Daily Devotion: April 21

John 3:29-30
“He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease.”

I remember the first time I was asked to be the “best man” at  a wedding. It was a very good friend of mine, and I was humbled that he thought of me for this responsibility. I was also encouraged to know how much he trusted me for the job.  However, very quickly a new set of feelings filled my heart.  I became confused at what I would actually have to do, and I was also scared that I wouldn’t be able to fulfill what was expected of me!   

In this section of scripture before us, we see John the Baptist’s disciples very upset that Jesus’ popularity has now grown since He and His disciples were also baptizing. John’s disciples said that “all were going to Him” implying that their popularity amongst the Jews had now severely diminished compared to the popularity of Jesus.

I love John’s response in verse 29 and 30. John gives an illustration that his disciples would be very familiar with. He tells them that Jesus is the bridegroom, and we know from scripture that we as the church, are His bride.  John puts himself in the place of “the friend of the bridegroom” which is what we today would call the “best man”.  In Israel at the time, the “friend of the bridegroom” had the responsibility of being the means of communication between the bride and the bridegroom, and his main responsibility was to set forward and promote the bridegroom's interests to the bride as well as to remove all obstacles that would hinder the union between the two. His job was to make sure the two would meet and successfully get married. 

John is saying to his disciples, and I believe is reminding us today, that his goal and ambition was to remove any obstacles that might be in the way of  keeping the bride from seeing the bridegroom. That’s why he was able to say that “He must increase, and I must decrease” John understood his role as a “friend of the bridegroom”. He knew the importance for all to see, and know Jesus and was simply doing all he could to get the eyes of those who were lost to focus on the one who is the way, the truth and the light. If his popularity diminished that was ok, because he wanted all to see Jesus as their Savior and as the true Light of the world! 

Do we live every day with that same goal in mind? Just as I was unsure of my role as the “best man” in my friend's wedding, sometimes I believe our roles in our daily lives can get clouded.   There are lots of things we have to do every day to make our homes run successfully. These things are all very important and need to happen, but I pray that every day we can be reminded of our role, that in all of life, from the mundane to the miraculous, we can point people to Jesus and let His fame increase more and more to those around us!