The Bible In Your Hand

John 3:22-36

There was a man sent from God whose name was John. This man came for a witness to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world (John 1:6-9).

The popularity of Jesus, the Word of God who became flesh, was on the rise. Through personal contact (Nicodemus), the water that was made into wine, and the cleansing of the sanctuary, there was a new wind blowing throughout the land. Between the end of Jesus talking with Nicodemus and John the Baptizer exalting Christ, there is a shift in the thinking of the religious leaders.

When Jesus was 12 years old, He sat in the temple expounding on the Holy Scriptures in a way that caught the imagination of the religious leaders. But now after the cleansing of the temple and the Passover celebration, the mood of the religious leaders began to change. They had been curious about Jesus, but now they began to turn against Him. But the common people flocked to see Jesus. Jealousy, coupled with the preservation of position, power, and authority, can cause people not to see their need for what Jesus was teaching. To reject what Jesus had told Nicodemus during their midnight conversation.

I want to point out that I don’t believe Nicodemus rejected what Jesus had said. Instead, he didn’t fully comprehend. Consequently, He didn’t fully act on what he had heard. We will encounter Nicodemus two more times in the gospel of John. He didn’t fully comprehend until he saw Jesus being lifted on the cross.

John 3:22-24: After these things, Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized. Now John (the Baptizer) also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim because there was much water there. And they came and were baptized. For John had not yet been thrown in prison. The scene is set near where John was baptized, Jesus and his disciples are, and Jesus’s disciples were baptized, too.

Uncertain how to proceed against Jesus, the religious leaders come to John and create tension between John’s disciples. The dispute arose over the issue of purification. But I want us to notice how they brought their dispute before John. They introduce a problem, a minor yet not too minor problem about purification, and when they have engaged the disciples of John and eventually John, they then turn the attention of John and his disciples to the religious leader’s real problem. Their real problem was with Jesus.

Remember, John 2:23 said that many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He (Jesus) did. Now, as the religious leaders taught the people, yet increasing numbers, the people flocked to see John the Baptist, but even John’s numbers were decreasing since Jesus came teaching, preaching, healing, and baptizing in the same area where John and his disciples were. So, the leaders direct the attention of John’s disciples to purification yet engage John in a conversation that they hope will excite jealousy within John’s heart to create tension between John and Jesus. “Rabbi, (John the Baptizer), He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified – behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!” (John 3:26).

John’s answer in verse 27 testifies to the condition of John’s heart and that he understands his purpose or mission from God. In response, John answered, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. (Vs 28) You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’” It is true many who had now come to John were among those John had testified before in chapter 1 when they asked him if he was the Messiah. 

John makes an interesting statement in verse 29. Let’s look at this together. The verse reads. “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.”

Let’s break this text down. It is significant and holds within its words a wonderful understanding of the role of John and every Christian should have regarding Christ, the bridegroom, and the world. The reference is cultural, for we in the West do not look at marriage and the marriage celebration the same as the people in the ancient Near East did.

In the Old Testament, God’s relationship with His people is often compared with that of bridegroom to bride. We see this in Isaiah 54:5, Jeremiah 2:2, Jeremiah 8:20, Ezekiel 16:8, Ezekiel 23:4, Hosea 2:19, 20, and Hosea 11:2. Within the passage we are examining today, Christ the groom is successfully winning the people (the bride) to Himself.

The natural question to ask is this. What is John the Baptizer’s role in this?  Let’s review what John has said in verse 29. “He who has the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him rejoices greatly before of the bridegroom’s voice.”

In the Betrothal system, arrangements were made by the father of the groom and the bride’s father for the hand of the bride in marriage. After the arrangements are made, the groom and his father return home. The groom sets about making the necessary arrangements to take his bride to a place specially prepared for her. But there was no contact between the bridegroom and the bride during this time. Thus, a friend of the groom would step in and become the go-between between the bridegroom and the bride’s family. He would bring her news of the bridegroom and approximately how long until the bridegroom would come. In this way, she would be ready for her bridegroom.

John, in this passage, is saying that he is that friend of the bridegroom who stands and hears the bridegroom and rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Meaning he rejoices in hearing the bridegroom’s voice and doing for the bridegroom. John continues, saying, “Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled, meaning the bridegroom, the Messiah, is here.”

John further states that his role must decrease while the Bridegroom, the Messiah’s role must increase. Therefore, John saw his role as that of the friend of the bridegroom come to deliver a message from the bridegroom to the family of the bride about his near coming.

This is the same role Christians are to have today. They are a friend of the bridegroom, who has promised to return for his bride. Thus, the role of a Christian is to give the message about the bridegroom’s near return to the bride’s family so that they will be ready and eager for his return.

If the friend of the bride did not communicate between the bridegroom and the bride’s family, the bride would not be ready for the bridegroom’s return. John the Baptizer finishes by once again giving testimony of who Jesus is, and that Jesus’s words are sent from God Himself.

John finishes his testimony in verses 35 and 36, saying, “The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand.” John now reinforces what Jesus was saying to Nicodemus in verse 36. “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.”

Like the religious leaders who came to stir up trouble, the decision for them is the same as it is for us today. Will we believe in Christ and accept the one who was created in the likeness of the one that caused the trouble that has now come, and when He (Jesus) is lifted up, will save us from the serpent’s bite that has infected us all? John’s testimony is powerful. The question is, what’s our testimony as the friend of the bridegroom? Are we happy to hear the words of the bridegroom and relay his words to the bride and her family?