Sunday 5 December, 2021

Reflection:  "Preparing the Way"

Malachi 3:1-4

Luke 1:68-79

Luke 3:1-6

Philippians 1:3-11

As any experienced military patrol leader will tell you – you really need to send a scout ahead before entering new and unknown territory.

In Exodus 23:20, we read that God sent an angel to prepare the way. The angel went ahead of the people of Israel to guard them along their journey out of Egypt and to bring them to the place that God had prepared for them.
Even Moses sent out scouts from Horeb into the land of the Amorites to determine which route they should take to get to the promised land.

Therefore, it shouldn’t come as any surprise when we hear from today’s reading in Malachi, that the Lord tells the people he will send a messenger to prepare the way before the messiah comes.
The Israelites probably thought that it sounded like a good deal when they heard that their messiah was finally coming.   
After all, they’d been waiting for a long time for him to come and save them from the oppression that they’d been suffering for so many centuries.
 
But there’s actually a sting in the words Malachi spoke, because the Israelites hadn’t exactly been on their best behaviour after their return from exile in Babylon.
Despite the good work done by Nehemiah to get them back into their religious ways, they’d fallen back into old habits - such as not keeping the Sabbath, not bringing tithes and offerings to the temple, marrying outside of their faith, etc.
 
The Lord sent a messenger, Malachi, to get the people to see the errors of their ways.
Instead of the good news that the people were looking for, the words Malachi brought were about a refining and cleansing of their lives, in preparation for the Lord’s coming.
 
Have you ever seen a smelter – super-heating and melting the metal to such a temperature that the dross (or yucky stuff) floats to the surface and can be skimmed off?
Similarly, when you put dirty clothes into a washing tub with soap and agitate the water, it will free the muck from the material and allow it to float to the surface.  
The message from God was that the people needed to examine their practices and get rid of the yucky bits before they could bring their offerings to the Lord at the temple.
 
We do something like that regularly - in our prayers of confession.
That’s the time when we bring out all the parts of our lives we’d prefer to keep hidden and ask the Lord to refine us and cleanse us of our sins.
The good thing is, that, unlike metal refiners and commercial cleaners, we don’t have to worry about those nasty bits polluting the earth and the sky.
Like a super-efficient extraction system, God removes the impurities by forgiving their sins.
 
Not unlike Malachi, John the Baptiser lived at a time when the culture around him was being corrupted, corroded and contaminated - as indeed it still is today.
His culture was infected with problems that polluted the cultural waters that he drank and the cultural air that he breathed. 

John, who was the cousin of Jesus, came to the people and shouted at them:  “Come out to the wilderness; come into the desert; and cleanse yourself of the sin which is deep within you.  May your inner cup be washed clean.  May your inner heart be purified in order to prepare for the Christ who is to come and live inside of you.
Prepare.  May your heart be prepared to receive the Christ.”
 
Note that John didn’t offer them salvation, or forgiveness for their sins. That was something that only Jesus could offer, but John readied the people to receive Jesus into their hearts.
 
Luke begins the third chapter of his Gospel with a list of earthly rulers from Rome to the synagogue in Jerusalem, but aside from providing a chronological framework allowing us to work out that the ministry of John was in the years 25–26, this roster also contrasts the limited timeframe of the earthly rulers, compared to Christ’s never-ending impact.
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Every earthly ruler wants to be remembered for his contributions to civilization, but Jesus irrevocably modified society by changing humanity’s relationship with God.
 
Many of the people who came out to hear him, thought that John, himself, was the messiah whom they’d been waiting for, because he preached with such authority from God.
 
A bit like a herald, proclaiming the arrival of a king, John was preparing the hearts and minds of those who went out into the desert to hear his message.
The quote from Isaiah 40:3-5 epitomises John’s prophetic role and the demands of God upon humankind.
The call to make “paths straight” and “rough ways smooth” describes preparations that would have been made for a royal visit.
Before a king travelled to distant lands, roads and bridges were improved for the journey.
Likewise, the beginning of Christ’s ministry on earth required major improvements to be made in lives that were in poor condition.
Thus, the townsfolk wandered into the desert to hear a strange man in a hair shirt, who ate locusts and wild honey, but who had a strong message.
 
There is something very intriguing about the desert. It is a place of introspection and self-reflection.
Without the distractions and pressures of city life, one becomes more sensitive to the voice of God.
Unfortunately, some people have to journey to a barren land before they hear God’s call.
Only when they are alone and totally dependent upon God will these people stop to listen to his callings.
And with no place to hide, they must confront God’s demand upon their lives.
 
Lynne and I have made quite a few trips to deserts like the Tanami, north-west of Alice Springs and the Simpson, west of Birdsville.
Many of our friends have commented “Why would you want to go there? There’s nothing to see.”
On the contrary, the scenery changes every 20 or 30 k’s and if the landscape doesn’t overawe you, the variety of animals and insects will amaze you.
God is certainly present in those places and the thing that gets you most is the utter stillness and the vast number of stars that are visible to the naked eye.
 
What a great God we have and how amazing he seems when we take the time to just sit and absorb his grandeur. That’s what we need to do to listen to God – because he speaks in the stillness, not the roaring wind.
 
Now I’m not trying to tell you that you’ll only hear or see God in the deserts.
God is everywhere. You just have to look a little harder to find him in the noisy places.
 
So here we are, in the second week of Advent – preparing to celebrate the birth of Jesus - his first coming to earth.
But I believe that it’s also our job to prepare the way for the second coming of Jesus.
As Christians, this is our calling and nothing speaks louder than acts of love and compassion, giving ourselves to others through prayer, our time and gifts of money.
 
As the time for Christmas gift-giving approaches, how will we ensure that our gifts reflect the promises of God – promises of love, peace & joy for all?
 
I’d like you to give that some thought in the weeks ahead as we get closer to that special time of Christmas.
Maybe it’s with a thoughtful gift from the Everything in Common catalogue, or maybe it’s by donating some of your time to help those less fortunate than yourselves.
 
Whatever it is, make sure you remember that God is with you and will multiply your efforts to share his love for his people.
 
God’s richest blessings on you all at this time of year……..Pastor Rick