Advent 2 C

Malachi 3:1-4, Luke 1:68-79, Philippians 1:3-11, Luke 3:1-6

“Where do we look for God today?” That’s the first question that my preacher’s instinct told me to ask (if there is such a thing as Preacher’s Instinct). But then, I thought maybe I should take a step back, without assuming anything and ask first:

Are we looking for God today?

More and more people than ever before in our country’s history are choosing not to participate in any church. And lots of folks who are in churches seem to be just going through the motions…maybe no longer expecting to see any kind of sign of God. It might be tempting to assume that we aren’t looking for God.

But then life happens…there are natural disasters, there are mass shootings, there is personal loss…and we find ourselves, some of us who are religious and some who are not…we find ourselves looking for God.

I think lots of folks are still looking for God…just maybe not at church. But still, desperately looking.

This is the kind of looking that I imagine the people in the Gospel were doing. Looking for God during a time of uncertainty and crisis. Looking for God during a time of violence; looking for God who promised to be with the people of Israel, yet the temple had been destroyed once before, and it was about to be destroyed again.

And in that time, as the Gospel tells us, the time of Emperor Tiberius, in the time of local political leaders, in the time of high priest religious leaders, the Word of the Lord — the power and presence of God — did come…but it came to John the Baptist in the wilderness.

That was unexpected.

In that particular time, and that particular place, the Word of God showed up not among the most powerful rulers, but to John the Baptist, a strange person who was an outsider in every sense of the word, preaching what he believed…outside, out there, in the wilderness.

He had an outsider’s message, too. Certainly no one in charge wanted to hear about a ‘baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.’ You might think that forgiveness of sins doesn’t sound like such a bad thing…but believing in it means accepting that you need forgiveness for sins. Which you may not want to admit.

John the Baptist is also quoting from the book of Isaiah. It’s a beautiful piece of poetry — particularly if you like the music from Godspell:

“‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God” (Luke 3.4–6 NRSV)

Although beautiful, this scripture becomes more challenging when you realize that it’s not just talking about the crooked paths and rough ways ‘out there.’ But also the valleys and dark places of your own hearts.

It was challenging then, and it’s challenging now. God’s Word is coming to the hills and the valleys. To the weak and the strong. For the religious-looking folks and the not-so-religious-looking folks. And no one has a monopoly on God’s Word.

I’ve become very skeptical whenever I hear someone (or hear myself) say, “those people need God.” Or, “if those people would just act more like Christians, that would make things better.” Or, “if we really want to solve this problem in our country, those people just need to do this better.”

Those statements all assume that I have the Word of God, and the people that frustrate me don’t.

But, think of the characters who are a part of this Good News story…from the religious leaders, to the political leaders, to the regular folks, to the faithful folks…some of them cooperate better than others, but all are surprised and caught off-guard by God’s actions. Even John the Baptist, playing the role he was called to do, did not fully understand the amazing thing that God was doing by sending the Word to come live among us, to suffer with us, to die with us, and to give us new life.

That was unexpected, and somehow, it still is.

As we wait for the Word to be revealed to us in new ways…where do we expect to find it?

And where do we know, for sure, that we can find it? After all, God is not always mysterious or impossible to understand…in fact, God has promised us to be present in particular places:

• “Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” When I need God, I need to gather with others in God’s name and then God will be there…but…so will those other people.
• Jesus promises to really be present when we gather around the table and share bread and wine in his name…but we don’t get to say who’s allowed at that table. And Jesus is always inviting others…
• We are promised the saving presence and forgiveness of Christ in our baptism…but that baptism is a call to become a new creation.

When we look for God in these places, God will be there. But on God’s terms, not ours. Indeed, God promises to answer our call, to send the Word, to be found, to be present…but God also reserves the right to not do it in the way we expect, God reserves the right to leave the door open for strangers, too, and to transform us in the process.

As Christians, we share this story about a God who does a new thing. And for the sake of our lives, and for the world around us, we hope and pray that God does do a new thing. God knows we need it.

And though it may surprise us, and though it may come unexpectedly…God has chosen us to be a part of that new thing. To be agents of that new thing in this world.

God’s Word is challenging. It calls us to admit our failings and our need for God. But then it empowers us to proclaim the Good News in Christ, that began before the world was formed, has already been at work in our lives, and the lives of others, and promises a peace that we can find nowhere else.

The truth is that whether or not you are looking for God, God’s Word is looking for you. It will not leave you alone. It will not let you stay the same. It will change you. It will give you life.