Sermon: Dec 11, 2022
Reading: Matthew 11:2-11
Jesus turns to the crowd and speaks to them about John. He says that John is the greatest of prophets. And that He has played an important and pivotal role by proclaiming the coming of God’s kingdom. But even John, who fulfilled this incredible role underestimated the magnitude of God’s kingdom. John expected Jesus to bring fire, to seek out sinners and the unrighteous delivering the judgment they deserved. Jesus did just that, but not how John expected.
The judgment Jesus brought was tempered by God’s incredible mercy. God desires to be in relationship with his entire creation. He does this through love, not punishment or rejection. Only Jesus lived without blemish, and he came to redeem all people, to forgive all people, and to love all people equally as children of God; and that’s not done with an axe, a winnowing fork, or by casting people into an unquenchable fire. It is done by showing unimaginable mercy and love that is so beautiful that people are drawn to God’s exquisite light.
Jesus came to those who were deemed by society and by Jewish religious leaders as sinful and unworthy and showed them mercy. Jesus does this still today in our world by offering to those who are marginalized and oppressed God’s love. Love is a verb; it requires action. As children of God and disciples of Jesus Christ it is up to us to continue his mission of demonstrating what the love of God looks like by treating every human being with mercy, respect, and dignity. That means sharing God’s love with people that may not look as we do, think as we do, worship as we do, or live as we do. Sometimes, that may rub against our expectations.
Locked away in his dark prison cell, John couldn’t see what the Messiah was doing, but through his disciples, he received a beautiful vision of mercy and compassion that the Messiah shares with the world by bringing the fire of the Holy Spirit which fills people’s hearts with the light of God’s exquisite love. A Messiah that seeks out sinners and forgives us, restoring us to wholeness with God. A Messiah who searches for the lost and unrighteous, showing us mercy and what it is like to experience God’s healing grace. It may not have been the Messiah John expected; it may not be the Messiah we expect, but it is certainly the Messiah we need, and it is certainly the Messiah the world needs.
