John the Baptist was Comfortable in His Own Skin: Are You?

It is remarkable to me how comfortable John the Baptist was in his own skin. He was not at all intimidated by the success of Jesus, even though Jesus success meant the demise of his own ministry.

Read John 4:22-30 below
22After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized. 23Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were constantly coming to be baptized. 24(This was before John was put in prison.) 25An argument developed between some of John's disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26They came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—well, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him."

27To this John replied, "A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. 28You yourselves can testify that I said, 'I am not the Christ but am sent ahead of him.' 29The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom's voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30He must become greater; I must become less.



Fred's Reflections:
By this time in John the Baptist's ministry, Jesus had already come on the scene and John the Baptist was near the end of his mission. One of the signs of this for John was the fact that Jesus must increase while he must decrease. Already, Jesus was beginning to Baptize people, something that John had been famous for. In fact one of John's disciples reported to him, "He(Jesus) is baptizing, and everyone is going to him." John's amazing response is instructive for us: He was not at all intimidated that Jesus was "stealing his thunder" and getting more attention. He could respond like this because John was very comfortable in his own role, gifts and calling. He said "a man can receive only what is given Him from heaven." He knew what he was called to do. He knew that Jesus would increase and that He would eventually decrease and leave the scene. He was comfortable in his own skin. He was confident of his own role and in his own calling. Jesus success in no way diminished John's purpose and calling. In fact, Jesus success actually confirmed his message and calling.

For us, the question becomes, do we know who we are in Christ. Do we know our gifts ans what we are called to do? Do we know our role in the body of Christ? If not, it is essential that we put down deep roots in Christ by spending time in the presence of the Lord: in prayer, in scripture, in meditation and by communing with His people in church and walking in obedience to what the Lord says. This will set us up to begin to know our role, calling and purpose in the body of Christ.

For those of us who have a clear sense of our calling, gifting and purpose, it is essential that we walk humbly before the Lord, being sensitive and obedient to Him,and honoring the gifts and callings of our brothers and sisters in Christ. The success of our brother or sister in no way diminishes our calling and purpose in the Lord. If it does, we might be struggling with insecurity, uncertainty of our calling or jealousy. It is important to know that the Lord needs all the gifts in the body to get his work done.
Application Questions:
Are you growing in your relationship with the Lord?
Do you have a sense of your role, gifts, calling and strengths within the body of Christ?
Do you feel intimidated by the gifts or success of others?
Do you love the body of Christ and appreciate the fact that the Lord needs all the gifts, including yours?

Closing Prayer: Lord help each of us to grow deep roots in you, your word and your church and help us to move out into the gifts and calling you have for us. In Jesus Name! Amen!