“They asked him, "Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?" John answered them, "I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie." John 1:25-27 ESV
I don't know about you but I am not one for eating locusts, even if they were dipped in honey and covered in chocolate, but there was certainly something appealing about John the Baptist. I would love to have an employee like him on my team. Here was a guy that had his own followers but he was always clear about his mission. He always pointed his people to someone else, Jesus.
In the instance of John, getting the credit was not what motivated him to succeed. Getting the result that God intended was his only goal. That is the type of person that I want to work for me. It is the mark of a good organization to have people who don't care who gets the credit, but only that together they complete their mission.
When Jesus began His ministry, He first saw John waist deep in the water of the Jordan River. The apostle Matthew tells us in his Gospel that John wore skins of camel's hair tied together with a leather belt around his waist and really did eat locusts and honey. If you look at only his outward appearance, there really wasn't a basis for a big ego from John. Although I like to think his voice sounded a bit like thunder and he had an uncommon authority, like he had a message directly from God.
As you can expect, large crowds gathered with expectation of what John had to bring. John's words resonated wherever the people gathered to hear him speak. Words that were clear and convicting and always passionately delivered. As Matthew relays to us in Chapter 3 verses 2-3, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight."
And for those who came to hear him, he baptized them in the Jordan River, saying, "I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Matthew 3:11 ESV)
Remarkably, John always was able to keep himself out of the way without a word of complaint. It was clear to him who all of this was really about.
In the past few days I have been thinking about people who exemplified this attitude in my own life. A perfect example was my grandmother. If you came over as a guest in her home she always made sure you left with a smile and a full belly. She did things for others that they never knew about, worked tirelessly for her family, and most importantly she worked for God through her work at our local church. She loved the Lord and trusted that He was the one worth working for. She knew what her part of the mission was and didn't need any credit when the job was accomplished.
As it often seems the greater impact you have, the smaller your ego. You will be most effective for Christ when you realize that life in not about you, but all about Him.
I don't know about you but I am not one for eating locusts, even if they were dipped in honey and covered in chocolate, but there was certainly something appealing about John the Baptist. I would love to have an employee like him on my team. Here was a guy that had his own followers but he was always clear about his mission. He always pointed his people to someone else, Jesus.
In the instance of John, getting the credit was not what motivated him to succeed. Getting the result that God intended was his only goal. That is the type of person that I want to work for me. It is the mark of a good organization to have people who don't care who gets the credit, but only that together they complete their mission.
When Jesus began His ministry, He first saw John waist deep in the water of the Jordan River. The apostle Matthew tells us in his Gospel that John wore skins of camel's hair tied together with a leather belt around his waist and really did eat locusts and honey. If you look at only his outward appearance, there really wasn't a basis for a big ego from John. Although I like to think his voice sounded a bit like thunder and he had an uncommon authority, like he had a message directly from God.
As you can expect, large crowds gathered with expectation of what John had to bring. John's words resonated wherever the people gathered to hear him speak. Words that were clear and convicting and always passionately delivered. As Matthew relays to us in Chapter 3 verses 2-3, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight."
And for those who came to hear him, he baptized them in the Jordan River, saying, "I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Matthew 3:11 ESV)
Remarkably, John always was able to keep himself out of the way without a word of complaint. It was clear to him who all of this was really about.
In the past few days I have been thinking about people who exemplified this attitude in my own life. A perfect example was my grandmother. If you came over as a guest in her home she always made sure you left with a smile and a full belly. She did things for others that they never knew about, worked tirelessly for her family, and most importantly she worked for God through her work at our local church. She loved the Lord and trusted that He was the one worth working for. She knew what her part of the mission was and didn't need any credit when the job was accomplished.
As it often seems the greater impact you have, the smaller your ego. You will be most effective for Christ when you realize that life in not about you, but all about Him.
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