Sermon 11th December 2022 – Third Sunday in Advent
Text: Matthew 11:2-11 – Do we
look for another?
You can almost feel it – you
can almost taste it – you can almost touch it. Christmas is in 2 weeks.
Whether the excitement is
because you can’t wait to celebrate – or you’ve got some friends or family
coming over that you haven’t seen in a while – or like me, you’ve got some time
off. There is excitement. But what happens after Christmas is over? It’s back
to normal – sort of. You step on the scales and realise how much you
overindulged. You see the credit card statement and you realise how much it’s
all cost and you wonder was it worth it. Did it meet your expectations? Did
Jesus coming at Christmas meet the excitement? Do the benefits outweigh the
costs.
That’s the question before
John the Baptist today. Did Jesus’ coming match the excitement he had built up.
Did the cost of following
Jesus outweigh the benefits? You know – the one coming after me that will
baptize with fire. The one coming after me whose sandals I’m not worthy to tie.
You know – the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Who is so
important and exciting that “I must decrease so he may increase”.
But now – John is languishing
in prison and he starts to reflect on what it’s cost him. Not his credit card –
not his waistline - but his freedom.
And so, from jail, John sends
some of his disciples to ask Jesus - “Are you the one who is to come, or should
we wait for another? Why would John ask that? It’s because Jesus didn’t turn out to be all
John expected him to be. John had become so bold believing Jesus would “have
his back”. He called the Pharisees and Sadducees “you brood of vipers”. He
seemed to insult Abraham – don’t think just because you’re Abraham’s children.
But he goes too far and
criticizes Herod for marrying his brother’s wife. For that he finds himself in
jail.
For John, Jesus was not
following his expectations. John said
that the chaff would burn with unquenchable fire. But Jesus didn’t seem to be pointing the
finger of judgment against the evil doers. This was a disappointment for John sitting in
prison, awaiting his own judgment instead of his enemy’s. Instead, Jesus is proclaiming forgiveness,
healing the sick, bringing Good News to the poor.
Was this really what Jesus was
supposed to be doing? Couldn’t anyone do
that? Are you the one who is to come? Or should I hope for someone else? Sometimes
Jesus said and did things that weren’t what people hoped for. Like riding into Jerusalem on a donkey instead
of a chariot drawn by horses. Sometimes Jesus says and does things that aren’t
what we hope for. Maybe at times we are
tempted to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for someone
else?” And, certainly, many have done just that- looked for someone or
something else.
Each of us has expectations
about the kind of Savior we want. Some
want a judgmental Messiah who points out where everyone else is going wrong. To punish the evil doers and throw away the
key – no chances. Some of us want Jesus to back our favorite cause, who will
assure us that God is on our side on this issue. Or maybe we want a gentle
shepherd who will not demand anything of us, but only assure us that he loves
us.
Jesus will at times upset our
expectations. But that’s when we have to trust the words of Jesus who said –
“your will be done, not mine”.
John wondered if Jesus was
really the one in whom he should hope. Maybe
Jesus wasn’t exactly what John was expecting: He brought fire – but it was the
fire of the Holy Spirit. He sought out sinners – but forgave them. He
confronted the unworthy– but he confronted them with grace – like Zacchaeus –
like the woman caught in adultery – like the Samaritan leper – like the demon
possessed man called Legion – even an undeserving dog, the Canaanite woman
begging for crumbs from his table. Grace
upon grace.
John couldn’t see that grace
for himself being locked away in his prison cell. And maybe, at times, it is
hard for us to see God’s grace in our time of suffering. But it’s there. It’s
always there. Paul struggled too with his thorn in the flesh – praying 3 times
to have his suffering removed with the response from God: My grace is all you
need – my grace is sufficient.
There will be times when we
feel let down by God, like John the Baptist did. There will be times when we
may feel like looking for another Saviour. But Jesus is the only one in whom we
can put our hope. As Luke says in Acts 4:12 - there is salvation in no one
else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people
by which we must be saved. As Jesus says in John 14 - I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Jesus is the
one who was promised by God. But it’s the mystery of God we don’t always
understand.
Jesus himself struggled with
this when he cried out from the cross - My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me? He was repeating the very words of King David – God’s most loyal subject
who cried out words that John the Baptist could also have cried out: My God, my
God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from
my cries of anguish? My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night,
but I find no rest. Words that maybe you have cried out at times expecting more
from God. But we heed the words of James today – Be patient, therefore,
beloved, until the coming of the Lord. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming
of the Lord is near.
Just as Christmas Day is near
so too is the return of our Lord, as St Paul reminded us recently: Salvation is
nearer to us now than when we became believers; So, friends, you don’t need to
look for another. We need to trust and have patience. Patience in a God who
does not want anyone to perish. Jesus is the one we have been waiting for –
Jesus is the one we continue waiting for. And in the words of St Paul recently:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you
may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
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