Advent III

By the Reverend Martha Frances

Year A, Advent 3

16 December 2007

 

Text: Matthew 11: 2-11

Other Readings:  Isaiah 35: 1-10; James 5: 7-10 ; Psalm 146: 4-9

 

        I am Miriam.   I have traveled a long way today with three other disciples to question this man Jesus.  Now I am weary & confused as to what to do next.   As I rest here, on the outskirts of the crowd who listens to Jesus, I'll tell you what I'm pondering.

        For quite a while now, I've been traveling with the man called John the Baptist.   I know, you must think that I'm some sort of kook, but a while back, I journeyed from my village out to the Jordan River valley to hear the strange man named John.  You've heard of him, haven't you?

We country folk have long wished for the better life about which the rabbis have read to us from Isaiah.   We Jewish people are so weak in comparison to the powerful Romans, & Isaiah set forth a glorious vision for us.  Perhaps you've heard it recently, too.   Isaiah promised that the wilderness will be glad, the desert shall rejoice & blossom abundantly, & that even the dry land will break forth with gladness & singing.   I know all about the desert, having tried to eke a living out of this wilderness all my life. 

Further, Isaiah told us that the Messiah shall come to strengthen us as the desert is transformed.  Wouldn't it be wonderful if the blind could once again see & the deaf hear & speak, if my friend Mara who was born lame could walk for the first time in her life?  

Then, we heard about this prophet John who came baptizing in the Jordan River & preaching, "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!"  My friend Rebecca told me she was going to hear this John the Baptizer, to see for herself what message he had.  When she & her husband Mark invited me to go with them, I only took a minute to pack a bundle & head off.   What hope John offered us!  He told us that, if we admit our sins & turn away from them to lead a new life, the Isaiah's promises as well as those of the psalms we sing in our synagogue services will come true.   Who wouldn't want we oppressed ones to have justice & those who are hungry to have enough food?  I was swept up in the excitement of such promises so, when Rebecca & Mark offered themselves for baptism, I did also.   John's baptism was awesome!  I really did feel the sins of my whole life washing away as that river water poured from my body back into the Jordan .

Ever since, we have traveled with John & helped others envision the possibilities of new life.   All along, John has said another, greater one will come after him—that he is only a messenger preparing the way for another.  We couldn't believe that anyone could be greater than our precious John.   However, recently, Herod Antipas has imprisoned John, & his followers are having a hard time figuring out what to do.  We are allowed to visit John, who continues to preach to us, but times are hard, & his message seems so far-fetched now.   As we sit around the campfire, we've wondered about this one whom John says will come after him.  Could it be true?   Some have told us of the work of this Jesus of Nazareth.  I saw him only once, when John baptized him.  He seemed no different from others, but then, a strange peace & quiet came over him when he was baptized.   Was the glow which surrounded his coming up out of the water just my imagination?

At any rate, John has seemed pretty discouraged lately.   I guess that's what prison does to you.  Yesterday, John sent Mark & his friend Joshua to question Jesus, so Rebecca & I decided to tag along too.   We found the rabbi Jesus here in the countryside teaching his many disciples.  What a spirit of joy is present in this crowd of people!   They stay together & help each other.  Such a cooperative bunch!  Mark & Joshua finally get up close enough to ask, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?

Jesus doesn't answer our question directly.   Instead, he tells us to go & tell John what we have seen & heard.  Whew, what a lot we've witnessed in the short time we've been here.   When I watch Jesus minister, I'm reminded both of Isaiah & of a psalm we often sing.  In just one day, we saw a blind man who can now see & a man who had lain on a rug for years get up & walk—actually, he leapt for joy as he went on his way.   It's one thing to see folks who were deaf who can now hear, but when Jesus touches lepers, they are healed.  Why, Jesus even brought a little dead girl back to life this evening!   In addition to those healings I've seen with my own eyes, it is clear that all these folks who don't have a dracma to their names now live in hope when they see Jesus in action.   What is it about this Jesus that makes everyone say he is the Messiah?

Of course, we were taught that the Messiah would come with an army, with vengeance, & clear out all the Romans so we could have abundant life again.   I don't ever remember abundance myself; my family has always been poor as far as I know.  But my grandmother used to talk about Palestine as a land of milk & honey, a promised land where everyone had enough.   Do we dare to believe that this man Jesus can bring such a time again, even without an army?

He really got to me when he asked what we went out in the wilderness to look at.   We've seen reeds blow in the breeze before so we certainly wouldn't have traveled to see that.  And we despise those in Herod's house who wear soft robes & Herod himself who has imprisoned John.   No, we traveled to listen to John, a man in camel's skin who goes barefoot & eats a strange diet.  We've believed he was a prophet.   This Jesus truly talks in riddles for he tells us that John is a prophet, a messenger   preparing the way for the Messiah.  Jesus says John the Baptist is the greatest prophet yet also that, in the Kingdom of Heaven, even the common folk will be greater than John.  How curious!

Joshua & Mark & Rebecca have returned to report to John now, but I feel compelled to stay to hear what more this Jesus has to say.   This afternoon, I sat beside Andrew whom I've known all my life.  He was one of John's disciples once, yet he now follows Jesus.   In fact, Andrew told me that he has just returned from a preaching mission that Jesus sent his closest disciples on.  Old Andrew, who was always kind of quiet & shy compared to his boisterous brother Simon, told me that even he had actually been able to cure some folks in Jesus' name.  Just at the time when I felt like hope was lost now that John is in prison, I meet Jesus, & now, I must wait & see.   I'll listen to his words, stay close to my friend Andrew, & see if this Jesus can cure me of these doubts.  I must be patient, Andrew says.   My people have waited for generations.  I will try to be patient.  Will you wait with me?