He Must Increase I Must Decrease Meaning
I don't know if you've seen them or not, but one of the Christian t-shirts that I see people wear a lot shows this equation:
He > Me
It's usually supported by the verse John 3:30, which says:
"He must become greater; I must become less." (John 3:30)
In other words, a lot of people use this verse to say that the way to live the Christian life is less self and more Jesus. In essence, this is what they're saying: I am bad and Jesus is good, so I must learn to decrease myself and increase Jesus in my life.
Here's the only problem... That's not what that verse means!
The Real Context of John 3:30
Before diving into John 3, let's back up and look at John 1. The apostle John tells us that John the Baptist came as a witness to testify concerning the light, so that through him all might believe.
"He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light." (John 1:8)
John's role was to go before Jesus and prepare the way for Him. John had to start before Jesus began His earthly ministry—John increased in fame and popularity before Jesus. But a time would come when his role would take a backseat to Jesus' role.
Look at what happened just before John 3:30. John's disciples came to him saying,
"Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him." (John 3:26)
John's response reveals the true meaning:
"The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. He must increase, but I must decrease." (John 3:29-30)
John is simply talking about how his public ministry will begin to decrease, and Jesus' will begin to increase.
John is NOT declaring that this is the way for all people to live the Christian life.
He wasn't saying, "Put this on a t-shirt and make it your life's slogan."
What About "Deny Yourself"?
Many people point to Matthew 16:24 where Jesus said:
"Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." (Mt. 16:24)
We see phrases here that lead us to the same mentality—"deny themselves" means decrease self, and "take up their cross" means we need to die to self. This becomes the way to live the Christian life: You are bad and Jesus is good, so you must decrease.
But once again... that is not what this verse means.
Look at the context. Jesus had just explained that He must go to Jerusalem and be killed. Peter rebuked Him saying,
"Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you!" Jesus responded, "Get behind me, Satan! You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns." (Matthew 16:21-23)
Jesus says "take up your cross" in the context of explaining His own death on the cross—the central event to forgive sins and reconcile people to God.
When Peter objects, Jesus essentially says, "Not only will I die on the cross, but all of you must die as well if you are going to be reconciled to God."
Why Do We Have to Die?
Here's the simple answer: Jesus had to kill off who we were IN ADAM.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:22:
"For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive." (1 Cor. 15:22)
There are only 2 kinds of people: those who are IN ADAM and those who are IN CHRIST.
We're all born IN ADAM with a sin nature that produces sins—lying, gossiping, lust, pride, all of it.
Here's the deal: All the self-help books and YouTube videos will never ultimately help us stop sinning because they don't get to the root of the problem.
It's like picking weeds without getting the root—they just grow back. But if you dig up the root, that weed isn't growing back.
That's what God does with our sin nature—He gets to the root.
God Gets to the Root
Romans 6:3-4, 6-7 explains what happened when we put our faith in Jesus:
"Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life... For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has been set free from sin." (Ro. 6:3-4,6-7)
We died! The old self died. The person we were IN ADAM died.
Jesus killed that person off and set us free from the bondage of sin!
Paul says the same thing in Galatians 2:20:
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me." (Gal. 2:20)
And in Colossians 2:11-13, Paul says it this way:
"Your whole self, ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through your faith in the working of God." (Col. 2:11-13)
You are no longer IN ADAM but IN CHRIST. You are a new self! You are a new creation with a NEW NATURE.
Peter says we now "share his divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4).
The Question That Changes Everything
So here's my question:
If the old you has died already, and you've already become a new self in Christ with a new godly nature, then why would you need to die to your old self?
You wouldn't! You don't! That's why Paul doesn't say to die to yourself but rather says to count yourself dead already!
"Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus." (Romans 6:11)
Why count yourself "dead to sin"? Because you have died to sin. Your old self has already died!
So, because it is true that you’ve died to sin, then actually count it to be true!
Instead of trying to die to your old self, count your old self dead and your new self "alive to God in Christ Jesus!"
"Self" Is Not a Dirty Word
"Self" is not a dirty word if you are IN CHRIST. "You" are not an obstacle to God because you are a new creation in Christ!
This "die to self" theology leads you to believe that you are bad, that you are an obstacle to God.
Listen... you were bad before you put your faith in Christ. When you were IN ADAM, you were a sinner with a sin nature. That was who you were.
But if you have received Jesus' free gift of salvation, then you are no longer IN ADAM but IN CHRIST.
You are a new self in your spiritual union with Christ!
Your new self is holy in Christ
Your new self is righteous in Christ
Your new self is loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and full of self-control
So... why would you want to die to that? Why would you want that to decrease? You wouldn't!
The Truth About Your New Life
If you’ve put your faith in Jesus for salvation, you don't need to die to self because you've already died and become a new self. What you need to do instead is understand who your new self is in Christ and learn to live out of your new self as you walk by faith.
That's when you truly begin to experience your new life in Christ. Until then, you're constantly trying to kill off your old self when Jesus has already done that and given you new life in Him!
So, as Paul said: "Count yourselves as dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus." (Romans 6:11)
Then you'll really begin to enjoy the Christian life and see His life expressed through you in ways that make eternal impact in this world.
