It is sad that self-denial is hardly seen in today’s Christians. Instead many are into self-indulgence when it comes to wealth and worldly pleasures. And they have even equated the abundance of material blessings as God’s measurement of one’s spiritual maturity. In other words, the richer you are, the clearer the evidence and proof that God approves of you. Is this the way God measures the maturity of our faith? Can we find an example of such a mature spiritual person in the Bible who was measured by his material blessings? We find none! There were spiritual giants who were very rich, eg: Abraham, Joseph, Solomon, etc. Yet their faith did not depend on their wealth at all. It is their faith that defined them, not wealth. In fact, we find many spiritual giants of the faith who lived simply, not pursuing or indulging in riches or worldly gain.

One such example of self-denial is John the Baptist. Mark 1:6 describes John’s way of life: “And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey.” Was John’s life a life of self-denial or self-indulgence? Clearly, one thing we see in John’s life is: separation from the world. His life was separated from worldly distractions and temptations. He had no fanciful clothes; it was likely that he had only one set of garment. Many of us have wardrobes full of clothes, and yet considered not enough. And John’s garment was made of camel hide with a belt of some other animal skins. And the prosperity gospel twisted this truth and used this as proof that God’s people must go for the best and most expensive things, not just cheap stuffs. Indeed anything made from animal skins are very expensive. And these believers of the prosperity gospel claimed even John the Baptist wore real leather! Nothing can be further from the truth. John’s garment is a picture of separation, not worldliness. He was definitely not advocating the use of leather. Not only that, John ate locusts and wild honey. And this was twisted to mean that John’s diet was 100% organic! Organic food items are also the most expensive food today. Do not miss the point! It is simply telling us that John ate whatever he could find in the wilderness. He did not have a spread of sumptuous food on the table. Whatever he could find in the wilderness that could be eaten, that became his food. To John, life was more than nice clothes and nice food. He was contented with a simple life so that he could devote himself to serve God and to fulfil the purpose of his existence. This is a picture of self-denial. John was not distracted by nice clothes and nice food. He focused on how he could serve the Lord more effectively.

As the Spirit leads us, let us also serve the Lord, denying self and not to be hindered by wealth and worldly pleasures. Let us be faithful and hardworking for the Lord’s sake wherever He has put us in our secular profession. We are to live for Him, not for wealth or worldly pleasures. In fact, in John’s self-denial, we see also humility. Mark 1:7 says of John, “And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose.” John’s success was not when people were drawn to him. His success was when people were drawn to Christ. All these men from Judaea, even from Jerusalem, came all the way to Jordan to be baptised by him. Surely, John was famous. Surely, he was popular. And yet all these did not make his head swell. He was full of humility. He refused to be in the limelight since he was not the Christ. It was Christ whom he must exalt and serve all his life. And so he said, “There cometh one mightier than I after me.” In other words, he was saying, “You think I am great? There is someone who is greater than me. And I am just like you who need to bow down to the Messiah. I am not even worthy to stoop down to unloose the latch of His shoes. That’s how low I am and how high my Lord is.”

What humility! What a servant of God! He lived simply and sought only to serve God by bringing the gospel of Jesus Christ to sinful men! His life, truly lived in self-denial and humility, is a lesson that we must learn. May God help us. Amen.