Isaiah
11: 1–10 / Psalm 72: 1–7, 18–19 / Romans 15: 4–13 / Matthew 3: 1–12
This
is the homily given at St. John’s, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania on Sunday December
8, 2019.
“GOD’S PLAN, OUR WORK”
(Homily
texts: Isaiah 11: 1–10 & Matthew 3:
1–12)
On
this Second Sunday of Advent, the designers of our lectionary readings’ cycle
have placed before us a passage from the prophet Isaiah, a passage which
describes a future time of peace, along with John the Baptist’s ministry of
baptism for the repentance of sins.
At
first glance, these two passages don’t seem to have much in common with one
another. But if we look a little deeper, perhaps we can see a connection.
Let’s
explore these two texts a bit.
Isaiah
is writing in the eighth century before our Lord’s advent among us. His is a
troubled time, a time when many of God’s people will be threatened with war and
with conquest. In the midst of all this gloomy news, Isaiah describes a time
when God’s rule will extend to all creation. His language is wonderful: It is a
time when the lion will lie down with the lamb, he says, a time when a child
will play over the hole of a poisonous snake.
Now,
let’s turn our attention to Matthew’s description of John the Baptist’s work.
John
the Baptist’s ministry also unfolds during a very troubled time: God’s people are
living under the yoke of oppressive Roman occupation. The leadership of God’s
people were self-serving and not-at-all concerned with the welfare of the
people they were leading. We could say in all truth that the leadership of the
people was manifestly corrupt. Moreover, worship of God in this time seemed to
be formal, but without an impact on the day-to-day lives of ordinary people.
Put another way, Temple worship adhered to the precept of the Law of Moses, but
it lacked an impact beyond the walls of the Temple complex.
John
the Baptist calls those who had come out to the wilderness to repentance. His
call was to confess their shortcomings and wrongdoings, and to wash them away
in the waters of the Jordan River. As part of their confession, they are told
to set aside any claim of worthiness of their own. John’s words are blunt: “Do
not presume to say that you are children of Abraham.”
The
way to bring God’s vision of peace and perfection begins with an admission that
God’s people – those in John the Baptist’s day and us, today - have nothing of
value to bring of our own. Admitting that shortcoming is the beginning of being
able to be God’s agents for change. “Don’t think that you have any platform on
which to stand,” we could say in summary.
How
do we move toward God’s vision of peace and perfection, given the fact that –
on our own merits, we have nothing to offer?
After
all, we are God’s hands to do, God’s heart to love, God’s mind to think and
imagine in this world. But for all the capabilities we might have as we use our
hands, our hearts and our minds, without God’s inspiration and undergirding,
anything we might try to do will fail.
It
is as if God has laid out the road to perfection, has placed us at the
beginning of the route, and then accompanies us as we make our way along. As
God walks with us, He stands behind us to urge us on, even as He stands in
front of us, pointing the way.
As
we compare Isaiah’s vision to the reality of the world in which we live today,
we might be tempted to give up on the journey before we’ve taken even one step.
The world we share with others is marked by violence, discord and poverty. An
inordinate focus on the self seems to be the modern religion of our time. In
the midst of all these changes, the Christian faith seems to have been pushed
aside. The Church has lost much of its influence and place in society.
And
yet, Christians the world over still believe in that future vision of Isaiah,
that time when God’s rule will be ushered in in all its fullness and
perfection. The Church will have a place in making these changes a reality, for
we are assured in Holy Scripture that the “gates of hell will not prevail” over
it.
You
and I, therefore, have work to do.
We
are called to proclaim the Good News (Gospel) of Jesus Christ by what we say,
what we do, and how we conduct our lives. We are called to say that coming to a
lively and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ makes all the difference in
life. For, in Christ, everything in life takes on a different meaning. True
meaning of life can only be found in Christ.
We
affirm that God’s rule will come in God’s good time. We do this each Sunday as
we recite the Nicene Creed. Success in bringing about God’s vision of
perfection is assured. That doesn’t mean that we can be complacent about the
journey.
Realizing
that we have no basis before God upon which to stake any claim is the beginning
of the journey. Only then can God fit us out for His service.
We
stand therefore, with those who stood before John the Baptist at the Jordan
River, and John’s voice admonishes us just as it did those who stood before
him: “Do not presume to say that you are Abraham’s children.” For God will work
with us, if we are willing to admit our helplessness. If we aren’t willing to
come to terms with our sinful condition, then God will work around us somehow,
using others to accomplish His will.
AMEN.
