A Glorious Decline
Fortifying the Foundations # 8
John 3:22-36
Intro:
When we say the word “down”, what kind of thoughts go through your mind?—down and out, down under, down hearted, a downer. By and large “down” is considered negative. In contrast, “up” sounds real good.—up and coming, upper class, upwardly mobile. We associate the word “up” with increase in status and power. Advertisers promise to take you up with a product, not down. Employers promise to take you up the ladder, not down. This is the mindset of our society. It has always been the way the world thinks.[1] It is in perfect accord with the human ego.
Before we get into our text, before we see the “Glorious Decline” of John the Baptist,
I want to paint a dark background of contrast from the word of God—
I. The Disastrous Ascent of Lucifer.
Isa 14:12-17 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground-mighty though you were against the nations of the world. 13For you said to yourself, "I will ascend to heaven and rule the angels. I will take the highest throne. I will preside on the Mount of Assembly far away in the north. 14I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High." 15But instead, you will be brought down to the pit of hell, down to its lowest depths. 16Everyone there will stare at you and ask, "Can this be the one who shook the earth and the kingdoms of the world? 17Can this be the one who destroyed the world and made it into a shambles, who demolished its greatest cities and had no mercy on his prisoners?" TLB
Long before God created man, this catastrophic event occurred. The archangel, Lucifer, rose up in rebellion against the Almighty God.[2] The mystery of iniquity began. In verses 13 and 14 we find an attitude of self-promotion, ambition, self-aggrandizement—a rebellion and defiance of the sovereignty of God.
Throughout the history of mankind this spirit of self-promotion has worked havoc and produced horrific pain and suffering. The seductive promise of the serpent in the Garden of Eden was “...your eyes will open and you will be like God...”[3] That was Satan’s promise to Eve. That same spirit drove Absalom to rebel against David. It caused Hitler to slaughter innocent Jews in the Holocaust—the lust for power and prestige. It is the spirit that motivated Saddam Hussein’s atrocities and attack upon neighbors.
How many marriages have been destroyed by a diabolical drive to get to “the top”? How many friendships have ended because of envy and jealousy? Prov 27:4 “Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy?” NIV
Because of jealousy Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery. Because of envy religious rulers wanted Jesus killed.
There was Lucifer so near the throne of our majestic God—God so pure and so full of love and goodness. What caused the privileged archangel to rebel? "I will ascend ...(I will) rule... I will take the highest throne. I will preside ...I will climb to the highest heavens...(I will) be like the Most High." What was behind all that? —a discontentment with the plan of God, an insistence on having the prominence.
In our text this morning, we find some of that attitude in John’s disciples. Follow with me as we read John 3:22-35
“After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized. 23Now 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.) 25An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26They 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." 27To this John replied, "A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. 28You yourselves can testify that I said, `I am not the Christ but am sent ahead of him.’ 29The 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. 30He must become greater; I must become less.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. 32He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands.” NIV
After Jesus cleansed the temple his ministry in Jerusalem was powerful. All kinds of healings occurred. The crowds were constantly growing. Jesus and his disciples left Jerusalem and went north into the Judean countryside. There too the ministry flourished. They were baptizing many followers.
Not far from that location, John was also baptizing followers. John continued to preach repentance and fulfill his ministry. His disciples were assisting him and apparently got into an argument with one of the Jews about purification. We don’t know the specifics of that discussion. The Jews had all kinds of washings and rituals for ceremonial cleansing. Water baptism would naturally raise that kind of discussion. Something said during that exchange caused John’s disciples to get all upset about Jesus’ ministry. Look at their complaint to John in verse 26--"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." Notice how they refer to Jesus. They don’t call him by name—yet I’m sure his name was on everyone’s lips. They don’t refer to him as Messiah. They had heard John say he is “The Lamb that takes away the sin of the world.”[4] They had heard him say he is the Son of God.[5] None of that honor do these disciples give to Jesus—“that man”, “the one you testified about”. I think the implication is: “John, you helped this guy out. You gave him some recognition. Now instead of joining us and helping us, he’s stealing all your sheep. Everybody’s going to his meetings instead of our’s. That’s the thanks he gives you.” The Message paraphrases their approach this way, “Rabbi, you know the one who was with you on the other side of Jordan? The one you authorized with your witness. He’s baptizing too, and everybody’s going to him instead of us.”
How many know that without the Holy Spirit working grace in our hearts, that is the natural, human response we all have to that kind of situation? We want other people to succeed, but not more than us! They drew a comparison and then felt belittled by it. They got defensive. They got jealous. They got critical.
But that was not John’s attitude. John is full of the Holy Spirit. John joyfully embraces God’s plan for him.
II. The Glorious Decline of John the Baptist.
This scenario sets the stage for one of the greatest speeches in human history. Allow John’s reply to speak to you this morning. The heart of his message is found in verse 30, “He (Jesus) must become greater. I must become less.” KJV says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” The Message paraphrases it this way, “This is the assigned moment for Him to move into the center, while I slip off to the sidelines.”
We must hear John’s words in the context of his personality. John is not a passive person. He is not backing off just because he does not want to confront the issue. This is a man full of backbone and courage. When the prominent Pharisees and Sadducees approached him with all their prestige and pride, he looked them in the eye and said, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.”[6] He confronted the powerful King Herod about his ungodly relationship with his brother’s wife. That ultimately cost John his life. John is not backing up because he is afraid to move forward. There is something far more admirable behind his response.
He is embracing the will of God for his life—fully accepting the place God has given him to fill—not grasping for more, not competing for the preeminence. His life is about one thing—and only one thing: obedience to the will of God. In this he is an example for all of us.
Here is a secret to contentment and happiness in life: a full appreciation for the sovereignty of God. We live in a society that downplays that or maybe even denies it. What is your attitude toward God’s plan for your life? How are we responding to events beyond our control? Israel in the wilderness murmured and complained about God’s plan for them. God gave them manna and they wanted meat. He gave them Canaan land but all they saw was lots of giants. Caleb and Joshua were in the same set of circumstances but with a totally different attitude.
In the Isaiah passage we read earlier, what was Lucifer’s problem? He refused to accept the sovereignty of God—the right of God to rule. That was fundamental to Satan’s downfall. And fundamental to our success in life is the opposite of that—not only an acceptance of the sovereignty of God, but beyond that, an appreciation for the sovereignty of God.
We don’t see John mournfully resigning himself to fate in our story. He is rejoicing in God’s plan for his life. He illustrates that to his disciples in verse 29 with a wedding scene. In that culture the friend of the bridegroom or the best man had a lot of responsibility. In our weddings the best man stands in a place of honor but doesn’t do much. In the Jewish culture the friend of the bridegroom acted as a liaison between the bride and the groom. He made a lot of the arrangements for the wedding. He often brought the bride to the groom and presented her much like the father of the bride does today.[7] He was very prominent in leading the activities until he presented that bride to her groom. At that point he stepped back into the shadows and all the attention shifted to the bride and groom. It would be unimaginable for him to get upset when the attention shifted to the groom. Imagine even in our culture as the wedding ceremony comes to a close, the best man waving his arms saying, “Hello, has anybody noticed I’m here—I mean everybody keeps looking at this groom. What about me—me—me?” No, the friend of the bridegroom rejoices with the groom. He rejoices because as the best man he has successfully completed his mission. And he is glad for his best friend, the groom. He is happy because the groom is receiving his bride. John is saying, “Guys, I’m not just resigned to this inevitable reality. I’m excited. I’m delighted that God’s plan is happening. I’m just glad for the part God gave me in it.
Look at the overflow of John’s joy in verses 31-36.
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. 32He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. 36Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him." NIV
It’s all about Jesus. Whether this is the Baptist’s exact words or the Apostle John’s paraphrase and comment does not matter.[8] All attention turns to Jesus in those last verses. This is the reason He must increase and I must decrease:
verse 31---He is from above (heaven), unlike myself and all other human beings.
verse 32—He testifies to what He knows by experience. It’s amazing that people won’t hear.
verse 34—He speaks the words of God. He is sent with a message from the Father.
The Father gives Him the Spirit without measure. The dove “abides” on Him.
verse 35—The Father has given Him His full authority—placed everything in His hands.
verse 36—The destiny of every person depends on his or her response to Him.
There is really no comparison between John the Baptist and Jesus. In fact, no religious leader compares to Jesus.
III.May Our Response to the Sovereignty of God be like John’s.
Am I humble enough to bend to the will of God for my life? I’m not talking about resigning ourselves to something called fate. This is not a call to passivity. Fate says there is absolutely nothing I can do, what will happen will simply happen.
Sovereignty says I can discover and cooperate with the will of God and enjoy what God has planned for me.
To embrace and appreciate the sovereignty of God we must know four things:
1. We must know God loves us and is always pursuing our highest good. There is no better plan for your life than the one God has designed.
2. We must know as our Creator, God has the right to do with us whatever He chooses to do. Romans 9:20 “Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it,
Why did you make me like this?” Have you ever been tempted to ask that question? I have.
There aretwo very different ways we can ask “why” to God. One is to simply say, “Why, I don’t understand what’s happening. I need your help in this.” The other is to say, “Why, who do you think you are, God, doing this in my life?”
Many things come into our lives that we don’t understand. It’s ok to express our pain to God. It’s ok to ask for more understanding. We see that often in the Psalms. But the bedrock of our faith is to realize God has the right to orderour steps and direct our lives. He knows what experiences we need to prepare us for His eternal purposes.
3. We need to know what John told his disciples in verse 27 of our text:
"A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.”
You and I will have what God gives us. We will be gifted according to His plans and purposes. We will have the opportunities He affords us. It is not
our job to make the opportunities. It is our job to make the most of the ones God gives us.[9]
4. We need to know that what John says about himself is true in principle for each and every one of us in our relationship to Christ. “He must increase and I must decrease.” Is this not the key to every spiritual victory—giving
Christ more and more place in my life and yielding less and less to the demands of my selfish nature. In direct proportion to my willingness to
decrease and allow Christ to increase in my life, I live in victory.
Paul wrote in Phil. 1:21 “For me to live is Christ.”
More of Christ and less of me—that is my prayer this morning. In what way is God working that in your life? How would He have you step down that He might Himself raise you up? Will you yield to His plan for you in that area of your life? Will you trust Him and His plan?
Prayer
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[1] Michael Deutsch, Sermon entitled “Christ Must Increase” preached at First Baptist Church in September 2002.
[2] LUCIFER (From The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary. Originally published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright (c) 1988.)
[3] Gen. 3:5 NIV
[4] John 1:29
[5] John 1:34
[6] Matt 3:7 NIV
[7] Leon Morris, Reflections on the Gospel of John, Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, Massachusetts, 2000, p 117.
[8] John 3:31 (from Barnes’ Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)
[9] Eph. 35:16 NIV
5-10-03
Richard Tow
Grace Chapel Foursquare Church
Springfield, MO
www.gracechapelchurch.org
