A Sermon for the Feast of John the Baptist
John the Baptizer hardly
ever gets his own attention. It seems like we hear quite a great deal from him
in Advent and then at Jesus’ baptism, but we hardly ever talk about him. In
Advent, the discussion is more about Zechariah’s, his father, lack of faith
compared to Mary’s trust in God. After Jesus is born and grown, the actions
focus on who God is in him and what God is doing. John is a footnote to that
story as well.
This
week when I asked for questions about John the Baptizer, only one person dared
to ask anything and they sent the question in a message, rather than in any
kind of public forum. The question ran along these lines: Do you think John ever wondered if he might be The One? Did he always
know he was the forerunner? What was it like to always know that you were
second?
I
had to think about that for a while. John would have grown up hearing his own
birth narrative and that of his cousin, Jesus. He was probably raised in a very
particular way, given his father’s priesthood and the specificity of his
dedication to God. He may have even been a Nazarite with strictures on cutting
his hairs, touching dead bodies, sexual practice, and eating. In fact, the
camel’s hair clothing and the locust and honey diet are supposed to help us
understand that he lives the life of prophet- like Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah,
Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Amos.
Given
the way that John is depicted, as such an obvious bridge between the promises of
the Messiah and the advent of the Messiah, it is hard to think that he ever
thought that he might be the One Who Is to Come. Yet, don’t you think every
little boy of the time thought he might be the Messiah? If your stories of
God’s anointed are of David to the tenth power, when you and your friends
played Roman invaders versus Holy Warriors, don’t you think one kid always
climbed on top of the rock and declared himself “The Messiah”?
Would
John have thought that might have been his name? Names were important as we saw
in today’s reading. People did not speak the name of God and the names that
were bestowed on children carried weight and power. And in other Christian
denominations, John receives much more serious treatment and gets other names.
He is the Baptizer, the Forerunner, a prophet among prophets. As the Holy
Forerunner, his entire work is pointing to the One Who Is to Come. Given the
seriousness of his nature and his focus on his work, I’m not sure I would blame
him if he had occasionally wondered if he might be the One. Somehow, I doubt it
though. Once Jesus appears on the scene, John knows him and is inspired by God
to understand who and what Jesus is. Still John wonders and eventually asks,
“Are you the One Who is to Come or are we to wait for another?”
And
there it is, folks, the doubt of the Holy Forerunner. The question of the ages…
Jesus, are you it? Who among us hasn’t asked that question? And has anyone hear
fulfilled their own call with what appears to be the certainty of John the Baptizer?
He lives into what he believes and still dares to ask… Are you the one? He’s AT
THE BAPTISM… and he dares to ask… Are you the One?
What was the work that John
was doing again? What does his father prophesy that he will do: “And you, child, will be called the prophet
of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give
knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins.”
(Luke 1:76-77) John prophesies at the side of the Jordan- telling people that
the times- they are a’changin’. He is offering a baptism, outside of the temple
and separate from the culture of sacrifices, for the forgiveness of sins. He
speaks truthfully of sin and separation, of false truths and false leaders. He
speaks of transformation, of lives altered by an experience of God’s promises
and trust in their truth.
In
a time of permanent Advent, John says the Light is coming and you better be
ready! And the message he brings attracts people. John has disciples. John is
condemned by the temple leaders. John gives the ruler, Herod Antipas, serious
indigestion. And it is not because John is saying that “I’m all right, you’re
all right.” It’s not because John is saying, “God is love.” It’s not because
John is saying that the Messiah will bring joy.
People
are coming because of the promise of new life. People are attracted because it
seems like this is something to give them hope. People are coming because they
are being told that God has not forgotten them. That God is still acting. That
the voice of God in the world has not been silenced. That God is speaking to
them about the expectation of changed behavior and the reality of promises
fulfilled.
People
wanted to hear the message that John was preaching. People want to hear the
message that John was bringing. In truth, I think we ask ourselves “What would
Jesus do” because it seems easy. You can either tell yourself, “But I’m not
Jesus” or you tell yourself that Jesus welcomed and care for all kinds of
people. Both of these things are true, you’re not Jesus and Jesus did minister
whole-heartedly to all kinds of people. But we are not baptized into Christ for
an easy life or for comfort or for consolation. We’re baptized into a life as
co-workers in the kingdom and what if our work is supposed to look a little
more like John’s?
What
if the work to which we are called is political, like John’s- calling out
injustice against women, children, men- all races, all nationalities, all
faiths? What if our task for the kingdom is to call out leaders who bend the
rules for their own benefit, but ignore the possibilities of their power to
bring justice and change? What if our work is theological, like John’s - not be Jesus, but to point to Jesus, to explain who Jesus is to us and to the world? What
if our work is prophetic- affecting what we eat, what we wear, where we live,
with whom we are seen? What if our work is revolutionary, like John’s - to call
for change in hearts (including our own), in minds, in churches, in communities,
in governments, in the world?
And
what if we are called to this work at the very same time we ask the question,
“Jesus- are You it? Are you The One?” Keep in mind, John asked that question
through his disciples, while he was in prison for doing the work to which he
had been called. He knew he was the Forerunner, he knew he pointed to the
Light. He was just checking, one more time, to be sure Jesus was it. And then
he kept going, right to his death.
We
wait. We wait for a new heaven and a renewed earth. We wait for the kingdom
where justice and peace are at home. We are Easter people, resurrection people,
living in the second Advent, waiting for Jesus to return (Jesus- are You it?)
In a world that lacks justice and peace, where people commit the same sins over
and over again… maybe in this perpetual Advent- the world needs a little more
John, a little more promise, a stronger expectation of change, a demand for
righteous action, and an unambiguous pointing to the light.
We too are holy forerunners, pointing to the One Who
Has Come and Will Return. God shapes us into the people the kingdom needs for
our particular time and place. Occasionally, when the world is dark and has
great need, the Holy Spirit is equipping us- not to be like Jesus- but to be
like John.
Amen.
Comments