On New Year's, pull close the One you hold most dear.

Luke 2: 21-40

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

A few minutes before the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, one of the many celebrants gathered in a small bar walked over to a microphone on the tiny stage and announced,

"It’s almost midnight, so everyone find the person here who means the most to you and pull them close!"

The following day the bartender ended up spending his New Year’s Day in the hospital after being swarmed by the entire bar. 

~

Today is New Year’s Eve!

It is not a liturgical holiday, and in many cases it will not be recognized in any way shape or form within most congregations. 

Many congregations pick today to do a hymn sing. 

It’s a great way to recuperate from countless hours of sermon writing and worship preparation through the month of December. 

Some congregations will just jump ahead to Epiphany and celebrate the story and the feast in which we recognize how our Lord was revealed to ALL the nations through the magi. 

I’m not knockin' it, but today is a real opportunity for the church to speak directly to all people about who we hold close as the New Year draws closer to us. 

Even more importantly it is an opportunity for us as God’s people to consider just who holds us close as that clock ticks closer to midnight. 

New Year’s may not be a liturgical holiday, but it is a festive time that evokes numerous forms of ritual and tradition. 

In my household, I’ve always ensured that pork and sauerkraut were prepared for the first day of the year. 

My wife grew up with ham and black eyed peas. 

Others have traditions that include different types of noodles, fish, greens, and cakes. 

For most of us, these traditions are rooted in some kind of meaning. 

For instance, pork is a symbol of plenty, not only a hearty and fatty animal, but one that always moves forward when foraging for food, unlike chickens and turkeys. 

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Black eyed peas are said to look like coins and therefore are a sign of wealth in the coming year. 

And each of these foods carry some kind of symbolism that has been lost over time. 

Traditions that we take part in because it's just something we’ve always done, yet the meaning has been lost. 

~

In our Gospel today, something similar has transpired surrounding the rituals that Mary and Joseph have traveled to the temple to take part in. 

The first is the circumcision of every Jewish boy, a ritual that takes place after the eighth day of the child’s birth. 

It is a ritual that takes place at the hands of, not a medical professional, but a priest. 

This is a practice that still happens today within the Jewish community. 

The second ritual is the purification of the mother. For forty days after the birth she is not permitted to enter into the temple and is usually confined to her own household, until this ceremony is completed. 

And the ritual which our Gospel focuses on closely is the redemption of the first born. 

These are three rituals that aren’t really mentioned in Mark or Matthew’s accounts. 

It's also pretty odd that we as Christians seem to focus much more on the naming and circumcision of Jesus than the ceremony that Luke selects as the backdrop for our Gospel today. 

It’s a practice taken from the story of the Passover, the night in which all the first born of Egypt died, both children and animals, as a result of Pharaoh’s refusal to let the Hebrew slaves go. 

It was only by following God’s instructions, through Moses, that the Hebrew people were spared this fate. 

But, in being spared, all of the Hebrew first born are to be devoted to God. 

Not only children, but cattle, crops, everything. 

NOW, you can see why we like to skip this one. 

Sounds a bit too Rumpelstiltskin for most of us, I’d say. 

Doesn’t come across any better when you read it straight out of Exodus either.

All that first opens the womb is mine, all your male livestock, the firstborn of cow and sheep.The firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem. No one shall appear before me empty-handed.

That does sound pretty Rumpelstiltskin doesn’t it? 

But that isn’t the way they saw God, and I don’t think it is the way we should see God either. 

To be dedicated, devoted, set aside, lifted up, offered to God, as God’s own, should be an honor. It was meant to be an honor. 

But it becomes an honor that is bestowed upon the Israelite tribe of Levi, exclusively.

The tribe of Levi becomes solely dedicated to God, as the worship leaders of Israel, the ones who’ve been dedicated to the service of God. 

A role and an honor that many Israelites envied and resented.  

So, somehow the practice of giving the first born child to God, actually becomes the practice of God, giving the first born child back to the family for the price of two turtledoves. 

Probably not how this ceremony was intended to take place, but the story Luke tells takes an old ceremony and shows how God breathes new life into it. 

Rembrandt, Simeon's song of praise, 1631 (PD)

After the hustle and bustle of the last month, I finally got a shot at going to see the new Star Wars movie The Last Jedi. 

The title alone was intriguing to anyone who has ever followed the series, even a little bit. 

Because the Jedi are not just your everyday average heroes that you can find in other films. 

They are practitioners of a religious order, devoted to traditions and rituals, many of which are revealed in this newest film. 

What I found the most intriguing about the story 

-And don’t worry, I’m not going to give it all away!-

is that one of the central issues for Luke Skywalker in the film, is whether or not to continue practicing these rituals. 

He spends much of the film considering whether or not to continue passing along the Jedi religion. 

Because he recognizes that religious practice is not perfect. 
Sometimes it is even flawed. 

What I truly valued about the film was that it made me revisit a very Lutheran concern. 

What is it that our rituals and traditions are meant to point to? 

God!

For Luke Skywalker, the question throughout the entire movie was whether the practice is more important than what is at the center of not only religion but every aspect of life, daily life. 

The act of living, loving, breathing, dying, all of it!

Rituals, traditions, religion, they are invaluable IF they point to the source of all goodness. 

~

This ritual that has just taken place seems a bit outdated, not only for us, but for Mary and Joseph. 

After all, if the first born is meant to serve God in the temple and those duties are already being performed by others, do they really need to cook a couple pigeons to make up the difference?

But just like in the story of Jesus’ birth, God doesn’t always work the same way we expect. 

And I found myself a bit shocked as I dug through our Gospel for today, because God very honestly slapped me in the face with this text when I realized how powerful it was!

God may come into the world in a stable, but it is in this story, that God gives God’s very own self to us. 

How can Mary and Joseph give God to God?

They can’t!

So, the redeeming of Jesus is no fulfillment of any ransom with God. It is the act of God being handed over, completely to us, by God’s own hand!

God gives US all God has, all God is, fully and completely. 

God takes this practice that may have lost its meaning altogether and flips it on its ear for us!

This only furthers God’s commitment to us!

God’s devotion to us, handed over fully into our hands, as a sacrifice that will be made to US!

A complete reversal that is heart wrenchingly powerful. 

And it is in realizing this, that we can fully appreciate the beauty of Simeon and Anna’s recognition of just who Jesus is. 

Anonymous, The Meeting of Our Lord (Russian Icon, 15th Century) (PD)

They recognize in their passing that God has just been handed over to us all, not in a stable, not even by Pilate before the crucifixion, but in this ceremony that has been redirected toward God’s purpose for us all.

It is what moves Simeon to recognize this infant as the salvation his eyes have seen, the light that will be revealed to all people, a child that will be destined for the falling and rising of many, a sword that will pierce all of our souls. 

Simeon and Anna, two devoted and faithful worshippers, who’ve devoted their lives not to rituals, traditions, or even religion, but to God. 

Yes, they’ve been practitioners of the faith but in all the prayers they’ve raised, it is their hearts that have been seeking God, the one who they’ve devoted themselves to. 

And through those traditions and practices, they finally see the God that has been devoted to not only them, but to the world. 

THAT is not the power of rituals, traditions, or even religion, it is the power of God, working through rituals, traditions, and religion, IF we place ourselves before God and invite God to be at the center of what we do in those rituals, traditions, and religion. 

~

So, today is New Year’s Eve. 

There will good luck foods, good luck drinks, good luck kisses. 

There’ll be balls droppin’ and confetti flyin’. 

Some folks, who know the words, will even be singing Auld Lang Syne.

But in a few moments I am going to ask you all to consider preparing for this New Year, through a brief litany that John Wesley introduced to the Christian faith when he suggested that we consider every opportunity to give ourselves to God, and renew a covenant with God, to make God at the center of what we do.

In the same way that God came into the center of our world and lives, out of love for each and every one of us, through Jesus Christ. 

So, as we go into 2018, celebrating with all kinds of rituals and resolutions, I ask you to join me in inviting God to be at the center of our lives in the year ahead, pulling God closer to us, into our daily living. 

And I promise you, we’ll be far less crowded here than at your local gym, at least for the first two weeks. 

Amen. 

Alexei Yegrov, Simeon the Godreceiver 1830-1840's (PD)

Sources

Dalferth, Ingolf U. Crucified and Resurrected: Restructuring the Grammar of Christology. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2015.

Johnson, Rian. Lucas, George. Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Lucasfilm ltd., 2017

Lenski, R. C. H. Interpretation of St Luke’s Gospel. Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 2008. 

Play It Again, John!

John 1:1-5

Photo by Serge Jouqier on Unsplash

Growing up, I had a compulsive habit of latching on to certain songs and listening to them over and over again. 

I used to utilize a tape deck to record the top hits from the local radio station “B104” and of course from the ever beloved “Casey Kasem’s top 40.”

Once I found a song I liked I would record it, listen to it, rewind it, then listen to it again. 

I would repeat the process until my parents began to lose their sanity and they would forbid me from listening to that particular song in their presence ever again, for all time. 

After considering this illustration for today’s sermon, I contemplated making them a mix CD of all my “best hits” for Christmas, but I know it’d end up in the trash. 

When I saved enough money to buy my first album, things got worse. 

Then when CD’s came out it got even worse for my parents. 

Luckily, by the time digital music came into it’s own, my wife was the only one who would have to be subjected to my temporary obsessions with certain songs and musicians. 

I still have my favorites and I still enjoy discovering the stories behind what inspired those songs, the meaning behind them, and the stories of how they were recorded. 

Pastor Stephen and I have a similar habit in the office, reciting lines from films we both enjoy. 

Cinematic masterpieces like Nacho Libre, Zoolander, and O’ Brother Where art Thou?

This habit not only drives my wife nuts but between Stephen and I, we are now driving Sharon slowly insane in the office with this habit as well. 

But there is just something about a good story that I have always found valuable. 

Songs tell stories, films tell stories, and I love to tell stories of my own but when you find a good one, it never seems to get old -At least to me-

Photo by Picsea on Unsplash

Each of the synoptic gospels start out THEIR story in their own unique way. 

Matthew and Mark both begin by announcing Jesus, using particular titles to justify the relevance of the story they are about to present. 

Matthew announces Jesus as THE Messiah!

The new King of Israel, tracing his lineage back to the Davidic line. 

Mark announces Jesus as THE Christ!

The savior and redeemer of the entire world. 

Matthew and Mark begin both accounts by offering their own defensive justification for the validity of their stories by using those titles

Luke starts out one of the most readable Gospel accounts, in an odd way, 

basically proclaiming that he has a story to tell too and he swears that its just as good as the others you’ve heard!

Defensively justifying the validity of his own story in a pretty awkward way.  

So, all three of the synoptic Gospels could really begin with “I swear, everything I am about to tell you is the truth because of….”

John’s introduction is different though, which may be but one of the many reasons why John is not considered one of the synoptic gospels, or we could say “similar” gospels. 

John decides to go back to a story that is too good not to retell. 

Perhaps because John just wants to retell a good story, or maybe, just maybe, 

God has already retold that story through action and John is just the only one who has recognized it?

“In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the water. Then God said, ‘Let their be light;’ and there was light. And God saw that the light was good.”

It’s the first creation account in Genesis, the very first words of the Bible, the very first story of how God began this relationship, with us, with all living things, the world, and even the universe. 

It’s the story that puts God on full display for what God truly is; an artist, a conductor, an architect, THE Creator. 

Up until John’s account we seem to split up these two stories. 

Still to this day christians murmur discontent over the doom and gloom, the drudgery of the Old Testament. 

We even find ourselves referring to that “Old Testament God” as if there are somehow two different Gods in the Bible. 

What John does, is John takes an old song and he spins his own cover of it. 

Because there is something new to add to this story, not something tacky and out of fashion like a synthesizer, but something hypnotic and promising, that lifts the story to a new level. 

Of course, we all know what it is, right?

It’s Jesus!

Its Christmas Day, you know the answer is gonna be Jesus!

And there it is, John retells the story but this time he declares Jesus as the instrument that makes the sweetest music of all. 

Jesus, the Son, is also the Creator, and as a creator that is always creating, they are also the Holy Spirit, still creating, still making all things new, 

One in three, three in one, distinguishable persons -or in substance- yet indistinguishable in their essence -their nature-

Probably a bit much for Christmas if we go down that rabbit hole, right?

So what should we take away from this theologically rich, over the top, heady introduction from John?

Number one; John doesn’t need to justify the story, because John knows that the story can justify itself, God doesn’t need John’s help in sprucing it up a bit. 

Number two; God as a creator has always been creating, will always be creating, and God creates in the ways that we least expect it, in the places we usually are not looking for God to be at work.

Number three; the light shines in the darkness and the darkness does not overcome the light, but the light also, does not overcome the darkness now does it?

Photo by David Huang on Unsplash

Christmas continues to be an odd time for me. 

Because people approach Christmas in the way I think they should approach Easter. 

You see?

Easter is anxiety, despair and death, wrapped up in the joy of the resurrection. 

We should cherish THAT wrapping paper, we should hold up the box it’s packaged in for the prize that  it truly is!

Because God takes death, boxes it up, seals it in, and ties a bow on it that assures us all of redemption. 

But Easter has become the consolation holiday

Christmas, on the other hand, is the gift of joy, wrapped in despair. 

The story of Christmas is basically that gift under the tree that you know is just a pair of socks or a bad tie, yet, when you open it up, it turns out to be something absolutely amazing!

God comes to the world in darkness, in despair. 

God comes to us like the last gift under the tree we’ve picked to unwrap. 

A peasant child, conceived under questionable circumstances, born to a Palestinian Jewish hillbilly couple, in the worst accommodations possible, while living in a state of oppression under the thumb of a foreign authority that takes every opportunity to prove how worthless you are. 

Like dictating your travel through a mandatory census, then fleeing to Egypt to avoid being slaughtered at the hands of the same earthly authority that told you to go there in the first place.

It isn’t a story wrapped in the niceties, we seem to associate with Christmas. 

Because we unwrap it way too far ahead of time. 

We aren’t fans of the darkness that the light is wrapped in, so we just unwrap it as quickly as we can, and throw away the wrapping paper. 

Photo by Les Anderson on Unsplash

Its Christmas Day and most of the world is acknowledging Christ’s Mass from their homes. 

The majority of folks checked the box last night, so why do you all get the story without the angels, the shepherds, the manger, you know? 

All the good stuff?

Because you showed up, and therefore you get to receive the WHOLE story. 

I would argue that despite all the bells and whistles of Christmas Eve, John’s introduction offers the richest kind of hope that we need today. 

It’s why I short changed the Gospel today, because versus 1-5 can fill you with the kind of hope that God has promised us from the beginning of time when a mere two Hebrew words creates all life, all of nature, the entire universe; 

Yehi or

A better translation is simply “Be light”

Its so simple, far simpler than we can even imagine. 

A mere two words, spoken by the most unimaginable power the world has ever seen!

Perhaps that is why The Word is made incarnate wrapped in so much darkness. 

Because it shows us the true power of the One true God

A God that does not need to abolish the darkness to bring light, 

A God that uses the darkness to offer the contrast we need to recognize the Light. 

So if you take anything away from today, remember this; 

Look for God in the dark places, don’t shy away from the darkness and pretend its not there, because God’s light is the clearest in those places. 

~

One of those songs I’ve often obsessed over has been haunting me all this week as I worked through today’s Gospel. 

My son’s favorite musician, “The Boss” Bruce Springsteen made it the title song for his 11th album in 1995. 

It’s a haunting retelling of another good story, a classic piece of American Literature by John Steinbeck “The Grapes of Wrath”

The story follows Tom Joad, a member of a family that has left their home in desperation, looking for work, trying to just scrape enough together to feed their children. 

And at the end of Steinbeck’s novel, Tom makes the decision to leave his family for their own sake. 

It is the end of the novel but it is also the lowest point in the story. 

Springsteen’s retelling of that final scene as Tom is saying goodbye to his mother, is included in the final stanza of his ballad “The Ghost of Tom Joad”

He sings; 

Now Tom said, 

"Mom, wherever there's a cop beating a guy

Wherever a hungry newborn baby cries

Where there's a fight against the blood and hatred in the air

Look for me, Mom, I'll be there

Wherever somebody's fighting for a place to stand

Or a decent job or a helping hand

Wherever somebody's struggling to be free

Look in their eyes, Ma, and you'll see me”

~

So I leave you on this Christmas morning with the promise, that regardless of what despair and darkness comes our way, 

We are promised, just like in this story, the BEST story, the one that the Boss retold from Steinbeck and Steinbeck retold from John and John retold from Genesis; 

The joy, the hope, the promise, the assurance, that God is still at work can and will always be found, 

Wrapped in some pretty dark packages, but that’s exactly where Christ is needed the most. 

Amen

Geertgen tot Sint Jans, The Nativity at Night 1490 (PD)

Sources

Lenski, R. C. H. Interpretation of St. John’s Gospel. Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Fortress, 2008.

Springsteen, Bruce. The Ghost of Tom Joad. Audio CD. Columbia Records, 1995.

Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. Penguin Classics. New York: Penguin Books, 2006.

Are we there yet?

John 1: 6-8, 19-28

Photo by Nathalia Segato on Unsplash

“Are we there yet?”

It’s like someone dragging their nails across a chalkboard!

Last month, I took our confirmands to Lost and Found. 

And they were great, really! 

They were so amazing. They truly inspired me, not only in my ministry but as a member of this community!

With one exception, it never fails…

“Are we there yet?”

They always wait until you’re about a half hour away from your destination, far enough into your journey that you think you’ve escaped this nagging, annoying, and pointless question. 

After all, it doesn’t matter how far along you are, it isn’t going to change the time it takes to get there!

It’s always followed up -no matter how close you are- by some kind of disgruntled “Ugh!”

And on top of all that, why can't they just read the signs on the road, or better yet,  use the phones in their hands that their eyes have been glued to through the entire trip!

It isn’t just confirmands. My kids do it too, and I am sure there isn’t a parent here that can’t attest to a similar story. 

The “are we there yet?” bug is at its worst exactly three quarters of the way through any trip and it will persist non-stop from that point on. 

It’s like they have some biological internal GPS that gives them a signal at that very moment to begin persistently questioning and groaning in response to the driver’s reply 

until you either arrive, or the driver just gives up all hope, opens the car door, and rolls out onto the interstate to escape. 

Today marks the third Sunday of Advent. 

We are exactly three quarters of the way through our Advent journey. 

What’s more, as Pastor Stephen has said several times,

This is the SHORTEST Advent we can possibly have!

But the “are we there yet?” bug usually starts on Thanksgiving Day. 

It begins before we even get our luggage packed, pile into the car, and pull out of the driveway!

It does get worse three quarters of the way through our journey though. 

For me, the battle cry to defend the phrase “Merry Christmas” or “Put the Christ back in Christmas!” is exactly the same thing as “Are we there yet?”

Because no one is interested in defending the sanctity of Advent and everywhere I look from November on, I see Christmas. 

Yet, people can’t take down their Christmas decorations fast enough after that ONE single day!

They end up skipping eleven of the twelve days of Christmas!

Now, THAT is an assault on Christmas if I ever saw one. 

An assault on a Christmas that is not a day, but a season that lasts all the way to Epiphany!

What I see is a “Christmas” in the only form we seem to recognize it anymore.

A Christmas that is dictated to us all, by a Secular American Christian interpretation. 

Oftentimes pushed by a secular American Christianity that dictates to the rest of us what exactly is Christian and what is not. 

Those who are most often crying the loudest that we defend Christmas with their prescribed acceptable greeting; “Merry Christmas!” 

have oftentimes been the very people that respond to us as if we’re from a foreign land or inform us that we aren’t REALLY Christian when we respond to their greeting with “Happy Advent”.

A little over a year ago, I recall going to a restaurant with Pastor Stephen. 

While we were walking in, someone passed us and proclaimed “Merry Christmas!” to which he replied,

“Happy Advent!”

Obviously irritated with his foreign ways, they replied confrontationally “Merry Christmas!”

To which Stephen explained, “How can you wish a Merry Christmas when we’ve just started Advent? You’re skipping the most important way we prepare for Jesus?”

Confused, they replied, “Well, Christmas is coming so Merry Christmas!”

I was thrilled to know we would be sharing in ministry together when he exclaimed, 

“Oh. Well, in that case; Happy Easter!” as we went ahead and entered into the restaurant. 

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

This is all deeply relevant to both the season we are in and the Gospel reading for today. 

John’s Gospel is an attempt to bridge a divide between two different communities. 

The Greek community and the Jewish community. 

Jewish thought was considered by the Greeks to be a simpleminded and crude view of the world.

John’s Gospel attempts to bridge that divide by finding something that both cultures hold in common. 

What John reaches for are two terms: Logos and Dabar. 

Dabar is the Hebrew term for word. 

In Jewish thought, a single word from a person is like a bullet. 

Once fired, it can never be placed back into the chamber. 

And if not fired carefully, with a specific and thoughtful purpose, it can do irreconcilable harm. 

God’s Word for the Jewish people, on the other hand, is different. 

God’s Word represents something that is fired true and carefully every single time, with a specific purpose. 

A Word we can only aspire to follow and emulate, but a Word we always fall short of. 

Now, Logos, is the Greek term for word. 

The Greeks perceived everything in the world as if it was in a constant state of flux. 

They compared the world and life to a river. Everything was always changing. 

And that is a good analogy because you can never step into the same river twice, the water is always flowing and therefore it is ALWAYS changing. 

Therefore, life and the world had a real potential for chaos for the Greeks. 

What brought order to it all, was Logos, the Word, 

which represented reason, logic, truth, sound judgement, and ORDER to the chaos of the world and life. 

For the Greeks, the word is what called people to thoughtful reflection and debate. 

So, in the verses leading up to our Gospel for today, John uses these two views of these different terms to illustrate just what Jesus represents.

Jesus is THE Word.

A Word above all other words. 

For the author of John, THE Word is simply God’s mind which has now become incarnate, made flesh in this person, Jesus the Christ. 

But the Word is so much more for John, it is The Light. 

The Word for the author of John is a Word above all other words, it is a Light above all other lights. 

But even in the early Christian church, John the Baptizer was a confusing character. 

He had many followers, usually drawing larger crowds and gaining more disciples than Jesus. 

So, the author of John attempts to clarify the role and purpose of John the Baptist as clearly as possible following John’s opening. 

The authority who has given John his role is specified in the Gospel today - God. 

His role or title is also specified in the Gospel for today -  witness.

John’s special abilities are outlined in the Gospel for today as well - NOTHING, zero, zilch. 

In fact, John’s gifts and appearance based on most descriptions is relatively lowly, even crude, but it is the office given to him by God that is to be so respected.

He is a witness to THE Word, THE Light. 

And that may seem relatively unimpressive until we find ourselves in a place devoid of all light. 

Because when we are in the darkest places, it’s odd how much you can crave light. 

Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash

I used to go spelunking or caving on a regular basis in a place called Bowden Cave. 

Friends and I would wade through underwater pools, crawl through narrow spaces, and rappel down underground cliffs. 

I got the jitters a few times when I was in a particularly tight space or when I got a little bit turned around. 

I had always read carefully about the precautions that should be taken to ensure the safety of you and your group, but we probably weren’t always as careful as we should have been. 

I did feel uneasy about how much light I carried with me though, and no matter how many batteries or spare lights I carried, I never felt like it was enough. 

Sometimes when we explored the deepest rooms of Bowden’s depths, we would turn off our lights just to take in the darkness. 

It was so dark beneath the surface of the earth, that the darkness felt almost like a weight on your eyes and even your body. 

All your other senses were amplified to such an extent, it was easy to see how one could be drawn towards sounds of water, rocks, or bats if you ran out of light. 

We had all heard horror stories of people being drawn deeper and deeper into the cave when they ran out of light. 

Drawn toward any sound or even an intuition, in the hope that there was light just around the bend, but finding none. 

It is hard to explain, but that kind of darkness always terrified me. 

Not because of the darkness, but because of the hopelessness one would feel in such a desperate situation. 

Photo by Aziz Acharki on Unsplash

John’s situation is a difficult one. 

Because many have been drawn to John and his ministry, craving something that will provide order in the midst of chaos,

stability in the midst of uncertainty, 

purpose in the midst of meaninglessness, 

reason in the midst of ignorance, 

Light in the midst of darkness. 

What they are seeking is THE Word.

And both the author of John and John the Baptist know that John’s task is to assure all people that such a Light, such a Word is on its way. 

But when we are sitting alone in the darkness we can be drawn to all kinds of things, mistaking them for light and only finding ourselves being drawn deeper into darkness. 

John knows he is not the light and in our Gospel reading take note that he is not called to SHOW anyone this Light. 

John is called to testify to the validity of this Word as the authoritative Word, the very mind of God in the flesh. 

He is only called to testify to them, so that they may believe through him, NOT SEE through him!

He isn’t called to SHOW them the Light, he is called to be the means by which they will believe in that light, 

patiently waiting in the darkness rather than being drawn deeper and deeper away from the light. 

And John is a man of God, given a task by God but he knows that if he is mistaken for the Light, he will draw the world away from the Hope that he is announcing. 

Sisters and brothers, Christmas is fun. 

Believe it or not, I really and truly do love this time of year. 

But if all the trees and wreaths and stockings and mistletoe and carols and large, bearded, diabetic men in red suits don’t help us follow our call to point toward the true Light and Word of God, 

If impatiently pushing people into a “Merry Christmas” doesn’t draw them into the true Hope we are patiently awaiting at Advent. 

Then maybe this journey needs to take longer?

Maybe we need to stop asking if we are there yet and just enjoy the journey?

Because maybe we just aren’t ready yet?

But that’s okay, we still have a little bit to go. 

Maybe we can share the map with the rest of the world, inviting them to join us for the last leg of this ride. 

Amen

Photo by Julentto Photography on Unsplash

Sources

Barclay, William. 2001. The Gospel of John: The New Daily Study Bible. Revised, Updated edition. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.