Amen and good morning.
Please take your copy of God's Word and join me in John chapter 3.
!
I'm sick and really grieved to not be with you.
I think last Sunday I slept 20 out of the 24 hours in the day.
Often on a Sunday morning I'll wake up.
If I'm sick at home, I'll wake up in the 10 o'clock hour and wish that I was here and be praying for you guys.
Well, I didn't wake up until 1 o'clock this past Sunday and just said,
Ah, wish I had been there with them.
Let's pray before we read this text.
Father God, we thank you for your Word to us.
We recognize that it was written by the pen in this case of John,
but he was carried along by your Spirit and it had an original audience,
but also was written for us.
We humbly recognize that it was written ultimately for your glory, but also for our good.
And so we ask that you would help us as we open it together to believe its promises
and obey its commands and that we would have affection for its author.
Father, help us to hear it and respond as we should to it, we pray.
In Christ's name, amen.
John chapter 3, beginning in verse 22 and through the end of the chapter.
John chapter 3, beginning in verse 22 and through the chapter 3,
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.
The first five verses of our text this morning give us a timing, some locations, and a circumstance.
The question of their significance must be addressed, and they help set up for us why this text exists at all at the end of chapter 3.
So before we look at the rest of the passage, and I give you an outline for this morning, let's spend a few minutes here.
At the beginning of verse 22, we see John the Apostle say,
After this.
And he uses this phrase for the passage of some undetermined time.
He'll do this throughout his gospel account.
You can note the very same at the beginning of verse 12 of chapter 2, following the miracle of the wedding at Cana.
So, sometime after Jesus cleanses the temple and interacts with Nicodemus, he and his disciples leave Jerusalem.
And they head out to the Judean countryside, the same general region, but they are now outside of Jerusalem.
And he remains with them, he tarries with them, and is baptizing.
We'll talk about it a bit more next week, Lord willing, but we'll see that John carefully records that Jesus himself was not baptizing, but his disciples were doing so.
So here we have Jesus and his disciples in one place, the Judean countryside baptizing.
And then John the Apostle says, verse 23, John the Baptist was also baptizing in another place, anon near Saline.
This is the northern part of the country.
Why? Because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized.
For John had not yet been put in prison.
I was a great temptation at this point to want to unpack all of this to just talk about baptism, which is not what we're going to do this morning,
because that is not the driving point of this text.
We'll see why in just a moment.
Verse 24 states a fact we see here, for John had not yet been put in prison.
That is entirely self-evident.
Clearly, John the Baptist had not been imprisoned.
Verse 23 tells us where he was and what he was doing.
So, why the inclusion of the phrase in verse 24?
It tells us that this event took place in between the baptism of Jesus and his following temptation in the wilderness,
and John the Baptist's imprisonment.
The synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, are silent on the public ministry of Jesus before John was arrested.
And so this note clarifies the timing of this event.
John's gospel supplements the synoptics with these earlier events.
But why?
What is John the Apostle stressing here that requires this inclusion?
It seems a little out of place.
He has introduced his gospel account with John the Baptist's bold testimony to Jesus as the Christ.
The very purpose that John the Baptist declares he was sent for.
That's right there in chapter 1.
John the Apostle has gone on to record Jesus' calling of the first disciples,
his first miracle, his temple cleansing, and his words of life to Nicodemus.
It seems that the stage has moved on.
The entrapments for John the Baptist have been cleared off,
and Jesus is now full center.
So why circle back to John the Baptist?
Doesn't it seem disjointed?
Like, what is John the Apostle doing here?
Hasn't John the Baptist served his purpose in setting up the stage for Jesus' ministry?
I think the next two verses help us to understand why John the Apostle did this.
Verse 25 says,
Now a discussion arose between some of John's disciples and a Jew over purification.
We aren't given the details of the discussion.
I spend a lot of time looking for the details.
What's going on?
What's the context that's happening here?
This seems really significant to where we're about to go.
But I think we don't know the details,
because the details of the discussion are not important
to the point that I think that John the Apostle intends to make.
So, it's important to know that their discussion would have been related to baptism
as it related to the Old Covenant purification practices.
This is as much as I think we can know about what's happening here.
There's lots of conjecture, but I think that's what we can know from John chapter 3.
But whatever the discussion, it raises a question amongst John's disciples.
I think this is going to help us see what the point is.
They come to John, his disciples, and they said to him,
Rabbi, or teacher, he who was with you across the Jordan,
to whom you bore witness, they're talking about Jesus,
look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.
Here I think we find the point of John the Apostle's
spirit-led inclusion of this last part of chapter 3.
John the Baptist's ministry was being eclipsed.
The sun was setting on it.
He had not yet been imprisoned, but his influence was waning.
The glory of Jesus' ministry was surpassing that of John's.
It would seem that John's disciples were troubled by this reality.
How might we know this?
This is not just sanctified imagination.
Look what they say.
Look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.
We're all going to him?
No, they weren't.
He's in a place where the water is plentiful.
People are still coming to receive the baptism of John,
but this is the feeling they have, the sense that they have, right?
They seem to have become envious and troubled by Jesus' rise to frame
and the setting of their teacher's ministry.
They devoted themselves to him,
and suddenly this other one is becoming much, much more important.
Perhaps they were even feeling less important than they wanted to feel.
And I think in this text,
we most readily find ourselves identifying,
regularly identifying,
with John the Baptist's disciples.
Feeling less important than we want to feel.
Not gaining the success in this life that we'd like to have.
Seeming overlooked.
Feeling like everyone is going on out ahead of us,
and we are falling behind.
We can become envious.
We can be jealous.
We can be bitter.
John the Baptist's response
to this attitude of self-importance
is the significance of this text.
The expressed humility of John the Baptist
is why I think John the Apostle circles back to him.
As Jesus is being exalted in the narrative,
and John's influence is beginning to wane,
the words that John the Baptist says
are why John the Apostle records them.
serves us by showing us
the godly response to such a circumstance.
This response of humility.
So here's our outline for this morning.
Number one, the humble rest in God's sovereignty.
Number two, the humble are self-aware.
Number two, the humble exalt Jesus Christ.
Notice first, the humble rest in God's sovereignty.
Now, why choose the word rest for this point?
Now here, I am going to use some sanctified imagination
as I give some tone to the way I think John would have responded.
Verse 27,
that maybe it was a rebuke,
but I think that they come to him,
they're frustrated.
They think that things should be going differently
than they're going.
They're envious.
They come to him as they look.
He's baptizing and all are going to him.
And rather than rebuke,
he says with a quiet confidence,
a person cannot receive even one thing
unless it is given him from heaven.
Nothing that we have is ours
apart from God's sovereign purpose in granting it.
Not a single thing that we have.
No possession that we have.
No gifting that we have.
Natural or ordained through practice.
Not a single thing that you can do.
Nothing that you have to offer at all
is yours apart from God's sovereign purpose
in granting it to you.
We have no space as Christians
knowing this to be true for boasting at all.
No threat of it.
Understanding that nothing that we have is ours
apart from God's sovereign purpose in granting it
is the foundation for humility.
It's the very thing that needs to be worked down
into the very core of who we are
if we were going to produce any measure of humility at all.
Nothing that I have is mine
apart from God's sovereign purpose
in granting it.
I am his.
He has created me in Christ
for works prepared beforehand
for me to walk in.
Anything that he's given me
to accomplish that.
Adversely, nothing that we don't have
isn't ours apart from God's sovereign purpose
in not granting it.
So if we have some measure of success
in some area of our life
there's no reason to boast in it
because God granted it.
And if we don't
and God is withholding it
for our good and his glory.
What a wonderful promise
that no matter what comes into our life
whatever circumstances are happening
God is in control
of every single ounce of it.
It's the foundation for humility.
God is creator.
We are not.
We are creation.
From our call to worship this morning
1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 26
and following
Paul there exhorts this
for consider your calling brothers
not many of you were wise
according to worldly standards.
That's the room.
Not many of us wise
according to worldly standards.
Not many were powerful.
Not many were of noble birth.
But God chose what is foolish in the world
to shame the wise.
God chose what is weak in the world
to shame the strong.
God chose what is low
and despised in the world
even things that are not
to bring to nothing
things that are.
So that no human being
might boast
in the presence
of God.
God works in his people.
He brings his people together
in such a way
that the world
looks at us
and says
their God
must be great.
Because they are not.
And because of him
you are in Christ Jesus
verse 30 of 1 Corinthians 1
who became to us
wisdom from God
righteousness
and sanctification
and redemption
so that as it is written
let the one who boasts
boast in the Lord.
If anything
anything
to boast about
it is in
our
God
who has taken
wretched sinners
and rescued us
called us
redeemed ones
adopted us
called us
children
set us on a task
given us gifts
John's answer
to them
is striking
a person
cannot receive
even one thing
unless it is given him
from heaven
the humble
rest
in God's
sovereignty
secondly
and it follows
the humble
are
self
aware
verse 28
John the Baptist
says
you yourselves
bear me witness
saying
you saw me say
I am not
the Christ
but I have
been sent
before him
John the Baptist
summarizes
the testimony
recorded in
chapter 1
with this phrase
I am not the Christ
but I have been
sent
before him
but he says
a bit
more than that
if you look at
John chapter 1
beginning in verse
20
there John the Apostle
records
he confessed
and did not
deny
but confessed
I am not
the Christ
and they asked him
those who were sent
to question him
what then are you
Elijah
he said
I am not
are you the prophet
and he answered
no
so they said to him
who are you
you need to give an answer
to those who sent us
what do you say
about yourself
he said
I am the voice
of one
crying out
in the wilderness
make straight
the way
of the Lord
as the prophet
Isaiah
said
that they had been
sent from the Pharisees
they asked him
then why are you
baptizing
if you are neither
the Christ
nor Elijah
nor the prophet
John answered them
I baptize
with water
but among you
stands one
you do not know
even he who comes
out to untie
John knows
who he is
he knows the purpose
for which
he was sent
and that was
the exaltation
of Jesus Christ
he was the
forerunner
the one to
go ahead
and prepare
the way
for
the Christ
he then goes on
in verse 29
to illustrate his point
with a familiar
scene
at a wedding
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
the friend of the
bridegroom
is
analogous
roughly
with our
cultural practice
of a groom
having a
best man
so you can read that
into the text
except that
best men
these days
are given
very few
responsibilities
I think
often the best
man's job
is to be
the goofiest
of all
the groomsmen
I've officiated
a lot of
weddings
and he's
the one
you have
to most
get the
attention
of
sometimes
we don't
even trust
him
with the
rings
anymore
that's
usually
my
advice
I usually
say
just give
the
rings
to me
I'll
hang
on
to
them
we'll
make
sure
they
end
up
on
your
hands
but not
so in
this
day
the best
man
was
responsible
for a
lot
that went
on
in the
design
of the
wedding
the
planning
of the
wedding
he
brought
the
groom
to
the
bride
he
protected
on the
wedding
night
the
wedding
chamber
would
only
let
the
groom
go
in
to
his
bride
and so
this
bride
groom
has
prepared
himself
for
this
very
important
purpose
for
the
groom
he
knows
who
he
is
he's
not
the
groom
at
some
point
in
that
day
the
attention
turns
from
him
and
it
turns
to
the
groom
he's
merely
the
friend
of
the
groom
and
so
he
rejoices
he's
so
glad
all
of
the
work
that
went
into
it
the
whole
point
of
it
for
him
is
to
see
the
bridegroom
exalted
and so
John says
right
I am
not
the
Christ
but
the
Christ
is
here
he
has
come
he
has
been
presented
therefore
this
joy
of
mine
is
now
complete
I
have
finished
that
task
right
it
is
over
it
is
good
that
people
are
going
to
Jesus
to
receive
baptism
so
the
humble
are
self
aware
beloved
praise
God
not a
single
one
of
us
is
the
Christ
we
are
not
perfect
and we
could
not
bear
that
load
and we
could
not
have
accomplished
what
he
accomplished
fully
God
and
fully
man
truly
God
and
truly
man
thank
God
that
Jesus
is
Jesus
and
we
are
not
and
humility
begins
at this
place
where we
know
that
we're
not
and it
should
desire
in us
to make
much
of
him
and it
seems so
obvious
when we
say that
but we
are so
readily
self
serving
trying to
gain
people's
applause
trying to
gain
success
in worldly
terms
we often
care too
much
about
temporal
glory
for
ourselves
rather
than
eternal
glory
for
Christ
so
the
humble
rest
in
God's
sovereignty
the
humble
are
self
aware
and
finally
the
humble
exalt
Jesus
Christ
but
I
must
decrease
right
Jesus
must be
maximal
and I
must
be
minimal
your
Bible
translation
likely
has
placed
as
mine
has
closed
quotes
at the
end
of
verse
30
which
suggests
that this
is the
conclusion
of John
the
Baptist
answer
to his
disciples
Greek
didn't have
any
punctuation
so this
is a
translative
decision
and it
is not
without
contention
the question
is did
John
the
Baptist
cease
speaking
at the
end
of
verse
30
or
at the
end
of
verse
33
and I
will
tell
you
I
spent
too
much
time
trying
to
figure
it
out
I
wasn't
convinced
either
way
as I
read
and
studied
these
past
weeks
and
thankfully
it
doesn't
really
matter
it
just
really
doesn't
matter
are these
John
the
Baptist
final
recorded
words
perhaps
I
think
that's
why
the
close
quotes
tend
to go
there
seem
like
good
hard
punctuation
at the
end
of
this
speaking
perhaps
not
the
verses
go
on
I
think
to
explain
what
he
means
there
he
must
increase
but
I
must
decrease
either
way
this
beautiful
sentence
does
not
lose
its
significance
what
a
statement
he
must
increase
but
I
must
decrease
the
Christian
mantra
of our
day
seems
to
be
he
must
increase
we
know
that
Christ
is
supposed
to
be
glorified
he
must
increase
so
I
must
increase
I
must
be
successful
I
must
be
well
put
together
I
don't
need
to
be
a
mess
on
Sunday
mornings
I
must
be
doing
well
in
my
job
and
gaining
promotion
it
must
have
a
nice
home
and
a
nice
car
it
must
have
a
platform
and
it
needs
to
be
growing
in
size
right
how
might
I
magnify
Christ
unless
I
am
increasing
seems
to be
the
thing
it's
in
the
water
it's
the
it's
why
I
call
it
a
mantra
it's
as if
it's
being
repeated
to
us
day
in
and
day
out
right
if
Christ
is
to
be
increased
we
also
must
be
increased
and
this
is
not
this
is
not
the
way
of
Christianity
just
simply
not
such
a
backwards
thing
it
seems
that
the
one
who
came
to
reign
over
his
people
to
set
them
free
from
the
power
of
sin
and
death
who
will
forever
rule
his
enemies
will
make
a
footstool
for
his
feet
that
he
would
come
and
he
would
suffer
and
he
would
die
and
for
some
reason
we
think
that
now
that
that's
been
accomplished
we
get
to
flip
the
script
that
in
following
our
Christ
being
his
disciples
following
in
his
way
we
get
to
do
it
different
than
he
did
John
the
Baptist
doesn't
think
so
neither
did
Paul
says
in
Philippians
chapter
3
verse
8
and
following
there
he
says
indeed
I
count
everything
as
loss
all
of
the
gain
that
he
had
in
his
life
all
of
the
spiritual
credit
that he
had
to
his
account
he
says
everything
I
count
as
loss
because
of
the
surpassing
worth
of
knowing
Christ
Jesus
my
Lord
I
just
for a
second
want
that
phrase
to
stick
in
your
mind
everything
is
lost
because
of
the
surpassing
worth
more
valuable
than
everything
I
could
lose
of
knowing
Christ
Jesus
my
Lord
not
merely
knowing
about
but
knowing
him
for
this
sake
knowing
Christ
Jesus
for
this
sake
I
have
suffered
the
loss
of
all
things
and
I
count
them
as
rubbish
refuse
in
order
that
I
may
gain
Christ
and
be
found
in
him
not
having
a
righteousness
of
my
own
that
comes
from
the
law
but
that
which
comes
through
faith
in
Christ
the
righteousness
from
God
that
depends
!
on
faith
that
I
may
again
know
him
and
the
power
of
his
resurrection
and
may
share
his
sufferings
becoming
like
him
in
his
death
that
by any
means
possible
I
may
attain
the
resurrection
from
the
dead
what
is
what is
Paul
saying
here
he's
saying
that
to
walk
in
this
world
we
can
have
the
things
of
the
world
and
what
it
grants
to
us
or
we
can
suffer
the
loss
of
all
those
things
that
we
can
have
Christ
and
that
to
know
him
means
that
we're
going
to
walk
in
his
ways
John
the
Baptist
and
Paul
understood
this
clearly
John
the Baptist
understood
it
in
such
a
way
that
he
would
someday
soon
be
arrested
and
then
martyred
Christ
must
increase
but I
must
decrease
we
make
Christ
known
in the
world
by having
hope
beyond
this
world
as
we
suffer
the
loss
of
all
things
in
this
world
we
say
to
people
we
have
a
greater
treasure
there's
a
surpassing
worth
out
there
and
it
is
knowing
Christ
and
being
known
by
him
now
whether
or not
John
the
Baptist
ceases
speaking
at
this
point
and
John
the
apostle
picks
it
up
it
doesn't
really
matter
to
me
the
testimony
of
the
Johns
they
go
on
in
to
the
last
verses
of
this
text
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
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
now
the
best
argument
for
this
being
John
the
apostle
is
that
he
goes
on
to
unpack
all
of
this
in
the
coming
chapters
so
we're
going
to
let
that
happen
these
phrases
be
unpacked
but
just
notice
that
whichever
John
is
saying
it
they
are
expressing
the
Jesus
came
from
the
father
verse
31
Jesus
is
preeminent
verse
31
Jesus
declared
the
truth
first
part
of
verse
32
Jesus
agreed
with
God
verse
33
Jesus
was
empowered
by
the
spirit
without
measure
verse
34
and
Jesus
received
all
authority
verse
35
Jesus
Christ
is
supreme
therefore
he
must
increase
all
of
us
are
not
that
we
must
decrease
the
humble
exalt
Jesus
Christ
and
in
the
last
verse
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
so
the
eternal
destination
of anybody
who doesn't
place their
faith
in the
Lord
Jesus
Christ
is an
eternal
destiny
of
wrath
God's
white
hot
anger
!
against
sin
do not
dumb
down
do not
dilute
the
doctrine
of hell
there's
an
eternal
place
torment
for
those
who
don't
place
their
faith
in
Christ
bad
news
but
the
good
news
is
whoever
believes
in
the
son
has
eternal
life
and
this
gets
picked
up
again
and
again
and
again
and
again
through
John's
gospel
account
right
this
teaching
about
eternal
life
as
John
states
his
purpose
for
the
letter
in
John
chapter
20
verse
30
and
31
he
says
now
Jesus
did
many
other
signs
in
the
presence
of
the
disciples
which
are
not
written
in
this
book
but
these
are
written
so
that
you
may
believe
that
Jesus
is
the
Christ
the
son
of
God
and
that
by
believing
you
may
have
life
in
his
name
that
you
may
have
life
in
his
name
life
forever
and
we're
not
wrong
for
doing
that
right
this
phrase
eternal
life
we're
all
eternal
but
those
who
place
their
faith
in
Christ
are
going
have
eternal
life
this
is
good
it's
good
that
our
brains
go
there
but
I
think
it
doesn't
quite
do
it
justice
because
we
miss
what
it
does
right
now
and
for
ever
more
so
if
we
back
up
a
little
bit
!
I
can't
wait
to
unpack
all
of
this
out
with
you
more
and
more
and
more
John
17
verse
3
there
it
says
Jesus
says
and
this
is
eternal
life
you better
pay
attention
to what
comes
next
and
this
is
eternal
life
streets
of gold
mansions
it's not
what
17
3
says
and
this
is
eternal
life
that
they
know
you
the
only
true
God
and
Jesus
Christ
whom
you
have
sent
isn't
that
astounding
this
is
eternal
life
now
and
life
forever
more
the
great
blessing
of
it
the
joy
of
it
is
that
we
know
we
know
God
and
Jesus
Christ
who
God
has
sent
we
have
a lot
to think
about
when we
think
about
what it
means
to
know
God
and
Jesus
Christ
whom
he
has
sent
this
is
what
characterize
is
the
humble
people
recognizing
this
great
reality
nothing
we have
is given
to us
and
nothing
is withheld
from
us
apart
from
God's
good
design
in
our
lives
the
humble
rest
in
God's
sovereignty
the
humble
are
self
aware
we
know
exactly
who
we
are
we
know
who
we
would
be
apart
from
Christ
we
know
who
we
are
in
Christ
still
failing
yet
to
be
the
people
that
we
want
to
be
seeing
ourselves
change
from
one
degree
of
glory
to
another
grateful
all
the
time
that
he
is
working
in
us
the
very
things
that
he
asks
of
us
there's
no
boasting
for the
Christian
in their
salvation
or in
their
sanctification
or their
one day
glorification
none of us
have any
room to
boast
in
anything
but
in
the
Lord
and the
humble
because we
have
Christ
because we
know him
and are
known
by him
we
spend
our
souls
we
spend
our
very
selves
to
exalt
Jesus
Christ
let's
pray
together