Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19
Isaiah 40:1-11
John 1:19-28

John 1:19-28

This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.” And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” He answered, “No.” Then they said to him, “Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” He said,

“I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’”

as the prophet Isaiah said.

Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. They asked him, “Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?” John answered them, “I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.” This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.

I gotta say, it’s taken me a while to warm up to old John boy. How about you?

There is something so severe about him, isn’t there? A true ascetic from birth — he was a Nazarite, which meant no alcohol, and sometimes meant no shaving or hair-cutting, either — he was big on self-denial. Now that’s never been a particularly strong suit for me, I must admit. Alcohol has never been a problem — I don’t like the stuff and have a family history of alcoholism, so I’ve steered clear — but I have used food unwisely and too often resort to retail therapy during stressful times! 

But John got some things right. REALLY right. He was obedient to who he was and to who God called him to become. He made his message very, very clear. He spoke truth to power. And he knew what his limits were and didn’t hesitate for a moment to admit them. “Nope,” he said. “I am most definitely not the Messiah. And not Elijah, either. I am ‘the voice.'” That’s it — the voice.

The one who cries out in the wilderness. The one who says, “Get ready!! God is coming.”

And for that, I say a humble and heartfelt ‘thank you’ to John the Baptizer. 

I’m listening, John. And oh! I want to be ready.

Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19
Isaiah 30:19-26
Acts 13:16-25

Isaiah 30:19-26

Truly, O people in Zion, inhabitants of Jerusalem, you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when he hears it, he will answer you. Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself any more, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Then you will defile your silver-covered idols and your gold-plated images. You will scatter them like filthy rags; you will say to them, “Away with you!”

He will give rain for the seed with which you sow the ground, and grain, the produce of the ground, which will be rich and plenteous. On that day your cattle will graze in broad pastures; and the oxen and donkeys that till the ground will eat silage, which has been winnowed with shovel and fork. On every lofty mountain and every high hill there will be brooks running with water—on a day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. Moreover the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, like the light of seven days, on the day when the Lord binds up the injuries of his people, and heals the wounds inflicted by his blow.

Oh my, this is hard passage! It is also beautiful, even lyrical, in its own unique way. That Isaiah (however many there may have been!) had a way with words, didn’t he?? It is so hard for me to think of the Lord giving ‘the bread of adversity and the water of affliction,’ even though the imagery is gorgeous.

And that wonderful picture of the voice over the shoulder? Oh, I love it! A ‘word behind me.’ Oh, yes, Lord! A word behind me, please. And in front of me. And beside me. And inside me. I long for that voice, don’t you? And I’m trying to listen for it. Sometimes it’s quite clear. Others, not so much. But the more I listen, the easier it becomes – isn’t that amazing?

Maybe not so amazing after all, though. If you think about it. Listening is at the center of it all, seems to me. Learning to listen — really listen — to another is hard.to.do. I cannot tell you how often I find myself distracted when my husband is talking to me! The dearest man in my world, and  yet . . . sometimes, I simply do not hear him — if I am reading, or if I’m in the middle of thinking about something else (which, let’s face it, happens a LOT of the time). Generally speaking, neither of us is very good at asking, “Are  you in the middle of something? Is now a good time to talk?” We both just sort of forge ahead and assume the other will be all ears, no matter what! Do you do that?

Real talking, real listening, needs to be intentional. It needs to be purposeful. It needs to be generous. So those are things I’m working on during this Advent season — intentions, purposes, generosity. How about you?

Psalm 72
Isaiah 4:2-6
Acts 1:12-17

Acts 1:12-17

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.

In those days Peter stood up among the believers (together the crowd numbered about one hundred twenty persons) and said, “Friends, the scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit through David foretold concerning Judas, who became a guide for those who arrested Jesus—for he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.”

Advent is about the coming of God to humankind and there are three Advents that we celebrate during this season. The first is probably the one you count on at this time of the year, when Jesus was born to a dirt-poor couple in a borrowed barn in a back-of-beyond small town. The second ‘coming’ we remember during these days is the one that is yet to be, when Jesus will return as King and the earth will be made new. The third is, I suppose, a bit less dramatic than the other two, but it is the one that we live each and every day. The third coming of God is what you and I experience in the here and now, when the Holy Spirit works in our midst, when the church is being the truest church she can be, when the evidence of the Spirit’s work is seen in our goodness, kindness, gentleness, patience, self-control, faithfulness, peace, joy and love. 

Today’s passage is a good reminder of that third coming, I think. This band of believers has just seen their friend, their risen Lord, rise up to heaven. They are gathering to remember, to pray, to stay close. And Peter reminds them that Judas, too, was one of them. Soon this little band will draw lots for someone to take Judas’s place, doing what they can to be ready for whatever comes next. But right now, they’re trying to listen to God, to remember what Jesus taught them, and to take the next step forward in faith. And that is what we all must do, isn’t it? Listen, remember, move. That’s how we celebrate the coming of God to humankind — quietly, carefully, boldly. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus.

Psalm 124
Isaiah 54:1-10
Matthew 24:23-25

Psalm 124: A Song of Ascents. Of David.

¹ If it had not been the Lord who was on our side
—let Israel now say—
² if it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
when our enemies attacked us,
³ then they would have swallowed us up alive,
when their anger was kindled against us;
⁴ then the flood would have swept us away,
the torrent would have gone over us;
⁵ then over us would have gone
the raging waters.

⁶ Blessed be the Lord,
who has not given us
as prey to their teeth.
⁷ We have escaped like a bird
from the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
and we have escaped.

⁸ Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

Have you noticed that the Psalm reading has been this same one for the last three days? Tomorrow it will switch for the last three days of this first Advent week as we move toward the second Sunday. But before we leave it, I wanted to sit with it for a few minutes. I encourage you to do that, too.

That opening line is one of my favorites in all of scripture, one that I’ve found myself saying over and over again as I’ve lived this life of mine. There are definitely days, even seasons, — when it doesn’t feel like the Lord is on my side! And yet, in the long view — especially looking backwards — I know this to be the most steadfast truth of my life. I haven’t had to deal with ‘enemies’ in the sense that the psalmist means, but I have surely felt flooded by life, overwhelmed by circumstances, threatened by illness and I’ve walked through difficult deaths with a moderately long list of friends and family. So I do know the truth of verse 8 as well as verse 1 — my help is in the name of the Lord. And I am grateful.