Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was procurator of Judea, and Herod tetrarch of Galilee, and Philip his brother tetrarch of the district of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zachary, in the desert. And he went into all the region about the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of Isaias the prophet. The voice of one crying in the desert, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, make straight His paths. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low, and the crooked ways shall be made straight, and the rough ways smooth; and all mankind shall see the salvation of God.’ (Luke 3-7-9): He said therefore to the multitudes that went forth to be baptized by him: Ye offspring of vipers, who hath shewed you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of penance; and do not begin to say, We have Abraham for our father. For I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children to Abraham. For now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that bringeth not forth good fruit, shall be cut down and cast into the fire.)
It is almost Christmas. People are decorating their homes and throwing parties. Christmas cheer is in the air. And we come to church to hear: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" What's up with St. John the Baptist? It seems he doesn't have the holiday spirit.
The church does this to us every year. The church insists that you can't get to the joyous birth at Bethlehem without going through the fiery prophet in the desert. Every Advent, in the midst of the exuberance that marks this time of year, the wisdom of the church throws John the Baptist at us.
Perhaps rather than sending out Christmas cards during Advent we should first send out Advent cards with images of St John the Baptist on it. The cards could show an image of that wilderness prophet in desert rags and the card could say: "Advent Greetings, 'You brood of vipers!" St John makes us uncomfortable. He cuts through the niceties and gets to the hard truth. And people traveled from their Jerusalem comforts to hear him. People went into the wilderness to hear something unavailable in cosmopolitan Jerusalem, someone who speaks the truth.
It's risky to open yourself to deep truth. John's probing is like a surgeon's knife cutting into a tumor, or a skilled analyst penetrating our psychological defenses, or an honest friend telling you what no one else will.
There were good people who went out to hear John – good Jews who went to synagogue and to the Temple. He told them, "Do not be presumptuous before God. God sees through your pretensions. God is not impressed with your unearned privilege of place and status." We should take that message to heart and remember we cannot impress God with our ‘holiness.’ Before God we are sinners. So we should be humble.
There were bad people who went out to hear John – sinners and tax collectors and prostitutes. He told them, "I baptize you with water. You are washed clean. Start over fresh and pure. Begin again, and this time, be honest; don't cheat; share your good fortune with others." Like every great prophet, John afflicted the comfortable and comforted the afflicted.
John is a cold, sobering wet-rag to our Christmas preparations – exposing our pretensions, calling us good-folks presumptuous and proud. Challenging us, saying, "You're not so good as you think. Turn around. Look at your selfishness. Look at your pride. You can do better. You'd better do better. Be humble. Be generous. Be very generous. ‘For the measure that you measure out will be measured back upon you.’"
Dear friends of Bethlehem, we are on the way to the manger. But before we get there, the church expects us to face a bit of tough love in the wilderness. Let John the Baptist get your attention. Answer his questions. How are you being presumptuous, self-centered, indulgent or prideful? How are you ignoring the poor or participating in systems that oppress the weak? Repent! Chop those snakes out of your life and burn them up. Begin again, and this time be honest; don't cheat; share your good fortune with others.
In your wilderness make a path. A path for a baby. The path of love. Prepare a place in your heart, by thoughts, words, and deeds of generosity, mercy, justice, goodness and charity.
“You brood of vipers,” the Christ Child is coming, so, “Make ready the way of the Lord, make straight His paths.”
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