Happily Second

4/7/25 Bible Thought (John 3)

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Many people are naturally competitive, myself included. We desire the gold medal, not silver or bronze. We want to be first, not last. Interestingly enough, this tendency even shows up in various characters within the Scripture. In today’s text as it rears its head, we’ll see a beautiful response to it.

Near the end of John 3, the disciples of John the Baptist recognize a problem. Namely, that everyone was now going to Jesus to be baptized, and it seems they were forgotten. Formerly, John was baptizing crowds of people (Matt. 3:5-6). Numerically, he was a success! He even got to baptize the Messiah Himself! Yet, now, John seems to be walking in the Messiah’s shadow. Now everyone is going to Him to be baptized by His disciples and John is suddenly forgotten. Big problem.

Or is it? John the Baptist didn’t think so. As he goes on to respond with three powerful statements that model for us what it looks like to be happily second.

First, he states, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven” (Jn. 3:27). Essentially, John says, “I can’t envy Him because He’s merely operating in the gift that was given from God.” I recently heard a quote from the late pastor, Tim Keller, that said something like, “Pride is that which claims to be the author of what is really a gift.” Humility comes then as the result of recognizing that all of our gifts, talents, abilities, truly whatever we have is a gift that has been given to us.

“Pride is that which claims to be the author of what is really a gift” - Tim Keller

John essentially points out that he can’t be envious of what the Father has given someone else because that sin isn’t directed at the other person—rather it’s directed at God. If the Messiah’s ministry overshadowed his own, then good! This is His doing, not the result of John’s failures. Why be jealous?

John also points out that the bridegroom’s friend ought to rejoice in the bridegroom having his bride (3:29). She doesn’t belong to the friend anyways! The church, composed of both Jews and later Gentiles, belongs to Jesus. The church is His bride (Eph. 5:32). These people are in His hands, not ours, so John rejoices that the bride has met the groom as it were.

Lastly, John concludes with his famous declaration, “He must increase, but I must decrease” (Jn. 3:30). His whole life’s purpose was to be the forerunner of the Messiah. He was created to play second fiddle to the Savior. That was where he was supposed to be! He recognizes this and then even celebrates it.

I wonder how differently our lives would look if we lived with the aim to be happily second. If we were to elevate others instead of ourselves, and most importantly to elevate Jesus higher than all. We might not be the literal forerunner, but our prayer should nonetheless be, “Jesus must increase, and I must decrease.”

If the result of my life’s efforts will be that Jesus is magnified and I am not, then I was a success. Truly, anything good in me is due to His grace at work in me (see 1 Cor. 15:10), and so my boast cannot be in myself but only in Him. Anything that I’ve received has come from His gracious hand and so all glory and praise and honor goes to Him.

In my life, He always gets the gold. I’ll be happily second.