John Baptist Remains Faithful (J13)

The devil tried his best to start a fight,
By inducing John the Baptist to boast;
But John refused with Jesus to ignite
Harsh words over who had baptized the most!
John said, ‘I’m like a friend to the bridegroom,
Listening intently to hear his voice;
I have heard him; joy does my heart consume;
He has located the bride of his choice!
He is of heaven, and I am of earth;
He says the words of God; all who believe
Testify God is truthful, and is of great worth;
Those who disbelieve, won’t new life receive!
John was faithful in helping Jesus grow;
He would not compete or his numbers show!

Jesus went to the River Jordan in Judea to baptize believers (although His disciples did most of the baptizing).. It so happened that John the Baptist was also in the area and continuing to baptize. Some of his disciples came to him and told him that Jesus was baptizing nearby, and nearly all were going to Him for baptizing instead of coming to John. That is how Satan works; he tries to get conflict between Christian leaders started, thereby causing people to avoid coming to Christ. However, John remained faithful, reminding his disciples that he must decrease and Jesus must increase. His answer to his disciples is a classic; following is a small portion.

“To them John replied, ‘A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said He must become greater; I must become less.’ “ (John 3:27-30) [Brackets added] (The complete text of this poem and commentary is found in John 3:22-36.)

Jewish wedding ceremonies in the time of Jesus were very complex. One small part was that a friend of the bridegroom was obliged to wait near the nuptial night tent until he heard the bridegroom speak after the marriage was consummated. John was relegating this subordinate role to himself, while designating Jesus as the bridegroom. A part of the gospel plan is that the Son is going to become the bridegroom of the worldwide church when all believers find themselves in heaven at the end of time. I don’t know if John actually knew that prophecy or not, but his disciples certainly understood John’s loyalty to Jesus in naming himself a “friend” and Jesus the “bridegroom”.

John had much more to say than is quoted above. He had noticed that the Jewish leaders were mostly disbelievers, while the poor people were believing in Jesus. He included comments about Jesus being from heaven and speaking true words from God, words that many were not accepting as true. He supported the Messiah by saying that His words were true; that those who refused to believe them would be condemned. He also told his disciples that he was of the earth; he was telling them that it would be to their benefit to leave him and go to Jesus for their own good. He was certainly loyal to Jesus until the end. The end for him was fast approaching; he was soon imprisoned and beheaded by King Herod.

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9)