“He must increase, but I must decrease.” John 3:30.

Very few people are capable of saying this; much less believe it about themselves. The religious leaders who made up the intelligentsia of the nation certainly had to recognize Christ’s credentials by the miraculous signs He did; yet refused to bow the knee.

Scripture tells us the leaders were afraid Christ would be accepted by the people as their Messiah and the Romans would come and take away their place and nation.

“Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, ‘What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.’” John 11:47-48.

“Therefore, when they had gathered together [to crucify Jesus], Pilate said to them, ‘Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?’ For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy.” Matthew 27:17-18.

They need not have worried, for even the people did not believe in Him.

“But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him…” John 12:37.

John the Baptist, the faithful witness, did not back down. He preached, baptized, and pointed to the Christ the Lamb of God, seeking no glory for himself but gave it all to God the Son regardless of what may come to him.

And after all his work and self-denial he received his reward on this earth – nothing, including loss of his stardom. However Jesus said of him.

“For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” Luke 7:28.

As the last of the Old Testament prophets, John was the greatest, and as such, after about thirty years of life, with much hardship and a cruel death, John took his place among men like Abraham, Moses, Elijah, and Daniel in heaven, for the last two thousand years and on into eternity. Was it worth it? You tell me.

“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. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.” John 3:31-34.

“He who comes from above…” is Christ; “…he who is of the earth…” is John the Baptist. Something that most of you are aware of is that Christ did not begin at conception like the rest of us; we are finite, we had a beginning, though our souls are eternal.

“Therefore, when He came into the world, He [Jesus] said: ‘Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, “Behold, I have come – in the volume of the book it is written of Me – to do Your will, O God.”’” Hebrews 10:5-7.

“By that will [God’s will] we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Hebrews 10:10.

Jesus Christ has always existed from eternity past, He, like God the Father and God the Holy Spirit, comprise the Godhead, are uncreated and infinite, words which cannot be used to describe anything or anyone else.

“Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.” Colossians 2:8-10.

Many conservative scholars believe that the epiphanies (appearances of God) in the Old Testament were actually Jesus. Such as the ones to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, Genesis 3: 8; Abraham before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Genesis chapter 18; and Melchizedek king of Salem, Genesis chapter 14 and Hebrews chapter 7, specifically verses 1-3.

“And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves [after they sinned] from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” Genesis 3:8.

“For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him. To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated ‘king of righteousness,’ and then also king of Salem, meaning ‘king of peace,’ without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God [Jesus Christ], remains a priest continually.” Hebrews 7:1-3.

Knowing these things, it is easy to see how the eyewitness testimony of Christ would be superior to that of John the Baptist, a mere man of the earth.

Just think, a person who spent countless eons in heaven came to earth and told us life’s truths. Even now, being God, He is able to teach us through the Holy Spirit and the Scriptures, those truths hidden in God from eternity past.

“And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.” John 3:32.

Sound familiar? Let us go back to the words of Jesus earlier in chapter 3.

“Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.” John 3:11-13.

“He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.” John 3:33.

All who receive Christ as savior have believed the testimony of God, simply saying, “God, you are not a liar.” Not a truly noble statement made to God who cannot lie, by those who cannot tell the truth. God’s grace is something we will not completely understand until we get to heaven.

“He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son.” 1 John 5:10.

“For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.” John 3:34.

This giving of the Spirit without measure is in reference to Christ who could be filled without measure.

Unless we inhibit the Spirit in some way or another because of our own fear or self-centeredness, it is possible to be filled with the Spirit to the full measure that we are able to receive.

“For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.” 2 Chronicles 16:9a.

We are told that we can ask and receive great power.

“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” Luke 11:13.

“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.” John 3:35-36.

“…according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And he put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” Ephesians 1:19b-23.

Notice this about verse 36, “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life…” It says “He who believes in the Son”, that is belief (faith) in who Jesus is and His sacrifice on the cross. And the last part of the phrase “has [present tense, immediately] everlasting life”.

Look carefully at the last half of the above sentence, “…and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” The word “in” is not there. This simply means that anyone who does not believe the testimony of Jesus and rejects the message of the cross is bound for hell and worse yet, “the wrath of God abides on him.”

“The wrath of God abides on him.” The wrath of God did not just suddenly come upon the rejecter of Christ; the wrath of God is upon all sinners and can only be put away by the blood shed on the cross by God’s Son Jesus.

“For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.” Romans 5:6-9.

God says there must be payment for sin, God Himself then makes the payment for us.

“Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.” John 4:1-3.

Faithful Witness cont. John 3:30-4:3 taken from godisrevealed.com posted 7-18-12, updated on 7-2-17.

Scripture taken from the New King James version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.