Gaudete, gaudete Christos est natus
Ex Maria virginae, gaudete.
Gaudete, gaudete Christos est natus
Ex Maria virginae, gaudete.
Welcome to Gaudete Sunday, to Rejoice Sunday, to Advent 3. To John the Baptist. John was sent from God. He was a miracle baby. The Angel Gabriel went to Zechariah, when Zech was on the Rota for Church cleaning.
So if ever you think about joining a rota you should grab at it, there is precedence for meeting angels this way. And Gabriel tells Zech that he and his wife Elizabeth are to have a baby and John will bring back many people to the Lord, and he will be filled with the spirit and power of Elijah.
Ok wow.
John was sent from God and given this amazing vocation. I find it interesting to note that the angel says that John will have the power of Elijah, but we never read of any miracles attributed to John. Maybe the power was in the preaching.
John is quite hard to relate to. He’s hairy. He’s a bit scary. He eats locusts.
He has quite a unique role in being the last of the OT prophets, in being The One who prepares the way for the Messiah. (Pre-e-e-pare ye the way of the Lord! And all that – see last week for more details).
But – I am coming to the But –
And you have to ask if John was lying or what? Because he’s asked a number of times ‘Are you the messiah’, are you Elijah, are you The Prophet (which is really the same way as asking if you’re the Elijah).
It was always understood – with thanks to the prophet Malachi – last book in our OT – that before the Messiah came, the prophet Elijah would come to prepare the way. So, you can see why people might be asking the question.
John says No No No and No.
Jesus on the other hand says Yes. If you are willing to accept it, He is the Elijah who is to come. And Elijah has already come – meaning – John was the promised Elijah. But John says No No and No.
So maybe John doesn’t think he is the Elijah, maybe.
OR Maybe he is, like Jesus, not keen on the wrong sort of publicity.
Note that the people asking the question are not asking it because it will help them in their spiritual journey as they seek to live life in the light of God’s love.
They’re asking at best out of academic curiosity and at worst because they have some paperwork to be filling in – tell us what to say to the important people who sent us here. On a scale of 1-5 would you say You are the Elijah, or that you’re like the Elijah, or only slightly like the Elijah or what?
So I think that John does the right thing in not answering their question but instead keeping the focus on who he is pointing to.
And that’s where we can relate to John. Our job is to point people towards Jesus, to the light.
We might not be on the locust and honey diet – but actually You and I – we are sent from God.
God made you, called you, sent you, equips you, empowers you.
You are a gift from God to us.
The second shortest sermon I ever heard (I will tell you about the shortest sermon another time) was this: You are God’s gift to me. And. God help you. I am God’s gift to you.
Brilliant.
And its true.
You are God’s gift to me. And I. God help you. I am God’s gift to you.
God is glad that you’re here this morning.
God is glad that you’re tuning in on YouTube.
God is glad that you’re part of this Church Family and helping in the big and small ways that you do.
Thank you.
John was sent by God.
And you, you have been sent by God.
John’s job is actually the same as ours. It is simply to witness to, to testify concerning the light.
I told you last week about my conversion.
I was reminded earlier by someone else – she said she walked in here and just felt at home!
Another said to me how she came in and someone listened to her, deeply listened for 40mins, and then about a year later she came and made this her home. Another said to me how she’d been going – (why are all these anecdotes women – some of you men come and tell me your story!) – and they, husband and wife – they were in another church and when I was about 20 – I don’t remember this – I went with them to that church and I just said ‘This is awful, the vicar doesn’t know what he believes! You need to find another church’.
And she thought ‘What do you know you’re only 20’. And then she told me how one Easter Day the vicar said Today we celebrate the resurrection, if you believe that sort of thing.
And the light went on for her and she said ‘Yes I do believe the resurrection. I need to find a church where the vicar also believes in the resurrection!’
What then is your story? How have you come to receive Jesus, to receive the Light?
Shortly we’ll come to the question How are you keeping topped up with that light?
So. You and I. We are sent by God.
We are God’s gifts to each other.
And our job is simply to testify concerning that light. It is to be aware of the Light in our lives, to share that light, to point others to the light that we have found in Jesus Christ.
Okay. So HOW. How do we do this. Saint Paul wrote that first reading: Rejoice always. Pray continually. Give thanks in all circumstances.
That sounds great. But its also not easy.
Look at John the Baptist and see how that worked out for him. He ended up in prison and from prison he found life hard – okay not life but faith, John found faith hard.
Its hard when you’re an activist and suddenly you have to be passive, made to just sit there, unable to have a voice.
He struggled with doubt – Are you the one or should we expect another.
John knew that Jesus was the One – he pointed at Jesus and said Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Its doesn’t get clearer than that!
Maybe John is reaching out for some encouragement and comfort. So Jesus – doesn’t rescue him – but sends him encouraging news – “The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor”.
We struggle, even John struggled, so take comfort when you are struggling and wondering what God is playing at!
Look at St Paul. He ended up in prison. He took up a letter writing ministry. I suspect that if you asked him would he rather have a letter writing ministry or to have been free to wander about preaching the gospel – he would have said Free! But you and I might say Actually we’re rather glad for all these letters.
God calls us to give thanks in all circumstances and when you’re in some of those circumstances that just seems ridiculous.
But pray that perhaps there will come a time when you will see that some good came from that.
Corrie Ten Boom tells the story of Fleas being in her barracks at Ravensbrook Concentration camp and her sister urging her to give thanks to God in all circumstances, even to give thanks to God for these fleas.
That’s obviously a ridiculous idea.
Yet oddly because of the fleas the guards didn’t enter their barracks, they were kept safe from assault, they were free to have bible studies.
Gosh its hard but I wonder if this is why St Paul urges us to be Thankful, to pray continually, to give thanks in all circumstances.
This praying continually sounds weird if for you praying is something that can only be done with shut eyes or inside a Church building – but St Paul is calling us to a different way of praying where we are constantly aware that God cares, that God listens,
and so we are continually sending up little Thank you prayers, little Help me prayers, throughout the day.
I wonder if the reason why St Paul wrote his advice – to rejoice always to pray continually to give thanks in all circumstances – is because Paul knew that it would be hard but that it would be good for us. If it was obvious and easy perhaps he wouldn’t have written it.
But if we are to point people to Jesus then we need some of that Light inside of us. We need each other, we need to come together in worship and prayer and support. And that means living the disciplined life that chooses to Rejoice always, that prays continually, that gives thanks in all circumstances.
That’s not easy, so Help me Lord to do that! Help me to fully trust in you, to know that you love me, that you’re holding me in the middle of this mess, the darkness of this prison – Help me Lord.
So we learn to give thanks for the little answered prayers, for the little acts of kindness that we see, and we take them and pray – Thank you Lord, and More Lord, more of your Kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.
Gaudete Sunday is a good day to give thanks for the likes of John. For those who have pointed us to the Light, to Jesus. For those who continue to encourage our faith.
And to remember that God is calling us to be like John, to point people to Jesus. We each have a vocation. Yours might not be to baptise people or to preach. But we are all sent by God.
Remember:
You are God’s gift to me. And. God help you. I am God’s gift to you. Amen // .