One of the fun parts of the Christmas season is getting letters from old friends and learning how their kids are turning out. Erik, whom I confirmed years ago, is in the Air Force now. Annie is a commercial artist. Allen, who used to get bullied, is a police officer now. Tim is married, with children, a paramedic and he teaches classes at the local junior college.
We began the month of December by looking at the announcement to a wonderful old man, Zechariah, that he and his wife, Elizabeth, would have a very special son. That was in Luke chapter 1. And we don’t have to wait 20 years to learn how the kid turned out. Today we meet him as an adult in chapter 3. Now he’s known as John the Baptist.
Does he look more like his mother or his father? We don’t know. But his parents both took their faith very seriously and we know that John did, too. Only he took a very different path. His father was a priest, who worked in the temple, right in the middle of the establishment, carefully following all the traditions that priests had done for centuries.
And we never hear about John even setting foot in any cities, let alone the temple. He lives out in the wilderness. He wears strange clothes, camel’s hair. That’s cheap, but scratchy. He eats strange food, locusts and wild honey. In every way he is outside of the establishment, but calling people to God, to renew their faith, deepen their obedience, and prepare for something new to happen.
For years Zechariah had patiently, mercifully helped people with the sacrifices to cover their sins. John shouted for them to repent.
Zechariah was part of an ongoing, never changing system of supporting the people’s faith needs. John announced that big changes were ahead and called for people to change, and change right now.
And, as we study what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, John makes an amazing demonstration of an important principle for discipleship. We’ll read the first 17 verses of Luke, chapter 3, but mostly look at verses 15-17. You can find it on page 60 of the New Testament section of your pew Bible.
1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4 as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, "The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; 6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"
7 John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our ancestor'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 9 Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."
10 And the crowds asked him, "What then should we do?" 11 In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." 12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" 13 He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." 14 Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages."
15 As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 16 John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."
John had a huge impact on Israel in his day. He was a very popular preacher. Some scholars think he drew bigger crowds than Jesus. You read in Matthew’s gospel that huge numbers of people left Jerusalem and went down to the Jordan River to hear John preach. And they confessed their sins and were baptized by John in the Jordan. He drew huge crowds.
He had disciples of his own, people who wanted to learn from him and help him in his work. He confronted King Herod.
The people were very aware that God had promised to send them a special, anointed leader, the Messiah. And John was so successful as a preacher, that the whispers were starting. “Do you think it’s John the Baptist? I think he’s the Messiah! It’s gotta be him!”
And people started asking John, “So, John, are you the Messiah? Come on, tell us!” And it’s John’s answer that is so wonderful and amazing. They say that you find out what someone is made of by watching how they react when difficulties come across their path. Another test is to watch how they react when success crosses their path.
I can just picture an agent taking John aside one day, after he had preached to a particularly large and responsive crowd.
“John, do you know what you have going here? This is fantastic! And I’m here to make it bigger and better.
I’ve been doing focus groups. They prove that with a few adjustments this could really take off. Just tone down a bit on the stuff about sharing your extra coats with the poor. That doesn’t go over so well. People like it better if you promise them that they’ll be more prosperous. Tell them that if they buy your tapes and follow your plan you can guarantee that they’ll have a whole closet full of coats, all for themselves! They’ll eat that up.
And there’s no sense in getting King Herod mad at you. You and Herod can work out a relationship that is beneficial for both of you. You need to stop calling him an adulterer. After all, all he did was steal his brother’s wife. And if you can just be flexible on that one little point, he’ll come and make a celebrity appearance with you. Just think of the crowds then! And if it goes well, he’ll send his chariot around to pick you up for a visit in the palace in Jerusalem!
And John, you can really play this Messiah angle. Keep them guessing. Tease them along, and they’ll just keep coming back and coming back. You’ll have them eating out of your hand.
And I know just the place where we can build a huge conference center right here, John the Baptist Spa and Resort. People can come and hear your teachings in the lap of luxury. That would appeal to a much more upscale clientele. John, wake up. We can do much better on your demographics.
And, to help pay for it all, John the Baptist merchandise. Here are some prototypes. John the Baptist bobble-head dolls. Camel’s hair fashions (with velvet linings, of course). Genuine, simulated John the Baptist locusts, made out of pure chocolate. T-Shirts that say “Repent” in day-glow purple, with your picture on the back. I have a make-up artist waiting right now to improve your look. We can start with vials of water from the Jordan River. It costs us nothing. There are suckers out there who will buy anything. It’s time to cash in. Ka-ching.”
And I can imagine John saying, “NEVER!”
But what did John do? He kept it real simple. He never took advantage of the crowds. He told them God’s truth, even when it required them to make hard choices. And they appreciated getting meat instead of sugar water from a preacher.
But most important, he turned them away from himself. He said “There’s somebody else coming and he’s the one you really need to deal with. The number one thing for you to work on right now is to get ready to meet him. I don’t matter. Jesus matters. It’s not about me. It’s about him.”
And that’s a lesson for every disciple of Jesus Christ to learn. It’s not about us. It’s about Jesus.
I generally don’t pay much attention to New Years’ resolutions, but I have a project I’ve been working on, a habit that I want to change.
You don’t know how many times I’ve had visitors tell me how warm and welcoming this congregation is. And I love hearing that. And I love being part of it as you folks are so welcoming to visitors and you work together so graciously.
And my natural response, when people talk about the warm welcome they get here is to say, “There’s a lot of special people here.” And that’s true, and I mean it.
But there’s someone people need a whole lot more than they need friends like us. They need Jesus.
So I’m trying to break my habit and say something like. “Yes, God is doing something special here. You can see his love shining through in his people here.” And that’s true, too. And I mean it, too.
In the Words to Ponder at the top of your bulletin you’ll find a Bible verse that’s contributed to my hunger to do better. It’s from the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus tells us to let our light so that people see our good works. We’re getting better and better at that. But when it is working right, who gets the glory for those good works? When it works right they give the glory to God.
Is that fair? Have we made this church ourselves, or does God deserve the glory? Have any miracles happened here? Have lives been changed here?
It’s God’s Spirit, working among us, that makes this place special. Don’t ever forget that. We’re here to point people to Jesus. Only he can meet their deepest needs.
Sometimes in a church you hear discussions about how different members want to do things. I like the red bows more than the green ones. I like to sing the hymns that we sang when I was growing up in my home church. I like more potlucks. I like less potlucks. What’s missing in those conversations?
What does Jesus want? If we are faithful disciples, we are here to serve him, not ourselves. It’s about him, not us.
As United Methodists we are the heirs to a wonderful tradition, a worship style that’s sort of in between the high formality of the Catholics and Episcopalians and the emotionalism of the Baptists and Pentecostals. We have our Sunday schools with graded classes that have lots of fun and move the kids along gradually, growing imperceptibly, bit by bit.
It was a combination that helped us build and fill churches all over the country a century ago. But has our world changed in the last century? Are we here to follow that formula? Or are we here to follow Christ?
John Wesley’s example was very wise. He searched the scriptures and church history for everything he could learn about faithful discipleship. And then he looked at the people of his age and asked what measures would most effectively lead them to Christ. And he used many innovations, preaching in the fields and marketplaces, lay preachers, women preacher, new music, small groups to help people continue on in building a Christian life. And he used those innovations to present the unchanging gospel.
I have this picture in my mind of young John the Baptist coming home for Thanksgiving dinner with his parents. And he tells his parents that he’s finally found his calling. He’s going to tell people to repent and get ready for the Messiah. And he’s not going to wear priestly robes like his ancestors had done for a hundred generations. He’s going to wear camel’s hair to be like the Old Testament prophet, Elijah. And he’s not going to do it in the temple. He’s going to do it out in the wilderness.
And I can imagine dear old Zechariah and Elizabeth getting very quiet, struggling to understand. And I don’t know what they would have said. But I’m so glad that John followed his Lord and dared to do something different. God guided him to catch the deepest longings of his generation.
John the Baptist was a servant of Jesus Christ. He pointed some of his disciples to leave him and follow Jesus. His movement fizzled as the crowds turned to Jesus, instead. But it was just what he wanted. Because John was a faithful disciple. And it wasn’t about him. It was about Jesus.
I want us to keep one of our Methodist traditions this morning. John Wesley would hold a watch night service on New Year’s Eve, in which the Methodists would prepare for the new year by renewing their commitment to Christ. Our hymnal includes the prayer they would typically pray, but we printed it in the bulletin for you.
I invite you to join me in renewing our covenant with Christ as we look into the New Year. It expresses very beautifully the heart of discipleship.
Please pray it with me… Dear Lord…
A Covenant Prayer in the Wesleyan Tradition
I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee,
Exalted for thee or brought low by thee.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
Let it be ratified in heaven. Amen
