He must become greater; I must become less. –John 3:30
John the Baptist, as his name implies, baptized people as they came to Christ. At some point, he was baptizing people at Aeon, a few miles west of Jordan, and we read that Jesus and His disciples was also baptizing at another river. When some of John’s disciples found out that Jesus was baptizing and people were going to Him, they became envious and told John about it, perhaps expecting him to get upset, but John responded to them with the words above. He explained to them that Jesus was the main character and his (John’s) role was simply to help him and support His work here on earth. So rather than feeling envious, John actually was filled with joy to hear about Jesus’ success and be a part of that.
A few weeks ago, I had a bit of a situation with a young lady. I felt that she purposely tried to sabotage my work, and I became very angry. I wanted to confront her and let her know exactly how I felt about her actions, and perhaps share some very choice words. As I began to think about the things I was going to say, the verse above came to mind, and I heard the words in the deep recess of my heart, He must become greater; you must become less. I thought to myself, ‘that verse does not fit in this situation; I have to let her know how upset I am.’ But I repeatedly heard the verse echoing in my heart, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I had to put my need for vengeance on the back burner and reflect Christ through my words and actions. He had to become greater, and I had to become less.
We may often find ourselves in situations where people wrong or hurt us and our initial reaction is to fight back and take vengeance and perhaps hurt them in the process, but how does the reflect Christ? Would people see your actions and take note that Christ lives in you? In all that you do, I challenge you to always remember that He must become greater, and you must become less! God has a way of looking out for His own, so why don’t you leave room for His vengeance?
I leave you with Jesus’ words from Luke 6:27-36, “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you…Do to others as you would have them do to you…But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”
Grace and peace be with you.
Click to go to the
Homepage
|
HE MUST BECOME GREATER...