First Presbyterian Church
What's John Doing Here?
Sermon for December 9, 2007
by Pastor Susan Barnes

Let us pray.

"Loving God, you have so made us that we cannot live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from your mouth. Give us a hunger for your word, and in that food satisfy our daily need; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Our gospel reading begins on page 2 of the new testament in your pew Bibles. We'll be reading from my translation, so the words are a little different. In the first two chapters, Matthew told us about Jesus' genealogy back to Abraham, the visit of the Magi, Herod's orders, Joseph's family's flight to Egypt and their return to Galilee. And then we are suddenly introduced to John the Baptist.

Listen for the word of God as it is found in Matthew 3:1-12.

1 In those days John the Baptizer appeared proclaiming, in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the realm of heaven is approaching.”

3 This is the one of whom Isaiah the prophet was speaking when he said, “The voice of one shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.'”

4 Now John has camelhair clothes and a leather belt around his waist. His food was grasshoppers 1 and wild honey.

5 Then those from Jerusalem and all Judea and all the area surrounding the Jordan, were going out to him, 6 and were being baptized in the river Jordan by him, confessing their sins.

7 But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming about the baptism, he said to them, ‘Offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from coming anger? 8 Bear fruit worthy of repentance, and do not think to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for a father,' for I tell you, God is able out of these stones to raise children of Abraham. 10 Even now the ax is lying at the roots of the trees; every tree not bearing good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

11 I baptize you with water into repentance, but one coming after me is more powerful than I; and I am not adequate to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, he will clear out his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; and the chaff he will burn in unquenchable fire.”

This ends our reading of the gospel of Matthew.

John drops into the gospel to point the way for us, the way to repentance, and the way to Jesus.

Let's listen to the choir.

What was John doing in the wilderness? The Pharisees and Sadducees wanted to know. John was baptizing people.

The word baptize is just the Greek word for immerse. In Israel, archeologists have found many immersion pools from the first century. People routinely bathed to make themselves clean before worshiping, offering sacrifices, or eating. They washed their feet and hands before going into the temple. John's baptism was a little different than just making someone ritually clean. His baptisms were done just once and were about repentance.

The Pharisees and Sadducees came to inspect John rather than to participate. He calls them offspring of vipers, or sons of snakes. Snakes were symbols of evil and death. When he called them snakes, he meant they were predatory poisonous teachers who pervert the people. 2

The Pharisees and Sadducees were two rival groups of religious leaders, working at the temple in Jerusalem. Some of them were corrupt, and all of them, in Matthew's gospel, were after Jesus. Other gospels view the Pharisees less harshly. In our story, these leaders thought their ancestry, traced back to Abraham, was enough to guarantee their safety in the coming anger, the fiery judgment. But John says that children of Abraham are common enough; it is repentance that is uncommon.

To Paul, being a child of Abraham is not enough, nor is it even a requirement. The kingdom of God is open to Gentiles as well as Jews, the children of Abraham. In our epistle reading, Paul continues his advice to the members of the church in Rome, offering them some ethical teaching, reminding them why they have to get along with each other. Despite the historic animosity between the circumcised Jews and the uncircumcised Gentiles, they are now brought together through Christ Jesus.

Paul is concerned that those who are strong in their faith are staying away from those they consider weak. The strong have an obligation to support the weak, to encourage their neighbor, to build up the whole community. Listen for the word of God as it is found in Romans 15:1-13.

1 We who are strong ought to put up with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 2 Each of us must please our neighbor for the good purpose of building up the neighbor. 3 For Christ did not please himself; but, as it is written, “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.”

4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. 5 May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, 6 so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

7 Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf of the truth of God in order that he might confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, 9 and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.

As it is written, “Therefore I will confess you among the Gentiles, and sing praises to your name”; 10 and again he says, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people”; 11 and again, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise him”; 12 and again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse shall come, the one who rises to rule the Gentiles; in him the Gentiles shall hope.”

13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

This ends our reading of God's word.

John's actions seem strange to us – going to the wilderness immersing people in the river. But that's where people went, in John's day. He had to get away from the city, so he could preach undisturbed, near a place in the river where the water was calm, and the bank gave easy access for those who wanted to be baptized.

John reminds people of God's way, and lets them know that someone else was coming.

John preached repentance. That was a good message for the Pharisees and Sadducees, people of power and wealth. The Roman occupation of Jerusalem and all of Israel did not allow for an easy living out of the covenant. Certainly the people in power needed to be held accountable. And so John called them a bunch of snakes. The idea of them fleeing before the coming anger, the fiery wrath to come, is like seeing snakes slither out of a field when it is burned. John came in the tradition of Jewish prophets who confronted the people in power who were misusing their power and their wealth. John ate the food of the poor: locusts and wild honey.

He didn't advocate violence against the Pharisees and Sadducees; he preached repentance, warning them what was to come for them. He told them to bear fruit in keeping with their repentance. Once they repented for their sins, their actions would change and be helpful to the community rather than destructive.

When we repent, we are open to new possibilities that we couldn't see before. When we recognize we make mistakes, it is easier for us to forgive mistakes in others, to build up our neighbors, as Paul said, and live in harmony.

One of the ways we help our neighbors is by contributing to the work of the church. We make our pledges as best we can estimate our giving ability. The elders make our budget as best they can, balancing the needs of the church with the estimated income. Another way we help our neighbors is with kind words of welcome, making room in the pew, bringing in another chair to the table, not letting people be alone in an unfamiliar place.

The first verse in our reading from the Romans is “We who are strong ought to put up with the failings of the weak.” That sounds like we should tolerate petty annoyances from selfish people and thoughtless words from unthinking folks, or worse, silently endure abuse: put up with the failings of the weak. A better translation is “We who are strong ought to shore up the weaknesses of the powerless.” It means to help the powerless to move from weakness to strength.

Repentance is not about being weak, but about wanting to be stronger.

But personal repentance isn't the only needed response to be filled with all joy and peace in believing, as Paul said.

John the Baptizer is later imprisoned by Herod. He sends word to Jesus, “Are you, after all, the one?” I think John became discouraged in prison.

Jesus answers John. “The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” He wasn't just “cataloging his previous day's to-do list.” He was, as professor Theodore Wardlaw said, “encouraging John to cultivate an eschatological eyesight, to see past what is yet unfinished in our world in order to catch a glimpse of the realm of God coming near.” 3

The other response we need is hope. Jesus invited John to hope, to catch a glimpse of the kingdom.

We too, need that glimpse.

Theologian Walter Brueggemann described our world as full of “dissatisfied strangers and restless threats.” It turns out to be “a mad pursuit of money, success, and security that counts on exaggerated individualism and hostility toward the neighbor. People are bewildered by new technological capacity that leaves the world a strange place or an invitation to hustle harder for more technological leverage.” 4

I'm not sure how much that applies to us, here in Baker County. Our concerns are a little more down to earth, literally: soil conservation, water use, reservoir levels.

The people in power that I know here, city leaders and county officials, aren't trying to amass power. We might have some megalomaniacs but I haven't met them yet. The people I know and work with are interested in mobilizing volunteers so they can help the community. They want to be efficient and productive to help the most people.

But sometimes we are afraid we don't have enough. We are fearful and anxious; we are worried about what will happen to us, our town, our schools, our health, and our family's health. Sometimes that fear prevents us from sharing, or taking a chance, or doing what we know is right because it's just too risky. We need to be encouraged. We follow Paul's words, and come together so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. Hope is our other needed response, in order to be filled with all joy and peace in believing.

Brueggemann did say something that I appreciate. He said “All that is required of Advent is the recognition that the old kingdom of fear, anxiety, and coercion is not our true home. The good news of Advent is that there is another home and there is a path there, the path of intentional …. 5 obedience [to God's law] that has the neighbor in … view.”

And we get to that new home a step at a time, a hope at a time. One of the ways we are nourished along the path is by sharing the Lord's Supper together. The supper isn't a reward for our spiritual success; it is sustenance for us as we continue to try to follow Jesus' way. Amen.

1Locusts are not carob pods from the tree called the John the Baptist tree, but real grasshoppers (Lev 11:22) which is a ritually clean food; people ate them in ancient times and eat them today.

2New Interpreter's Bible, VIII, p. 157.

3 Wardlaw, Theodore J. “Preaching the Advent Texts,” Journal for Preachers, Advent 2007, p.7.

4 Brueggemann, Walter, “Advent: Departure and Homecoming,” Journal for Preachers, Advent 2007, p.16.

5 originally the word Torah was here; “Torah” is the first 5 books of the Bible, the law Jews call Torah.