Forensic scientists in England analyzed the venerated remains from a certain grave, a few years ago. The corpse of the individual being observed was male. He was no more than five feet tall, and he had a broken nose. He lived in the 4th Century AD. And, despite being dug up in Italy, he was originally from Turkey (though he wouldn’t have called it that, in those days).
Stories abound about this man from that grave. Stories like how he freed prisoners about to be executed, or how he appeared to the Emperor Constantine in a dream. There are tales of his com-passion for the poor and needy. Legend has it he destroyed temples of false gods, resulting in evil spirits fleeing with howls. But my favorite story—and this one is documented—was of the time he punched a heretic at the Council of Nicaea (which might explain the broken nose), and was thrown in jail for a few days to “cool off.” Any guess as to who this dug up, analyzed, legendary man was?
It was St. Nicholas. Santa Claus! Maybe you didn’t expect that. After all, our image of St. Nick is of a big, round fellow who is larger than life, not a small, brawling Turkish man. Oh, and we ex-pect him to be jolly; wouldn’t hurt a fly. He decks the halls with boughs of holly; he does not deck the jaws of heretical folly—and certainly not at a Church Council meeting! He’s a builder of toys and memories, not an exorcist and destroyer of temples. We expect the image of the large, cheerful man in a red jump suit, coming down the chimney (yet staying remarkably clean, despite the many soot-filled smokestacks he travels). We expect a man with a flowing white beard, whose diet consists of milk and cookies and Coca-Cola. We expect the picture of a rotund merry man hopping on his sleigh, flying away and shouting, “Merry Christmas to all! And to all a good night!”
That’s what we expect…but the thing is, expectations and reality often collide. In our everyday lives, expectations and reality collide. What we expect doesn’t always match what we get. Whether it’s expecting a jolly midnight deliveryman, only to find out that St. Nick’s naughty list was specific to 4th Century heretics. Or, if it’s expecting a special something you’ve been dropping not-so-subtle-hints about all year—only to get, “Oh…socks…No, they’re…great. So…practical. Thanks.” The fact is, in our lives expectations and reality often collide. And more often than not it ends in an awful mess.
The child stars who grow up portraying innocent characters on the Disney Channel becoming less than favorable role models. The political figures who make big promises, but only bring on more of the “same-old, same-old.” The friend who doesn’t come to your defense. The surgery that didn’t go exactly as planned. The spouse who suddenly questions the marriage vow. The parent who doesn’t follow through on a promise. The young man who quickly abandons his now-pregnant girlfriend. The phone call that shatters your world with devastating news. The list could go on. Expectations and reality collide in an awful mess all around us, and we’re left picking up the pieces of our lives. But we live in a sinful, fallen, broken world…so what did we expect?
But the message of Scripture that we join in week after week in worship is that God works un-expectedly. God works unexpectedly through the messes of this sinful, fallen, broken world. God works in unexpected ways. Through unexpected, unpleasant circumstances. Through unexpected, inconvenient scenarios. Through unexpected, unusual people. Which brings us to our Gospel read-ing for today: “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John…”
John the Baptist was an unexpected, unusual person God used for His purposes. Sure, we hear of John the Baptist every year in Advent. We’re accustomed to it. We expect to hear about him. But at the time, he was unexpected. Granted, they should have expected him. They certainly anticipated someone who would come before the Messiah. From Scripture they knew to expect someone—another “Elijah,” as it were. Because along with that passage from Isaiah 40 this morning, about a voice crying out in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of the Lord,” in Malachi 4 God says more about this messenger. There, he says,“I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes…” So, that’s where that reference to Elijah comes from. They knew to expect someone…they just didn’t expect it to be John. They didn’t want it to be John!
They didn’t want it to be him, because, from his diet to his wardrobe, John’s behavior was unu-sual! From all appearances, there was nothing spectacular about this wild wilderness man, dressed in a coat of camel hair and eating locusts. On top of that, he challenged their worldview—his message wasn’t want they expected. What they expected was an inspiring, empowering message that they had finally found favor with God, and that Roman rule would soon come to an end. But instead, he points out their sin. What a downer! He proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And then, in Luke, when the people then come out to be baptized, he says, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” He was a little off-putting. He just wasn’t the man they expected God to send.
Now, some did think, John was their messiah, though. They thought this because they didn’t understand his mission. Nor did they understand what their Messiah must do. They thought he had come to lead them to victory. To lead them, like a king. Now, their Messiah would do that—He would bring victory, He would be their King. But He didn’t do it the way they expected…and He certainly wasn’t John the Baptist. Because John, well—he didn’t come to lead the people anywhere but to Jesus.
“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.” To bear witness about the light—that’s his mission. That word “witness” comes up several times in that passage I just read. The word “witness” is connected to John the Baptist 14 times in this book—the 4th Gospel. That’s John’s mission—to bear witness. To point to the Savior. To draw people to the Word incarnate. To lead people to the One through whom all things were made. To lead us to Jesus. John’s mission is to bear witness to Christ, all for the purpose that we might believe in Him. Because that is the real point of the matter—it’s all about faith in Jesus. The word “believe” occurs 96 more times in the book of John. Ninety-six times! So do you think belief matters? No doubt about it!
And why does this belief matter? John 1:12 says that to all who “believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” John 3—“Whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 6—“… everyone who looks on the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” John 11—“…Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” John 20—“These things are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” Over and over again, it’s the same emphasis-believe so that you can live! John’s mission was nothing more than to bear witness, to lead us to Jesus, so that we may believe and have eternal life.
John prepared the way of the Lord, as the voice crying in the wilderness. And people responded to this message. They came out in droves to hear him. To join him. To be baptized by him. I mentioned that people thought John the Baptist was their messiah. But that’s like going to a movie theater just to see the previews, and then leaving before the film starts. Or going to a rock concert just to see the roadies and stagehands set everything up, and then not staying for the show. Or going to watch the Thunder warm-up, and then leave before the game. Or going to the Church office on Friday afternoon to watch the ladies assemble the bulletins, and then not go to Sunday worship.
John was no messiah, just the preview, the roadie, the warm-up, the bulletin assembler, prepar-ing for the main event! So he repeatedly had to tell people, “I am not the Christ.” He says, “I am not [even] worthy to untie his sandals.” And then in chapter 3, he says, “He must increase, and I must decrease.”
John’s message was simple. He is not the light. He is not the Word. He is not the message. John is just the messenger. And His message? “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” Two times in chapter 1, John points to Jesus walking by and announces Him to be the “Lamb of God.” And then, people start to follow Him, and believe in Him, and have life in His name.
The point is this: Jesus is greater than John the Baptist! And John knew this, and preached this. Jesus is greater than John the Baptist. But here’s an even bigger point—John 4 says Jesus is greater than Jacob. John 5 says Jesus is greater than Moses. John 8 says Jesus is greater than Abraham. John 5:39 says he’s greater than the entire Old Testament—with all its prophets, priests, and kings; with its tabernacle, temples, and Torah. Though Jesus hardly looked the part; though He came humbly to this world, He truly was and is the Messiah, the King, the Savior from our sins. But the world did not expect Him. That’s why John the Baptist cries out, this voice in the wilder-ness.
For there is no one greater, no one stronger, no one more loving than Jesus. There’s no one who could pay for your redemption—John certainly couldn’t do it. There’s no way YOU or I could satisfy the righteous requirements of the Law—not even Moses could do that. There’s no one who could defeat death—Abraham, Jacob, all the prophets, they all died. But then came Jesus—God in the flesh. And, certainly, no one expected God’s plan of salvation to unfold this way!
No one expected the Word through whom creation was spoken into existence, to then join in creation as a man—as a baby, first. No one expected the one who truly is larger than life, because He is Life itself, to be overcome by death. No one expected the Light of the world to be darkened by a tomb. No one expected any of this, but it happened. And it happened all for you. We never saw it coming, but it was all for you and me, for the purpose that we may be with Him in eternity.
John’s message, you see, is that God is working in unexpected ways. John’s message is that the Light of Life was coming into the world—shining in Your darkness, in the messy brokenness when reality collides with our expectations. John’s message is that the Shepherd comes to gather his lambs in his arms, and carry them close to His heart. His message is that this Shepherd unexpectedly becomes the Lamb. John’s message is that this Jesus, who is the Lamb of God, takes away sins. John’s message is that, unexpectedly, though I am sinful, though I am unworthy, God in Christ comes to me. John’s message is for us to hear and believe, and, now, to expect Christ’s coming. And, unexpectedly, his message is for us to proclaim and to announce to all the world: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
Yeah, that’s right. He chooses you for this job of “making disciples of all nations.” John the Baptist came as a witness to the Light who was coming into the world, but now Jesus says, “YOU will be my witnesses to Jerusalem, and Judea, to Samaria and to the ends of the earth.” He chooses you! And everyday we’re put in situations to witness—that’s something you CAN expect.
But we think—Oh, I could never do that. My life’s too messy. My life’s too busy. I don’t know enough. I don’t have the time. I don’t have the energy. No one’s asked me. But the thing is, God expects you and me to be witnesses to the Light every day. Right there in your busyness, in your mess, in every second of your life, God is ready to work. God chooses to work in spite of your bro-kenness; to work through your brokenness. That’s where you witness. God constantly uses the un-expected, unusual, inconvenient, even unpleasant realities of our lives to accomplish His will.
He unexpectedly used a small, brawling Turkish man to point to Jesus as the Son of God. He unexpectedly used a stuttering murderer to lead His people. He unexpectedly used an old, pagan has-been to form generations upon generations of His people. He used fearful prophets to proclaim His truth; and sinful, lustful, greedy kings to pen His words of praise and Wisdom. And now, He unexpectedly works through the broken messes of our lives. He chooses to use us, to make Christ known to all the world. To bear witness to the Light, that all might believe in Him—and that by believing, they may have life in His name.
God grant this for Jesus’ sake. Come soon, Lord Jesus. Amen.
