John The Baptist Exalts Christ One Last Time

John 3:22-36

22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized 24 (for John had not yet been put in prison).

25 Now a discussion arose between some of John's disciples and a Jew over purification. 26 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." 27 John answered, "A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.' 29 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. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease."

31 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. 32 He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony. 33 Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true. 34 For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure. 35 The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. 36 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.

This is a wonderful passage where John receives his chance to exalt Christ one last time. John exalted him in his call of Israel to repentance before Christ's baptism and now one last time before he gets arrested and thrown into prison. John the Baptist was appointed by God as the last old covenant prophet. Jesus spoke of him as the greatest that has ever lived since then (Mt 11:11), but he is to Jesus as a friend of the bridegroom is to the bridegroom. John's sole purpose was to "prepare the way of the Lord (Isa 40:3)." We know that He who prepared the path, is not greater than the one to whom it is prepared for.

John preaches "He must increase, but I must decrease!" John moves out of the way so that the person that all the law and the prophets spoke about may be central and exalted. The law and the prophets move to the background, they move into the casted shadow so that the substance may be seen clearly. The law and the prophets are still there until heaven and earth pass away (Mt 5:18), but the very thing that the law and the prophets testified of stands as the focal point.

Christ is the only man who lived on this earth that has come from above and is above all. All other men were sons of Adam from the earth. Those who are of the earth speak and think in a earthly manner. They do not receive or see the things of God. Christ bears witness of his heavenly kingdom and His Father and no one receives His testimony. They do not receive the testimony because they are of the earth, they love darkness rather than light, and they have not been born from above so that they may see the kingdom of God (Jn 3).

But the one who has received Christ's testimony set their seal, their authorization, approval, or in other words they would place their life and all their possessions on the line that God has sent Christ to testify of Himself and of the truth. There is nothing that I have or that anyone could ever give to me that I would not place on the line that God has sent Jesus Christ to testify of Himself. That is just the nature of saving faith. It is not a leap in the dark, it is a revelation of light into the heart of that which is unseen is visible with a believing heart.

So God the Father loves His Son and He has sent His Son into the world to testify of Him. He has sent Him to testify of Him giving Him the Spirit above measure. Jesus who is the Word is sent to accomplish God's very purpose, "it shall not return to Him empty, but it shall accomplish that which He purposes, and shall succeed in the thing for which He sent it (Isa 55:10-11, emphasis mine)." And the Father has given all things into His hand. He is the heir of the Father's kingdom. And whoever believes in Him becomes co-heirs with Christ of all things. He inherits the kingdom of God and God Himself is his inheritance.

The last passage here is an intriguing one. It says "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." This is a statement where one clause makes the proposition, but the second clause gives another proposition of what the first clause implies but not made explicit. That is, namely, to believe in the Son also includes obeying Him. Those who do not obey the Son do not really believe in Him because saving faith results in a love for the Savior which evokes in us obedience. Those who do not obey Jesus do not belong to Him. 1 John is a wonderful complimentary epistle to the Gospel of John. 1 John 2:4-6 states, "Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked." Those who do not keep the commandments of Christ, do not know Jesus and therefore have not truly believed in Jesus. And therefore as the last clause of this chapter speaks, as it has spoken before, that those who do not belong to Christ, the wrath of God abides on them. Those who continue in rebellion against God will not receive the forgiveness of sins, but will receive the punishment for their sins which is the wrath of God for eternity.

But we must end on a positive note. Everyone who believes in Him who the Father has sent will receive eternal life. Eternal life is an endless life of communion with God. There will be no more sin, evil, pain, tears, anxiety, unsatisfied lusts, social injustice, famine, financial debt, impurity, greed, selfishness, death, disease, depression, weariness, fatigue, and the list goes on and on. Above all, you will get to see him face to face (1 Cor 13:12). Christ in all His glory is the most beautiful person you can imagine. Let us put off our unbelief, stubbornness, and rebellion and place all of our trust in Him.