John The Baptist’s Final Testimony About Jesus Is A Profound Declaration Of Jesus' Divine Origin, Mission, And Superiority.
Summarized As Follows:
Jesus And John’s Baptizing Work (John 3:22-24):
Both Jesus And John The Baptist Were Baptizing People. Jesus Was In Judea With His Disciples, While John Continued His Ministry In Aenon Near Salim.
John Had Not Yet Been Imprisoned, Allowing Both Him And Jesus To Carry On Their Baptizing Ministries Simultaneously.
John Learns Of Jesus’ Growing Ministry (John 3:25-26):
A Dispute Arose Between John’s Disciples And Some Jews About Purification. John’s Disciples Were Concerned That Jesus Was Also Baptizing, And That Many People Were Flocking To Him Instead Of John.
They Seemed Worried About Jesus’ Growing Influence, But This Did Not Trouble John.
John’s Response To His Disciples (John 3:27-30):
John Reminded His Disciples That Everything Comes From God, And He Reaffirmed That He Was Not The Messiah But Was Sent To Prepare The Way For Jesus.
Using The Analogy Of A Wedding, John Described Himself As The Friend Of The Bridegroom (Jesus). His Joy Was Fulfilled In Seeing Jesus Take Center Stage.
John Famously Declared, "He Must Increase, But I Must Decrease," Indicating His Willingness To Step Back As Jesus’ Ministry Grew.
John’s Testimony About Jesus (John 3:31-33):
John Emphasized Jesus’ Heavenly Origin, Stating That He Is "above All" Because He Comes From Heaven.
Although Many Did Not Receive Jesus' Testimony, Those Who Did Accepted It As The Truth Of God.
The Consequence Of Belief Or Unbelief (John 3:34-36):
John Explained That Jesus Speaks The Words Of God And Has The Holy Spirit Without Measure.
The Father Has Given Everything Into Jesus' Hands, And Eternal Life Is Granted To Those Who Believe In Him. However, Those Who Reject Jesus Will Face God’s Wrath.
This Passage Highlights John’s Humility And His Understanding Of His Role In God’s Plan, As Well As The Importance Of Recognizing And Accepting Jesus As The Messiah.
John The Baptist’s Final Testimony About Jesus.
1. (22-24) Jesus Baptizes In Judea As John Continues His Work Of Baptizing.
After These Things Jesus And His Disciples Came Into The Land Of Judea, And There He Remained With Them And Baptized. Now John Also Was Baptizing In Aenon Near Salim, Because There Was Much Water There. And They Came And Were Baptized. For John Had Not Yet Been Thrown Into Prison.
A. Jesus And His Disciples Came Into The Land Of Judea: John Continues His Account Of The Life Of Jesus With The Emphasis On What He Did In Judea. The Other Gospels Focus On The Work Of Jesus In The Galilee Region.
B. He Remained With Them And Baptized: Jesus, Together With His Disciples, Did A Work Of Baptizing Apparently Similar To The Work Of John The Baptist. This Was Jesus’ Humble Way Of Recognizing The Goodness And Importance Of John’s Work.
C. John Also Was Baptizing In Aenon Near Salim: There Is Some Dispute As To The Exact Location Of This Place. The Best Evidence Is That It Was A Place Some Seven Miles (12 Kilometers) South Of Modern Bethshan.
2. (25-26) John Learns Of The Baptizing Work Of Jesus.
Then There Arose A Dispute Between Some Of John’s Disciples And The Jews About Purification. And They Came To John And Said To Him, “Rabbi, He Who Was With You Beyond The Jordan, To Whom You Have Testified—Behold, He Is Baptizing, And All Are Coming To Him!”
A. A Dispute Between Some Of John’s Disciples And The Jews About Purification: We Don’t Know The Precise Nature Of This Dispute. John’s Baptism Certainly Had An Element Of Personal Purification, And Perhaps Some Of The Jewish Leaders Objected To What He Did Or How He Did It.
B. He Is Baptizing, And All Are Coming To Him! We Don’t Know The Details Of The Dispute Regarding Purification, But In That Discussion The Disciples Of John Learned That Jesus Was Baptizing, And Drawing Large Crowds.
C. All Are Coming To Him! John’s Disciples Seemed Alarmed, But It Didn’t Bother John One Bit. John Would Not Allow Envy Or The Fickle Crowds Make Him Forget His Mission: To Announce That The Messiah Had Come, And Then To Step Back And Let The Attention Be Focused Upon The Messiah.
3. (27-30) John’s Answer To His Worried Disciples.
John Answered And Said, “A Man Can Receive Nothing Unless It Has Been Given To Him From Heaven. You Yourselves Bear Me Witness, That I Said, ‘I Am Not The Christ,’ But, ‘I Have Been Sent Before Him.’ He Who Has The Bride Is The Bridegroom; But The Friend Of The Bridegroom, Who Stands And Hears Him, Rejoices Greatly Because Of The Bridegroom’s Voice. Therefore This Joy Of Mine Is Fulfilled. He Must Increase, But I Must Decrease.”
A. A Man Can Receive Nothing Unless It Has Been Given To Him From Heaven: John First Answered His Worried Disciples That Everything He Had – Including Those Who Responded To His Ministry – Were A Gift From God. If They Are God’s Gift, Then They Should Be Received Gratefully.
B. I Said, “I Am Not The Christ,” But, “I Have Been Sent Before Him”: John Then Reminded His Disciples That He Knew Who He Was, And He Also Knew Who Jesus Was. Understanding That, He Could Keep His Proper Place; Not Too High (thinking He Was The Christ) And Not Too Low (thinking He Had No Call Or Place In God’s Plan).
C. The Friend Of The Bridegroom: John Explained To His Followers That He Was Like The Best Man At A Wedding; He Isn’t The Bridegroom. He Isn’t To Be The Focus Of Attention, But To Supervise The Bringing Of Two People Together.
D. Therefore This Joy Of Mine Is Fulfilled: John Wanted His Followers To Know That All These Arrangements Fulfilled His Joy. One Might Say That John The Baptist Lost His Congregation – And He Was Happy About It! John Was Happy Because He Lost His Congregation To Jesus.
E. He Must Increase, But I Must Decrease: John The Baptist Understood It Was Good For Him To Become Less Visible And Known, For Jesus To Become More Visible And Known. In Even Larger Aspects, This Should Be The Motto Of Every Christian, Especially Leaders Among God’s People. Jesus Should Become Greater And More Visible, And The Servant Should Become Less And Less Visible.
4. (31-33) John’s Testimony About Jesus.
“He Who Comes From Above Is Above All; He Who Is Of The Earth Is Earthly And Speaks Of The Earth. He Who Comes From Heaven Is Above All. And What He Has Seen And Heard, That He Testifies; And No One Receives His Testimony. He Who Has Received His Testimony Has Certified That God Is True.”
A. He Who Comes From Above: John Wanted Everyone To Know Where Jesus Came From. Jesus Was Different From Everyone Else Because He Came From Heaven. He Wasn’t An Exceptionally Spiritual Or Wise Or Good Man; He Was And Is God, From Heaven.
B. He Who Comes From Heaven Is Above All: Jesus Is Not Only Different From Everyone Else; Jesus Is Also Greater Than Everyone Else.
C. No One Receives His Testimony: John Prophetically Anticipated The Rejection Jesus Would Endure In His Ministry. He Came From Heaven, He Testified To The Truth, But Relatively No One Received His Testimony, Even Though Witnesses Certified It As The Truth Of God.
5. (34-36) The Price For Rejecting The True Testimony Regarding Jesus.
“For He Whom God Has Sent Speaks The Words Of God, For God Does Not Give The Spirit By Measure. The Father Loves The Son, And Has Given All Things Into His Hand. He Who Believes In The Son Has Everlasting Life; And He Who Does Not Believe The Son Shall Not See Life, But The Wrath Of God Abides On Him.”
A. He Whom God Has Sent Speaks The Words Of God: Jesus Is A Uniquely Reliable Revelation, Because He Has The Holy Spirit Without Measure, In Contrast To The Previous Prophets.
B. For God Does Not Give The Spirit By Measure: John Spoke Both Of Jesus (who Had The Holy Spirit Without Measure) And Prophetically Of The New Covenant (which Featured A True Outpouring Of The Holy Spirit). For Those Joined To The Messiah Through The New Covenant, There Is As Much Of The Spirit As Needed, Given Without Measure.
C. He Who Does Not Believe The Son Shall Not See Life, But The Wrath Of God Abides On Him: John Explained That Because Jesus Is The Man From Heaven, There Is A Heavy Price To Pay For Rejecting Him. If You Reject The Son, Then You Receive The Wrath.
D. The Wrath Of God Abides: It Abides In This World, Because Sin’s Evil Abides Until The Wrong Of It Is Perfectly Satisfied. It Abides Into The Next World, Because Those Who Reject Jesus Cannot Offer A Perfect Sacrifice Acceptable To God. The Wrath Of God Abides Until The Perfect Payment Jesus Made On The Cross Satisfies The Debt Of Evil And Guilt.
· The Sinner’s Must: You Must Be Born Again (John 3:7).
· The Savior’s Must: So Must The Son Of Man Be Lifted Up (John 3:14).
· The Sovereign’s Must: He Must Increase (John 3:30).
· The Servant’s Must: I Must Decrease (John 3:30).
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