HE MUST BECOME GREATER

John 3:22-36

Key Verse 3:30

“He must become greater; I must become less.”

In today’s passage it is the last time we will see John the Baptist.  From now until the end the book of John, John the Apostle focuses on Jesus and rightly so.  In today’s passage we see the transition from John the Baptist to Jesus.  John the Baptist’s one word is, “He must become greater; I must become less.”  This is a shocking statement.  Most people have a nasty tendency to try to elevate themselves up, not to lower themselves down.  But John the Baptist did just that.  May God bless us to learn why John did such a thing and learn why it was proper for him and for us to do so.

Part I – Everyone is going to Him (22-26)

Look at verse 22.  “22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where He spent some time with them, and baptized.”  In this verse we see that Jesus took His disciples out into the Judean countryside we He spent time with them and began training them and having them participate in His redemptive work that He had earlier called them to.  Out in the Judean countryside it was quiet and peaceful with no distractions.  There was no traffic giving it’s constant humming noise, no TV’s, no internet connections, and just like ATT, no smartphone service.  There was nothing to distract or interfere with the disciples having quality personal time with Jesus.  They could focus on learning from Jesus.  It was also a great chance for the twelve to build up their relationship together as well.  By this time Jesus had assembled His disciples and they were quite different from one another and didn’t know one another well.  They were called to be excellent coworkers, so they had to know one another and even ultimately love one another.  In two weeks we have a chance to go up to the mountains and spend wonderful quiet time with our Lord and also with one another.  Some ask, “Why do we have to travel soooo far away for our Bible conferences?”  We used to go to Whittier college and some liked it because it was so close and convenient.  But I also know that right after the programs some people went to a movie theater or to a restaurant and forgot everything they learned.  This Bible conference is a great chance for us even though it is not the most convenient and easy for us to go and learn from Jesus and to continue to grow as His disciples.

Also, early morning is a good chance for us to spend quiet time with the Lord and learn from Him.  I have five sons, there is no such thing as a quiet time in my home, except early in the morning when they are asleep.  Even our cat Conty is not awake.  Many people don’t like to get up early because it is not easy, but it really is the very best time for us to spend quality time with the Lord and learn from Him.

Look at verses 23-24. “23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were constantly coming to be baptized. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.)”  While Jesus was building up His work and ministry, John was continuing to serve God’s purpose for his life.  He continued to baptize because people were constantly coming to him to be baptized.

In these verses we see that while Jesus was beginning to take over the work of baptizing and raising disciples, John did not retire.  He did not say, “Great!  Jesus is here, my work is done! And then go and find a big Lazy Boy chair and retire.”  We see instead that John was faithfully serving God to the end; as long there was no hindrance John continued to serve.  They worked side-by-side.  Jesus and His disciples over here were baptizing and John the Baptist was over there baptizing.  This was a great thing in reality, because in the past it was just poor John having to baptize everyone and people were constantly coming to him.  He had to work all day and all night without time for break or lunch.  But now there were two, Jesus and John and they could do more work than one could.

How great and wonderful it is to have coworkers.  I know that Msn. David Kim our Orchestra leader on Sunday’s after the day is over and all of us have wiped out the place, not throwing away our trash and leaving spilt food on the floor and so on, has had to clean up all by himself.   Because we are very messy and not very thoughtful he has a lot of work to do and it’s not easy.    He never said anything to me, but I’m sure he thought to himself, “O Lord, why do I have to do this alone?”  God heard his crying and sent Shep. Paul Cho and he started to help him clean up the center on Sunday afternoons.  Now Msn. David doesn’t look as worn out or sad anymore.  Coworkers are a great blessing.  We are praying to raise up many coworkers from among us, especially from among our growing disciples and sons and daughters.  This is a good thing, because many of us are no longer young, there’s a lot of grey heads among us and we don’t have the strength we once did.

Look at verse 25.  “25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing.”  Here we see that an argument broke out between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew.  Oftentimes when coworking is going on it is not always easy to cowork smoothly.  One person thinks this way and another thinks another way.  Some think their way is the best, while others think their way is better.  So there is often conflict and tension when we try to cowork together.

In this case it was over the matter of ceremonial washing.  Perhaps John’s disciples became upset with Jesus’ disciples because they were doing what their master John the Baptist and they were doing.  They thought that they should be first ordained and trained by John the Baptist and become his disciple before they began to do ceremonial washing.  These young disciples of Jesus had not ‘dedicated’ themselves fully.  They were just ‘newcomers’ who had a lot to learn.  They went and visited Jesus’ disciples and told them they must stop, but Jesus’ disciples told them “No, who are you?”  And they could not resolve it.  Both sides drew a line in the sand and there was a Mexican standoff between them.

So what did John’s disciples do?  Look at verse 26.  “26 They came to John and said to him, ‘Rabbi, that Man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—well, He is baptizing, and everyone is going to Him.’”  They went to their master John the Baptist and tried to have him intervene on their behalf and stop Jesus’ disciples.  In this verse John’s disciples reveal the real reason why they were upset; it really wasn’t a matter of ceremonial washing.  It was because Jesus, the One whom their master had baptized, was gaining more followers and disciples than John.  In fact, they said, “Everyone is going to Jesus!”

Understandably, John’s disciples thought that since their master had baptized Jesus, that Jesus should be lower than John.  They were holding onto the idea, “The student is not greater than the teacher.”  To them, Jesus had come to John, not the other way around.  So they were upset that their master (and also themselves) was being left behind.  To them their position was very important  and rightly so, but they really didn’t like the idea that Jesus and His disciples were gaining more disciples than John the Baptist and themselves.  When John the Baptist had said, “Look the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”  John’s disciples heard these words and some began to follow Jesus, but many remained with John.  They respected John, but they did not listen to what he was saying.  They should have followed Jesus.  Because they didn’t they missed the chance to meet the Messiah.

When they first met John the Baptist and were baptized by him, they must have been the happiest people in the world.  They had begun to experience the Kingdom of God in their lives and they dedicated themselves to serving the Lord; so they followed John and became his disciples.  Over time they had become well established in John the Baptist’s ministry and they had many titles like missionary or shepherd or Bible teacher or some other such thing.  They should have continued to grow and become useful servants of the Lord, instead they became a hindrance because they were more concerned about their position.  They didn’t because they didn’t listen to the their own teacher who was pointing them to Jesus.

Part II – He must become greater; I must become less (27-36)

Look at verse 27.  ““To this John replied, ‘A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.’”  John taught his disciples that God is the One who gives man his mission.  It is God’s great mercy and grace to a person to be able to serve Him.  Man has no merit and does not deserve to serve God, but God has given man this great privilege.  Man has every reason to be thankful for what he has received from God in order to serve Him.  Some serve in the cities; some serve in the remotest of places, but all are important and necessary from God’s point of view.  Not all can serve the multitudes, not all can serve in Hawaii; some have to serve in Alaska.  But all are a great privilege to serve.  We serve in Los Angeles, but Msn. Nathan now serves in Sao Paulo; while still others serve in Egypt, where there is great persecution against Christians; others serve in the Philippines, where there is great poverty.  Some serve in Sendai, Japan and perhaps have their home washed away along with many others who lost their homes as well.  We must receive the mission God has given to us and treasure it.

By God’s grace He has called each and every one of us to serve His mission field; we are each called to make disciples.  Some serve community colleges; while others universities.  Some say that the students at community colleges don’t remain long so you don’t have time to establish them; others say that university students are more proud and busy and don’t easily accept Bible study.  But both are very important.  The nice thing with community college students is they have more open minds to accept Bible study and every semester new students come; it’s like a whole new mission field every semester.   University students are great also, the students stay longer so you can spend more time with them and help them to grow and be established; and also they are well disciplined so when they become disciples they make really good spiritual leaders.  We should not envy or complain.  We should be faithful and diligent to the work God has given to us and give thanks to God.

Look at verse 28.  “28You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ[j] but am sent ahead of Him.’”  John had clearly taught his disciples that he was not the Christ, but was only sent ahead to prepare the way for Him.  John taught his disciples that the position of the Christ is the Christ’s position, not his own.  During Christmas time there is the saying, “Jesus is the Reason for the season.”  But this can be our lifetime direction and motto.  Jesus is the ‘Reason’ why we are His disciples.  Jesus is the ‘Reason’ why we serve His mission field.  We serve Christ.  We introduce Christ to those who are separated from God, so that they might repent and put their faith in Christ and be restored as God’s precious sons and daughters.  The reason we serve is to reveal Him, not to build up ourselves.

Look at verse 29.  “29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.”  John used an illustration from marriage to explain Jesus’ position and his own and the relationship between the two.  John taught his disciples that Jesus is the Bridegroom who is to be united to His bride.  The church is the bride of Christ, i.e. all believers.  John on the other hand is the friend of the Bridegroom.  A true friend is happy when his friend gets married.  He is so happy when the bride and groom are finally brought and joined together.  The bride does not belong to the friend, the bride belongs to the bridegroom.  No friend would ever try to take his friends bride from him; that is no friend.

Shep. Allan and Roman were the happiest people in the world when Msn. Nathan got married.  They were so happy when they witnessed Msn. Nathan and Shep. Atiena place the rings on one another’s fingers.  They are really good friends and they were sooo happy.  They were also both dreaming of the day when they too could marry a woman who loves God!  But they would have been terrible friends if they had tried to elope with Shep. Atiena had marry her for themselves.

In the same way John knew that he was not the groom for the believers, it was Christ.  Only Jesus could be the groom; for He is the Creator God.  When John saw everyone going to Jesus, John became happier and happier; his joy was made complete.  Not only had John been faithful to his mission from God, but also could witness with his own two eyes the bringing together of the bride and the Bridegroom, Jesus.  John’s whole life had been dedicated for this one purpose, to prepare the way for the Bridegroom and bride to be united together.  He had given himself fully for this purpose.  He ate locust and honey and wore itchy camel hair clothing so that he could serve this purpose.

In the same way, many coworkers have dedicated themselves fully to helping students to meet Christ as their Lord and Savior.  But we must be careful that we don’t forget our position and what we are really trying to do.  When we receive one student to teach the Word of God to, we are often so happy.  But we must ask why?  Is it because they are our Bible student or because we are getting to witness one lost soul being reunited to their true love, their Bridegroom Jesus Christ?  Are we eloping with Jesus’ bride or are we filled with great joy when we see young people being brought to Jesus?

Look at verse 30.  “30 He must become greater; I must become less.”  John understood that Jesus must become greater; and he should become less.   Jesus is the Messiah, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world and gives man eternal life.  A marriage is between two people, not three.  Even though the friend of the bridegroom is the best man at the wedding, ultimately his position is finished after the bride and groom are married, he does not go with them on their honeymoon.  John’s position was meant to become less and less, until there is only Jesus and His church.  This was the secret to John’s successful, fruitful and satisfying mission life.  

This is a great truth that we all need to learn.  No one likes to become less.  Everyone wants to become greater.  Who says, “I must become less”?  At our work place we want to become greater and greater until we can become the CEO.  In our ministry we want to become great servants of God.  I hear all the time, “Become a great servant of God!”  And we aspire to become great servants of God.  But what is true greatness?  Is it to have many disciples who are under us?  For many it is not easy to see our sheep to become greater than ourselves.  Some religious guru’s like Joseph Smith or Sungyun Moon or Mohammed or even pastors, evangelist’s or religious leaders, make themselves kings over God’s flock.  They think of themselves as greater than their neighbor or those who they are tasked to shepherd over.  But the Bible clearly teaches that we are all equal.  There is a time to shepherd over God’s flock and then there is a time to entrust them fully to the Lord.

A parent who has seen their children married understand this well.  When they were young their children were completely under their care and needed their parents for everything.  But then they had to let go of them and their child had to establish their own home with their spouse.  No longer did the parent have full control over them.  They could give their wise advice, but they could not force their children to listen to them any longer.  In reality, they could never force their children to listen in the first place, but they sometimes forgot that.

Personally, this is a wonderful passage for me.  My oldest son Peter is now a junior in high school and soon will be applying for college and he is becoming more and more independent, actually all my sons are.  It was not an easy thing for me to see my son as God’s precious son and the bride of Christ, instead of my sheep.  Peter and I are very similar, but we are also very different.  I am from the baby boomer generation.  I respect authority and seldom actually challenge it.  My son is from generation X.  He was raised to question and challenge authority because the authorities don’t always know what they’re doing.  I am good at one task at a time, he is good at multi-tasking, he can study, listen to music and text and facebook all at the same time.  I expected my son Peter to listen to me because I am his father and I have more experience than he does; but Peter wants to know the reason why and “Just because I say so” is not a good enough answer to convince him.

I expect him to be like me, but he is not.  I cannot force him to be so, because he belongs to Christ not to me.  My job is to help my son Peter to meet Christ personally, his true Bridegroom and to help Peter to love Christ personally with all his heart, soul, strength and mind.  I need to pray for him and plant God’s Word in his heart.  Not try to make him like me.

John the Baptist came to glorify Jesus and not himself.  In our ministry we also have many titles and positions, and these are good, but they can also be a hindrance to the work of God as well.  Such things unduly emphasize 'human'' intervention over the invisible hands of the work of the Risen Christ.  I really thank God for Msn. Isaac.  I really respect him and look to him as my shepherd.  Sometimes I really want him to tell me what to do.  But he really knows his position and he lets me go to Jesus my true Bridegroom and learn from Him.  I’m sure it would be easier for him, and there would be a lot less mistakes and problems that I created if he did, but he trusts the Lord to work in me and to help me to grow up to full measure of Jesus Himself.  This is a good lesson for all of us, whether we are sheep or shepherds.  We need to go to Jesus and strive to grow to Jesus’ true greatness.  

Look at verse 31.  “31 The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all.”  Here we see that the reason why bride belongs to Jesus; it is because He is from above.  Jesus is Immanuel; God in the flesh.  John is just a man of flesh.  Even though Jesus came in the flesh, He is not originally flesh, He is God Almighty.  He is the God who dwells with His people.  We cannot be mistaken who Jesus is or where He truly came from.  John could save no one; he is a man of flesh.  But Jesus is God Almighty who has the power to rescue us from our sin.  He is the Creator God in whom life originates and finds true life.

Look at verses 32-34.  “32 He testifies to what He has seen and heard, but no one accepts His testimony.  33 The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful.”  Those who accept find out that God is telling the truth.  34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.”  Often I see people who are not happy and I wonder why.  When I look at them they look like they should be the happiest people.  I know one shepherd’s family that work very hard.  They have several beautiful children.  In the past their relationship was a little strained and they were always tired and exhausted.  They were not deeply and genuinely happy or satisfied.  But I heard that they decided to get together every day and have daily devotion together and to accept God’s Word and now I hear their relationship became very sweet and they are happy and they are serving the Lord with new strength.  

Personally, these verses encouraged me greatly to spend more and more time in God’s Word.  These days I have become busier with many tasks in serving the Lord.  I became tired and worn out.  I could see that the real problem is that I have not increased my personal time with the Lord.  I come in the morning and pray with coworkers with many prayer topics, but I have not had a personal time with the Lord to receive His Holy Spirit without limit.  When we accept the Word of God, our Lord Jesus gives us the Holy Spirit and makes us unutterably joyful and gives us strength and energy to serve Him without limit.  The fruit of the Holy Spirit is love, joy and peace (Gal 5:22).  So those who come to His Word will receive the Holy Spirit and love, joy and peace becomes theirs.

Look at verses 35-36.  “35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in His hands.   36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”   Fallen man thinks that $5 is more important than eternal life.  Fallen man thinks that he is going to live in this world forever.  I met one man who was a Tae Kwon Do master, who had complete mastery and control over his body.  He was very proud of his strength and ability.  He thought nothing could overcome him.  He did not think he needed Christ.  His daughter and son in law prayed for him, but he would not budge.  But then he was diagnosed with diabetes and little by little he had to lose parts of his body.  He quickly learned that all his dedication and hard work to train his body was no match against diabetes.  By God’s grace on his life he turned to Jesus and received eternal life.  He eventually died from diabetes, but now he is in Heaven training the angels in martial arts.  Jesus said, "For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the Gospel will save it.  What good is it for a man to gain the whole world and yet forfeit his soul?" (Mk 8:35-36).  But verses 35-36 says that God sent His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  Those who do not believe in the Son, God's wrath remains on them (36).

John the Baptist did not try to hold onto his life or try to become great by human standards, even in his mission work.  Instead, he knew who he was and more importantly who Jesus is.  Today we are abundantly blessed by the testimony of John the Baptist about Jesus.  May God bless each of us to be a good coworker of God and a coworker of Christ and a coworker of our coworkers like John the Baptist.  May God bless us to testify that Jesus is the giver of eternal life and help the flock of God to be reunited to Him.

One Word: He Must Become Greater.