Who Is It We Elevate?

“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)

While it is easy to consider our preferences and desires in life, it can be difficult to put the desires and needs of others ahead of our own.  Naturally I zero in on what I want life to look like, how I want others to respond to me, what I want to have and experience, and how I want my relationships to look – but this most often does not work out for me; while I have a life in which I feel very blessed, each day I carry weights because it is not how I want it to be.

How am I to handle this?

I think of John the Baptist.  He came into the picture of 1st century at a time when many were feeling restless spiritually.  They had long waited for their promised Saviour, but One had not yet shown up on the scene; while Jesus had been born, His ministry had not yet started. 

John the Baptist was kind of a weird duck, but people flocked to Him; they were drawn to the language he used to describe the Christian life and to the sincerity / the intensity with which he spoke.  He easily could have allowed the people to elevate him in their minds and hearts; he easily could have become prestigious and highly sought after, but instead he humbly pointed everyone to Jesus.

Two verses point this out.  In Matthew 3.11, John the Baptist says, ““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).  He says in John 3.30, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”” (John 3:30, ESV)

At NCC, we have begun a journey through the book of Hebrews.  This book elevates Christ above all other significant spiritual leaders, not to diminish their ministry but to keep us centred in Christ.  Just as I must hold loosely to my own desires in life to walk in step with those I live alongside, I must work diligently to remain focused on Christ.  Instead of always gravitating to a mentor, author, or podcaster, I must continually point myself to Christ; instead of allowing others to elevate me in some way, I am called to take the approach of John the Baptist (“He must increase … I must decrease.”) or the apostle Paul (“Follow me as I follow Christ.”)

In what way are we intentionally pointing others to Christ?  It feels good to be the centre of one’s attention, but are we really serving them by letting them focus on us or our opinion?  Let us not only centre ourselves on Christ but also work to draw others to Christ-centred living.  Let us learn to step out of the way of Christ; let us learn to point people to Christ rather than to our opinions and ways.

Entering a new year often brings reflection upon how we are doing and living; we consider whether there is a part of our lives that would benefit from a change in what we do or how we spend our time.  How might we decrease so that Christ is increased?  Is there someone we could serve by inviting them into a deeper relationship, one where we intentionally point one another towards Christ?

Let us intentionally make Christ the centre of our lives – our thoughts, beliefs, practices, and emotions.