Advent 2
Sermon 2022.12.04
Rev. Wesley Menke
This past week was cold, cloudy, and with just a little rain. Honestly the lack of sun makes me a bit depressed as I am originally a child of the desert. How have you liked the weather lately? Friday I walked the Cucamonga Creek trail and with so many clouds and mist it was very beautiful. Stormy and rainy weather in the desert is sacred; it is life for the earth.
A very important man lived in the desert; John the Baptist. I remember once attending a Baptist church in Mexico. There were almost only two options for religion: Catholic or Baptist. I didn’t feel comfortable in either. If I could travel to the past to find John, I wouldn’t feel comfortable with him either. He was a highly eccentric, different, and special man. John was one of those types of people who has the ability to challenge everyone.
For example it is said in the bible that both Pharisees and Sadducees came to listen to him. It’s like saying that both Catholics and Baptists came. But John greeted both with great criticism, “brood of vipers.” Juan did not participate in the game of religious affiliation.
These two groups fought over who was the most faithful and authentic Jew. Sadducees were kind of like how we think of Catholics: very traditional and priestly. Pharisees were kind of like how we think of Baptists: more focused on right living and innovating religion to appeal to the people. John says it doesn’t matter which you are. God can make Jewish people out of stones. If John were living today, perhaps he would say that it does not matter if the Catholic or Baptist is more authentic Christian. God can make Christians out of stones. What matters is the fruit they produce. A tree, or a religion, or a nation, can be chopped down, especially if it does not bear fruit.
How do we produce more fruit? We just finished reading, “Life Together” by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In chapter four Bonhoeffer says that the big problem in a Christian community is the desire to be in control. When people fight for control in a community it makes for a toxic environment. Well, thankfully here at Grace Lutheran Church no one has this problem of wanting control. But maybe in other churches this could be a problem. According to Bonhoeffer the solution is simply to love the people who want to be in control.
When we say that we are saved by grace through faith, it implies that we need both: God’s grace and our faith. The grace of God is that God loves every good and bad human being. Faith is believing in this grace; and treating people accordingly. Love the brood of vipers. John the Baptist loved the brood of vipers. He did not reject them, he called them to repent, and then offered baptism. So when we talk about loving ourselves and others, we mean that we challenge ourselves to be better.
We have a dog. His name is Albie. The truth is, Sheri and I are better with humans than animals. Albe is very cute, but he is not very well trained. I already said on animal blessing Sunday that he pulls a lot. So we finally bought a prong collar. And if it works, but I left it on the dog all the time. Then someone told us, no you have to remove the prong collar and only put it on for walks. So we removed it, but we didn’t have the regular collar handy. Then it was Thanksgiving, my parents visited, and then the very cold weather. Several days passed in which we did not go on a walk with the dog, and he didn’t wear any collar. Little by little the puppy acted less like a puppy and more like a coyote, that is, wild. Until one day Sheri took a tray of meat out of the refrigerator and the dog grabbed the meat in its mouth and ran off. Sheri said, “Wes you have to do something about this dog.” I thought fast. I said, “We need his normal collar, which doesn’t have spikes.” But where was it? I searched and searched and found it in the garage. It was soft, we put his Christmas bandana with his name on it too. And I’m not kidding when I say that he immediately calmed down and transformed from a coyote to a precious puppy once again. You see? He needed love; a practical love that challenged him to be better.
On this second Sunday of advent we read prophecies about a good and righteous leader. The prophet Isaiah says that a new shoot will sprout from the trunk of Jesse. In other words, a leader who is fair, who is not corrupt, who is a good judge who has a deeper vision than appearances. This leader will be so good that a child will play peacefully with a brood of snakes. It is a metaphor for the somewhat aggressive controlling people in the world. The “lowly people” that Bonhoeffer spoke of. And this leader that Isaiah spoke of will love in such a way as to create the conditions that people will behave appropriately. This promised leader is Jesus, but it is not only Jesus. Could it also be you?
You could be a good and righteous leader.
Paul wrote about this in Romans. His point is simple. Jesus is not only the anticipated leader of the Jewish people. He is a leader and example to the whole world. You could be the new branch of the trunk of Jesse.
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