To Whom It May Concern,
You will find that I did borrow the intro and another paragraph from other sermons at Sermon Central. Please feel free to use or modify this material in any way. Thanks. -John
Paonia United Methodist Church
Dec 14, 2003
Luke 3:7-18
It started out with all the makings of a very exciting day-
the day of our gospel story this morning.
Mark takes a little longer with the paintbrush setting the stage
than does Luke, so let’s start there…
John the Baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism
of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of
Jerusalem were going out to him (Mark 1:4-5).
Wow! There’s an image to make any preacher excited!
We can easily imagine the growing sense of anticipation as the crowd
got larger and larger- affirming everyone’s decision to be there:
and building, as a great crowd can do, a sense of expectation
and contagious excitement.
The stage is set… a hush falls across the crowd as the star,
the feature attraction of the day, moves to centre stage.
Every ear turns to catch his opening words...
He hesitates for a second, his eyes sweeping over the hordes of people,
trying to get a feel for the audience, his mind searching for just the right words to
rivet the crowd’s attention, words by which to create the “teachable
moment” in which important things may be conveyed with
powerful effect.
And then, came the sermon…
Luke 3
7John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ’We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 9The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire."
10"What should we do then?" the crowd asked.
11John answered, "The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same."
12Tax collectors also came to be baptized. "Teacher," they asked, "what should we do?"
13"Don’t collect any more than you are required to," he told
14them. Then some soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?"
He replied, "Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely--be content with your pay."
15The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Christ.[1] 16John answered them all, "I baptize you with[2] water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 17His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." 18And with many other words John exhorted the people and preached the good news to them. (NIV)
This is the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Well, Merry Christmas to you too John!
Now, tell me something, if it was the first time
You came to hear me preach, and I started my sermon that way,
How many of you would return?
Any of you?
I can’t imagine why they stuck around.
Can you not immediately sense the crowd recoiling,
reacting to these stinging words?
Eyes averting… arms crossing defensively… moms suddenly turning
away to fuss over their children-avoiding the message…
men squirming in their seats wondering who
this guy thinks he is…
And, here is the punchline…
this is supposed to be “good news!”
This is supposed to be how a preacher might effectively connect
with a crowd!
I think that John would have had trouble passing basic homiletics in seminary.
So, who was this guy anyway?
And why were people so interested in him?
And why, during the third week of Advent are we still
Hearing from this guy?
Well, I am glad you asked, because that is exactly what we are going to
Take a look at this morning.
In the desert around the Jordan River,
there lived a man who wanted people to change their lives.
John the Baptizer was that man, teaching the people to repent.
Remember, to repent means to turn around, to change direction in your life.
John was preparing the people for the coming of the Messiah.
The Bible describes how crowds of people would come out to see him –
he was such an unusual sight – a man living out in the desert,
dressed in a robe made out of camel’s hair, eating grasshoppers
and wild honey.
And his message was so different from what the people were used to hearing –
he was telling the people to change, to repent.
As the crowds came out to see John, God revealed something to John about these people.
Many of them really weren’t all that sincere.
They were materialistic people – their god was money, power, and
possessions.
Many of them weren’t interested in changing their lives
and preparing for the Messiah at all.
John was just a tourist attraction to them, and that’s about it.
That’s why, in verse 7, John calls them a “brood of vipers.”
In verse 8, John told them to “produce fruit in keeping with repentance.”
Don’t just stand there, John told them.
If you really are sincere, if you really are repenting in your life,
then change, do something that people can see.
Time was running out, John told the people.
In verse 9 he said, “The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that
does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
And, like I said before,
This is, of course, the good news.
So, why doesn’t it feel so good when I hear it?
The guy sounds nuts if you ask me.
And yes, that is a professional clinical diagnosis of John…
Nuts! Off his rocker! Lunatic!
Pick a winner…
They are all good words to describe him,
And they certainly make it much easier to dismiss him and walk away.
There is just one problem.
Jesus called John the greatest of all the prophets.
Jesus himself was baptized by him and called him great.
And also something else happened here in this interaction…
Many of the people did in fact repent, were baptized,
And did make a sincere effort to change their lives.
Suddenly this crazy man doesn’t seem quite so crazy.
Maybe a better word to describe him is the word “disturbing”
Because that is who John was.
John was disturbing.
And his words disturb us today.
That is why we are tempted to just avoid this guy altogether and dismiss him
As nuts.
We do not like being disturbed.
In many ways, we are like those people who came out to see John.
We struggle with the same problems – don’t we?
Money, power, possessions.
Two thousand years later and we still have the same problems.
Maybe, just maybe, we are not as evolved as we think.
And maybe, just maybe, John is the only sane one
And the rest of the world is crazy.
John the Baptist calls out to you, and asks you hard questions.
If you know that it is wrong to wield your power, why do you continue?
If you know it is wrong to serve your money and your possessions,
Why do you do it anyway?
If you know what is right – why do you keep on doing what is wrong?
That’s what John the Baptist was addressing many years ago.
He pointed out the people’s sins.
And, to be honest, they don’t sound too much different from the same
Issues people struggle with today.
And, as I have said twice before,
This was the good news.
Now, you must be thinking by now that I am the one who is nuts.
How on earth can this be good news?
All we have heard this morning is judgment and condemnation from this guy.
He has called us names,
He has told us that we are sinners,
He has told us that those who do not change are going to
Face eternal fire…
How on earth can this be the good news?
I am glad you asked.
After charging the people with their sins,
he pointed the people to the Savior when he told the people in verse 16:
“One more powerful than I will come…” – he was talking, of course,
about the Christ.
How is this the good news?
Because Jesus was able and is still able to save people from their sins.
This is a message that the people have not heard before.
Perhaps it is a message that you have not heard before or
Claimed for yourself.
Do you feel guilty about the sins you have committed in your life?
Do you feel guilty about all those times you’ve heard the Word of God,
but then went home and slipped back into your old ways?
Jesus is able to do something that John couldn’t do –
Jesus is able to take your guilt away.
He takes your guilt away by giving you something – he gives you his life,
as a sacrifice on the cross for you.
He gives you his righteousness, and takes away your sin.
He gives you forgiveness, and the promise of eternal life.
Of all the gifts you receive this Christmas, nothing is greater than that!
That’s what makes this a Christmas message.
And there’s another gift Jesus gives you, and that is strength to be something
Better than what you are now.
When the people in the crowd listened to John the Baptizer,
they wanted to change.
They wanted to stop being people who were focused on themselves.
Did you notice that they kept asking “What should we do then?”
And then, John gave them practical ways that they could change.
And here is point of his answers.
Do you want to be more than what you are?
Do you want to be a better person?
Than focus your energy on giving instead of receiving.
Let me say that again,
Because I think it is a timely message for Christmas…
A season that begins in the US before even the Halloween decorations
Are put away in the department stores.
Do you want to be more than what you are?
Do you want to be a better person?
Than focus your energy on giving instead of receiving.
Jesus and John generosity of character cost them their lives.
They were utterly dedicated to their fellow man by giving their lives
For the sake of God’s kingdom.
They had purpose, they had vision, and they had the joy
Of the Holy Spirit.
We in modern America groan at the idea of sharing the first 10%
Of our income to the church and charity.
We have comforts beyond the wealthiest of kings from Christ’s day.
We live in relative peace and comfort,
And have all our needs and most of our wants met…
And, I suspect that we are one of the unhappiest
Nations on the planet.
Why?
Because peace of mind, integrity of character, and joy of spirit
are not found in your possessions or in your power
To control people and the situations around you.
Peace of mind, integrity of character, and joy of spirit
Come through serving Christ by serving others.
When in doubt… give.
If in doubt… give more.
Yes, of course, I am talking about money here,
As was John in his sermon, but if that is all you take from this,
Then you are missing the bigger picture.
You folks had the honor of meeting two of the most generous people
On earth… my parents… as they visited the last couple of weeks.
They are not people who gave to my brother and I from their wealth.
Mom was a nurse, dad was an autoworker for GM.
And, they saw to it that their children were provided for before
Their own needs.
I think dad still has his first pair of shoes
He got from the Red Cross when he came to the US.
More than this, they were people, that even when their kids were in the depth
Of their addiction and sin… they never waivered.
When in doubt, they loved anyway.
Had I not two parents to model what unconditional love
And generosity looks like, I wouldn’t be here.
My addictions would have surely killed me.
That’s the kind of generosity I am talking about here.
Putting others before yourself.
Putting God before yourself.
Giving from your heart rather than giving from your excess.
There is a big difference you know.
That is what God did for us when he snuck
Down from heaven in the middle of the night and delivered
A present wrapped in swaddling clothes to a young virgin named Mary.
God did not give to us from his excess.
He gave to us from his heart.
He gave to us his very best gift.
He put us before himself.
The message this morning from the man in the wilderness
Is to go and to do likewise.
Do you want to know what it means to have peace of heart and
Contentment of spirit?
Then when in doubt give.
When still in doubt, give more.
Be generous people.
Give from your hearts to the people around you.
Don’t be content to just understand what Christmas and Christianity are about,
But instead live that generosity of character in your daily lives.
