He must increase, but I must decrease. – John 3:30.
Something is fascinating about the above statement. The disciples of John had come to complain that Jesus, whom John baptised the other day, was now conducting baptism Himself and all men came to Him. Obviously, this was the operation of God who channelled all men towards Christ.
John understood this and that could be seen in the answer that he gave to the complainants, that I’ll summarise as, “don’t worry my dear disciples, I told you already that He is Christ and I was simply a forerunner. Now that He’s here, it’s normal that God has bestowed all these wonderful qualities on Him, and all men flock to Him. He is the Bridegroom, I am just His friend.”
Already, the above answer shows humility and divine understanding. But John went further to add a striking statement, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” He used the word MUST to denote the certainty of this statement. God must increase and John must decrease. Christ’s role and fame in Israel will continue to grow in lips and bounds, while John’s role and popularity will unavoidably shrink. That was not a problem for John because success isn’t about how famous you are, it is about completing the assignment from God; it is remaining in the purpose for your creation.
But that was John’s view anyway because this decrease in the eyes of men was an increase before God. In fact, Jesus in Matthew 11:11 affirmed that among all men born of women there has not been a person greater than John the Baptist. This was a man that decreased for Christ to increase.
Dear reader, when you understand humility you understand promotion. In a world where people are competing for popularity and desiring to be more famous than Jehovah, allowing God to increase and you to decrease may look stupid. Allowing God to pilot the affairs of your life may sound weak to some, but that’s the right path to take. John understood humility, which is the principle to honour and exaltation. He understood giving God the chance to reign.
This week, allow God to increase in you. Give Him the chance He deserves in your daily decisions. Allow Him to have the final say in your life and business. Let him be God and be comfortable being a man. If you need all of God, then give Him all of you – that’s the price.
God bless you and have a splendid week.
