I decreased and He increased when I abandoned all to follow Him, embracing His Lordship and renouncing all of my former ways. "I must decrease so that He can increase" isn't a New Covenant statement. It was a statement from John the Baptist in relation to the popularity of "John the Baptist Evangelistic Association" officially "going off of the air" as the crowds started pursuing Jesus and His Apostles more and more. It's the same as if someone from Looney Tunes had closed a cartoon saying "That's a wrap folks!!" It wasn't initially a statement of submission. It was a statement from someone with some humility whose "public ministry" just "went to Hell" as far as his monthly partner base, the subscribers to his tape of the month, etc., etc., etc.
After the resurrection, the command is repentance, and upon repentance, belief that God raised Jesus from the dead, and confessing Him as the Lord of one's life, then one is raised up and made to sit together with Him in heavenly places far above all principality and power and every name that's named. We're given His Name and are to be thoroughly equiped for every good Work through increasing in the grace of God and Apostolic doctrine so that we're "no longer tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine," but conformed to the image of His dear Son; walking in the light as He's in the light: going into all of the world and preaching the Gospel, discipling the nations, casting out demons, healing the sick, raising the dead, and assuring everyone that Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today, and to the age when He delivers up the Kingdom to God the Father. He's the Chief Shepherd and High Priest Who administers the Words of the New Covenant in the lives and in the mouths of believers so that as we walk by faith and not by sight, realizing that what's seen is temporary and the blindness of those whose minds Satan has blinded to the glorious Gospel is eonian.
"I must decrease so that He can increase" is daily happening for anyone whose very Words and natures are growing further and further into His image, as they're working out their salvation with fear and trembling REALIZING that it's God at work within them to will and to do for His good pleasure. And that's where the race comes from that Paul is talking about in Corinthians, or the wrestling match comes from that he's talking about in Ephesians. Having done all to stand, we stand, praying with all prayers and supplications in the Spirit and that boldness and utterance would be given to each of us to share this New Life with the masses in the Name and in the total example and fullest Power [in demonstration] of Jesus Christ.
