John the Baptist was chosen by God to be the one that would “prepare the way” for the Messiah. John was announced before conception; his purpose to “go before the face of the Lord” was declared when he was eight days old and his life was lived in preparation for and belief in that calling. In John 3, after he had baptized Jesus, John’s disciples came to him very concerned because Jesus’ disciples had started to baptize people and they were now drawing the crowds that had once gone to John. I’m not sure if John’s disciples were looking to him for an explanation or to put a stop to Jesus’ baptisms, but his response revealed his understanding of who Jesus was and who he knew he was created to be; our understanding of identity is always tied to our understanding of God’s greatness.
John describes himself as the “friend of the bridegroom” and says his calling was simply to be one who “stands and hears him” and “rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice.” John realized that his purpose on earth was not to baptize people, it was not to build a following, it was not to conduct a ministry it was to listen to the voice of God. John had devoted his entire life to intimacy with God; his parents had dedicated him to intimacy with God and then prepared him to fulfill that purpose. His disciples followed him and devoted themselves to the work, but John, he devoted himself to the voice. He baptized because God led him to, he preached because God led him to and ultimately he “decreased” because God led him to. The only success that John desired was to hear the voice of the Messiah and when he met Him, when he baptized Him and saw the dove land upon Him and heard the voice of the Father speak over Him he rejoiced because he had fulfilled his task and redemption had finally come.
Our role in redemption does not end with being redeemed, that is where it begins. The redeemed must become partners in redemption just like John by devoting ourselves to God’s Word. It may seem too harsh, but I believe that we cannot be fully devoted to God and neglect His Word. He has given us a gift of eternal proportions through Scripture, through the Holy Spirit that lives within us to inspire us to read and receive just as He inspired the authors to write. My prayer today is that we would all yield to being “friends of the bridegroom”, those who stand and listen, who move by God’s voice and who rejoice at His coming, at His speaking and at His redemption in and through us. We need a broader vision of redemption, one that looks squarely at what Christ has done for us and then devotedly joins Him in the work of redemption for the world around us. May the join of being redeemed drive us to lovingly choose to become partners of redemption and friends of the bridegroom.