Luke 3: 7-18
I have a friend.
And the friend has a T-shirt.
And the T-shirt has a slogan.
And the slogan says:
Jesus is coming!
Look busy!
Well, there are lots of jokes about looking busy. It sounds like something you might see in a Dilbert cartoon. And there are lots of jokes about Jesus coming. I imagine you can think of a couple yourself. Jokes that poke fun at all the crazies out there who have a warped kind of religion, people who are constantly in a tizzy expecting the return of Christ. These are the kind of people who have the bumper stickers that say, "When the rapture occurs, this car will be driverless." There may be someone in the room who doesn't know what the rapture is. All I can say to you is, don't ask. Be thankful you don't know.
But this is Advent, and Advent is a time when even Disciples of Christ have to talk about Jesus coming. Jesus is coming, whether as a conquering king or as a baby in a manger, or as someone we would never expect, I don't know. But he is coming. How do we prepare for him to come?
Do we prepare by decorating trees, wrapping presents, baking sugar cookies?
Do we prepare by charging out into the traffic, cruising the malls, looking for Beanie Babies?
Do we prepare by playing our old Christmas CD's, going to a Messiah concert, planning a big dinner at Grandma's house?
Do we prepare by adding family devotions to our already busy schedule, dropping a coin into the Salvation Army bucket, making plans to come to the Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion service?
How do we prepare for Christ to come? This is the question the crowd asked John the Baptist. "You tell us to prepare the way of the Lord. How should we do it?" And John tells them:
- He said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages."
It's no wonder people think John is weird; it's no wonder people think John is a fanatic. His lifestyle makes Theodore Kazinski look civilized, and his message is completely unacceptable. In fact his message doesn't fit the lifestyle: he never asks anyone else to eat insects!
The people of John's day hate tax collectors. But does John tell these fellows to quit their jobs? No, he only tells them not to cheat. The people of John's day hate soldiers, but does John tell these fellows to quit their jobs? No he only tells them not to misuse their power.
What is John's fanatical message? Share with others less fortunate than you. Do your job with honor and dignity and justice. And Luke calls this proclaiming the good news!
Throughout the last thousand years prophets have arisen who announced that the end of history was at hand, the Messiah was about to come back, the rapture was soon to take place, or that UFO's were parked behind the moon, waiting to take us to heaven's gate. And typically these prophets and the poor fools who believed them, quit their jobs, sold their farms, and gathered into groups to sing and pray and fast and wait for the end to come.
But what would John say to these folks? Don't quit your jobs. Don't turn yourselves into charity cases. Instead continue doing your jobs with honesty and justice. Work to end all need for charity.
But most of us aren't tempted to do really crazy things. So how do we translate this message into one that answers your problems and questions and mine? How do we take John's good news and make it good news for us? How do we prepare for Christ to come? How do we get ready for Christmas?
Well, in the first place, it seems that John is talking about long term preparation, not quick emergency measures. Advent is much longer than the month of December, it lasts for twelve months each year, it takes a lifetime. Advent seems to be about doing our jobs and serving our neighbors. So it is something we have to build into our behaviors for the long haul. We can't wait to start our Advent preparation after the Macy's parade is over. Advent has to be a way of life.
Then John is telling us that Christmas is not a family holiday, it is a job-related holiday. Most of our Advent preparation needs to be done at the place where we earn our living. Christmas doesn't occur in kitchens smelling of cinnamon and living rooms with fireplaces and church sanctuaries with wreaths and candles. Christmas has to come in factories and skyscrapers and strip malls and the big offices filled with cubicles, or it won't come at all. Christ isn't going to slide down your chimney. He's more likely to arrive in your voice mail. Christ doesn't drive a sleigh, but maybe he does drive the UPS truck. Christ isn't inviting the shepherds to come and wonder, but maybe he's inviting the Magi to pay their employees' health insurance.
And finally we prepare for Christmas, we get ready for Christ to come, by living out equality. Not talking about equality, not voting for equality, but practicing equality, by giving away our riches so that everyone has food to eat and a coat to wear and a place to sleep, and access to education and health care. Don't stop dropping money in the Salvation Army bucket, but realize that you can do more. Don't stop adopting families through the Boys and Girls Club, but realize that you can do more.
The retailers are expecting every American to spend $700 on Christmas this year. What if instead we spent $350 on ourselves and the other $350 on strangers? What if we spent as much on the Union Gospel Mission as we spend on our spouse? What if we gave as much to the Ballard Food Bank and the North End Emergency Fund as we give to our grandchildren? What if we gave a meaningful bundle to our BMF Christmas Offering? What is John telling us to do to prepare for Christ to come? He is telling us to adopt a life-long Advent life-style. He is telling us to do our jobs with honesty and justice. He is telling us to share with the poor. That's how we prepare the way! That's how we get ready for Christmas!
An Internet correspondent, Eric Folkerth, told us "the story of Danny and his boss. Danny was a member of [Eric's] church several years ago. He worked for a large communications companyŠ, and would always talk about his ruthless, uncaring boss. She was a real workaholic. She worked too much herself, and she demanded it of her underlings too. She had no outside interests besides work, and no family in town to speak of. She hardly ever gave out praise. She was hardly ever 'pleased' by anything anyone in the office did.
"One Christmas, Danny's boss made no bones about dropping hints around the office about the things she wanted. But Danny listened to none of her suggestions. Instead, his gift to her was a small card. And when she opened that card at the staff Christmas party, what was written inside was this: 'For your present this year, a donation has been made in your name to 'Trinity Ministries to the Poor."'
"As Danny told the story, there was a slight pause as she read the card. And then, his boss did something he had never seen her do before or since. She cried."
I think Danny was a fellow who lived Advent all year long. He carried it into his work place. He shared with those less fortunate. He changed people's attitudes. That's how we prepare the way.
I admit to loving the Dilbert cartoons of Scott Adams. Dilbert exposes everything wrong about the American office. But what if we brought Advent to work? What if we lived out a life-long commitment to honor and dignity and justice and equality? Maybe we could put Scott Adams out of work. I suspect, if we could do that, he would be the first one to be pleased!
Jesus is coming. Don't bother to look busy. But instead be busy, doing your duty.
(Comments to Don at crestnch@televar.com.)
Creston Christian Church, Creston, Washington, USA