John the Baptist: Prophet or Scrooge? by The Rev. Donald L. Hamer
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Trinity Episcopal Church, Hartford
Year C – 3 Advent
December 13, 2015
Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3: 7-18
John the Baptist? Prophet or Scrooge?
As part of our Advent preparation, the church, in its wisdom, has always demanded that if you really want to see what's in Bethlehem's manger, you must first confront this crazy prophet out in the wilderness, who dresses in camel’s hair, eats wild locusts and honey, and whose sermons call us up short with a demand for repentance.
And so as Debbie and I have been considering the heart of the Christmas message this year, I’ve been considering the following as our greeting card: On the front of the card will be a depiction of John the Baptist, standing beside the Jordan River, with the saying, "Greetings from our house to yours.” And when you open the card you find these words:
Our thoughts of you at this time of the year are best expressed in the words of John the Baptist, 'You brood of vipers!' The axe is laid to the root of the trees, and every tree thatdoes not bear good fruit will be thrown to the fire.
Merry Christmas and Joyous New Year from Don and Debbie.
So what do you think?
Okay, maybe not.
But contemplate what we have just experienced. Advent is the season of preparation for the coming of our Lord in the birth of the infant Jesus. John the Baptizer is the one sent by God to prepare the way of the Lord. Yet, notice, from the example of my contemplated Christmas card, how John collides with what we have done to Christmas, and to ourselves. John's image at Yuletide is striking contrast to the jolly, fat elf in a red plush suit, with a bag full of gifts, many of them headed for those who have too much already. What happened along the way?
But wait, you say. Our other two readings this morning are joyful and comforting and warm and fuzzy. Doesn’t Zephaniah write, “Shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart!” The Lord has taken away your judgments against you, he has turned away your enemies.” That’s joyful! Ah, but see, this is the problem with proof-texting scripture, plucking one passage out from a larger text. This morning’s text is from the very END of the book of the prophet Zephaniah. The entire rest of the book is a warning to the people of Judah – and in particular its leaders. Zephaniah is warning them that their failure to live according to the law of God, their idolatry and their corruption, was going to put them into the hands of the Assyrians. And indeed that happens shortly after Zephaniah is writing. So the message of Zephaniah is anything but joyful – indeed, it is one of the darkest prophecies of the Old Testament. And yet, there is hope in the prophet’s very last verses.
But wait, you say. What about Paul’s letter to the Philippians? “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice,” he writes. “Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.” That’s joyful and reassuring. True enough. But once again, we have to look at the context. First of all, Paul is writing from prison. I don’t know about you, but prison isn’t my first thought when I think of places to rejoice. Secondly, Paul is writing to a very troubled church that is struggling in at least three ways. It’s two leaders are arguing with each other (ch. 4). There are outsiders encouraging false teachings to the faithful—false prophets that Paul calls “dogs” and refers them to teaching a “false circumcision.” (ch. 3). And there are certain opponents to the church itself – whether the challenge is social or physical is unclear, but Paul is obviously concerned that the challenge might divide the church (1:27). So as the news of Paul’s letter arrived into the living rooms of the people of the church at Philippi, the people hearing these words would have likely responded, “Really? Rejoice always? Right!”
So you see, despite the joyful and reassuring language of both Zephaniah and Paul, their circumstances – and the circumstances of those to whom they are writing – are anything but joyful and secure. How do these two passages, along with the passage from Luke’s Gospel this morning, relate to our Advent preparations. More importantly, what do these three passages, appointed for the third Sunday in Advent, have to say about that for which we are preparing – the arrival of the Son of God on Christmas?
Note what all three of these passages have in common: The writer is pointing to something that is to come, but is not yet. The writer may be writing in the face of disaster, impending loss, certain conflict, but he is assuring his audience that God is faithful and that to God’s faithful people, there is indeed joy awaiting them.
And that’s the meaning of Gospel, or The Good News, isn’t it? When the Jews were awaiting the Messiah, it wasn’t to continue business as usual, to maintain the status quo. It was to change lives, to turn the present unjust society into an alternative future of justice, mercy and love. It was to change the entire foundations of society. It wasn’t to be an event that just makes us happy – it was to be an event that shapes our common lives together and makes them better. When Zechariah reacted to the birth of his own son – the one who would become John the Baptizer – he proclaims, You my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, To give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. In the tender compassion o four God the dawn from on high shall break upon us, To sine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace. (Luke 1:76-79).
And when John began his own preaching, his “good news” to the people was to tell them that the tree that doesn’t produce fruit will be cut down and burned. And when they asked him, “What shall we do?” what did he say? To the tax collectors, he said, “Don’t collect any more than is due.” To the soldiers, he said “Don’t extort money from anyone by threats or false charges.” In other words, change the way you do things. Operate according to God’s values, not the ones society teaches you and the world rewards.
The common theme in all of today’s passages is that the way to experience the joy, assurance and inner peace and hope that God promises in Jesus who is to come is by changing the way we do things. And this change is not like changing our brand of toothpaste. When John calls for repentance, he is calling for us to turn our lives around – the Greek word metanoia – turning the mind around, actually changing our attitudes. It calls us to reflect on our social practices, “fruits worthy of acceptance,” new ways of using possessions and power.
And where do we get the inner strength to do this? Look back at Paul and how he inspired the members of that struggling church in Philippi. When he writes to his people, he is not writing from a position of strength. He is in prison, and yet he speaks with confidence that God holds a brighter future. When he calls his people to prayer and faithfulness rather than to anxiety and fear, he does so as one who knows the power of prayer from his own circumstances. Not even the chains that bind him or the enemies that beset him can take away “the peace of God that surpasses all understanding” that will “guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
And in the midst of his exhortation to his people to rejoice and to pray, Paul adds a third guideline: Don’t look inward at your own difficulties and anxieties – but “let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.” This outward orientation “to everyone” is Paul’s remedy to those struggling Christians, both spiritually and communally. If Paul has overcome his imprisonment by prayer; if he has forgotten his own struggles to concentration on the struggles of the people of Philippi; if Jesus has abandoned his own personal comfort for the greater good of all God’s people, then the Philippians, too, can grow beyond their present struggles to a brighter future in faith and trust that God offers us a better way.
And so can we. Zephaniah, Paul and John the Baptist this morning teach us that the peace of God which passes all understanding is found not in the unwavering safety of what we know or what we have or even what we understand. That peace is not found in the familiar and the comfortable, but in the ever-new and unfolding journey with Jesus the Christ. They are found in turning our hearts and minds – indeed, our lives – to the One whose earthly journey began in a cave and ended on a cross. AMEN.