There are few things more painful to the human heart than watching someone else get the attention we thought belonged to us.
We see it in children when one sibling gets praised and the other feels forgotten. We see it at work when someone else gets the promotion we thought we’d get.
We see it in church when another ministry grows faster, another leader is noticed more, or another person gets the credit for something we did. We see it online every day, where followers, likes, possessions, titles, and views become ways of measuring our worth.
That’s exactly the kind of tension John the Baptist’s disciples brought to him. They came with their concerns, but underneath their concerns were comparisons.
“Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan — the one you testified about — look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”
— John 3: 26
In other words, “John, your crowd is shrinking while Jesus’ crowd is growing. Aren’t you worried?”
John was neither worried nor jealous nor threatened. Instead, he gave us one of the most powerful statements of humility in all of scripture:
“He must become greater; I must become less.”
— John 3: 30
That is not the language of defeat, it is a celebration of success. John points to Jesus and it sets him free from trying to be something he is not.
First, John knew who he was. John answers his disciples saying:
“A person can receive only what is given them from heaven.”
— John 3: 27
John understood something many of us struggle to accept. Our calling comes from God. It cannot be created by comparisons.
John was never called to be the Messiah. He was called to prepare the way for the Messiah. His purpose was not to gather people to himself, but to point people to Jesus.
Think about a sign on the side of the road saying, “Hospital ahead.” Nobody ever stops to hug the sign, they drive past it to reach the hospital.
The sign merely points to a place where they can find healing. John was a sign.
His joy didn’t come from his crowds. His joy came from Jesus’ crowds. And when we, as pastors and congregations, stop comparing ourselves and simply point to Jesus, we’ll be filled to overflowing with the joy of the Holy Spirit.
We are simply signs pointing to Jesus. Our calling is a big deal, we’re not.
Charles “Buddy” Whatley is a retired United Methodist pastor serving Dawson Street Methodist Church in Thomasville, Ga. With wife, Mary Ella, they are missionaries to the Navajo Reservation.
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