John 3:22-30 22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized. 23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were coming and being baptized. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.) 25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26 They came to John and said to him, “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.” 27 To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ 29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30 He must become greater; I must become less.
Here it says that Jesus and his disciples went to Judea and baptized there. In fact, Jesus did not baptize people himself. It was his disciples who baptized people. At this time, Jesus had not yet ascended to heaven and the Holy Spirit had not been given at baptism. Therefore, the baptism was water baptism, not the baptism of the Holy Spirit. John was also baptizing, asked people to repent. John’s disciples told John that everyone was going to Jesus. John said that he was not the Messiah, he was preparing the way for Christ, which was prophesied in the Old Testament:
The voice of one calling out, “Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. (Isaiah 40:3)
The prophecy here is about John the Baptist.
John went on to say that Jesus is the bridegroom and he is the bridegroom’s friend. The Bible says that Jesus is the bridegroom and the church is the bride. Christ is the head of the church, and the church is the body of Christ, just as the husband is the head of the wife and the wife is the body of the husband.
John the Baptist continued to say that Jesus must become greater; he must become less. He wanted to bring people to Jesus, not to himself. We saw earlier that he brought his disciples to Jesus and became disciples of Jesus.
May God bless you and your family. 😀
