What Is So Special About John The Baptist?
Good Morning Friends,
Today, is the first Sunday in Advent and near the beginning of the festival of lights, Hanukah, but I would like to look forward a week to the second Sunday in Advent, and the story of John the Baptist and his work of preparing the way for Christ and pointing the way for us to be better prepared for Christmas. As I thought about what to write I remembered that five years ago, I portrayed John the Baptist for a children’s chat during worship. The basic theme was on repentance with a side story on plain brown wrapped presents. I put on a T-Tunic and a camel hair like cloak and had not shaved for a couple of weeks, so I really looked the part. I told the children that I had something for them as a present in a brown Kraft paper box that was positioned on the floor. Inside only bottles of water, appropriate for the theme of baptism, but not all that spectacular. But what happened next was rather surprising for as I opened the top of the box and the youth looked in to see what was inside the sun shone through the stain glass window behind me directly into the box and refracted off all the bottles setting off a rainbow of colors. One of the youth shouted out, “Wow!” The congregation must have wondered why. Maybe you had to see it first hand, like meeting someone in person to be able to properly attend the question. What Is So Special About John The Baptist?
Scripture: ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. ‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.’
John 3:16-21(NRSV)
The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,
‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way; the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” ‘, 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, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, ‘The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with
water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’
Mark 1:1-1:8 (NRSV)
Message: In a week there will be several sermons on John the Baptist, the greatest man ever born of a woman, up to that point. Everything in the story of John the Baptist evidences the mighty intervention of God. And you see the intervention of God through his message, through his sacrifice and through the miracle his conception. We do so rejoice in the nativity of every child and the Bible is filled with a lot of stories about joyous and amazing births. The birth of Isaac was cause for rejoicing. Of course, Jesus gets the big celebration at Christmas in our traditions and by those reckonings that would put the anniversary of the birth of John the Baptist six months before. And the amazing thing about John is that he is the example of the mind of a child who recognized Jesus even in the womb. Recognizing Jesus from the beginning is indeed special. God’s hand is in all of this. Friends, the coming of John and the coming of Jesus explodes on the world and the aftershock is acting even now in human history. For the story of John like the story of God’s love carries in it a present that is the meaning of Christmas. The message shows us how to prepare ourselves for the greatest love that ever existed…it tells of the greatest gift ever given. It tells of the greatest faith ever shown. And as John shows us, it proclaims, in submission to Jesus, the greatest life we can live. With anticipation unwrap it. With joy unpack it. With love rejoice in it. Friends, Christmas is coming…. Christ is coming…prepare.
Pray we appreciate the forerunner of the Messiah as an expression of how God acts in history. Pray we realize what a miracle each new child is. Pray we see the movement of God, the purpose of God, the plan of God for redemption unfolding in each of our lives as well as history…His Story. Pray we realize how special life is. Pray we realize that God wants us to be perfect and that we are not. Pray therefor that we believe, ask for and receive this gift of repentance so that it might prepare the way for love. Pray that we embrace this time of Advent…awakening to its message, remembering, repenting, giving, hoping and forgiving so we may rejoice in the love of the new birth. Pray that we realize that John the Baptist accepted the greatest opportunity in the world, to serve Jesus and that we should too.
Blessings,
John Lawson
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