If I were to tell you I have some good and bad news, which would you prefer? I would think good news, but the thought of bad news would still linger. If the IRS wrote you a letter stating you owed money to the government, that being the bad news, but the good news is you can make payments, is that something to be joyous about? Maybe not, but we Christians on this third Sunday of Advent have a great reason to be happy to hear the good news even amongst the bad.
Christmas is the beginning of a new age, an age of health and harmony that will come in fullness when our Lord returns. The message of the coming of Christ is indeed good news. However, for some it is not so good news. John the Baptist makes that distressingly clear in today's reading from the Gospel of Luke that interesting enough, the truth proclaimed by John is falling upon a "…offspring of vipers."
So its like coming up to someone who knew their family being of a wicked past, says something like, "Hello, son or daughter of a lier, thief or murdered? How are you doing today?" I am very sarcastic, but the idea I want you to try and grasp here is that John is identifying everyone in this statement that are offspring of a sinful past history with God.
This I believe, gets their attention, but let's read on, "Therefore produce fruits that are consistent with repentance, and do not start saying to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father,' for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children for Abraham. "
So lets stop there for a moment. John is making a clear statement for everyone who is at the Jordan to be baptized, who is hearing him and those just wandering by, to repent! Repent! Repent!
Repent, in the Greek word metanoia states a change of mind, a change in the inner self. Notice, John is not saying just repent with our Lips, but our whole heart.
Jesus tells us in the Gospel of Matthew, "These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules."
This is what John is stating clearly. In order for us to receive good news, we must deal with the bad news first. Why? Because it is preventing us from moving forward in serving our Lord.
But a sobering reality is present here as well, not all people who heard John and even Jesuss' truth desired to enter God's kingdom, but rather their complacency, their comfort zone, their current way of living was enough for them, and no growth was needed according to their eyes.
John is putting it into perspective that the Word of God is NOT just for the Jews, but everyone without any barrier.
Continuing on lets look at the next part, "But indeed the axe is already being laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."
So now theres bad news again. John is giving us a glimpse of the truth about if indeed you are NOT one of God's children whose tree does not produce good fruit, you will be taken away, saying it rather politely.
In a blatant term, God is not mocked! You cannot fool God! I just want to emphasize something important here: the ax he mentions here, where is it located? It's not being shipped in, its not been on backorder on Amazon or Walmart; it is already being laid at the root of our tree! This means it will come swiftly and timely without excuse! If we do not produce good fruit, our tree will be cut down. If you think about it, it's a rather sobering thought! But why this talk of negativity amid a sacred season?
This is where I wanted to emphasize the Good News amongst the Bad where Christ is concerned within our lives. You see, amongst the members of every Christian denomination, Methodist, Baptist, Catholic, presbyterian, whatever, some people seem to think that their goodness, religion, sacrifice, good deeds are good enough in their own eyes. But the truthful reality is all things are subject to God's acceptance, not ours!
John is dictating to these people that came out to be baptized along the river that being a Jewish people with a vast heritage over the generations did not qualify them to receive God. It wasn't what their forefathers did alone, it wasn’t just their own sins that prevented it, but it is and continues today a choice to be made to come to God freely and willingly.
John certainly didn’t try to lull his audience into believing that they could welcome the Savior with an unreflective enthusiasm, like a child who looks forward to Santa Claus. John the Baptist’s words were troubling. The harshness of his tone made it evident that he had no patience with those who would require coaxing or cajoling before they would be receptive to his message. John spoke with brutal frankness.
Martin Luther once stated, “The most consistent outcome of the Word of God is that on its account the world is put into an uproar.”
So basically, John preached two things boiled down. First, God is coming!
Like it or not, the messiah, the chosen one of God, is coming not just to condemn but to save the lost, set the captives free, give sight to the blind, make the crooked paths go straight, give salvation freely to all who choose the just and righteous path.
Listen to the words in Zephaniah 3, “Do not fear, Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is with you,the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. I will remove from you all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals, which is a burden and reproach for you. At that time I will deal with all who oppressed you. I will rescue the lame; I will gather the exiles. I will give them praise and honor in every land where they have suffered shame. At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes, says the Lord."
Do you hear that? He will continuingly be with us, guide us, strengthen us, even amongst our sinful nature. Advent, Christ is coming, prepared or not, he is coming.
The Second thing John preached is you can and must change from your old ways. I sometimes wonder why the multitudes of people came to hear John preach. One Pastor quoted, “Perhaps John believes that it may be possible to surprise us by telling us that which we didn’t know we wanted to hear, or perhaps inour better moments we long for honesty, for straightforward assessment of our situation that leads to a better life.”
When I think about this statement, I am reminded what Jesus said in the Gospel of John, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”
Without thinking about it too hard, we are created in Gods image, we each have good built in us, we all are created to worship and praise God, so when our sinful life indwells us to fight against the flesh, we are naturally in turmoil. So the one thing that God tells us will set us free is ‘Truth.’
And that’s the one thing I want you to atleast take away from todays message friends, the truth about the Christ child that is to be in each of our lives.
The truth that sets each of us free is the same truth that raised Lazarus from the dead, that split the sea wide open for the Hebrew children to escape, the walls of Jericho that came tumbling down, the guiding star that led wise men to the place of Jesus’s birth, the miracles that Jesus did to all who called upon his name, the blinding light that saved Saul to become one of the Apostles for Christ and, the same truth each of us today, hold onto during our lives as fellow believers in Christ Jesus our Lord.
So in reflecting on the words today, the good news friends for each of us to share and live by is Christ is coming and he is coming to save, redeem and guide all who call upon his name. The bad news is that each of us needs to respond correctly. Not just any response will do. Do we willingly and joyfully await for our coming Lord, even during this Advent season of remembrance, or do we wait for the right time or place that is best for us. You see, the bad news also comes with a remembrance that not only is the tree to be cut down, but Christ is coming quickly, which means anytime.
When we see the nativity scenes, watch the movies, hear the music of Christmas, are we glad that we serve a mighty everlasting God knowing he knows us by name, or are we merely serving God with our lips, and not with our heart? Only each of us can answer for ourselves. The glorious and mystical event of Christmas is a spectacle worthy of honor, but not just for the gathering together at the table with our family and friends, but to actually be welcomed to sit at the Lord’s table amid our obedience in being good and faithful servants to the living God of all creation, that his life, lived within us, is to be welcomed and often remember. At the same time, we maintain our personal relationship with him. Does not the Book of Samuel tell us, “Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice”, the Book of Proverbs, “To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice”, the Gospel of Matthew, “I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.” Of all these things we deal with, being obedient is paramount to serving our God. The good news friends is God is always God; the bad news, well there is no bad news, when serving God. Amen
PRAYER OF CONFESSION