WHAT IF JOHN THE BAPTIST WAS THE LAST WORD nd

A Sermon by Rev. Marcus Felde, Ph.D., pastor of Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Indianapolis, Indiana

WHAT IF JOHN THE BAPTIST WAS “THE LAST WORD”?

A Sermon for the 2nd Sunday of Advent, December 8, 2013
Text: Matthew 3:1-12

Christmas is coming. Soon.

While we wait, we wonder. What if Jesus had not come? What if there was no Christmas?
Because, then there would be no Epiphany, no Lent, no Good Friday, no Easter, no Pentecost.
In short, no church. No Sunday.

While we wait, we wonder.

What if John the Baptist was the last word?

Well, I don’t want to offend any John-the-Baptist fans. But neither do I want anybody to think
that he and Jesus were similar. I think it’s impossible to overstate how different they were.
Even though John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus and pointed people in his direction
and even sent some of his own disciples Jesus’ way, John the Baptist did not understand Jesus.
Even when he was lying in prison, just before he was executed, he was confused. He sent some
disciples to ask whether Jesus was really the one, or whether they should wait for another.
Jesus let him know not to look for another. I think that was fine with John.

But now, let me explain how different things would be if John the Baptist had turned out to be
the last word from God. Again, I’m not saying that John was not from God. Just that the gospel
is not about John the Baptist, good as he was. Even Jesus said, among those born of woman
there is nobody greater than John. But he quickly followed up by saying that whoever was least
in the kingdom of heaven—and I wonder if he wasn’t looking at a five-year-old girl when he said
this—was greater than John.

So, there was quite a distance. While we wait for Christmas, wait for Jesus, let’s ask: What if
John the Baptist had been the last word? What if Advent never ended?

We could begin anywhere. But let’s begin with baptism, since John was big on that. The ritual
of the baptism service would have been much shorter. It would go something like this: “Are
you really sorry? Truly? Are you going to stop what you’re doing? All right.” And then he
would have baptized you. You would not have received a candle after it, as though you had
received the one who was the light of the world. A candle, to symbolize your participation in
the light of life. And you wouldn’t have worn a white baptismal gown. More likely, sackcloth to
prove to John that you were really, really sorry. Because what you would be receiving was the
baptism of repentance. Full stop.

Bethlehem Lutheran Church, 526 E 52nd St, Indianapolis IN 46205

A Sermon by Rev. Marcus Felde, Ph.D., pastor of Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Indianapolis, Indiana

What else might be different?

Sermons. The preacher would not be a “pastor” or shepherd. He would be a “wild man” in the
tradition of John himself. He or she would call out things like “Repent!” And not just about
grammatical slip-ups like saying “between he and the other person,” although you should
repent if you do that. No, just about everything you do, the preacher would decry. And warn
you, for the umpteenth time, not to do that any more, but to be sincere and good. His
criticisms would be valid, to be sure. He would be absolutely right. The best your preacher
could do would be to promise that the kingdom of heaven would come some day. But no, even
that sounds like a threat, coming from John.

What else?

The church would not meet in beautiful sanctuaries. And not at pretty vacation destinations,
either. Instead, you would have to drive to, let’s say, South Dakota. The Badlands. That is
probably where you would find today’s John the Baptist protégés. The desert would serve as
an excellent backdrop to the proclamation of the disturbing message that all flesh has gone
astray and nobody is holy, no, not one. Your surroundings would illustrate what was wrong in
your heart.

What else?

The church year, if there was one, would be pretty monotonous. Instead of a nice progression
of anticipation leading up to a joyful Christmastide, followed by expository Epiphany and
dolorous Lent, then giddy Easter and joyous Pentecost, then weeks of celebrating the life we
have in Christ; instead of all that, the church year would be a monotonous recollection of our
sins, culminating in regular times for making new-year’s-type resolutions. Maybe ten seasons,
one for each of the commandments, during which we would recall how we violate that, and
when we finished the ten we could start all over? The year would be all preparation and no
celebration, as though Advent never ended and we just kept lighting more and more candles
and wishing and hoping and praying that somebody would come and alleviate our woe.

What else?

Songs! “Kyrie, eleison” would be every Sunday’s “hymn of the day”: “Lord, have mercy.” And
we would favor the chorale “Day of Wrath.” Some Old Testament canticles. But I would miss
the happiness of the rest of the hymnal, which celebrates what Jesus Christ has done for us and
promises to do in us by his Holy Spirit! The hymnal would have three sections: “Angry,” “Sad,”
and “Lugubrious.” We would sing to impress on one another and on God how sorry, very sorry,
we are for our sinfulness, our lack of faith, our lack of love, our hypocrisy. There might be a
section of pedagogical hymns in which we could sing about how we’re going to obey the rules

Bethlehem Lutheran Church, 526 E 52nd St, Indianapolis IN 46205

A Sermon by Rev. Marcus Felde, Ph.D., pastor of Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Indianapolis, Indiana

John laid down for each of us according to our station in life, like “We will be satisfied with our
wages,” and “we will be much kinder to everyone else.” That doesn’t make for really great
hymnody, however, even when it is saying what is good to do. The most popular hymns would
be “Amazing Threat.” “Blessed Be the Rule that Binds.” “A Mighty Prison Is our God.” “How
Right Thou Art.”

Let me say again that I am not actually mocking John. I am just trying to hold up to you that
there are grave consequences for the church if we lose sight of the fact that the gospel of Jesus
Christ is a promise of joy and peace and salvation which gives sight to the blind, water to the
thirsty, life to those entombed by death, and the forgiveness of sins for everybody who was
frightened by the message of John the Baptist.

Yes, there are similarities between the two. Their moms were cousins. They were both put to
death, after giving themselves for us. But John fasted, and Jesus feasted. John corrected, and
Jesus healed. John said to no one, ever, “Come unto me and I will give you rest.” Jesus came to
trump the message of John the Baptist, the message of repentance, the very important
message about repentance . . . with the gospel of forgiveness. So that we could start our
worship services with a brief order for confession (which John would have approved) and
forgiveness (which Jesus instituted!)

I think I am going to have to continue this next week. There is not really time to praise Jesus for
his difference. Next week is when we will hear Jesus sending his report to John the Baptist to
explain the difference:

"Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers
are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to
them."

That was not what John expected of Jesus, when he said that the axe was laid to the root of the
tree.

So, look forward to Christmas. Be aware that, although we are just as bad as John said we are,
we are not waiting to be chopped down at Christmas but to be raised up. Rejoice that we are
not gathered for locusts and wild honey. Bless the (to quote the second reading) the God of
hope. And “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.” Amen.

Bethlehem Lutheran Church, 526 E 52nd St, Indianapolis IN 46205