Gaudete (Advent 3) – December 15, 2024Psalm 85; Isaiah 40:1-11; 1 Corinthians 4:1-5St. Matthew 11:2-11
In the Name of the Father, and of the +
Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
St. John the Baptist was in prison
because he preached to Herod that Herod’s adulterous marriage to his brother’s
wife was sinful.[1]
John was also hated by the Pharisees and those of the Temple because he called
them a brood of vipers.[2]
St. John, as the prophesied Elijah to come, preached primarily a message of
repentance.[3]
He was the voice of one crying in the wilderness to make the rough places
plane, that is, to call people to repentance that they would be prepared to
receive the Christ.
St. John also preached the Gospel. He
baptized the multitudes who came to him from Jerusalem and all the region
around the Jordan.[4]
Holy Baptism is a preaching of the forgiveness of sins, the release from
bondage to the devil, and adoption by the Father as a new creation in Christ. St.
John pointed troubled consciences to Christ, the Prophet like Moses, who would die
for their sins.
And yet it was not for the proclamation
of Christ that John found himself in prison. It was for the preaching of the
Law. It was for the call to repentance. The Holy Law of God is not just a
perfunctory set of rules, independent from the call to salvation. When the Law
of God first enters the heart of man, it reveals that he has not kept the Law.
He has not done all that God commands. He has sinned and earned the wrath of
God. As John is preaching the Law, he is revealing the rocky hills and steep
valleys in the soul of man. This serves to prepare the way of the Lord by showing
the necessity of making the path straight and the hills plane or level.
And the natural man, still in his sins,
chaffs at this. It is uncomfortable to be told you are wrong. It is worse to be
told that you are a sinner who makes God angry with your every action. And it
is the worst to be told that because of your sin, you deserve damnation and the
eternal wrath of God.
Now, if John only preached the Law, then all who heard him would either be led to pride or despair. Those drawn toward pride would seek only to justify their sin, finding reasons that their own actions are excusable, sensible, or even that their sins are in fact righteousness. And we are all guilty of this to some extent. “Sure, I didn’t honor my mother when I yelled at her for telling me to clean my room, but she didn’t need to ground me for it. Its her fault!” “Yeah, I didn’t keep the Sabbath holy when I stayed home from church, but I was really tired, and God loves me anyway so what’s one Sunday?” “If he wasn’t such a jerk about it, I wouldn’t have to complain to my friends about him.” And on and on.
Then there are those who would despair.
These feel the weight of the Law on their hearts but refuse to find relief. “I
am such a terrible sinner, God could never love me.” We, also, all have our
temptations toward despair. A terminal diagnosis is the worst news we could
imagine. It’s God’s fault. He is to blame for my sin, and He won’t do anything
about it.
St. John’s preaching of the forgiveness
of sins, the Gospel of Christ, continues even when he is in prison. He sends
his disciples to Jesus as much for their benefit as his own. He wants them to
know that Christ is the object of their faith. He wants them to know that Jesus
is the One who is to come, the prophet like Moses, God in flesh, who will die
for their sins. He wants them to be disciples of Christ, not just of John.
John sends them with a question, “Are
You the Coming One, or do we look for another?”[5]
They are to ask Jesus if He is the promised Messiah or if they should look for
another. This question deserves three observations. First, no matter how Christ
answers the question, yes or no, the question already expresses trust in
whatever Christ will say. It is like Mary telling the servants to do whatever
Jesus tells them to do.[6]
She doesn’t know what Jesus is going to tell the servants, but she trusts, that
is she has faith, that whatever it will be is true and good. The question of
John is the same. He, and his disciples, trust that whatever Jesus says is true
and good, even if it means that Jesus is only another prophet.
The second observation, in light of the
first, is that John and his disciples already have faith in Jesus. They trust
His word above all others. There is some room for debate over whether John is
only asking the question for the sake of his disciples—meaning that he already
knows the answer, that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God—or if John is
experiencing a moment of doubt and is asking the question for his own benefit.
The text is somewhat unclear. Afterall,
John is the greatest man to be born of woman and he was the first to recognize
the Christ while he was still in the womb. He has known since before his own
birth that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. And yet he stands in a long
line of prophets who spoke directly with God and still experienced doubt. John
is Elijah, sent to prepare the hearts of man to receive their King, and Elijah
experienced doubt. He believed he was the only Christian left on the face of
the earth and begged God to let him die.[7]
Elijah doubted so it shouldn’t be surprising if John has a moment of doubt.
If John is sending his disciples for their own benefit, then it is a picture of God sending His ministers, pastors, to proclaim the Word of God for the sake of you, His beloved people. John is serving those in his care by sending them to Jesus. If the question is from John’s own heart, then it is a picture of God consoling His own through His Word. Either way, it is a message of consolation for the hurting heart, the sorrowful conscience.
The third observation we should make
about John’s question is the title he applies to Christ. He asks if Jesus is
the Coming One. It is this question that led our fathers in the faith to
appoint this text for the Third Sunday of Advent, for Gaudete. Advent means
“coming” and Jesus is certainly the Coming One. He is the One who came in the
flesh at Bethlehem and who will come again on the Last Day. He is also the
Coming One who comes to you daily in His Word and most intimately in the Holy
Sacraments—Holy Baptism and Holy Communion. He brings Himself to you, joining
Himself to you first in Baptism and then in the Holy Communion. There is never
a time that Christ is not the Coming One. He is never only the One who came nor
the One who is to come. He is and always will be the One who is coming to you.
Our Lord’s answer to John’s question is
likewise twofold. He points to the miracles that were prophesied of the Christ
and which He has fulfilled. When Jesus performs miracles of healing and
restoration, He is not checking off boxes on a list of signs that He is the
Messiah. He is showing compassion on His beloved people. He is the Light and
Life of man. He cannot help but bring restoration and new life to those whom He
loves because this is within His very essence. The prophecies which spoke of
these miracles were given for our sake, that by them, we would recognize the
Christ who is Coming.
At the same time, we would do well to
note that John has not seen any of these miracles, nor did he perform any
himself.[8]
John must believe the report of his disciples. This is important because we
find ourselves in the same position. I’ve never seen someone raised from the
dead, nor the blind made to see, nor the deaf made to hear. I don’t expect to
ever see these miracles and you shouldn’t either. In fact, we know that wicked
men will perform miracles to deceive Christians into false religion. The demons
are powerful and will inspire all kinds of signs and wonders to deceive even
the elect if possible.
What John and all of us have is the
Word of God. We have the faithful witness of the Holy Scriptures, inspired by
the Holy Ghost, to tell us those things necessary for faith. We have the very
Word of God to report all things necessary for salvation. This sure and certain
Word of God serves us just as it does St. John the Baptist. In the face of
suffering and even martyrdom, it strengthens you in body and soul to life
everlasting. And that is why daily reading the Scriptures and committing them
to memory is so important. It is not just an exercise or a work to be done. It
is the very life-giving Word of God by which you are saved. We ought to view
reading the Scriptures the way we see eating, drinking, and breathing. In fact,
it is even more important.
“And blessed is he who is not offended because of [Christ.]”[9] Offended is not hurt feelings or disappointment. To be offended is to stumble, to fall, to lose faith. Jesus is saying, “You who do not stumble because of My Word, because of My life, death, and resurrection; You who hold tightly to Me and My Word shall truly be blessed. Sight, the ability to walk, health, hearing, wealth, and even life in this world are nothing if they are not in Me.”
Those who received these miracles of
Christ were blessed by Him but that is nothing compared to those who believe in
Him, who receive Him as King of kings and Lord of lords. The one true miracle
of Christ is your salvation, the resurrection of all flesh on the Last Day when
you will be made anew and join Christ for all eternity. This is what the Word
of God has promised to those who are not offended by Christ. This is the
promise of God by which you live and breathe and have your being. This is the
promise in which you find rest, no matter your sight, hearing, wealth, or
health. Christ is the Coming One, who has and is coming to you this day in His
Holy Word.
In + Jesus’
name. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment