.jpg)
PINIMAGEOften, in fact too often, I am tempted to approach my relationship with Jesus from the perspective of assessing my present life experience, my performance, and my spiritual health. I’m constantly asking myself questions:
“Do I feel the joy of the Lord?”
“Am I fulfilled in ministry?”
“Is God pleased with me?”
“What’s my purpose?”
“Will God answer my prayer and meet my need?”
“I’m feeling spiritually lazy and distracted. God must be disappointed in me.”
“I’m feeling inspired and ‘on fire’ for the Lord and His work!”
“How am I doing right now? How am I feeling?”
Most of the time I am not even aware of the fact that I rely on the answer to these questions to bring me peace or satisfaction instead of Jesus Christ Himself.
And so when I embark on each new day, I am not growing my relationship with Jesus as much as I am growing an awareness of my spiritual experience. This is dangerous. How complex we sometimes make the call to follow Christ!
Yesterday morning I read a passage of scripture that I’ve read many times before but this time impacted me in a way I’d never considered. I love how God’s Word does that. It is quick and powerful!
I was reading in John chapter three. Here’s the passage that stood out to me:
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.”
Have you ever thought about the fact that John the Baptist – the forerunner of Jesus – had a thriving, impactful ministry known throughout the land? He was known even by the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes. John was doing what he had felt called to from the beginning.
Even as Elizabeth carried John in her womb it had been prophesied that he would point many to Jesus. In fact, when Mary arrived to visit Elizabeth, Mary called out her greeting and John lept in Elizabeth’s womb. (Luke 1:41) Look at what was prophesied about John before he was even born.
15for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared. Luke 1:15-17
And so, John grew up and began his ministry in which he had been daily proclaiming the coming Messiah, Jesus!
Then one day, Jesus comes on the scene. This changes EVERYTHING in regard to John’s ministry. Upon their first encounter, John was baptizing in the Jordan. When Jesus approaches him, John says,
“Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’ I myself did not know Him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that He might be revealed to Israel.”
Then John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove and resting on Him. I myself did not know Him, but the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.” John 1:29-34
From that time, Jesus began His earthly ministry. I had never thought about the fact that this would greatly affect John the Baptist’s impact and influence – ministry as he knew it. Yes, this was John the Baptist’s purpose…to point people to the coming Messiah. Now the Messiah had come.
But let’s think about what John the Baptist’s response to this change could have been, had he approached his ministry as I am often tempted to.
“What about our ministry?”
“What if all our followers leave and begin being baptized and discipled elsewhere?”
“What about our influence?”
“What about our hard work and dedication?”
Friend, are you ministering for the Lord? God forbid we would ever lose sight that our first ministry is to Jesus.
Being someone who’s life is absorbed in what some call “full-time ministry,” I have experienced the highs and lows. I’ve shed the tears and rejoiced in the victories. But if ever the work began to be about anything but Jesus, when something like my influence or impact is lessened or removed, God forbid I should find myself scrambling.
I am struck by the encounter John has with his disciples when they approach him and say, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.”
Tammy’s translation: “We are losing the crowd. The people are leaving.”
I love John’s response.
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.” John 3:27-30
Granted, John was making way, at the sacrifice of His own ministry, for the ministry of Jesus – the Messiah.
Who wouldn’t step aside in such circumstances?
But His answer clearly shows that His heart was not poured into his ministry FOR Jesus. His heart was simply poured into Jesus.
.jpeg)
PINIMAGEWhat’s my point? When our ministry and our Christian lives are not poured out into Jesus and delighting in Him, we become imprisoned to our experience, our impact and our own pursuit of joy and identity in the wrong affections.
Do I simply delight in Jesus?
Or am I missing Jesus for other saintly things?
The trap can be so very subtle.
God is working in my heart in the area of simply delighting in and meditating on Jesus. He is inviting me to be poured out for Him. John Piper often says, “God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in Him.”
Not my experience of Him.
Not my assessment of my effectiveness for Him.
Not my blessings from Him.
Not my disappointments in my service to Him.
Not my ministry opportunities because of Him.
Simply to fix my eyes on Him.
John the Baptist’s circumstances revealed his heart and devotion to Christ. What we see in his response to what would effectively change the course of his life was his contentment in exalting Jesus.
I am asking God today to help me see the pitfalls of wanting from Jesus instead of just wanting Jesus.
“Lord, let our service to You be out of our abiding in You and our desire to see You exalted in our hearts and in the world, above all things! In Jesus name, Amen.”
