The Desirable Decrease

"He must increase, but I must decrease.”—John 3:30

The purpose of John the Baptist’s life and ministry was to point people to Jesus. The Bible says of John,  

“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light”—John 1:6-8.

John had a successful ministry, was gaining fame, notoriety, and drawing followers, until Jesus appeared. When Jesus showed up, John said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”—John 1:29. His job was not to build his own fame, his own fortune, or his own following. His job was to point people to Jesus.

Today, there is a professional basketball player by the name of LeBron James. James is an amazing basketball player who has been anointed as the “chosen one” since he was in high school. His athletic ability and basketball prowess is nothing short of amazing, earning him the nickname, King James. His fans wear t-shirts with the words “We are witnesses” printed on them. They are witnesses to his greatness and basketball ability, but he is still just a man. He cannot save anyone. He may make the fans “ooohh” and “ahhh” but his ability is limited to a basketball court and will one day erode just as it has for the thousands who have gone before him.

We, like John the Baptist before us, are witnesses to Christ’s greatness. We are to point people to His ability to love, His ability to save, His ability to forgive the sins of the whole world. He gave His life for us so that we might live through Him. And those who have confessed their sins and invited Jesus into their lives can say with confidence, “We are witnesses.” We have seen what God can do and will do for those who seek to humble themselves before Him, abandoning self in pursuit of the Savior. John the Baptist did. John said about Jesus, “…I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God"—John 1:34.

Sometime later a disagreement broke out between John’s disciples and a Jew about some purification laws. The Bible says,  

“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 3:26. 

John’s disciples noticed that those who were getting baptized were going to Jesus and not John! In their minds, John was not supposed to be losing followers, but gaining them! John’s response is telling. He says,

"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”—John 3:27-30.

John recognized the point of his ministry—to point people to Jesus. John wasn’t out to build a following, to get his name known, or to baptize as many people as possible. His purpose was to testify to Christ. Which means that his ministry would decrease, but Christ’s would increase.

How about us? Can we say, like John, “He must increase”? Better yet, can we then say, “but I must decrease”? It’s easy to want Jesus to increase, but it’s hard to have ourselves decrease. The only way to truly have Christ increase and ourselves decrease is to focus upon Him. John understood who Jesus was and never forgot the purpose of his life, and we must follow that example. Our prayer must be continually to point people to Jesus. It’s not about us, never has been, and never will be. It’s all about Him—the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world! May God help us to pursue a desirable decrease of self so that others may see the Savior of the world. Amen.