Surrendering to the Ending

Scripture: "This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel." Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One." John 1:30-34

Observation: John the Baptist has baptized Jesus and knows Jesus is the Messiah. This has been reenforced in several ways, and at this time John calls this out in new and definitive ways. He saw Jesus anointed by the Holy Spirit. He heard the declaration of Yahweh that Jesus was his son. Now, John admits that it was foretold to him that the one to whom these things happen is the Messiah. Furthermore, he makes another admission ... the entire reason he has been in the wilderness baptizing people with water was to prepare the people for Messiah and create the path to reveal him to Israel.

In other words, John actually knew who he was. He KNEW he was the prophet in the wilderness, foretold by Isaiah, whose mission was to prepare Israel for the Messiah's arrival, and that Jesus' emergence means his mission - and prominence and popularity - is over.

What happens next is that, for all intents and purposes, John's core disciples leave him to follow Jesus, and John's ministry ends, culminating with him opposing Herod to the point Harod arrests and kills him.

This is an amazing model of faith. John structured his entire life around his ministry, which included living 'rough' in the wild, doing nothing but serving others by baptizing and teaching them about repentance, all so one day that entire ministry could be taken away from him by the person he knew was his superior. Knowing the ending, John was faithful in everything else leading up to it, surrendered his life to the mission, and even celebrated the transition. He cared only for the mission, and not for the popularity and recognition and authority that his mission garnered him.

Application: I have seen modern-day men of God whose 'platform' is removed suddenly. Though it is usually done due to some fall or act, it is always hard to see. One of the ways I recognize that such people remain faithful to the Lord is that they don't publicly fight or rage at their lost status, but they surrender to it and trust the Lord's overall plan.

I can imagine the temptation of pride and power John felt when he knew, for certain, he was not only a prophet but a famous prophet, foretold by one of the most famous former prophets, commissioned to usher in the Messiah. Yet he remained so humble that he pushed his closest followers out of the metaphorical nest, to leave him and follow Jesus. Andrew, John, and Philip - and thus by extension Peter, James, and Nathanial ... men so strong Jesus would commission them to found Christianity itself - John effectively told "there he is, quit sitting here listening to me, go with him".

Truly faithful followers surrender to the mission, but they also surrender to the ending. They aren't in it to speak or lead others or even to just 'baptize and teach', but they are in it to be abused by non-believers, criticized as ignorant, fired from jobs, hated by entire factions of people, disowned by family and friends, and sometimes executed. That part of the call is real, too.

My experiences in this area have been real, but mild compared to others. May I retain my heart to surrender to the ending - the bad times - as much as the good.

Prayer: Lord, I see hard times around me. I'm not in a terrible place, but struggling. I see my son in a terrible place. I live in a time and place where many believers have degrees of hardship all over the world. Please, give us all the strength, courage, wisdom, and hope we need to surrender to whatever outcomes lie ahead. Amen.