Zephaniah 3: 14-18a
Isaiah 12: 2-6
Philippians 4: 4-9
Luke 3: 7-18
“A Mere Prophet”
Grace and Peace to you my brothers and sisters in Christ, Amen.
For the longest of time, Israel was without a prophet. Complete silence for centuries, a void, a darkness, has overshadowed Israel. It was like when all the animals have rushed away and an eerie silence befalls a community as the background white noise disappears before the coming storm or earthquake. And a massive was indeed coming, coming in the form of Christ’s arrival. But there was an eerie silence, for the last prophet who walked on the earth was Malachi. You may know him as the author of the final book of the Old Testament, the final book, named after him, Malachi. The Old Testament, the Torah is a living document meant to be a historical account of the Judeans, therefore with each prophet a new book was usually added. But with the eerie silence that befell the people of God, a silence that lasted 3 to 4 centuries, The Torah and the history of Israel stagnated, ever waiting for the next prophet.
So when the next prophet did finally show up, his arrival lead to a most curious reaction. John the Baptizer, a prophet to prepare the people for the coming Messiah, preached simple things and baptized with mere water. Yes, he was a prophet, but because Israel was without a prophet for so long, their perception of him was grander than whom he truly was. He spoke with fire
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and brimstone, calling out hypocrites as he disparaged his own listeners with derogatory names such as brood of vipers. He called out the fact that instead of repenting they hid behind Abraham. That is no different than a Christian swollen with pride hiding behind Christ in order to excuse sinful actions and not repent. He called them out and warned them the end times is coming, which is the coming Lamb of God who must die on the cross to save us from our sins.
Concerned, the crowds asked him what they must do while also asking to be baptized. And John gave them obvious answers, answers that should have led to a nonchalant reaction. This includes telling them help the needy, don’t steal, don’t lie, have gratitude; things that the Judeans should already be doing. But because they do not do these things and because it has been a long time since a legitimate teacher has come to tell them the Law, they didn’t just started seeing John as a prophet, but they overreacted so hard that they started asking if whether or not John was Christ.
You may have heard stories of kids who are so horribly abused that they just don’t know what genuine goodness is. They are ridiculed, persecuted, attacked, emotionally manipulated, and beaten. Once rescued, they finally experience genuine care, as a
parent or a friend or a normal civilized person would naturally provide. Yet because, said child has never known kindness, such actions may become too much to handle and those who first treated them with care become like gods to them.
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John is providing simple messages that should be naturally understood by the common Judean, but this mere prophet in the eyes of a people who felt abandoned was no mere prophet but their saving grace. He may be a messenger, but that is all he is. Thus John explained to those who reacted with joy at this apparent Christ-like figure, that he is only baptizing them with water, but the true Christ who is coming, and is in fact already here, will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. This is why we say baptism is not an act of man but an act of God, because through baptism you indeed, 100%, will receive the Holy Spirit. And if you think that John the baptizer is so great, Christ who is coming and is already here is so much greater that John is unworthy to untie Christ’s sandals, a task that would be done by slaves.
John is a mere prophet, but if you think so fondly of him, then boy are you going to be surprised when the real deal comes. So you are impressed by the words of John? Wait until you hear the real Christ. You think John is fire and brimstone? You haven’t heard such yet. You think John preaches good news? Christ is the Good News. Yes, it is okay to be amazed by John, but his job is to point us towards Christ whose amazingness dwarfs John.
Let us pray,
Dear Heavenly Father, by sending John to prepare us you allowed us to get a heads up on your arrival and to heighten our expectations of you. Help us to never grow lax in observing your Law and know that your Grace will always be more than our human understanding. In your holy name we pray, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.