IS OUR MESSAGE ANY DIFFERENT?
Christmas Realities – Part 2
December 4, 2005
Mark 1:1-8
INTRODUCTION:
Where do you get your news? Network news? 24-hour cable news channel? Newspaper? Internet? Today there are more options than ever before in history for getting your news. In the old days the news was delivered to your doorstep, but today it is delivered to your desktop. In the old days you could watch the news only at 5 or 10 and if you missed it you missed it. However, with the advent of the 24-hour cable news channels you can watch it whenever you want.
Not only do we have more news available at more times and through more mediums, but we can also choose what style of news we will get. By this I mean that we can choose what political slant we want to listen to because some mediums clearly lean to the left while others clearly lean to the right. So by choosing who you will listen to or watch you can make sure that you always here the take on the news that you want to hear.
While there are many positive things about the expanded availability of the news there are also some problems as well. One of the problems is that people are being spoiled. They have gotten used to getting their news where they want it, when they want it and how they want it. The apostle Paul prophesied of the day when this same attitude would infiltrate the church:
“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4)
One of the Christmas Realities that we must face this holiday season is whether or not our message is any different. Are we becoming a people who will only listen to what we want to hear? Are we becoming a church that tailors its message to what the world wants to hear? Do we sidestep controversial scriptures? Do we soft pedal doctrine and theology?
Another interesting news service development is not just the variety of news services, but also the rise of fake news programs. I’m talking about programs like The Daily Show with Jon Stewart whose motto is: “When the news breaks, we fix it.” Or The Onion, which poses as an online newspaper and features headlines like: “Special Olympics Investigated for Performance-Enhancing Hugs.” These and other fake news services do offer a sense of the news, but with a heavy does of comedy. The purpose of such programs really isn’t to inform, but to entertain.
Now in and of itself there is nothing wrong with programs like that. In fact one could argue that with all of the tragedy we see in the world around us we need to learn to laugh a little or else we might just go a little loony. The problem is that instead of supplementing their traditional news with a little humor many are turning off the regular news altogether in favor of these fake news alternatives. There has been a steady decline in the viewership of network news, but there has been a steady increase in the viewership of these fake news alternatives. Today in America there is truly no news like fake news.
However, in today’s text we are introduced to John the Baptist who served as God’s anchorman broadcasting the good news of the coming Messiah. John was an old-school, hard-news guy who told it like was. However with the popularity of today’s fake news programs I wonder if that is the way we really want it.
I want to read to you today’s passage and then I would like to point out a few things of significance about John’s news broadcast.
1The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, 2as it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
“I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way” –
3“a voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.’ ”
4And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 6John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
From this passage we learn three important things about John’s news broadcast.
JOHN’S NEWS BROADCAST …
1. AFFLICTED HIS AUDIENCE.
The news that he broadcast – the message that he preached – afflicted those to whom it was delivered.
4And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance…
John didn’t deliver a seeker sensitive message to the people here. From Mark’s account alone we don’t see just how truly insensitive his remarks were. Mark just says that he calls the people to repentance – which means to change your mind, to change the way you think, and therefore to change the way you live. But even from that you can tell that this was not any easy or comfortable message for the people to hear. But listen to John’s tone in Luke 3:
John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? … 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.” (Luke 3:7,9)
Talk about in your face, no-holds-barred preaching! But John was just getting warmed up. He went on to tell the tax collectors that they had to stop overcharging the people in order to pad their own pockets. Then he took on the military as he challenged the soldiers to stop extorting money from civilians. But then he took on an even higher ranking official:
John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of his marriage to Herodias, his brother’s wife, and all the other evil things he had done… (Luke 3:19)
Clearly John the Baptist was no politically correct pundit and it would cost him dearly. His public criticism of Herod would land him in prison and eventually he was beheaded. This Christmas we have to face the reality that to stand up for Christ and to faithful share the good news of his birth will require us to be equally politically incorrect. It is politically incorrect to say, “Merry Christmas”, to have a Christmas tree or to display a nativity scene.
My wife and I were in Walmart last week and we asked one of the associates about a nativity scene and, sadly, she had no clue as to what a nativity scene was. If we cave in to political correctness, how long will it be until no one can remember the real reason for the season any longer?
JOHN’S NEWS BROADCAST…
1. AFFLICTED HIS AUDIENCE, but also…
2. AFFIRMED HIS AUDIENCE.
John’s news broadcast not only afflicted his audience, but also affirmed his audience.
4And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
John didn’t just go around offending people for the sake of offending people. John got in their faces and told them the straight truth because he was trying to help them. His message was not just a negative message. It wasn’t just: You’re a bad person. You’re not living right. You’re a sinner. You’re wrong. You’re going to burn in hell.
However, on the other hand, his message wasn’t this popular, positive Christianity stuff that we here so much of today either. His message was affirming not because he said “I’m OK, your OK, we’re all OK” but because he said, “Even though you are messed up and warped by sin God can forgive you!” His message was affirming not because he said, “You’re not broken” but because he said, “Even though you are broken God can fix you!”
There is an important lesson here for all of us in Christ’s church. Don’t go around pointing out people’s sin if you are not also going to point out the Savior. Don’t go around highlighting other’s problems without also highlighting the possibilities.
Note again how today’s text began:
1The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah,
According to Mark the good news about Jesus began with this broadcast of John’s message to the people of Jerusalem and Judea. Let us not forget this Christmas that the news we have to share was, is and always will be, fundamentally, good news. It is the positive message that God loved us sinners enough to send a Savior. It is the affirming message that we matter to God so much that he would literally rather die than live without us. It is the positive message of fresh starts and second changes, of forgiveness and freedom, of hope and healing.
In a time when reports of good news are few and far between the message we Christians have to share this Christmas should be refreshingly positive.
JOHN’S NEWS BROADCAST…
1. AFFLICTED HIS AUDIENCE,
2. AFFIRMED HIS AUDIENCE and
3. AFFECTED HIS AUDIENCE.
We know that John’s news powerfully affected his audience by observing their response to his message:
5The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
His message powerfully affected his listening audience because this wasn’t just news – this was news they could use. And that kind of news remains a rarity even today. In his book Amusing Ourselves to Death Neil Postman writes:
How often does it occur that the information provided you on the morning radio or television, or in the morning newspaper, causes you to alter your plans for the day, or to take some action you would not otherwise have taken, or provides insight to some problem you are required to solve? For most of us, news of the weather will sometimes have such consequences; for investors, news of the stock market; perhaps an occasional story about a crime will do it, if by chance the crime occurred near where you live or involved someone you know. But most of our daily news is inert, consisting of information that gives us something to talk about but cannot lead to any meaningful action.
Postman referred to this as low information-action ration. This means that there is little action that we can take in response to the information that we have been given. It is also interesting to note that the acronym for this is LIAR. So when we view it from this perspective it really doesn’t matter whether the news is good or bad. If you can’t use it, it might as well be fake news for all of the good its doing you. If you can’t use it, you might as well lose it.
This is probably one of the reasons that some people are fed up with and turning away from traditional news media. People’s attitudes are: If it doesn’t do anything for me – if it doesn’t affect my life – then why bother? We as the church should sit up and pay attention to that for we may well be losing our audience for the same reason. Are we guilty of sharing news with a low information-action ratio? Are we throwing out a lot of biblical information and then leaving people sitting there with puzzled looks on their faces wondering: So what? What difference does that make to my life? Of what practical value is this to me?
And this is not just important for me as a preacher. It is also important for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders. But even beyond that it is important for all of us to consider what kind of messages or signals we are sending to those around us. Is it something that they can understand? Is it something that they can readily apply to their lives? If not, most will simply dismiss it as being irrelevant – just more news that you can’t use.
The opposite of this is what Postman called a high information-action ratio. In other words this was news that you could use – news that you could put into action. Note also that the acronym for this is HIAR. This was the kind of news that John broadcast because he lived a higher life and he had a higher calling and he held people to a higher standard as he pointed them to a higher authority. It was news that they could use – it was a report to which they could respond. And respond they did – in droves.
Look at how John’s news affected his audience:
a. THEY CAME.
5aThe whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him.
Note Mark’s use of the words “whole” and “all.” Now commentators agree that Mark was using an element of hyperbole here. This need not be construed as meaning that every single person who lived in the city of Jerusalem or anywhere in the countryside of Judea without exception came to hear John preach. But this does tell us that John’s news created a great deal of interest and drew large crowds of people.
It is also noteworthy that this was no insignificant trip for the people of Jerusalem to make. The Jordan River is located about twenty miles from Jerusalem and it is also about 4,000 feet below the city in elevation. The rugged Judean hills made the trip difficult enough going but even harder returning to Jerusalem on a twenty-mile hike while climbing 4,000 feet. In other words this wasn’t a trip that you made just for the fun of it. It was a major undertaking and frankly I shudder to think what our attendance would be if we had to make such an effort to come to church. However, John’s news had so powerfully affected the people that they came anyway.
b. THEY CONFESSED.
5bConfessing their sins,
When confronted with their sins the people confessed their sins rather than covering up their sins. This shows that John’s message of repentance had indeed resulted in a change of heart and mind.
There is an old basilica on a hill in Romania with a doorway leading into the sanctuary that is only about four and a half feet high, which means that you have to bow down in order to get in. The door was intentionally built so low so that you would have to humble yourself before coming inside to worship. There is no other path into the presence of God than the path of humility. And there is no greater act of humility than to admit that you were wrong and to confess your sins.
c. THEY WERE CLEANSED.
5cthey were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
It is ironic that they were cleansed as the submitted their bodies to the muddy waters of the Jordan River. Of course this baptism did nothing to cleanse them, rather it was their repentance and confession as they looked forward in faith to the coming of the Messiah just as we are cleansed today through our repentance and confession as we look back in faith to the Messiah – the Lord Jesus Christ.
Clearly John – God’s anchorman – broadcast news that powerfully affected the people as they came, confessed, and were cleansed. Are we following the example of John the Baptist? Are we being faithful to broadcast such news today? But how do we do that? How can we become “good news” broadcasters like John? Let me share three pointers with you from the example John sets for us.
HOW TO BECOME A “GOOD NEWS” BROADCASTER:
1. AUTHENTICATE YOUR SOURCES.
Here I could probably just say, “Dan Rather.” Enough said, right? If you are going to have any credibility with the people, you must authenticate your sources – you must present reliable information. What is our source for this information? For Christians our source for good news is the scriptures – a completely reliable source of information.
Notice that even Mark was careful to authenticate his source:
2as it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
An anchorman will tell you that any news story is only as reliable – as credible – as its sources. For our source we have nothing less the inerrant word of the living God. This is a source for good news that will never let us down, betray us, or change its story under pressure. So we can be completely confident that when we share the word of God we are sharing an authentic, life-changing message.
The following was recorded in the Observer in 1987:
In 1962, when working for Reuters, Frederick Forsyth was posted to East Berlin where he nearly started the Third World War. Returning home late one night he found his path impeded by Soviet armored divisions; tanks, rocket-launchers, motorized infantry, rumbling along the Karl Marx Allee in the deep dead of night. As soon as he reached his telex he filed a story that a Russian assault on West Berlin was imminent. Sir Alec Douglas-Home, the British prime minister of the time, and the U.S. president Lyndon Johnson had to be woken up, and NATO was put on red alert. Then a wise old hand at Reuters in London suggested he check if it was a rehearsal for the May Day parade. It was.
Make sure you authenticate your sources before you start WWIII – so to speak. Get your facts straight – straight from the scriptures.
1. AUTHENTICATE YOUR SOURCES.
2. ELIMINATE YOUR SPIN.
If you want the news you share to be received by the people, then you must enter the “No Spin Zone.”
John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them. (Luke 3:18)
That is an excellent summary of John’s message and mission. He broadcast the good news – nothing more and nothing less. He didn’t preach his own political opinions. Now that doesn’t mean that he stayed out of the political arena all together. Remember we saw that he did rebuke Herod for marrying his brother’s wife. But that wasn’t political opinion. He was still preaching about the need to repent of – turn away from – personal sin. He was still on message.
I believe it weakens our message when we get off topic. I’m not saying that you as a Christian shouldn’t have a political opinion. I’m not saying that you should never share that opinion with others. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t get involved in politics by campaigning for someone or even running for office yourself. I believe that we need Christians involved in every field including politics.
What I am saying is this: People don’t need to agree with your opinions in order to be saved. People don’t need to join your political party in order to be forgiven. We have all kinds of thoughts and opinions and ideas that don’t have anything to do with the saving of a single soul. If people find that you are taking your source material – the scripture – and spinning it in order to promote yourself or your own personal agenda, they will tune you out so fast you will not even know what happened.
1. AUTHENTICATE YOUR SOURCES.
2. ELIMINATE YOUR SPIN.
3. SUBJUGATE YOURSELF.
The third thing that I see here that one must do in order to become an effective good news broadcaster is to subjugate yourself to the authority of Jesus Christ – to submit yourself to him – to bring yourself under his control. Look at what John said:
7… “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.”
In the apostle John’s gospel we find John the Baptist saying this of Jesus:
“This is he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after we has surpassed me…’” (John 1:15)
Later in his ministry when some of John’s disciples became concerned because Jesus’ following was growing larger than John’s he said:
He [Jesus] must become greater; I must become less. (John 3:30)
John clearly understood the role he had to play and the position he had to fill and so he was completely comfortable with Jesus getting all of the glory. As any good anchorman should understand, John knew that he was not the News Maker, but the news broadcaster. Jesus was the News Maker. Jesus was and is the Good News. If you want to become an excellent broadcaster of the good news then you must understand and accept that it is not about you – rather it is about the story – it is about the good news – it is all about Jesus.
CONCLUSION:
And so this Christmas season we have to examine the reality of our message. Are we, like so many others during the holidays, simply marketing a message for our own personal profit? Or are we, like John, pointing others toward Jesus. Remember that John was…
3“a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord,…’”
The very first time John laid eyes on Jesus he said:
“Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)
This Christmas may our message and our mission be simply to point others to the Lord Jesus – to prepare them to come to Christ in faith, repenting of their sins.
SOURCES:
“Fake News.” Homiletics, November – December 2005, volume 17, number 6.
