After this, Jesus and his disciples went into the region of Judea, where he spent some time with them baptizing. 23 John was also baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was an abundance of water there, and people came to be baptized, 24 for John had not yet been imprisoned. 25 Now a dispute arose between the disciples of John and a Jew about ceremonial washings. 26 So they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, the one who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you testified, here he is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.” 27 John answered and said, “No one can receive anything except what has been given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said [that] I am not the Messiah, but that I was sent before him. 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens to him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine has been made complete. 30 He must increase; I must decrease.”
31 The one who comes from above is above all. The one who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things. But the one who comes from heaven [is above all]. 32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33 Whoever does accept his testimony certifies that God is trustworthy. 34 For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. He does not ration his gift of the Spirit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has given everything over to him. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.
Jesus himself was not baptizing but his disciples were (Jn. 4:2). JBap and his disciples were performing ritual cleansings not Christian Baptisms because the full efficacy of the Sacrament of Baptism would not be realized until Christ was resurrected. The baptisms by Jesus’ disciples were similar to JBap’s baptisms. A jealous dispute arose between JBap’s disciples and some Jews concerning purification rites. JBap’s disciples told him that Jesus was becoming more popular than he. JBap, in his humility, told his disciples that it was God’s will. JBap knew that he was the precursor to the Messiah and that Jesus was greater than he (Jn. 1:15). He told his disciples that he was satisfied with his role and that his mission and joy were almost complete. Jesus’ role must increase, and his role must decrease.
The one who is from heaven is over everything on earth and in heaven (1 Cor. 15:47) and can testify with authority to the things of God, but few accept his testimony. Those who do accept Jesus’ testimony certify that God speaks the truth. The Divine messenger speaks the words of God and God gives the Spirit in its fullness. God has given everything over to his Son. Belief in the Son leads to salvation, but unbelief leads to eternal damnation.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for the gift of new life earned for us by the blood of your only begotten Son. May we forever increase in the knowledge and love of Christ so that we will be reconciled with you when we stand before him in judgment. This we pray through the same Christ our Lord. Amen!
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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