Domes - Our Monthly Newsletter
Dunbar UCC
December 17, 2006
Luke 3:7-9, 15-18
Corruption, Terror, Fire: Good News!
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As we read the Gospel lesson for today, we can understand why God didn’t call John the Baptist to be a politician. To be a politician, you have to be able to tell people what they want to hear. And if the truth is painful, then you don’t say it. That’s why the prophets in the Bible never held public office. People listened to them, and felt terrible. But when we vote for a leader, we’ll probably vote for the person who makes us feel better about ourselves -- someone who will say: “I know you all are good people, you’re hard working, law-abiding, solid citizens. And you love your country so much, you want to spread that freedom around the world. You’re my kind of people!” Yeah -- I’ll vote for him or her.
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On the other hand, John the Baptist calls all of us a bunch of poisonous snakes. Hmmm -- I don’t think I’ll vote for him. Who do I want -- the person calling me a good citizen, or the one who points his finger at me and my family and saying, “You brood of vipers!” Sure, it gets my attention, but it makes me feel terrible. Sorry John -- but my vote’s going to George Bush. Maybe he’s not as honest as you, but he makes me feel good -- and isn’t that what this life’s all about? Feeling good?
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As we prepare for the birth of Christ, why must we hear someone calling us snakes, and cowards and accusing us of not giving a damn about anyone but ourselves? That’s the advent message of John the Baptist on this beautiful Sunday morning. Do we need this?
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According to John, we do. He says that if we don’t repent, we’re lost. If we don’t change the direction of our lives, so that we love an enemy as much as a friend, then we’re failing our mission in this life. People who felt good about who they were didn’t visit John in the wilderness. They weren’t baptized. They stayed in Jerusalem, content.
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But I guess that we’re here because we feel that, spiritually, we’re still growing. Sometimes, tragedy is the best thing that can happen to us. Former Governor John Rowland said that his life between 23 and 47 was a path of one success followed by greater success, from the state legislature to the governor’s office. Then he lost everything and went to prison. And his fall was quick. “One day,” he said, “it seemed like I was a guest at the White House, and the next, I was standing in line for toilet paper at prison camp.” At prison, Rowland prayed and meditated and read and exercised. He discovered a faith in God, and he began to cultivate that faith. He said that if we don’t have faith -- if we’re not filled with God, then we’re probably filled with ourselves. And at the end of the day, nothing we do will mean anything.
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That’s why John’s harsh words are called “good news.” They tell us we haven’t arrived at our spiritual destination. But Jesus Christ will help us get there no matter what it takes to turn us around, and keep us on the right path. Even prison.