At the conclusion of today’s message, you will be invited to respond to Jesus’ offer of a clean, fresh start. You can respond by going to the Encourager’s Room, a virtual room, or the altar.
Today’s Scripture
“After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptizing. John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized (for John had not yet been put in prison).
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.’
He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all. He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony. Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true. For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:22-36).
1. FOMO
“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’” (John 3:26-27).
John the Baptizer’s followers had a good old case of ministerial envy.
1.1 Texting Abbreviations
In our texting world, we have many abbreviations and acronyms. There are the stand bys such as FYI and TMI. Most of us know TBA and TBD. And there are some that I needed a little help with. IRL is “In Real Life.” NGL is “Not Gonna Lie.” FOMO, as many of you know, is Fear of Missing Out. It’s this worried feeling that you may be missing out on some exciting event somewhere. In our day, it’s often fueled by social media because so many lives look so pretty and beautiful. Here’s how the people at the Cleveland Clinic phrase it: “You’re late-night scrolling through Instagram or TikTok, and suddenly, you stumble on a series of photos or videos of your friends or family having fun without you.
You ask yourself: Why didn’t they invite me? Did they just forget to include me? And then, just as quickly, you’re falling down a rabbit hole of trying to make sense of it all: Wondering what you did wrong, wishing you had been included.” John’s disciples look across the Jordan River, and they see Jesus’ disciples baptizing a mass of people, and they are envious. The crowd around Jesus is bigger than the crowd around John. They have a little bit of ancient FOMO.
1.2 Ministry FOMO?
I love how John the Baptizer responds to his disciples: “John answered, ‘A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven’” (John 3:26-27).
Most of us are not upset that we don’t have as much ministry influence. We are upset that we don’t have the vacations others have. Others are more successful than you are financially. You are single, and you want to be married. John says to all of us, “Don’t be like that. Don’t feel that. Everything you have is a gift of heaven.” Your talent, your intelligence, your marriage, and your education are gifts of God.
What if God had decided you were going to be born in a village up in Alaska? What if God had decided you were going to be born in a village where 25% of the town’s people are unemployed? What if God had placed you back during the feudal system of the Medieval Ages, where all your hard work generated next to nothing? It’s a matter of your abilities and opportunities, and God gave those to you: “You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth…” (Deuteronomy 8:18a). If you have more wealth than someone else, ordinarily, it’s because God has given you more opportunities, abilities, and circumstances.
1.3 Deep Discontent
“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’” (John 3:26-27).
God is in control of your life, my friend. God is in control of your life, my friend. All that you have is a gift of God. Your parents, your family, your marriage, your money, and your breath are all gifts from above. Later on, the Apostle Paul will tell believers this salient piece of advice: “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7b). We you have feelings of deep discontentment, you are beginning to wonder if God is truly faithful to all His children at best. At worst, you are arrogant, and you might be tempted to think you could do better than God at being God.
1.4 Envy
Envy will rot the inside emotional walls of your heart. Envy comes in many shapes and forms. Envy led Joseph’s brothers to sell him into slavery into Egypt all because he was his father’s favorite child (Acts 7:9).1
It was envy that King Saul had for the young, successful warrior David when the young ladies of the day sang, “Saul has stuck down his thousands and David his ten thousands” (1 Samuel 18:7b). Envy is when I am not satisfied with what God has given me. Envy is strong when one child does all the caring for their aging parents, and the other brothers and sisters do little. The one with all the responsibility is envious of their friends and family’s free time.
1.5 Pilate Recognized Envy
Beware of the Green-Eyed Monster of Envy. Now, the Bible tells us that Pilate knew that it was envy that led the religious leaders to deliver up Jesus to His death (Matthew 27:18). “For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up” (Matthew 27:18). Pilate knew men. Remember, you don’t become a Roman governor by falling off a turnip truck. Pilate listened to every accusation, to every witness, and his conscience told him that Jesus was delivered up because they envied His success, His popularity. Envy is so evil it can even deliver up the Son of God to be crucified.
1.6 Envy, the Remix
It is an equal-opportunity employer. We envy because of our insecurities, wouldn’t you agree? We envy because our pride is wounded. Now, envy digs the mud that jealousy will throw at your success.2 It’s the emotion we feel when someone else gets something we don’t feel they deserve. Envy makes you look at what you don’t have so that it poisons the feelings of enjoyment of what you do have. Again, envy makes you look at what you don’t have so that it poisons the feelings of enjoyment of what you Do have. Envy is when we compare ourselves to someone else and ask, “Why you?” It’s when we hear ourselves wonder, “Why not me?” Say this often to yourself, “God is in charge of my life. My Father is a wonderful heavenly Father. He is taking good care of me, and He has the very best in this life and the next life planned for me. He knows when I need better than I do.” The antidote is as simple as it is powerful: trusting God in all areas of life. God is a good Father, and He will not withhold any good gift from any one of His children.
1. FOMO
2. Be Like a Bridesmaid, Not Like a Bride
“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’” (John 3:29-30)
I love John the Baptizer here. John is so good here. John has a rare trait; he has humility.
2.1 He’s the Best Man
John says, in effect, “Be like the best man who is happy everything is going off without a hitch.” He found tremendous joy in the wedding ceremony. John didn’t say, “Be like the bride, the center of attention.” He didn’t say, “Be like the bride’s father who gets stuck with the bill.” Instead, he says, “Be like the best man because your best buddy found his joy, his bride.”
2.2 It’s More than a Wedding
You should know there’s a running theme in your Bible that all weddings are really a preview of the marriage of Christ and His church: “For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5).
“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, … so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:25, 27).
John understands his role. John knows his purpose in life. God sent him to be the best man. God sent you to be the best man where Jesus is the Groom. God sent you to be the bridesmaid where Jesus is the Groom.
God receives the glory.
2.3 A Life Verse
“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’” (John 3:29-30).
John the Baptist tells us the secret to a great life: “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:29-30).
Why did John say that? What do you think motivated him to say that? I think it’s because John deep down inside of him that “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6b). John wanted every one of his followers to be happy and content. To be humble is to be happy. Pride is what makes you look at your life and say, “I’m the author of it,” when it’s a sheer gift.
2.4 Pride
Pride is an attitude of independence from God: “I don’t need you, God. Stay out of my life. I can handle it myself.” Pride is a spirit of independence from God.
My high school basketball coach gave our whole team a copy of the poem, Invictis, my senior year. Here’s a portion of the poem, “I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.” Whenever I hear those words to this, I feel like saying, “Captain, your ship is about to sink.” Pride has historically been known as the mother of all vices: “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18). Pride is a form of cosmic plagiarism.3 Something else has been brought into your life, something has been given to you, and you say, “I wrote it. I composed it. I did it.”
2.5 Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali was the colorful boxer known for such statements as “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” On an Eastern Airlines flight from Washington to New York City in 1980, Ali had a vivid exchange with the flight attendant. Just before takeoff on an airplane flight, the stewardess reminded Ali to fasten his seat belt. “Superman don’t need no seat belt,” replied Ali. “Superman don’t need no airplane either,” said the flight attendant.4
2.6 Pride, the Remix
Pride is the 1970s Beatles comparing their popularity to Jesus’ fame. Pride is the Nixon White House thinking the laws do not apply to them.5 Pride says my race is better than your race. Again, pride is a spirit of independence from God.
2.7 Prayer and Pride
You may say, “Pastor, I may have a little pride, but I don’t feel like I’m independent from God. That’s crazy talk.” Let me ask you a serious question: “Do you pray regularly?” You say, “Well, I don’t pray as much as I ought to.” Do you know why you don’t pray? You’re forgetting to pray is not your great problem; your great problem is you don’t feel a need to. You don’t feel the need to pray. When you move through your day and your life without prayer, you’re saying, “I can handle it. Everything is going fine.” Our prayerlessness is really a spirit of independence from God. And, if you’re wrestling with prayerlessness, may I tell you that what you’re really wrestling with is pride.6
This is why we need to teach our families to pray. Pray before meals and long car trips as you pull out of the driveway together. Prayer is a declaration of dependence on God, while Pride is a spirit of independence from God.
Again, John the Baptist tells us the secret to a great life: “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:29-30). Humility says, “Life is a gift. I don’t deserve this.” Humility looks at everything, “I don’t deserve this. If God gave me what I deserve, I’d be lost.”
1. FOMO
2. Be Like a Bridesmaid, Not Like a Bride
3. One Choice, Two Destinations
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:36).
3.1 Two Destinations
This verse is a fitting climax to the entire chapter. By laying out your choice pressing you from every side: genuine faith and defiant disobedience.7 This is one of the greatest chapters in your Bible – John 3.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
Would you please notice Jesus gives only two destinations here? Two and two alone. We are told that computer languages are translated into binary code. Binary code is the primary language that computers understand, as it consists of only two digits: 0 and 1. Jesus says eternity is binary. Friend, you will either perish or experience eternal life.
3.2 Judgement Awaits
John has already told us about the judgment that is coming for some of us: “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed” (John 3:19-20).
When Jesus says light has come into the world, He’s talking about Himself. The Bible says people strongly preferred darkness when light came into the world. Not only do we naturally hate the light, but the Bible says we refuse to come to the light because our evil thoughts and actions will be exposed. Now, he closes off this eternally historic chapter by ominously saying that the wrath of God remains on the one who defiantly disobeys the Son of God.
3.3 Unbelief
Unbelief is the major sin, the mother sin, the father sin. Unbelief is the one sin out of which all other sins grow. Unbelief is the one sin that will damn you and send you to hell.8 Not believing in the Son of God is self-condemnation.9
Do you know where you are going in life? My dear Christ-believing friends, do you care enough about your loved ones, neighbors, and co-workers to find out where they are going?
3.4 Malaysia Airlines Flight 370
One of the most perplexing things in recent days was Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. The Boeing 777 was more than 200 feet long and carried a 200-foot wingspan. But, this large commercial airliner just vanished on March 8, 2014, as it took off from Kula Lumpur. Aubrey Wood is right up the road from us in Keller, and her son, Philip, was on this flight. Yes, right here in our backyard in Keller, Texas. Now, picture the 239 people aboard the missing plane from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.10
Before the crash, there was a noted politician on board.
You have a millionaire corporate executive, a couple who jet set around the world living it up without a care in the world, and a missionary kid on the way back from visiting his grandparents. After the crash, they each stand before God stripped of credit cards, offshore bank accounts, the latest clothes, their how-to-succeed books, and Marriot reservations. Here they all are – the politician, the corporate executive, the couple without a care, and the missionary kid – all on ground level with nothing in their hands. They only possess what they brought with them in their hearts.11
Friend, you don’t control your life. Embrace Christ by faith today and trust your life into the hands of your loving Creator and Redeemer.
EndNotes
1 Cain kills his brother, Abel because God likes Abel’s offering better than Cain’s (Genesis 4:1-7).
2 This quote is from Adrian Rogers.
3 I am grateful to Pastor Timothy J. Keller for this idea, “Pride: The Case of Nebuchadnezzar,” February 5, 1995, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive. (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).
4 https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/back-ali/l; accessed August 6, 2019.
5 I owe these examples to Dan Boone, Seven Deadly Sins: The Uncomfortable Truth (Kansas City, MO: Nazarene Publishing House, 2008), 82.
6 I am grateful to Adrian Rogers’ April 30, 2000, message “The Problem with Pride.”
7 D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John. The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans, 1991), 214.
8 Adrian Rogers, “Lifting up Jesus,” in Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive (Signal Hill, CA: Rogers Family Trust, 2017).
9 Andreas J. Kostenberger, John, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Baker Academic2004), 130.
10 http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/06/07/malaysia-search-three-months-later/10014695/; accessed June 8, 2014. This illustration was taken from John Piper. http://www.desiringgod.org/sermons/money-currency-for-christian-hedonism; accessed May 14, 2024.
1 This illustration was taken from John Piper. http://www.desiringgod.org/sermons/money-currency-for-christian-hedonism; accessed May 14, 2024.
