Mary's Song 12-19-21
Season of Truths
Isaiah 12:2-6; Luke 3:7-18
Isaiah 12:2-6
You will say in that day: I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, and you comforted me. Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation. With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day: Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known his deeds among the nations; proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth. Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Luke 3:7-18
John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.” Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.” Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.” As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.
Prayer – Lord Jesus, come to us in our need. We eagerly await your advent among us. Perhaps what we really need, even though we find it hard to admit, is a fresh start, a new birth, a different path that the one we are walking, lives that are more than lives we are currently living. What we eagerly await is that which only you can offer us. We don’t need just some moral tinkering. We need new selves. Your love gave us birth, now we pray for rebirth. You gave us the gift of our lives, now we are bold to pray for new lives. We dream of better lives – as a people and as a church. Only through your love and grace can any of this become. Come to us, Lord Jesus, bless us with your life-giving, life-changing Spirit – amen.
It hasn’t been too long ago that I a saw brief segment on TV about what values we want to teach our kids. Honesty topped the charts at 43%, followed by kindness at 29%, a strong work ethic at 11% and a variety of others. What struck me as interesting about this survey was that it lines up pretty closely with John the Baptist’s’ preaching in our gospel passage this morning.
This is, as you’ll recall, the second Sunday in which we are spending with John. Last week, Luke introduced us to the adult John the Baptist, taking pains to anchor John’s preaching in the historical context of the day. We noticed that Luke was audacious enough to believe that the events and people he described – last week John’s ministry, this week John’s message, and next week the meeting of Elizabeth and Mary – were as important on the stage of world history as were any of the mighty rulers Luke names.
This week covers the second half of Luke’s account of John’s ministry and we discover that, according to Luke, John is an ‘old school preacher’ who can’t resist a three point sermon. The first point is eschatological warning of the coming end of time; the second around ethical exhortation; and the third the announcement and expectation of the coming Messiah.
What’s striking about these points is that, put alongside the drama of the eschatological warning and messianic expectation, John’s ethical exhortation seems rather mild for such a prophetic voice. I mean, in response to the crowds reasonable reaction to John’s warning – they simply ask, “What then shall we do?” John basically tells them to be honest, be kind, and to work hard and not take advantage of others. To be honest with you I want to respond, “Come on, John, is that really all? This is pretty much what we learned in kindergarten. Is this really all it takes to avoid eschatological judgment and enter into paradise? And apparently, according to John, the answer is “Yep.”
That is how John preached. Advent is a season of truth and honesty, the time every year when we hear the calling out of John the Baptist. And though he calls his listeners then and now a ‘brood of vipers’ telling us not to take comfort in our old securities, he gives us a pretty simple task to prepare for the coming of the messiah.
I recently read an article by former Methodist Bishop William Willimon where he shared a story from attending a homiletics workshop. He said one preacher declared, “People come to church to get a pat on the head and to receive encouragement to think the best of themselves.” It seems that John the Baptist disagreed that people only came to church listening for only what they want to hear. Or perhaps, John believes that it may be possible to surprise us by telling us that which we didn’t know we wanted to hear? Perhaps, in our better moments, we long for a season of truth and honesty, a straightforward assessment of our situation that leads to lives better prepared for the advent of the Christ in our world.
For John, preparer of the way, honesty is only the beginning. In being truthful, John puts on the road to being changed. John tells us the truth, lets the truth cut where it will. If John’s words sometimes sound harsh, they are spoken out of a conviction that the love of God overcomes our resistance, bring us the new life for which we long.
John the Baptist’s words did not tickle the ears of those who showed up out in the wilderness and desert to hear him preach. We know that John’s words resound with warning and border on condemnation. So why would anyone intentionally seek that out? In order for crowds to form, the word about John’s teaching and actions must have spread throughout the region. What was the source of attraction, and who responded favorably to his message of turning your life around? We don’t know much detail about the crowds, but Luke singles out two groups – tax collectors and soldiers. Tax collectors and soldiers were not esteemed members of society nor were they marginalized. Misuse of their power ostracizes them from the community but all in all they were just ordinary people not too much different from me and you.
Prophets speak truth to power yet both Jesus and John attracted powerful people to their ministry that did not cater to egos or justify their fortunes. Maybe, the tax collectors and soldiers relished the frank words and wanted to hear the truth. Maybe, they were looking for another way to live and to be. Maybe, they were looking for good news to deliver them from a less than desirable life.
“What then should we do?” they ask. This is John’s cue to describe various acts of honesty, kindness and hard work that suggest a change in behavior. For average people, these include sharing food and clothing with those who have none. Tax collectors should gather their quota and no more; soldiers should not abuse their authority. Tax collectors and soldiers being present were noted to be some of most notorious sinners of the day. What are they doing among the crowd that gathered to hear John preach? According to Luke, such people are included in God’s kingdom coming, sometimes to the surprise of the righteous and holy.
Many people in that crowd were undoubtedly shocked to find their oppressors side by side with them in seeking John’s message of hope for the future. Some probably assumed that John’s name calling was directed at those powerful people who had tormented so many from their positions of authority with impunity. Yet, they all had the same basic question for John in response to his message of repentance – what should we do?
Searching for truth and honesty becomes an empty exercise if it does not lead to new attitudes and behavior. We live in an era in which information is exceedingly available and the quest is often not for knowledge but for justification o what is already believed whether it is true or not. The question then becomes, ‘What enables me to validate what I want to do and have done?’
False prophets existed during the times of John and Jesus, before them, and still today. Frankly, there are professed Christian leaders who express a faith that does not resemble the good news of Jesus Christ that lifts the lowly and marginalized, that moves with compassion, and that works for the wholeness and welfare of all humanity and creation. Sometimes, that false faith manifests itself in teaching that is antithetical to the gospel; just as often, it’s realized in actions that perpetuate the brokenness of the world. Even more insidiously, people of faith with the best intentions can be tempted into self-righteousness that blocks empathy and justifies it by their behavior rather than interrogating their own.
There are still tax collectors and soldiers among us who need to be made whole. Oppressors are broken people. Jesus commands us to love our enemies; it’s an act of mutual benefit. HATE HAS NEVER HEALED ANYTHING. Love builds bridges, dismantles systems, and creates balms for healing. That table the psalmist references in Psalm 23 is not a boasting place for communication, reconciliation and communion. The oppressed and oppressors both found room in the crowd to hear the good news that John proclaimed. Are we, the church, creating those spaces today? Are we countering cultural trends that increasingly move us into our own silos? Do our messages offer as much open for redemption to the oppressor as to the oppressed? Is our proclamation cultivating transformation in those who encounter it?
John’s words of truth are not so radically difficult that they are unobtainable. Neither does John’s words state that radical change is necessary for individuals and communities to experience God’s grace, mercy and peace. John’s words of honesty, kindness and hard work are actually small everyday things that can be done. This is seemingly modest transformation – share, don’t abuse power. Yet these small acts can help to issue justice in the world. (Monica Coleman)
Our world today is not that different than the world of John and Jesus some 2000 years ago. Just as there was corruption, then there is corruption now. Power consistently generates the worst impulses in humanity as we see today. Feelings of helplessness can do the same. How many of our faith communities ponder the condition of our nation and world with a sense of inevitability? How many of us ask, in light of the enormity of problems we face as individuals, as a church, as a community, as a nation and world, what can we do to change? Part of the good news is that none of us is expected to change the world on our own. We are called to repent, to change ourselves, our attitudes and behaviors. What we do what we should do, share the gifts we have, treat others right, and moderate our own power for the common good, we have done what we can. Those simple actions can make a world of difference.
The crowd heard John’s message and recognized the truth in its simplicity. That didn’t make the admonitions easy, but they were doable and reachable. If John can commit to this life, then so can they, and so can you and me. John’s ministry is also his testimony. His prophetic teaching comes from the lessons he has learned himself. He doesn’t hover over them but speaks from among the crowd having received and believed the good news himself.
‘What then should we do’ we wonder. What should we do when asylum seekers still get turned away from the border? What should we do when income inequality continues as the gap between rich and poor gets wider and wider? What should we do when gun violence terrorizes more and more communities and schools? What do we do when a virus that seems more resistant than we are? What do we do when faced with the enormity of the problems of the world and our own communities? What do we do as a church when our building needs a lot of work and our financial resources may in fact limit our future?
It would be interesting to imagine how different John’s words might sound without the indulgence that has permeated the seasons of Advent and Christmas. The lazy days of Pentecost would incur a changed interpretation as well I suspect. That John’s words are heard here and now necessitate a pause and perspective. We may not like John’s warnings. In fact, we probably don’t like them at all. But John’s words during this season of truth may necessitate a reorientation to an Advent kind of life.
Perhaps, John’s warning comes at the right time. For our Christian inclination is to sit back on our laurels, to rest comfortably in our ecclesial securities of Christendom, to sit idly by as if Christmas could come and go without upending the world once again. John calls us to attention in this season of truth. I wonder if John’s words for us this year, perhaps more than any other, is to make a public claim that waiting for, anticipation about, and expectation around Jesus’ birth really and truly matters for how we live our lives here and now. In other words, we cannot stand contentedly by as if the birth of Christ is the ‘same old, same old.’
Advent is a season of truth. Each Advent calls us to a different demonstration of why it matters to anticipate Jesus’ birth. Each Advent invites a different manifestation of why waiting matters. Each Advent brings hope for a different expression of why it matters that Christmas is near. May this season of truth remind us – change us by doing what we can to bring light to a broken world – thanks be to God – amen