St. John the Baptist preaching “Prepare the way of the Lord!”

Matthew 3:1-12

John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said: A voice of one crying out in the desert, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. John wore clothing made of camel’s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.

When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones. Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. I am baptizing you with water, for repentace, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

St. John the Baptist was the precurser of Jesus Christ. God had promised that He would send one to prepare the way for the Lord, and John was that one sent to prepare the way. John prepared the way by proclaiming that the kingdom of God was at hand, and that one mighter than he who would baptize in the Holy Spirit and fire. John’s baptism was one of repentance for sins. The Church was ordered to baptize by Christ, and that baptism brings forgiveness of sins and new life in Christ. John would preach that the kingdom of God is at hand. Jesus would initiate that kingdom. John spoke truth to power. Jesus also spoke truth to power. They both paid with their lives. John’s life sacrificed gave testimony to the truth of God’s Spirit. Jesus’ life sacrifice conquered sin and death, reconciled humankind to the Father, and initiated the Spirit’s reign in the age of the Church.

We in the West emphasize the meek and gentle Jesus. We like to think of Jesus as preaching a gospel of love and peace. We have created in Him the figure of a Savior who came to save us from nothing, because sin is a thing of the past, a concept unhealthy to our modern psyches and exploited by the Church to keep people at bay. What really matters is action, and that means political action, and to the world that almost always means one of two extremes: political action that raises up the government as the solution to our problems, or political action that regards the government as the major source of our problems. But, for Jesus, the problem is sin, and we can’t erase sin from our human experience by dismissing it as an outdated explanation for our psychological struggles. Sin is real, and it involves rebellion against God. Disobedience to God’s commands is what got us in this wretched situation, where death awaits us around every corner. Jesus came to save us, not from our psychological struggles, but from our sins, from our rebellion against God, from our disobedience. He does so by living His own life in perfect obedience to the will of the Father, even unto death. And by dying He destroyed death, conquered death’s kingdom, and now presents to us death as our ally, the portal through which we enter life in the kingdom. The kingdom of death now flies our flag.

This is not Jesus meek and mild. This is Jesus on a quest to destroy what lies between us and a deep, intimate, transformative relationship with God. It is also condemnation on those who are trying to block our path to reconciliation with God. Jesus calls us to a radical fidelity to Him. He is the only way to the Father. He is the life-giving one, who through His Church pours out His grace to all, empowering all, transforming all with the power of the Holy Spirit to live lives that give God glory. Such a life will not always be welcomed by this world. Hence, John and Jesus sacrificing their lives for the truth of God’s kingdom and the mission of reconciling all to the Father.

John the Baptist is still crying out in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of the Lord!” He is doing so in every inner city priest trying to make a difference in the street of his parish, so ravaged by drugs and violence, by preaching the Gospel honestly and powerfully. He is doing so in the work of every religious woman providing medical care to the rural poor. He is doing so in every couple who are trying their best to raise their children in righteousness, even with little support or encouragement. He is doing so in the soul of every young priest who is questioning his vocation because he feels inadequate, but nevertheless preaches the Gospel faithfully and true to his congregation every Sunday. He is doing so in every father working two or three jobs to support his family, but takes the time to teach his children how to pray and to pray with them. Each of these is a John the Baptist preparing the way of the Lord, that the Lord might enter into the hearts of those who are the recipients of the prayers and preaching and caring given by priests, religious, and parents. Bless their efforts, Lord!

But John, and Jesus after him, was not kind to those who mocked the revelation of God or openly opposed it in the effort to evangelize others to meaninglessness, to rebellion, to disobedience, to rejection of God’s mercy, and to sin. They must prove their righteousness with good acts. We will all be judged according to our deeds.

Advent is a time for preparation for the first coming of Jesus as a baby and the second coming of Jesus as a king. We must prepare to meet the Lord. How do we do so? By meeting Him at a third coming, when He comes to us in what Mother Teresa called “The distressing disguise of the poor.” Wait! What is this? Yes, Jesus comes to us today, each day, in some disguised way of the poor. And we are expected to meet Him, and treat Him like a king by providing clothing, food, drink, care, and committed companionship. Then, when Jesus dose come as a king, He will address each of us with the best words to each our ears: “Well done, good and faithful servant! Come, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning.”

Be Christ for all. Bring Christ to all. See Christ in all.