Hear God's Call to Begin Again
Hear God's Call to Begin Again
Good morning church, it’s Alex! I’m taking you my little wilderness spot right now. This is where I go when the world needs to fade away for bit. It’s a kind of sacred space for me. A kind of magical place of healing, restoration, and stillness. A place where I can finally tune out the world and hear God.
But honestly, lately, when I come here, this wilderness has kinda been nagging at me. Because it forces me to slow down and contend with reality. The wilderness can be dangerous at times, full of uncertainty, anxiety, and a mirror to what's really going on in the world.
I don’t know about you, but I kinda feel like we’re in a bit of a wilderness season. There is so much changing around us. I mean, we’re in a pandemic!? I didn’t even know what that word meant 8 months ago, and now it’s becoming a part of everyday reality. We witness racial injustice, economic inequality, ecological devastation, and yet, here I am about to preach some “good news?!”
I wonder if that’s how John the Baptist felt in the wilderness? I wonder what the author we call Mark was thinking before he sat down to write?! I imagine they felt some fear, anticipation, hope, longing for the coming of Christ. I wonder if you’re feeling that now. Cause every year, during Advent, we replay the story of Christ coming into the world over and over again, but somehow this year, it rings differently.
I’ve had enough of this pandemic! John the Baptist had enough of the way things were. The gospel writer we call Mark had enough too. And yet, they still had hope. But their hope wasn't grounded in some unrealistic hope or apocalyptic doom; it was found in a first-century Palestinian Rabbi named Jesus, the Christ. Something new was about to begin…
I love how the person we call Mark starts his gospel; it's kind of like the Star Wars opening (make the sound!):
“The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
We heard this passage read earlier by the Palmer family, and I love this grand opening that the author we call Mark with the "the good news." But to be honest, all hell was breaking loose as Mark was writing this. It's around 70 ACE, and during this time, Roman persecutions at an all-time high as the Jewish war is breaking out with Rome.[1]You know those big early fathers of the faith: the apostle Paul, Peter, those guys… well, they’ve just been executed. Christians are being tortured and crucified, fed to lions, and set on fire to serve as torches at night.[2]” It’s a freakin’ crazy time to follow Christ! This doesn’t sound like good news!
But still, Mark is proclaiming “the beginning of the good news!” He has a calling, to tell the story of Jesus - the good news - or the Greek word euangelion, "gospel." But this was pretty bold! Cause in this period, the Empire often used the word euangelion to refer to peace, prosperity, and the good life that came from a grand military victory.[3]So it was a military-like term. And "Son of God" had many meanings too, but in Hellenistic understandings, "Son of God" was often used to describe the emperor himself![4]So for Mark to say, Jesus is the Son of God AND the good news is to challenge the entire Roman Empire. Now, that's a pretty bold move considering they were being executed left and right.
Mark has every reason to hide, despair, give up hope, but instead, he starts with this grand opening of a new beginning. He doesn't start with Jesus' genealogy or some kind of miraculous virgin birth, or even angels trumpeting in the Christ; instead, he begins with a condemnation of the Roman Empire! Jesus is the Son of God, not some wack a doodle Emperor who uses power to oppress.
Marks declaring a new “beginning,” a new creation free from Empire —the beginning of the "good news." And his calling for a new beginning doesn't come out of nowhere; it has roots, deep roots:
So,Let’s continue, verse 2:
As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,
“See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way;
the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight,’”
Last week we heard Pastor Jason talk about the prophet Isaiah, a powerful prophet who'd been ripped from his landafter the Assyrian invasions and Babylonian exile in the eighth century BCE. Jason told us about Isaiah’s anger and confusion ringing through, the lament of his people lifted up to God. The nation of Israel was torn apart. Yet as Hebrew Bible scholar Marvin Sweeny notes, “… the book of Isaiah never actually portrays a ruined or destroyed Jerusalem.[5]From the book’s standpoint, Jerusalem is always going to be the holy city bound to God.[6]
You see, Isaiah knew this wasn't the end of the story, and God prophesied through him that a new beginning would emerge. So Isaiah was calling people back to Judea to prepare for someone who would make the path clear for the coming Messiah. Now Isaiah has no idea that it would take some 700 years for his prophecy to come true. But he knew deep down that regardless of what was happening, God is always responding and creating new potentials, new beginnings. He knew it wasn't the end; it was just another beginning.
So another 200 years pass, and the Hebrew Bible is complete, or what we call the Old Testament, which by the way, can be offensive to the Jewish tradition. So, imagine the people of God, they've got this book that's complete, and now they're just waiting for the Messiah to come. Hoping for something to break them out of their misery. 700 years since Isaiah and 500 years since the completion of the Hebrew Bible and everyone is left wondering, "Is that it?! Surely, this can't be it, right, God?!" Well, suddenly, out of the wilderness the silence is broken and out comes our next character in God's evolving story. (STAR WARS SOUND):
“John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.”
Wait, wait, wait, so we've been waiting 500 years for something new to emerge, and this is who we get, John the Baptist? I mean, this guy sounds crazy! He's dressed in camel's hair, wears a weird leather belt around his waist, he eats locusts (the things God used to plague Pharaoh with)?! He's just in the wilderness by himself, yelling out to people to repent! What is going on here?!
I mean, honestly, imagine if I had left my house today, dressed like that, marched up this hill, and yelled at people to come up and repent, do you think they would?! Would you?! This is a BOLD move of God.
Surely, God's messenger would be better dressed! He'd be powerful, a religious elite, strong, probably rich, right?! Nope! John’s world was full of persecution from Rome - the world he experienced was a little like ours in some ways. First-century Rome was made up of either wealthy (about three percent of the population) or poor people (about ninety percent).[7]It’s kind of like the 1% percent today, those with more than $1 million, who own 44 percent of the world's wealth. 44% of the entire world's wealth![8]
In John and Jesus' time, about 28% of the people did not know if they would survive daily.[9]Sounds like the 30 million or more Americans who are now depending on unemployment benefits, some of which are already expiring, because of the pandemic.[10]Meanwhile, according to Vox, Jeff Bezos, the owner of Amazon's net worth increased by$13 billion in one day![11]One day!
John was not the 1%; John is a man living on the fringes of society, far from the halls of power, who first points to God's coming grace. This is the kind of message that not only belongs to the oppressed, but also comes from the oppressed themselves. John was the one God called to announce the coming of Christ. And while the religious elite, and the powers to be, ridiculed John, John knew he had a calling, and people responded.
But why did people respond!? I mean, what benefit did they receive? You see, when I approach that question from a place of privilege, it's hard for me to wrap my head around it. But when I imagine the story from John's location, the hope of God starts to emerge. Most of these people had nothing to hold onto but the hope of God itself, the hope of a new beginning, a new community birthed from the depths of their oppression.
They, also, felt the divine call, a voice calling from the wilderness, a Godly melody pulling them into a new reality. In some ways, this was their only hope! Something beyond their oppression. A vaccine from an oppressive plague that robbed them of their dignity, worth, and value. This was the hope of something new!
And John’s following starts to GROWWW. His following grew and grew, and pretty soon, he had a whole set of his own disciples. Maybe this would be the one?! The Messiah, the new liberator of history!? But John was simply setting the stage for the real revelation of God, Jesus…
Let’s pick it back up at Verse 7:
“(John) proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
Oh, so wait, there's more beyond this baptism thing we're all doing?! And what do you mean you're not worthy? I mean, if you're not worthy, then I'm probably not worthy either, right?
You see, a lot of time when Christians approach this text, it's all about individual sin, what you're doing wrong in your life, how you have to say this particular prayer or do that certain thing to be accepted by God. You know how it goes! Sometimes we get so caught up in the minute specifics of theology and doctrine, mostly decided by White males in places of power, instead of the locus of oppression itself, that we miss the whole freakin' message!!
Pretty soon, that exciting new adventure you were on turns into a painful introspection of all the ways you're falling short. You might feel dirty, unworthy like you can't get anything right!!! You feel controlled instead of liberated. Well, that's not what John or Jesus was about! That's not what God is about!
Now, don't get me wrong, sin is very real, and so is the power of baptism. In fact, Pastor Jason has done some amazing sermons on baptism.But for our time here, to put it really simply, sin is just doing something wrong that has consequences. And sin is not JUST personal. It's corporate and systemic too. So the concept of baptism is a very powerful thing; it's a turning away from sin, a public confession, and commitment to a new way of being within a new community.
But baptism itself wasn't the new thing that John was making way for. Cause there were already Jewish religious sects, who practiced baptism, like the Essenes, who were the ascetic desert sect best known for creating the Dead Sea scrolls. They baptized for ritual purity and also had a baptism of repentance.[12]In fact, John was very familiar with their way of life and may have been part of their community.
John took it way further, creating a new beginning by claiming that the one who would come after him would not baptize with water... but with the Holy Spirit.[13]This was a new beginning! John had a MUCH bigger message beyond “your sin.”
So when John talks about Jesus and says, "I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals," there's something more significant going on here.
The word "worthy" in Greek is íkavóç, which means "not sufficient" or "not enough." Again, baptism wasn't new, but this concept of a Holy Spirit baptism was. So I don't think John is saying, "I'm not worthy…" in a self-deprecating way that we have to take on. No, I think John is saying, "Hey, yes! Be free of your sin, repent, get baptized, but that's just the start! It's not enough! What I'm doing is not sufficient. You have to do something with that freedom! The Holy Spirit is going to lead you now. The one who is coming is going to take this story much farther than I ever could!" The power of liberation is coming, and this is just the beginning.
You see, this baptism of repentance, the forgiveness of sin, always has a future thrust to it. There is always an aim from God beyond the sin itself. And that future aim born from forgiveness is not just for your sake, but also for the wider community and world at large. It’s a call towards a new beginning.
And this is what I really want you to hear: Just as John was called to prepare the way for something new, God's calling us to do the same. Advent is a reminder of the God call. God called humanity into a new way of living through Christ - foretold by prophets like Isaiah, cleared by John, revealed through Christ, and continued through us in God! We don't celebrate something that's already been done; we celebrate the continuation, the evolution of the God call through us. We're not simply celebrating the birth of Christ, but the rebirth of Christ every time we step into a God calling.
God is still working with the world as it is to guide it towards what it might be. And if we’re honest, it's not hard to see that this is NOT the world God envisions for us. Again, we're facing an apocalypse of sorts, and that's not an end time exaggeration; it's real. Our planets about to give out. Our country is more divided than ever. Racial inequality continues to gnaw at the fabric of our humanity. And a pandemic rages throughout our world.
To put it bluntly, we're in some deep crap! But weirdly, this is nothing new! Isaiah, John, and Jesus were all facing their own forms of oppression too. And when Jesus came on the scene, it was an incredibly unique time in history. Well, this moment now is also an incredibly unique time in our history!
Remember how I said it was 500 years from the Hebrew Bible to the start of John the Baptist clearing the way for Jesus? Well, there's a pattern here; every 500 years, the church goes through a revolution! In fact, Phyllis Tickle, author of The Great Emergence, famously made this connection. She saw this pattern so clearly! For instance, about five hundred years ago, we had the Protestant or Great Reformation. “Five hundred before that, you had the Great Schism, when the church divided between east and west.[14]Five hundred years earlier, you have Pope Gregory the Great, who helped bring the church out of the dark ages.”[15]Well, we are now in a new 500-year period, right now! We are being called into new beginnings. And this baptism of the Holy Spirit is calling us toward liberation.
And I think you sense that! I mean, Pastor Jason just led us through an incredible 2023 Mission Listening Process, where after hearing from many of you about the future of the church, it became so apparent that as a congregation, we're deeply concerned with the issues that the world is facing right now. You've indicated that we're ready to start addressing racism with new anti-racism programs, we're prepared to welcome diverse communities in fresh ways, and we're continuing to provide for our neighbors without homes.
When the pandemic hit, we got to work, completely changing our service and growing through online offerings like this. We adjusted with Sarah's Hope Pantry to make sure people could still get food. We listened to you and kept each other safe by not having in-person services.
When George Floyd breathed his last breath, we re-energized our Justice Works Team and joined with faith communities around the city to literally stop Oceanside from hiring the new police chief in unjust ways. Through our influence, they paused the hiring process completely, created a community survey that over a thousand people responded to when there would have been none, and decided to open up the search to candidates nationwide instead of picking from their own inner circle. We helped make that happen!
The power of Christ lives in us, and if we are to authentically carry out this call, itis clear that our faith must address the very real problems of our time. The church, the people of God, anyone who senses the spirit within them can create new beginnings!
And how do we get there? By trusting God and looking towards the needs of the world. By stepping into the wilderness without knowing the exact way. By getting real about our sins as individuals, communities, and nations at large. By tearing down the systems of oppression that keep our brothers and sisters bound. By following the flow of the spirit: paying attention to that tug, that hunch, that intuition, that light bulb moment - calling you forward to liberate and create more flourishing. By doing all of that, we continue to make the path clear for God’s reign on Earth.
This is what Jesus did; it's what John cleared the way for. And while we may be in a wilderness of sorts, it's also in this wilderness that we can hear God's call to begin again. Advent is a time of God's calling. And I don't know what God is calling you into this season, but something new can emerge through this community, if we step out together.
God is calling.
And it’s time to answer.
Bibliography:
“Global Inequality.” Inequality.org. Date accessed October 7, 2020. https://inequality.org/facts/global-inequality/
Kohler, Kaufmann, Krauss, Samuel. “Baptism.” Jewish Encyclopedia. Date accessed December 1, 2020. http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2456-baptism
Marcus, Joel. Mark 1-8: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary. The Anchor Bible. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2010. 27.
Newsom, Carol A., Ringe, Sharon H., and Lapsley, Jacqueline E., Women’s Bible Commentary, Third Edition : Revised and Updated. Vol. 3rd ed., twentieth anniversary ed. Louisville, Ky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2012. http://search.ebscohost.com.dtl.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk& AN=558296&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Powell, Mark Allan. Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey., Second Edition. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2018. Kindle
Reinsdorf, Dieter H.. "The Rich, the Poor, and the Law." HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological StudiesVol 60, No 1/2. October 2004. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v60i1/2.512.
Schleifer, Theodore.“Silicon Valley’s richest are getting richer just as the pandemic is getting worse.” Vox. Last modified July 21, 2020, https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/7/21/21332166/tech-billionaires-wealth-elon- musk-Steve-Ballmer-Jeff-Bezos-pandemic-covid
Sweeney, Marvin A.. Tanak, A Theological And Critical Introduction To The Jewish Bible. Minneapolis, Fortress Press. 7378-7382, Kindle.
Todd, Douglas. “Christianity undergoes revolution every 500 years. Including now!” Vancouver Sun. Date modified Dec. 7, 2020. https://vancouversun.com/news/staff-blogs/christianity-undergoes-revolution- every-500-years-including-now
[1]Mark Allan Powell, "Mark," in Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey., Second Edi (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2018), chapter 7, Kindle.
[2]Powell, Introducing the New Testament,chapter 7, Kindle.
[3]Carol A. Newsom, Sharon H. Ringe, and Jacqueline E. Lapsley, Women’s Bible Commentary, Third Edition : Revised and Updated. Vol. 3rd ed., twentieth anniversary ed., (Louisville, Ky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2012), http://search.ebscohost.com.dtl.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=558296&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
[4]Newsom, Ringe, and Lapsley, Women’s Bible Commentary.
[5]Marvin A. Sweeney, Tanak, A Theological And Critical Introduction To The Jewish Bible, (Minneapolis, Fortress Press.) 7378-7382, Kindle.
[6]Marvin A. Sweeney, Tanak, A Theological And Critical Introduction To The Jewish Bible, (Minneapolis, Fortress Press.) 7378-7382, Kindle.
[7]Dieter H. Reinsdorf, "The Rich, the Poor, and the Law." HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological StudiesVol 60, No 1/2 (October 2004): 330, https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v60i1/2.512.
[8]“Global Inequality,” Inequality.org, date accessed October 7, 2020, https://inequality.org/facts/global-inequality/
[9]Dieter H. Reinsdorf, "The Rich, the Poor, and the Law." HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological StudiesVol 60, No 1/2 (October 2004): 330, https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v60i1/2.512.
[10]“Global Inequality,” Inequality.org, date accessed October 7, 2020, https://inequality.org/facts/global-inequality
[11]Theodore Schleifer,“Silicon Valley’s richest are getting richer just as the pandemic is getting worse,” Vox, last modified July 21, 2020, https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/7/21/21332166/tech-billionaires-wealth-elon-musk-steve-ballmer-jeff-bezos-pandemic-covid.
[12]Kaufmann Kohler, Samuel Krauss, “Baptism,” Jewish Encyclopedia, date accessed December 1, 2020, http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2456-baptism
[13]Joel Marcus, Mark 1-8: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, The Anchor Bible, (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2010), 27.
[14]Douglas Todd, "Christianity undergoes revolution every 500 years. Including now!" Vancouver Sun, date modified Dec. 7, 2020, https://vancouversun.com/news/staff-blogs/christianity-undergoes-revolution-every-500-years-including-now
[15]Todd, “Christianity undergoes revolution.”