Advent Week 2
This is the sermon I preached on Sunday - Peace Sunday. There are a few reflections on Advent week 2.
I love the book of Matthew – especially the birth narrative. When I knew that I was to preach an Advent service from the book of Matthew, I was so excited – then I saw the passage – suddenly I am not so excited after all.
I mean seriously, I could preach the genealogy of the first chapter better than John the Baptist. Why, I could even do the happy dance if I could have preached about the wise men seeing a star in the East and going West because they knew where to look for the Messiah. But no – I get John the Baptist. I mean really – who wants to preach repentance in the middle of Advent – Go God!!!!!!!! I ask myself – who figures the lectionary any way.
But alas, the fact doesn’t change – the Gospel for today is John the Baptist. Yes, I could have preached one of the other scriptures but they are equally about judgment and stuff. Then I came to our Romans reading and it all made sense – repentance, judgment, wilderness – its all about HOPE.
One of the key factors in the birth narrative in Matthew is KAIROS – in the Greek language Kairos is a passing instant when an opening appears which must be driven through with force if success is to be achieved. It’s the fullness of time in God’s purpose – it’s when God acts. The birth of the Messiah was definitely such a time but we also see Kairos here with John the Baptist. In fact, it is the first point on which all four gospels agree. They all mention John preaching in the wilderness a message of repentance. They all mention that Jesus’ public ministry began with John and Jesus meeting in the desert. This is a moment when God pushed through with force to act. NOW that makes me want to do a happy dance!!! So what is God saying to us today?
Well let’s see – I don’t think God is telling us to market a new diet called JTB diet – although we could probably market it. Perhaps we could find an example here – there are many modern theologians, ministers and preachers that take a view that miraculous gifts have ceased – much like the religious folks of John’s day. The religious leadership of John’s day was probably just as surprised and aggravated when God’s sovereign activity challenged their presuppositions. It is kind of funny to watch the different reactions when God shows up – much less the Son of God!!!!!!!!
All of these things are great points but the thing that
caught my eye the most was, “the voice of one crying in the wilderness…” It reminded me of my time in the desert. While I lived in the desert Southwest, a
Christian musician moved to my neck of the Navajo reservation and we learned a
lot together about wilderness. When Rich
first came to the Southwest, I wished he had stayed in
Wichita
. Because with him came hoopla and I liked quiet. However after he had been there a bit, we developed a friendship and we learned about the desert. We would go hiking at Canyon De Shelly and we did a lot of exploring there as well. It was great. We came to realize that the significance of what David Douglas meant when he said, “wilderness is not who resides there, but what we ourselves have left behind in coming.” I think John the Baptist knew this and who could know it better then Christ himself.
When I first went to the desert, I went kicking and
screaming. I had planned my missionary
path well and the desert Southwest was NOT in the plan. However, I knew the Lord had spoken and I
went but I was not happy and I let him know as often as I could. Why Oh Lord in your infinite wisdom did you
lead me to the armpit of Arizona? Don’t you know, I was supposed to be in
I also remember the moment I surrendered to the desert. I remember the moment I realized what a wonderful grace God had allowed me in being there. I repented for fighting what was truly a gift from God. It was a truth Rich recognized as well and allowed him to write, “I’ve come to the desert just to find my way to forever…” I found hope in the desert. I found forgiveness. I found grace there. It was the moment I learned that grace rarely comes as a gentle invitation. More often it is the John the Baptist type grace. The grace of a crazy prophet screaming in the desert – REPENT for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Often grace comes as an assault and we are tempted to run.
God’s grace comes sometimes comes like a punch in the nose, leaving us broken and wholly unable to deny our need any longer. We are force to recognize that we cannot escape from our sin. We cannot be imposters because the desert doesn’t allow that. There is nothing to prostitute in the desert – it’s a come-as-you-are party with God. In the desert, we come to the end of ourselves and we are ready to embrace God – that’s what repenting is all about.
We recognize our limitations and our deep need of the Messiah. A prophetic function is served and we are disturbed into accepting the fact that we need a Savior.
John the Baptist was absurd and that is exactly where grace bursts forth. That is where God is found. We need to reconsider the way we picture God because God is not what we expect. Our image of God often doesn’t prepare us for a truth realized in brokenness. We need to be shaken out of our expectations.
God isn’t what we expect nor is he what Herod expected. Herod the Great – King of the Jews – threatened by a babe lying in a manger. I mean it is rather comical when you think about it. Herod was shaking in his sandals because some astrologers from the East came looking for a baby. It is almost as comical as whom God decided to about the baby first. Imagine – the Messiah is born, angels appear in the sky (who wouldn’t listen to them?) Do you think if they appeared to Herod there would have been any questions? But no – the angels show up to tell shepherds standing in a field of sheep excrement that the King of the Universe is born – the long awaited Messiah and he can be found in a cave wrapped in rags!!!!!!!!!! Go figure! It seems to me that Biblically – what you see is not always what you get – God’s funny like that.
The God of the Bible is equally revealed in vulnerability and in triumph because both actions are rooted in love. God’s love is incessantly restless until He turns all woundedness to health, all deformity into beauty, and all embarrassment into laughter. God is funny like that – He brings hope into impossible situations.
In C.S. Lewis’ tale The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, the little girl Lucy is frightened by the dragon like terrors of the White Witch. But when she hears Mr. and Mrs. Beaver speaking of the lion Aslan, a fierce King who’ll come to put things to right, she’s not entirely sure the unknown danger will be any better than the known. Of this Aslan, the wild promised King, she asks with trepidation, “Is he safe?” and Mr. Beaver, as honest as he is wise, responds, “Who said anything about safe? ‘Course, he isn’t safe! But he’s good! He’s the King, I tell you.”
Christ isn’t safe either, but he’s good and he is the king
and he shows up in the strangest places. He shows up in the desert to begin his public ministry with a crazy
prophet who has questionable food and dress. He is hailed in Revelation as the Lion of the tribe of
Judah
yet when all turn to look they see a slain Lamb. He comes as a leper to St. Francis and St. Francis heart is so full of recognition and joy he embraces and kisses the leper. We have to learn to have those “Oh there you are moments” – where we find Christ in the strangest places. Perhaps in the wilderness, our brokenness, or maybe even in All Saint’s Hall. A few weeks ago the youth helped at Martha’s Kitchen and I saw Christ!!!!!!!! A couple of our youth girls were serving ice cream and a young girl came through the line. The girl attends Marshall High and asked Hannah and Jodi if they attended
Marshall
. Hannah and Jodi said yes. The girl felt ashamed and said that she didn’t want anyone to know that she ate here. Hannah looked at the girl and said, “Well, I eat here too.” The girls then grabbed a plate and they sat down with this young girl. They talked and laughed as only Hannah and Jodi can make you laugh. I saw Jesus!!!!!!!!!!! My heart swelled with love, my eyes burned with tears, and I said to myself, “Oh there you are Jesus.”
To find Jesus, we have to come to the end of ourselves, we have to let go of our expectations, we have to look for him and then we have to go to him. It is only then that we understand what John the Baptist meant when he said, “Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Good stuff, like sweetness from an oasis in the desert. Another voice of one. Thank you for sharing. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Thank You LORD Yeshua!
Posted by: eric | December 15, 2007 at 06:25 PM