus that we grow much like Jesus as well as more deeply experience Jesus.
PRAYER: “Father, forgive me when I make my will, not Yours, the compass directing my life..”
QUOTE: “To make Jesus increase and we decrease in life is only possible by the work of the Holy Spirit.”
In the affection of Christ Jesus,
Pastor Jim