In today’s Gospel, John the Baptizer is no longer in the wilderness preparing the way for Jesus. He is in prison. Like England’s King Henry the 8th who split from Rome because the pope refused to grant him a divorce, Herod couldn’t tolerate John’s criticism of his affair with his brother’s wife, so he locked him up. And from the isolation of his cold cell, John sent a message to Jesus,
“Are you the one who is to come?”
You can hear his uncertainty; he knew the prophets had promised a Messiah, a Savior, someone who would stand against empire and oppression.
“John doubted because he expected uproar and instead Jesus brought embrace.”[i] In our text, Jesus answers John and then he addresses the crowds who remain with him, asking them,
“What then did you go out to see?”
It is a question for us, too. What did you come out to see?
Did you come out to see the garland and wreaths, the ribbons and bows? They are beautiful but they are not Jesus.
Did you come out to hear the organ and carols? The music is beautiful but it is not the Gospel.
They are but symbols, that with the stories we are telling throughout our worship today, point to Jesus, the miraculous incarnation of God’s love who comes and lives among us. They help us behold the joy and wonder that the shepherds, Joseph and Mary knew on the first Christmas.
And that’s important because without them, it is too easy to fall into patterns of living, and even worshiping, that are wonder-less, and we fail to see what is right in front of us.
Almost ten years ago, a street performer played his violin at a Washington D.C. Metro stop. The overwhelming majority of the more than a thousand morning commuters were too busy to stop. A few did, briefly, and some of those threw a couple of bills into the violin case of the street performer. No big deal, just an ordinary day on the Metro.
Except it wasn't an ordinary day. The violinist wasn't just another musician; he was Joshua Bell, one of the world's finest concert violinists, playing his multi-million dollar Stradivarius. Three days earlier he had filled Boston's Symphony Hall with people paying $100 a seat to hear him play similar pieces.
The Washington Post videotaped the reactions of commuters, and afterwards, the Post asked a simple question:
We only look for God’s presence in the places that have been named sacred, like our sanctuaries and cathedrals.
But Jesus says, “Look around!”
“The blind [have received] their sight,
the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed,
the deaf hear, the dead are raised,
and the poor have good news brought to them.” (Matthew 11:5 NRSV)
Maybe Jesus isn’t who we imagined… After all, he doesn’t stay a baby in swaddling clothes laying in a manger. He grows up and argues for the poor and broken, the sick and the dying, and he invites sinners to his table.
Jesus reminds us that our everyday lives can be sacred. Here the beautiful stained glass windows illuminate the stories of our biblical narrative, but when we leave here, the light of the world, in Jesus Christ, illuminates our lives.
Can we behold God’s presence when we aren’t surrounded by the greenery and Christmons, and the echo of “Joy to the World” fades from our memory?
Sometimes, it is hard. You may be imprisoned by physical frailty or illness, by grief, by depression or anxiety. You may be wandering in a spiritual wilderness. Then, as it was for John, it will be hard to behold God’s promises or holy presence. But the promise here is that God is with you, and lifts you up, just as Jesus did for John.
My Advent hope for every one of us is that we will be freed from our imprisonment and learn to behold the examples of God at work every day, not only on Sundays.
Because I am certain that God is present in the schools and colleges where you teach; in the classrooms, locker rooms and ball fields where you study and compete; in the offices and plants where you work. God is present in our fallow gardens, in our restaurants and libraries, in our apartment buildings and neighborhoods.
Have we been trained to recognize beauty outside the contexts we expect to encounter beauty? Or, to put it another way, can we recognize great music anywhere outside of a concert hall?[ii]Like busy commuters rushing to keep to their timetables, too often, we rush past the wonder that God brings into our lives.
We only look for God’s presence in the places that have been named sacred, like our sanctuaries and cathedrals.
But Jesus says, “Look around!”
“The blind [have received] their sight,
the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed,
the deaf hear, the dead are raised,
and the poor have good news brought to them.” (Matthew 11:5 NRSV)
Maybe Jesus isn’t who we imagined… After all, he doesn’t stay a baby in swaddling clothes laying in a manger. He grows up and argues for the poor and broken, the sick and the dying, and he invites sinners to his table.
Jesus reminds us that our everyday lives can be sacred. Here the beautiful stained glass windows illuminate the stories of our biblical narrative, but when we leave here, the light of the world, in Jesus Christ, illuminates our lives.
Can we behold God’s presence when we aren’t surrounded by the greenery and Christmons, and the echo of “Joy to the World” fades from our memory?
Sometimes, it is hard. You may be imprisoned by physical frailty or illness, by grief, by depression or anxiety. You may be wandering in a spiritual wilderness. Then, as it was for John, it will be hard to behold God’s promises or holy presence. But the promise here is that God is with you, and lifts you up, just as Jesus did for John.
My Advent hope for every one of us is that we will be freed from our imprisonment and learn to behold the examples of God at work every day, not only on Sundays.
Because I am certain that God is present in the schools and colleges where you teach; in the classrooms, locker rooms and ball fields where you study and compete; in the offices and plants where you work. God is present in our fallow gardens, in our restaurants and libraries, in our apartment buildings and neighborhoods.
So, “Look around: God is making good on God’s promises. And thanks be to God for that.”[iii]
Let us pray…[iv]
O God for whom we wait,
help us to be patient as we wait for the hope you bring.
Keep our eyes open to see the good things you are already doing.
Strengthen us to be strong for others,
and to ask others for help while we wait.
Bring your light and healing into every corner of creation.
In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.
Let us pray…[iv]
O God for whom we wait,
help us to be patient as we wait for the hope you bring.
Keep our eyes open to see the good things you are already doing.
Strengthen us to be strong for others,
and to ask others for help while we wait.
Bring your light and healing into every corner of creation.
In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.
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