Sermon by Pastor Doug December 11, 2011

Letter from John the Baptist to the Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word
December 11, 2011


Dear people of the Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word,
(By the way, though I’m not sure what “Lutheran” means, I appreciate the rest of your name “Incarnate Word”. The only way it could be better is if you would call yourself, “The Lutheran Church of the Word became Flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father”. A bit long and complex you say? Well, since when has God ever done anything simple?)

I would deliver this message to you myself, as one sent from God, but am fearful that my appearance among you would distract you from my message. I guess one’s appearance is always the first to go when you spend as much time in the wilderness as I have. You try wearing a garment of camel’s hair and a leather girdle around your waist while sticking to a strict diet of locusts and wild honey. Let me know how that works out for you….

I don’t mean to make this letter about me. After all, I am simply a man sent from God to be a pointer: One who stands before you and points you in the direction of God.
But before I go on about my “appointed” mission, let me begin by confessing to you who I am not.
I am not the Messiah. Never have been: Never will be. I know, I know. You have been waiting your whole lives for the Messiah: The One who will make all things right. The One who will make sense of all the bad. Who will turn pain and brokenness around; and who will ultimately defeat death once and for all. Believe me, I wait for that promised Messiah right along with you.
My world, like I imagine yours, is one of tremendous hardship and injustice. There are those who have too much and those who have nothing. Even among the religious, there are those who try to live in God’s covenant of Shalom, justice and peace, while other good “religious” folk would rather worship the emperor, seeking his graven image on coins, blindly supporting his expanding empire all the while claiming God’s Blessings on Caesar. And so I, along with you, wait for the Messiah, the anointed one, to make all things right by turning the tables right side up.
If by chance you have trouble remembering this distinction between me and the Messiah, remember,
I am APPOINTED. He is ANNOINTED.

Not only am I not the Messiah, but I am not the prophet Elijah. To be sure, I wish I were half the prophet he was. The way he took on those false prophets of Baal (450 of them ) who were dedicated to Queen Jezebel and all of her injustices and defeated them brilliantly through a chili cook-off on Mt. Carmel is stuff of legend. I can only imagine what it must have been like that day to hear all the Israelites shouting at the top of their lungs, “The Lord He is God!! The Lord He is God!!”
To be sure, I am not any of those great prophets of old.
I am not the city boy, Isaiah, whose very name means, “Salvation of God”…
Nor am I that guy from the suburbs, Jeremiah, who became one of God’s prophets as a teenager…
And Amos? Who can match his harsh words denouncing Israel as well as her neighbors for reliance upon military might, for grave injustice in social dealings and shallow meaningless piety?
Nor am I the prophet Micah who understood catchy phrases that stick in peoples’ minds: Have you ever heard the phrase, “Do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with your God?” If so, you’ve heard of Micah.
No, to be sure I am not any of these. I am no celebrity and I am certainly no one’s hero. I am simply a voice. A voice who bears witness to the greater one. In fact, the Greek word used to describe my witness, by the gospel writer of John, is “Martyria” from which your English word, “martyr” derives. Kind of a reminder that this “witnessing” thing isn’t always easy and may in fact be dangerous.
The wilderness is a big place, and I am but one voice in that wilderness. You might wonder why I have spent so much time there: In such a dangerous, harsh and lonely place. Why lift my voice there? Well, if you look back in history, one cannot help but see that some of God’s best work has been done in the wilderness. Whether it was my ancient ancestors, Abraham and Sarah being led through the wilderness to be a blessing to all nations, or the Israelites finding refuge there from a murderous pharaoh in Egypt and subsequently receiving the gift of God’s Torah on Mount Sinai, God has always done big things in the wilderness.
And so here I am in the wilderness: The place where God himself is found, bearing witness to something far greater than me. Bearing witness, pointing to the fact that…
There is a new day coming, when the dawn from on high will break upon us with light and healing…
a new day coming when swords will be beaten to ploughshares…
a new day coming when the way of the Lord will be made straight….
a new day coming when those who mourn will be comforted…
a new day coming when the Sun of righteousness shall rise with beams of healing in his wings….

This new day of which I speak are not simply ancient words affixed to equally ancient paper. What I point to today is the God of the Great Cosmos coming down to earth at this particular wilderness in this particular time. And make no mistake about it, you and I know all too well what it is to live in the lonely and dangerous wilderness. But take heart, because what I proclaim to you today is that God has a special place in his heart for those who dwell in the wilderness: For those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.
And from that special place comes the promise of One who is to come:
The One who will bring good news to the oppressed…
Bind up the brokenhearted…
Proclaim liberty to the captives…
And proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

I am not the Christ. I am but one voice in this wilderness.
You are not the Christ. But do you have a voice? Do you have ears, arms and legs that can point to and be a sign of the coming of Christ? I honestly and earnestly hope so.
Without such signs, those who need most to receive his healing will not know Jesus even if he is standing in their midst.