He Must Become Greater and Greater

Posted on September 28, 2024 by

31 Comments

August 20, 2024

He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less. – John 3:30 NLT

The verse above has been on my heart and mind lately. The King James Version says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” However, I really like the way the New Living Translation reiterates the words “greater” and “less.” It reminds me that this could be an ongoing process in our lives.

These words were said by John the Baptist when John’s disciples complained that Jesus was also performing baptisms.

John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’ He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure. The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” (v 27-36 NKJV)

John the Baptist knew Jesus was (and forever is) THE ONE. Jesus was and is the Messiah that they had been waiting for. Nothing and no one is greater. And everything He does should be praised and magnified. Everything we do, everything John the Baptist did, was only to serve Jesus.

Perhaps John’s disciples felt some pride because so many people came to John for baptism. Perhaps they thought they were the ones to seek. Maybe they thought their good deeds were the best deeds.

I don’t know for sure what they were thinking or feeling. But I do know that pride in general is something we all battle. We might be proud of ourselves for doing something good. We might think we are smarter or know more than someone else. At times, we think about our own selfish needs, and put them above others. I can say I have fallen into all of these traps at some point. Human beings are selfish creatures.

But when we keep this verse in mind, when we remember that Jesus must increase and we must decrease, it helps alter our perspective. It helps us to not think more of ourselves. We will not be quick to seek our own comforts. We will not be so easily offended by other people’s words and actions. We will want to have a servant’s heart. We won’t be quick to anger when it feels like someone stepped on us.

When we remember that Jesus must become greater and greater and we must become less and less, we keep our eyes on Him. Every situation we face is filtered with a new lens. We begin to see things from His perspective.

I have not been consistent, but over the past few weeks when I was tempted to feel self-seeking, I tried to remind myself of this verse. As I said, though, this could be an ongoing process in our lives. Often half the battle in our Christian walk is reminding ourselves of truth.

I pray we can learn to keep our eyes on Jesus. I pray that He becomes greater and greater in our hearts. I pray that the situations we face, big or small, can be viewed with a renewed perspective.

Thank you for stopping by and reading my post. I know you have a million other things you could do with your time, so it really means a lot to me. You all are in my prayers. If you have any specific prayer requests, please let me know. And thank you for saying a prayer for my family. God bless you!

  • By the way #1 – Below is a great song, “Less Like Me” by Zach Williams that goes well with this Bible verse.
  • By the way #2 – If you have any little ones in your life, Zach Williams has a children’s book out with this same theme, called A Little More Like Jesus. You can find it on Amazon here.
  • By the way #3 – This one is a little off into the weeds, but another great children’s book is Little Lion Lungs by Brandon Lake. You can find it on his website here and on Amazon here. (I actually had trouble ordering on Amazon. I tried twice and both times they sent me the wrong book. I wound up ordering from Brandon’s website. However, that error might be specific to my distribution center.)
  • In case you’re wondering, I do not receive any compensation if you order the books through these links.

© 2018-2024 Bridget A. Thomas. All rights reserved.

Category: Seeking God

31 Comments on “He Must Become Greater and Greater”

  1. Thank you for sharing this valuable reminder that all that we are is a reflection of Him, our Lord and Saviour. May we shine for Him more each day. God bless you richly today sister 🙏

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    • What a gift we have in Jesus! And when we keep our focus on Him, He transforms every area of our lives. Thank you for sharing you comment, Alan! Prayers for you and your wife! 🙏

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  2. Thank you Bridget. Humility, which is the opposite of pride, is a word that popped into my head as I read your post. I agree, it is easy for us humans to become self seeking and focus too much on our own needs and desires.
    Becoming less so Jesus can become greater is so very different from what the world dictates to us. I am thankful that Jesus offers us a much better way of doing things than the world does. Through following His way we are lifted up in due time, and not just with material possessions like the world is after. But His way also allows us to grow in things that are so much greater, like love and humility. These things can really impact our lives and world. Thanks for sharing the song and the other links. Have a blessed weekend. 💕☺️

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    • Hi Dawn! I love your beautiful profile picture! … I believe humility might be something we will need to continually learn. At least for me anyway! But you’re right, Jesus does offer us a better path. And with His help, we can get there. Such a good point about us being lifted up in due time, and how He helps us grow in areas that are greater worth than what the world values. You’re welcome for the song and links. And thank you for stopping by! Continued prayers for you! 🙏

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  4. By becoming less for Jesus to be more evident for means getting out of the way for Jesus to do his work in people’s lives. It is about him not about me as I seek to help refugees, teach classes etc.

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    • You said that so well. And I believe you also live that out well in your life! What a beautiful experience when we allow Jesus to have control and see how He works!

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  5. I appreciate how you make the distinction that focusing on self is still focusing on self—regardless of how it’s perceived— as positive or negative. For instance, we cringe about someone being self-centered, but think self-confident or self-reliant is more noble. It’s still focusing on self!

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    • David, I replied to you once, but it seems to have gotten lost! It might be due to my connection, since we don’t have power/cable/internet thanks to the hurricane. I do remember writing that you said it much better than I did! 😁 But you’re right, it’s still all about self. May our confidence and reliance come from Jesus!

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  6. A good reminder for me. More Jesus and less me is a constant, daily battle, but the occasional success is worth it and keeps me working toward embracing His way more.

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  7. As we follow Jesus, we should become less; less self-centered, less competitive, and less judgmental. Our focus needs to be on Jesus; and exhibiting kindness, compassion, forgiveness, and love.
    As Zach sang, let us become a little more like Jesus, a little less like me. A great song and post, Bridget! 🌺

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    • So well said, Jeanne! There are many ways we might aim to become less. Jesus helps us see that some things we thought mattered, really aren’t all that important. And we gain renewed values on what really matters. What a gift we have in Jesus! Thank you so much for your kind words and comment! 💝

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  8. What a Wonderful and Blessed Post. I love how you’ve unpacked that verse and connected it to the ongoing process of humility in our lives. It’s so true that keeping our focus on Jesus helps us combat pride and encourages a servant’s heart. Your thoughts on perspective really resonate, seeing things through His lens makes all the difference.
    Thank you for sharing such deep insights.
    Be Blessed and Be a Blessing.

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    • It’s amazing how the Lord continually helps us to grow and become more like Jesus, day by day. What a gift! Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing your thoughts, Willie! Blessings to you and your family!

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      • Amen 🙏🤗 It’s all part of His Glorious Plans.

        You are very welcome. Thank you for allowing us to comment.

        God Bless You today and always.

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  9. Lovely post Bridget. A humbling reminder and yes it is an ongoing process. At times it feels like such a struggle to be humble and not let pride take over. I caught myself thinking something like that and realised I have to keep surrendering this to God.
    He must become greater and we less – I like that translation. I am thankful that God is with each of us as we navigate all of this

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    • Thank you, Manu! I know exactly what you mean. And of late, I’ve have many opportunities to remind myself of this verse. I like that you pointed out we need to surrender this to God. Surrendering to Him is so key in every area of our Christian walk. I agree, I’m so thankful He helps us along the way. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, my friend!

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  10. Thank you so much for this reminder!
    I especially loved this from your post:
    “When we remember that Jesus must become greater and greater and we must become less and less, we keep our eyes on Him. Every situation we face is filtered with a new lens. We begin to see things from His perspective.”
    “Often half the battle in our Christian walk is reminding ourselves of truth.”
    So often we see ourselves with the same circumstances and feelings due to our flesh and pride. If we remind ourselves of His truths, we can point our lives and those around us back to Him!
    Thanks again for sharing! You’re always a great encouragement. ❤️
    Prayers for your family, Bridget 🤗❤️🙏🏻

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    • Hi Summer! You are so right. We do often find ourselves in the same circumstances and feelings. But how amazing is it that when we focus on Jesus, He changes everything. For the better! What a gift He is. I’m so glad this post was insightful. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. And thank you for the prayers. ♥️♥️

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  11. Pingback: He Must Become Greater and Greater – QuietMomentsWithGod

  12. Pride can be such a problem for us! Let us desire to be more like our humble Savior take our eyes off ourselves and keep our focus upon HIM. I really believe standing in the shadow of the Cross will humble you. Thanks for this great post.

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© 2018-2025 Bridget A. Thomas. All rights reserved.