These readings today seem to contrast each other. We’ve got talk of peace, and waiting, and God’s time, and patience, and then we have images of John the Baptizer, in all his wildness, coming in and talking about repentance, and the coming of the Lord, and baptism. And, just a note about his name and how he’s known, because I know it can sound strange to our ears to hear someone’s name pronounced differently than we’re used to. Many people call him “John the Baptist”, and that’s just fine. That’s the wording used in the Gospel of Matthew, so it’s not wrong. In today’sGospel from Mark, however, he’s called “John the Baptizer”. I also tend to think of it as “He’s not John the Roman Catholic or John the Anglican, so why would he be John the Baptist?” So, for today, I’ll be sticking to Baptizer. In any case, he’s quite the wild figure, eating bugs and honey and dressing in camel hair. He’s kind of like a forerunner for Jesus, but not in the form we would have expected. One of those “don’t judge a book by its cover” moments.
When I was a kid, I liked to read about ghost stories. I had a pretty active imagination, so this wasn’t always a good idea, and sometimes my imagination would run away with me. One of the things that I read about, which has stuck with me for a while, too, was the idea of forerunners. As I read about them and understood them, they’re like a sign from the “afterlife”, a warning that a loved one is going to die unexpectedly. This can happen in a number of ways, but the one that caught my attention was the idea of three knocks on your wall, from an unexpected source. I used to lay in bed sometimes, listening really hard for knocks. And I would get really freaked out if I heard one, or worse yet, two. I should explain that the wall I would hear them on was the wall between my room and the bathroom, so it was definitely just my parents getting something out of the cupboard or something. But, to me, this was probably a sign of things to come, and things that were going to be pretty scary. (side note: I never did experience a forerunner, but the idea of it definitely freaked me out a lot)
Supposedly the idea of these forerunners is somewhat of a comfort, to give you warning about the thing that was supposed to be coming. But the idea of it freaked me out more than hearing about the unexpected event would have. I kind of think that John the Baptizer was a bit like that. He was quite a sight to behold, eating his honey and locusts, living off the land, wearing camel’s hair, all those different things. Maybe even seeming a little scary, or at least unpredictable. A forerunner to Jesus, but not quite what we picture when we think of a messenger from God. We usually picture those all in pure white clothes, with halos and wings. Not messy, dirty, scruffy, and living in the wilderness.
Yet John proclaimed this message, and had many followers. And, better yet, he pointedthose followers to the one who would come after him, to Jesus. He proclaimed his own unworthiness compared to Jesus, and reminded people to be prepared for this coming one, who would be more powerful than John, doing things many people probably couldn’t imagine. And people came to listen. He wasn’t the mild-mannered, polite, gentle person we might think, but he ranted, he lived in the wilderness, outside the norm of even biblical society, and yet he caught the attention of people from “the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem”. They were going to John to listen, and were moved enough to be baptized and to confess their sins.
Confession. Something we’ve come to almost avoid, and not really talk much about in this day and age, especially in the church context. Something many see as unnecessary, at least in the church context. We have a pretty strong interest in confessions when it comes to criminals confessing their wrongs. I can’t even count the number of shows on TV that focus on a team – police, detectives, forensic investigators, you name it – who work together to try and find the clues to the crimes people have committed, in order to get them to confess.
There have been a lot of confessions in the media this year. Politicians, celebrities, people we would not have believed were capable of the things they’ve done. Some confess because they choose to, others confess because people have stepped forward, for the good of society and the protection of others, to make it known that bad things have been done, they need to stop, and they need to make amends. Things like the #metoo movement have brought to light some of the terrible things done in our world. This is the tip of the iceberg, but this publicity has brought attention to some very ugly issues.
We have a saying in the Anglican church about confession: “All may, some do, none must.” It’s an option, but it’s not something we have to do. And yet confession gives us the opportunity to make right with God. To bring forward our sins, to be heard, to ask for forgiveness. And to have that forgiveness granted by God, restoring our right relationship with God.For people who really feel the need to unburden themselves, private confession is always an option. Not everyone is aware of this option, and tend to think of it as specific to our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters. But we also take the opportunity every Communion service to confess our sins, as a group. We call it a “General Confession”. This, to me, is such an important part of the service, which is why I give ((have asked the Lay Readers to give)) us a long pause in between the invitation to confess our sins, and the actual moment of us verbally confessing our sins. Because this is the moment we bring to God what we’ve done wrong. Which means we need to take the time to think about it, not just rattle off the prayer like any other part of the service. It may feel like an uncomfortable silence, or a long pause, but it’s a time to truly reflect to make our hearts right with God before continuing on through the rest of our Communion service.
The interesting thing we see about the confessions here is that John doesn’t seek confessions to punish people. They confessed their sins in connection with John baptizing them. Baptism is an act of love and acceptance. It brings us into the Christian community, marking us as God’s own, solidifying the beginning stages of our movement toward our relationship with God. God loves us and we are God’s children, no doubt, but this is the first active step many people take, either as babies or small children, with their parents and godparents making the step and commitment on their behalf, or as adults, coming forward seeking this sign themselves. This Christian journey begins with confession, and our journey to Christmas in this Advent season is beginning with a reminder of the importance of confession.
John the Baptizer serves to channel God through his baptisms and proclamations. We, too, are called to be channels of God and God’s works. We are to channel God’s love here on earth, and show that love to those around us. We won’t always be perfect, and it won’t always go according to plan. Which is when we turn back to God, confessing our sins so that we can follow the path to Christ, prepare the way of the Lord, and channel God’s love and peace. It’s not an easy, or even comfortable thing to do. John the Baptizer wasn’t delivering the message of easy, safe paths. Messengers of God, the truly prophetic ones, aren’t coming to tell us all is well, to keep on doing what we’re doing, and that things will go well. They’re challenging us, trying to get us out of our comfort zone. Look at Mary! Talk about getting her out of her comfort zone! And yet look at what came of her setting aside her plans and stepping off of the path of least resistance, in order to serve God. She risked everything to do that. And so did John, with his proclamations, though things don’t end too well for him, beheaded with his head served on a platter. That’s not the norm for God’s messengers, but, then again, no one said serving God would be easy, or without consequences.
As we move through this Advent season toward the manger on Christmas, recognizing that nothing about Jesus’ life was comfortable, let us do so with a sense of hope and peace. May we act as messengers of God’s will, even when it may be challenging or may move us outside of our safe harbours. May we prepare the way of the Lord, and may we proclaim His coming again, even when it may not be easy or comfortable. For He is coming, and will shake up our lives in ways we can’t even imagine. Come, Lord Jesus, Come.
Amen.
For the second week in Advent, we focus on peace.
In John14:27, Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.”
Two purple candles are lit.
Prince of Peace, reveal yourself to us today. We need peace in our lives, our homes, our families, our church, and our whole world. Help us to slow down and seek out the peace you provide, so we may become peacemakers for ourselves and others. In your name, Prince of Peace, we pray. Amen.
Almighty God, we ask your blessing of these shoeboxes and on the outreach of the Missions to Seafarers. We pray for those who will be away from home and their loved ones this Christmas season. We pray that these shoeboxes will serve as a symbol of your love, and we pray for all those whose lives will be touchedby these boxes. Maythese shoeboxes open hearts and minds to your love and the message of your grace through Jesus Christ. We pray, also, for all those who are participating in some way in the Mission to Seafarers, and for the process of collecting, processing, transporting and delivering these boxes. We ask your continued blessings on these boxes and those who receive them, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.