John the Baptist, Part 9 Audio
John the Baptist – Jesus as the Bridegroom
“After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized. Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there. And they came and were baptized. For John had not yet been thrown into prison.” (John 3:22 – 24)
Not clear whether Jesus Himself was doing the baptizing or if His disciples were doing it after He had called them to be His disciples. Later, it is clear that it is the disciples who are doing the baptizing
“Then there arose a dispute between some of John’s disciples and the Jews about purification. And they came to John and said to him, ‘Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified—behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!’”
(John 3:25 – 26)
It seems to be a discussion (whether an argument or a sincere inquiry) over whether there is a difference in the type of purification one would receive from John versus from Jesus
**Sound familiar? Kind of like everyone arguing over baptism today
“John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.” (John 3:27)
John the Baptist’s response makes it clear that it is not the person who administers the baptism which matters, but rather the gift of
cleansing which God gives that matters
Then he goes on to say they have heard him state he is not the Christ.
“You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’”(John 3:28)
Then, he goes on to make an analogy – he states that it is the one who has the bride who is the bridegroom. Instead, it is the friend of the bridegroom who rejoices because of the bridegroom’s voice.
“He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.” (John 3:29)
Ancient Jews had a tradition – friends of a royal or very important bridegroom were responsible for caring for the wedding party.
Their purpose was threefold:
He was the intermediary between the bride and groom
Preparing the bride – making certain of her purity
Carrying messages to the bride from bridegroom
At the marriage, to vindicate the character of the bride
Think of this – what will vindicate us as the bride of Christ? The fact that we have repented, been baptized and are living in the righteousness of a relationship with Jesus Christ
After the marriage, he was the advocate of the bride
And what will mean we are worthy of spending eternity with Him? These same things – the very acceptance of His sacrifice for us and living in the grace and mercy of that sacrifice
In this analogy, John the Baptist is preparing those listening to seeing Jesus as the Messiah – as the One coming for the Church. Of course, the Jews are thinking it is the Jewish people He is coming for, but on this side of the cross, we realize it is the Church of Jesus Christ who is the bride.
This further helps us see how sincere John the Baptist is when he says that his joy is fulfilled. He sees the big picture here – or at least as big of a picture as possible at this point.
Then we hear John the Baptist speak words which are often quoted –
“He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30)
This is not the concept of false humility.
It is not a self-humbling.
Instead, it is revelatory of a God-ordained plan.
The word which translates “must decrease” is the same word used in Hebrews where it talks about how God made man a “little lower” than the angels.
John the Baptist’s purpose was an incredible one – and it was fulfilled – and the glory of God was revealed in that purpose and its fulfillment
"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.” John 3:31
Here John once again establishes Jesus’ supremacy.
“And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.” (John 3:32-33)
Jesus testifies as to Who God is and what He is like
But not everyone will latch on to His testimony
But those who will, know that God is true
“For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.” John 3:34
God’s messengers speak His words – deliver His message
Why? Because God isn’t stingy with His Spirit
Next, John the Baptist lays out the Gospel
“The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” John 3:35-36
Jesus right before this had just told Nicodemus “For God so loved the world He gave His only Son that whoever believed in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Now, John reaffirms that – and in doing so, his pointing to Jesus as the Son is quite clear. He is, in essence, fulfilling His job as friend of the bridegroom – introducing the bride to the bridegroom.
Up to this point, he has been busy making sure that the bridegroom had a pure bride – a repentant bride who had been purified by baptism
But now, the time was right to introduce the bride to the bridegroom.
Followers – here is Jesus Christ
He is the One you have been waiting for
He is the One you have been anticipating
He is the One you want to believe in
Wow!
John’s purpose is fulfilled. He sees that. He prepares his disciples for it. He helps them see that he must decrease so that Jesus may increase
So, let’s see how all this applies to us.
John makes it clear – it doesn’t matter who is administering the rites – what matters is that the power is coming from God – and so it must be God Who gets the glory
Humility is the result of spending time in the presence of God
Pride takes credit for what belongs to God
False humility is a warped sense of pride
In fact, the concept of humility and glorifying God are emphasized throughout this passage.
We also can take great comfort in the story of the bride and bridegroom.
Jesus still uses those who are willing to help prepare the bride for the bridegroom. And when the time is right, He also involves us in the process of introducing His loved ones to Him
And as we do that, they see the purpose of God and are prepared to accept the truth about Him – and accept His gift of eternal life
Just as the repentant heart and the desire to publicly confess and be purified led to a people prepared for the Lord, a humble heart seeking to glorify God is used to introduce those who are prepared to the One who is waiting for them.
Are you humble?
What a loaded question.
The minute you answer “yes,” you are in danger of invalidating that statement.
Humility is the result of spending time in the presence of God.
Maybe the better question is what type of time are you spending in the presence of God?
We are in the season of Lent – a time of fasting and preparation for the celebration of Easter.
If you are not presently fasting anything, will you start? Will you increase the time you are spending in the presence of God?
Will you ask God to adjust your attitude so that you know that He must increase and you must decrease?
Will you do that so you are prepared and anticipating the opportunity to introduce someone to Jesus?
We will be spending the six weeks preparing for the harvest.
We’ve been anticipating a harvest of souls for a long time here in Mecca. What if it is coming soon? Are you willing to fast in order to hasten its coming or further purify yourself in preparation for it?
“He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30)