John the Baptist
And Three for John the Baptist,
He calls on us to sing;
‘O prepare the way for Jesus Christ,
He is coming, Christ the King.
There’s a light upon the mountains
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuvbW7gVwaI
Reading: Malachi chapter 4 verses 1 to 6
When Jesus came to Jordan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkPrJcL3jqc
Reading: Matthew’s gospel chapter 3, verses 1 to 12.
On Jordan’s bank the baptist’s cry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIr21lLgFpg
As a preacher, I am very much aware that when I go into a pulpit, I am under very close scrutiny. The first impression of a preacher will colour how the congregation regards the entire message that they bring. Over the years I have found that generally congregations like their preachers to be smartly and conventionally dressed. They also prefer their preachers to say things that they agree with.
If this is how you like your preachers, then you would not have liked John the Baptist. He was not conventionally dressed, nor did he live what might have been considered a normal lifestyle.
He was a rough, tough, uneducated man. He went around saying unpleasant things about the religious elite of the day. He was a man the authorities of the day didn’t like, and they could not shut him up.
He went round telling people “Repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Repent meanms to turn your lives round and go in a different direction, and at hand means that God’s kingdom is all around. John is saying that if you change the way you are living, then you will encounter God.
Some believed John, some wanted to know more, and others dismissed him. But he continued in his unpopular work, baptising people as sign of repentance.
John was the man prophesied by Malachi. Ministering in the same spirit as Elijah.
So why was he so hard on the Pharisees and Sadducees? He was looking for people to be baptised, so why turn them away? Perhaps he saw that they were only coming for a sense of security, and not because they thought that it was necessary. They thought that their studies and observances would save them. But just to be sure, they came for baptism as well. John was sure thay they weren’t genuinely repenting, that they had no intention of turning their lives round.
John was looking forward to the time when all the world would acknowledge the presence of God in the world. As we prepare for Christmas, the birth of Jesus, the son of God; we prepare for the coming of the time when people recognise the presence of God in the world.
As Christians, it is our calling to help people to understand how God is involved in the world and in their lives. We must make the most of opportunities to witness to the truth that is the Gospel. At the moment, many of us have restrictions on our contacts with other people, but, we still have contacts with people by phone, or email. We can still look for God’s purpose and actions in the world, and communicate them to others. It may not make us popular, but nonetheless, this is our calling. Just as John the Baptist was not afraid of upsetting others in his mission, so we must proclaim “The Kingdom of God is at hand”
We are working towards the time when all will acknowledge that the kingdom of God is at hand. Christmas is a time when we can be especially active in our proclamation.
Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1SiaCV26aQ
Prayer:
Father, we praise you. From you comes everything that is good; your mind thought of it, your word brought it into existence. We thank you for our life, and for the centuries of history that we inherit. Especially, we thank you for the true religion which you called into being, leading towards Jesus.
We thank you for the people who have proclaimed your truth , especially we give thanks for those who have brought your message to ourselves.
We pray that you make us ready for the next stage of our journey with you, and pray that as we find our journey difficult, you will send your messengers to guide us closer to you and your ways.
May we be well known for proclaiming possibilities in the name of Jesus
Renew our respect for those who are on the alert for signs of your presence. Recall us to the task of making the world a fit place fore you to live in.
Amen
He will go ahead
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