You can almost feel it – you can almost taste it – you can almost touch it. Christmas is in 2 weeks.
Whether the excitement is because you can’t wait to celebrate – or you’ve got some friends or family coming over that you haven’t seen in a while – or like me, you’ve got some time off. There is excitement. But what happens after Christmas is over? It’s back to normal – sort of. You step on the scales and realise how much you overindulged. You see the credit card statement and you realise how much it’s all cost and you wonder was it worth it. Did it meet your expectations? Did Jesus coming at Christmas meet the excitement? Do the benefits outweigh the costs.
That’s the question before John the Baptist today. Did Jesus’ coming match the excitement he had built up.
Did the cost of following Jesus outweigh the benefits? You know – the one coming after me that will baptize with fire. The one coming after me whose sandals I’m not worthy to tie. You know – the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Who is so important and exciting that “I must decrease so he may increase”.
But now – John is languishing in prison and he starts to reflect on what it’s cost him. Not his credit card – not his waistline – but his freedom.
And so, from jail, John sends some of his disciples to ask Jesus – “Are you the one who is to come, or should we wait for another? Why would John ask that? It’s because Jesus didn’t turn out to be all John expected him to be. John had become so bold believing Jesus would “have his back”. He called the Pharisees and Sadducees “you brood of vipers”. He seemed to insult Abraham – don’t think just because you’re Abraham’s children.
But he goes too far and criticizes Herod for marrying his brother’s wife. For that he finds himself in jail.
For John, Jesus was not following his expectations. John said that the chaff would burn with unquenchable fire. But Jesus didn’t seem to be pointing the finger of judgment against the evil doers. This was a disappointment for John sitting in prison, awaiting his own judgment instead of his enemy’s. Instead, Jesus is proclaiming forgiveness, healing the sick, bringing Good News to the poor.
Was this really what Jesus was supposed to be doing? Couldn’t anyone do that? Are you the one who is to come? Or should I hope for someone else? Sometimes Jesus said and did things that weren’t what people hoped for. Like riding into Jerusalem on a donkey instead of a chariot drawn by horses. Sometimes Jesus says and does things that aren’t what we hope for. Maybe at times we are tempted to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for someone else?” And, certainly, many have done just that- looked for someone or something else.
Each of us has expectations about the kind of Savior we want. Some want a judgmental Messiah who points out where everyone else is going wrong. To punish the evil doers and throw away the key – no chances. Some of us want Jesus to back our favorite cause, who will assure us that God is on our side on this issue. Or maybe we want a gentle shepherd who will not demand anything of us, but only assure us that he loves us.
Jesus will at times upset our expectations. But that’s when we have to trust the words of Jesus who said – “your will be done, not mine”.
John wondered if Jesus was really the one in whom he should hope. Maybe Jesus wasn’t exactly what John was expecting: He brought fire – but it was the fire of the Holy Spirit. He sought out sinners – but forgave them. He confronted the unworthy– but he confronted them with grace – like Zacchaeus – like the woman caught in adultery – like the Samaritan leper – like the demon possessed man called Legion – even an undeserving dog, the Canaanite woman begging for crumbs from his table. Grace upon grace.
John couldn’t see that grace for himself being locked away in his prison cell. And maybe, at times, it is hard for us to see God’s grace in our time of suffering. But it’s there. It’s always there. Paul struggled too with his thorn in the flesh – praying 3 times to have his suffering removed with the response from God: My grace is all you need – my grace is sufficient.
There will be times when we feel let down by God, like John the Baptist did. There will be times when we may feel like looking for another Saviour. But Jesus is the only one in whom we can put our hope. As Luke says in Acts 4:12 – there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved. As Jesus says in John 14 – I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Jesus is the one who was promised by God. But it’s the mystery of God we don’t always understand.
Jesus himself struggled with this when he cried out from the cross – My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? He was repeating the very words of King David – God’s most loyal subject who cried out words that John the Baptist could also have cried out: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish? My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, but I find no rest. Words that maybe you have cried out at times expecting more from God. But we heed the words of James today – Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.
Just as Christmas Day is near so too is the return of our Lord, as St Paul reminded us recently: Salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; So, friends, you don’t need to look for another. We need to trust and have patience. Patience in a God who does not want anyone to perish. Jesus is the one we have been waiting for – Jesus is the one we continue waiting for. And in the words of St Paul recently: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
