by Rev. Canon David B. Tabo-oy
v1The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. v2 1As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, 2 “Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, v3 3the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,’” v4John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. v5And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. v6Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. v7And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. v8I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” – Mark 1:1-8
The gospel lesson appointed this second Sunday of Advent opened with the preaching of John the Baptist about preparing the way. He quoted the prophet Isaiah about the ‘voice of one crying in the wilderness.’ John the Baptist is best known as the forerunner of Jesus, the one who calls on people to prepare the way of the Lord’s coming. Hence, he is the realization of the Isaiah’s prophecy. The passage announces God’s intention to visit God’s people. God gives directions for the way to be prepared. By who? By the people God wants to visit? No, by God’s own servants. God does not say, “Tell the people to get ready and when they have done so, I will come to them.” God says, “Prepare the way! I am coming to my people (whether they are ready or not).” Indeed, the voice of God in the Isaiah text has the character of a wounded lover. God is desperate: “I will come to my people, and nothing will keep me from them. Mountains will be torn down, valleys will be filled in, rough places made smooth — whatever it takes!” Even as we are called to prepare ourselves for the eventual coming of our Lord, we are the voice today to call other people to be prepared. Collectively and as individuals we are the voice.
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We are now in the second Sunday in our Advent season journey. This Sunday we light the Second Advent Candle – the Candle of Peace. And as we anticipate Christmas, the more we are drawn to the message of preparation. This Sunday we hear the prophecy of Isaiah fulfilled in John the Baptist, “the Voice crying in the wilderness”, calling us to prepare the way of the Lord. Luke records that John received his call from God in the same manner as the prophets had before him (Luke 3:1-6). God’s word came upon him and he began to proclaim it. It wasn’t something that John decided to do but rather God sent him. The message that John proclaimed was the message of the prophets: to repent; to turn around and set one’s sights on God; to orient one’s life on him; to be faithful to him. It was a call to these things rather than chase after false gods. John shows us how to place ourselves in the winning lane where we triumph over the sin and darkness that bind us. He gets us ready to embrace the Divine intervention that has come and is to come again. He strengthens us to work for and expect righteousness. He shows us what it means to be a voice crying in the wilderness.
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In our daily living, in our work, on the news, and even as part of our entertainment, we are surrounded with acts of selfishness, power grabbing, and manipulation. We are part of a culture that says, “Go ahead, you’ve earned it!” We know in our hearts this is not what we were made for. But if we start to question, refuse or challenge these things we find out what it means to be a voice crying in the wilderness. John offers us courage, and stirs our hearts to hope and commitment, so that our lives really do change. What a Gospel, what a gift! Is it worth the risk of ridicule and derision to move away from the things that will destroy us? John only invites us to take the plunge and wait with expectation for the coming light that will never be overcome by the darkness. Darkness? What darkness? Over half the world goes to bed hungry every night, largely because the wealthier nations of the world consume most of its resources and want more. What darkness? In Mindanao people goes to bed every night afraid and anxious because of the recent strong earthquake and the terrorist bombing inside the Mindanao State University gymnasium during a Holy Mass. What darkness? The Holy Land continues to be a place of war and bloodshed between the Israeli forces and the militant group Hamas, threatening the security of the entire region and perhaps the world, despite our best efforts to find a way to a just and lasting peace.
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John’s promise that all flesh shall see the salvation of God cannot come too soon. Our heeding of his message and submitting our hearts and minds to an expectant Advent are the beginning of what God desires for us all, a peace and justice that await the day of God’s coming. The announcement is gracious, with only the dimmest echo of warning. Neither Isaiah, nor John, nor Mark intended to say, “God will come to those who are ready; those who are not, will be left out.” The accent is simply on God’s imminent, certain advent, though such an announcement obviously calls for response. God is coming to us! This is fantastic news! So, what can we do to get ready? Confess your sins, John suggests. Get baptized. Repent. Later, Jesus will add, “and believe in the good news!” (Mark 1:15).
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God will come and fulfill all of God’s promises whether or not we do any of these things — but knowing God is on the way, why wouldn’t we want to do them? To take a somewhat silly analogy, children play a game called “Hide-and-Seek” in which everyone hides and tries not to get caught, but eventually, when the game goes as it should, everyone gets found. The game is interesting from a psychological point of view because “hiding” is not really very much fun. If you ask most children, “Do you want to sit somewhere all by yourself and keep very quiet for a long time?” you will not get many takers. What’s fun about “Hide-and-Seek” is not hiding, but getting found. Everybody likes to be found.
So, when Advent comes around every year, we are reminded that God is coming to find us. We have our ways of hiding. But on the Second Sunday of Advent, when John the Baptist shouts, “Prepare the way of the Lord!” it is as though God has just called, “Ready or not, here I come!” And we remember: this is the God who always finds us.
Let us pray.
Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Second Sunday of Advent Collect, BCP). **
