Ash Wednesday
Drama
Voices Of Repentance
Lenten Midweek Vespers
Worship Bulletin
Silent Procession Of The Cross
We Enter God's Presence
Hymn
"On Jordan's Bank The Baptist's Cry"
Invocation
P:
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C:
Amen.
The Psalm
Psalm 103:1, 6-12
P:
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
C:
The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
P:
He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:
C:
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;
P:
He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
C:
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
P:
As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us,
All:
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Hymn
"Speak, O Lord, Your Servant Listens"
Confession And Absolution
(The imposition of ashes is incorporated or not incorporated, according to local practices, following confession and just prior to absolution.)
We Hear God's Word
The First Lesson
Isaiah 40:3-8
"Make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God."
L:
This is the Word of the Lord.
C:
The Word of our God stands forever.
The Holy Gospel
Mark 1:1-11
"He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
P:
This is the gospel of the Lord. What is its fruit of repentance?
C:
Its fruit of repentance for me is to prepare the way for the Lord by acknowledging my sin.
Children's Sermon
Hymn
"O Living Bread From Heaven"
Sermon
"The Voice Of The Baptizer"
We Respond To God's Word In Faith
Nicene Creed
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. And the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church, I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Offering
Offering Voluntary
"O Dearest Jesus,
What Law Have You Broken?"
Prayer Of The Day
P:
Eternal God, your Word reminds us that we are grass that withers and flowers that fall. By your Spirit, incline our hearts to heed John the Baptist's call to repentance. Move us to embrace through faith, the one John directed us to, Jesus, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world. And thus, through our baptism enable us to bring forth abundant fruits of good works. In Jesus' name we pray.
C:
Amen.
Pastoral Prayers
Response
P:
Let us pray to the Lord.
C:
Lord have mercy.
Lord's Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
We Receive The Holy Sacrament
(Order Of Holy Communion follows local practice)
Distribution Hymns
"All Who Believe And Are Baptized"
"Chief Of Sinners Though I Be"
We Depart With God's Blessing
Benediction
P:
The voice of one calling in the wilderness,
C:
Prepare the way for the Lord.
P:
The Almighty and Merciful Lord, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve you.
All:
Amen.
Closing Hymn
"O God, My Faithful God"
Silent Recession Of The Cross
Ash Wednesday
Children's Sermon
And this was his message, "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
-- Mark 1:7-8
Items Needed: a pair of sandals
Welcome, children! It's good to see you here for this Ash Wednesday service. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. Lent is a time we think about what it means to be a holy child of God for whom Jesus died. Sometimes people put ashes on their foreheads as a way of saying they are sorry for their sins and to remind themselves that they need Jesus' forgiveness.
This Lenten season we are thinking about what it means to repent. When we repent we admit we have sinned and we turn away from our sins. But we don't just turn away from our sins. We also turn to Jesus in faith. John the Baptist's job was to call everyone to turn away from their sins, to be baptized and to believe in Jesus.
John the Baptist was a very good man. Jesus even said no one who has ever been born is greater than John. But even as great and good as John the Baptist was, he said of himself that he was not even worthy to untie Jesus' sandals. I brought my sandals to show you. (show children the sandals) I only wear them in the summer. When I wear them they get sweaty and smelly and covered with dust. Would you like to untie my stinky sandals and carry them? (let them answer) Why not? Yes, because they're dirty and smelly. No one but me will touch them.
But John the Baptist said he wasn't even worthy to do such a lowly job for Jesus. By that, he was telling everyone that Jesus was the most holy and most important person in the whole world, and John was just the lowest servant of Jesus. That's how a repentant Christian feels about himself and Jesus. That's how we feel, isn't it? Jesus is good and holy, and we are lowly and sinful. But the amazing thing is that Jesus loves us and considers us so important he came to die for us. He came to die for you and me to take away all our sins and make us holy! That makes us so happy and thankful we want to serve Jesus and do all he asks. We especially want to tell others about his love. Let's thank Jesus for his love, shall we?
Prayer
Jesus, no matter how hard I try, I can't be as holy as I should be. I'm like John the Baptist, unworthy to untie your sandals, but you love me anyway. You came to forgive me and make me holy by living and dying in my place. Thank you, that by faith you make me worthy to be your servant. In your name I pray. Amen.
Ash Wednesday
Isaiah 40:3-8
Mark 1:1-11
Sermon
The Voice Of The Baptizer
So, you want to hear about me, John the Baptist, do you? Actually, I'd much rather point you to Jesus. My life only has importance in relation to him. But if knowing more about me will help you hear better what I proclaim about him, then I suppose I could say a few things about myself. You must forgive me, though. I do feel very awkward about this, and I tell you these things very reluctantly. My parents, Zechariah and Elizabeth, the prophets Isaiah and Malachi, these are really whom you should turn to if you would learn more of me.
But as you wish. As with all people, I was in the gracious plan of God long before I was born. You see, all of history is proceeding toward a great end, the day of the Lord when Christ comes in power and glory to judge the world, purifying it with fire and bringing about the restoration of all things to the goodness God intended at first.
As that day approaches, you have a part to play in God's plan. Your part is to repent of sin, to acknowledge God's love and forgiveness that is yours in Christ, and to bring forth the fruits of faith in your life. In addition to that, my part is to prepare the way for Christ by calling you to repent, to be baptized, to live a life transformed by faith.
My calling was made known centuries ago through the prophets. Then as now, the people of God were often rebellious and unbelieving. Idolatry, materialism, the pursuit of pleasure, cruelty to the helpless, trusting in man rather than God; all these described Israel in years past. Through the prophets, God pleaded with his people to return to him and his ways that their lives would be long and happy in the land he had given them, but they refused. At long last, God had no choice but to humble them in their pride. Foreign soldiers destroyed Israel's cities and farms. Many were killed. The survivors were taken away to far-off lands.
In Babylon, they reflected on their sins, and cried out to God for help and mercy. He heard. He always does. Through Isaiah, he promised one who would prepare the way for the Lord who would come to lead his people home. "A voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind will see it' " (Isaiah 40:3-5).
In a limited way, those words were fulfilled when many of the Jews were allowed to return home after the Persians conquered the Babylonians. But a greater fulfillment remained. All mankind had yet to see the glory of the Lord. So my job is to proclaim the complete fulfillment of that promise in Jesus, the one who is the very glory of God, who came once as a servant and sacrificial lamb, but who comes again as king of all creation.
Though some of God's people returned to Israel, and many were humbled and brought to faith by their experience in Babylon, others quickly forgot and were just as faithless as their ancestors. The prophet Malachi had harsh words for the empty religious ritual of those who returned, whose lives showed how little they valued God's Word and goodness to them. They were offering blind and diseased animals as sacrifices. Worship was thought a burden. Lying and deceit characterized their relationship with neighbors. Divorce was rampant. Few bothered to give God the whole tithe they had promised him.
But soon, the days of their half-hearted love and service to God would be over. A day of accountability was coming. Through Malachi, the Lord warned, "See, I will send my messenger who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple ... But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire ... It will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire ... see, I will send you the prophet Elijah, before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes" (Malachi 3:1a, 2a; 4:1, 5).
Jesus has said of me that I am that promised coming of Elijah. Literally, of course, I am not Elijah, but in that my job is like his, calling people to repentance and faith, I am Elijah. That is partly why I dress and live as I do. Elijah and other prophets of God dressed in rough leather and hair clothing to set them apart from the worldliness they condemned. Fine clothing and fancy food don't convey a message that this world and its pleasures are passing away. But a life of simple tastes, a life of self-denial does. Thus, I dress as I do and eat what most despise, locusts and wild honey. Why accumulate wealth when all is destined for destruction by fire? This is what you are to remember when you stare at me and are tempted to laugh.
So here I am, a wild-looking man with a humorless message. But I have not always been this way. My childhood and youth were perhaps much like yours. In childhood, I wasn't reared in the poverty I later chose as an adult. We were as well off as anyone. Zechariah, my father, was a respected priest. He was serving in the temple when he learned from the angel that I would be born. My mother, Elizabeth, was an honored lady in the community. How the relatives and neighbors rejoiced when they learned I was born to childless parents!
Being born to an elderly couple had its advantages. I was an only child upon whom was lavished all the attention proud parents can give. I was well educated. As any Hebrew child, I learned to read and write in the synagogue. From my father I was trained in all the learning of the Levitical priesthood. Growing up I would sometimes visit my cousins with whom I played, including Jesus who was but six months younger than I. Though the hand of God was on both of us, our respective callings didn't preoccupy us as small boys. We played tag as any children, we made mud pies, we floated little boats in puddles after the spring rains.
It was when I became a young man that my thoughts turned to God's plan for me. As with countless men of God in every century, I left home and entered upon a life of contemplation, of study, of seclusion. Often, I had conversations with religious leaders; the powerful Sadducees who controlled the priesthood, the Pharisees who were the self-appointed guardians of the Law and public morality, and those who had fled this world for the isolation and self-denial of the desert, the Essenes.
There was something true and yet false about all of them. The Sadducees saw to it that worship was conducted according to the ancient rituals, that all was done properly, as was only right, yet many of them didn't even believe in a spiritual world. They were more than eager to compromise truth in order to maintain their political position.
Pharisees, on the other hand, were utterly committed to obeying the Law of God, every letter of it, including all the traditional interpretations. They tolerated not the slighted deviation from what they considered lawful. But though outwardly obedient and pious, they had no real love for God or neighbor. Some would tithe the smallest bit of spice, but would let their parents starve.
The Essenes who lived apart in the desert in the community of Qumran rejected all this hypocrisy. They sought to live lives of purest devotion to God, baptizing themselves frequently for spiritual cleansing, meditating on the scriptures, preparing for the coming day of the Lord. But how can one love God and neighbor in isolation? God does not call us to prepare for the coming of his Son by leaving the world but by living holy lives of faith and compassion in the world.
Yes, I live in the desert, I live simply, but I am no recluse. The kingdom of God that I proclaim is not a protected ritual, it is not a legalistic regimen, it is not the solitary life. It is a relationship with God demonstrated in one's relationship with others. It begins with faith and repentance and baptism. It is lived out each day as one bears the fruit of the Spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
And it is also something impossible for us to achieve on our own. We need a Savior. And it is the Savior whose way I have been sent to prepare. I think you probably already know a relationship with God and a worthy life in his kingdom are things out of reach, at least by our own efforts. We've all tried and failed. That's why you and so many others have come out to the desert to find me and hear my message, isn't it?
You've tried on your own to please God and you couldn't do it. Your particular sin may not be exactly the same as those addressed by Isaiah; you haven't literally made an idol and worshiped it. Your sin may not be one of those railed against by Malachi; it never occurred to you to bring a one-eyed sacrifice to God's house. Your sin may not be precisely the sin of those coming to me in the desert for baptism. You've never extorted money, and you're not a dishonest tax collector.
Your sins are different. Mine are different. Perhaps your sin is gossip, or disrespect of parents, or some sexual sin. Perhaps it's being uncharitable, or speaking unkindly. Only you know what it is that in your own strength you've been unable to free yourself of. But that's why God sent me, John the Baptist. He's sent me not only to call you to repentance, to call you to change your mind about sin and walk in a new direction, but to point you to one who comes to forgive you and cleanse you from your sins. That one is Jesus, proclaimed to be God's Son by the voice from heaven on the day I baptized him. That one is Jesus whom I proclaim to you today as the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." Let me make that more specific. That one is Jesus, the Lamb of God sacrificed for you, to take away your sin.
My message, I know, is full of the threats of God's Law. "... Flee from the coming wrath." "The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire" (Matthew 3:7b, 10). Yes, they are frightening words, and they are intended to frighten. But there is more to my message than fear. Mine is also a message of sweet gospel, of sweet good news. Even my name should tell you that. It is after all, "John," meaning, "God is gracious."
And that is what every repentant sinner, every baptized believer in Jesus finds God to be, gracious, more than willing to forgive and accept you. Repent! Believe in Jesus! Receive the forgiveness God brings you in baptism. And then through his Spirit, bring forth the fruit of faith for him.
You've come a long way into the desert to find me. Your feet are tired and sore. It will be a journey you'll always remember. But may it not be just a memory of a visit to a strange man in strange clothes who ate strange food. May it be the beginning of a new life with a new direction. May you come as a sinner to the river of God's grace. And may you go forth as God's basket overflowing with his fruit.
Prayer
Father in heaven, through your Word proclaimed by faithful John the Baptist, you call us to repentance. Help us trust in the Savior he directs us to, that we might have forgiveness and be ready for the day of his coming. And Lord, through your Spirit may our lives overflow with fruit that benefits others. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Silent Procession Of The Cross
We Enter God's Presence
Hymn
"On Jordan's Bank The Baptist's Cry"
Invocation
P:
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C:
Amen.
The Psalm
Psalm 103:1, 6-12
P:
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
C:
The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
P:
He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:
C:
The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;
P:
He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
C:
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
P:
As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us,
All:
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Hymn
"Speak, O Lord, Your Servant Listens"
Confession And Absolution
(The imposition of ashes is incorporated or not incorporated, according to local practices, following confession and just prior to absolution.)
We Hear God's Word
The First Lesson
Isaiah 40:3-8
"Make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God."
L:
This is the Word of the Lord.
C:
The Word of our God stands forever.
The Holy Gospel
Mark 1:1-11
"He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
P:
This is the gospel of the Lord. What is its fruit of repentance?
C:
Its fruit of repentance for me is to prepare the way for the Lord by acknowledging my sin.
Children's Sermon
Hymn
"O Living Bread From Heaven"
Sermon
"The Voice Of The Baptizer"
We Respond To God's Word In Faith
Nicene Creed
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. And the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church, I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Offering
Offering Voluntary
"O Dearest Jesus,
What Law Have You Broken?"
Prayer Of The Day
P:
Eternal God, your Word reminds us that we are grass that withers and flowers that fall. By your Spirit, incline our hearts to heed John the Baptist's call to repentance. Move us to embrace through faith, the one John directed us to, Jesus, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world. And thus, through our baptism enable us to bring forth abundant fruits of good works. In Jesus' name we pray.
C:
Amen.
Pastoral Prayers
Response
P:
Let us pray to the Lord.
C:
Lord have mercy.
Lord's Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
We Receive The Holy Sacrament
(Order Of Holy Communion follows local practice)
Distribution Hymns
"All Who Believe And Are Baptized"
"Chief Of Sinners Though I Be"
We Depart With God's Blessing
Benediction
P:
The voice of one calling in the wilderness,
C:
Prepare the way for the Lord.
P:
The Almighty and Merciful Lord, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve you.
All:
Amen.
Closing Hymn
"O God, My Faithful God"
Silent Recession Of The Cross
Ash Wednesday
Children's Sermon
And this was his message, "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
-- Mark 1:7-8
Items Needed: a pair of sandals
Welcome, children! It's good to see you here for this Ash Wednesday service. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. Lent is a time we think about what it means to be a holy child of God for whom Jesus died. Sometimes people put ashes on their foreheads as a way of saying they are sorry for their sins and to remind themselves that they need Jesus' forgiveness.
This Lenten season we are thinking about what it means to repent. When we repent we admit we have sinned and we turn away from our sins. But we don't just turn away from our sins. We also turn to Jesus in faith. John the Baptist's job was to call everyone to turn away from their sins, to be baptized and to believe in Jesus.
John the Baptist was a very good man. Jesus even said no one who has ever been born is greater than John. But even as great and good as John the Baptist was, he said of himself that he was not even worthy to untie Jesus' sandals. I brought my sandals to show you. (show children the sandals) I only wear them in the summer. When I wear them they get sweaty and smelly and covered with dust. Would you like to untie my stinky sandals and carry them? (let them answer) Why not? Yes, because they're dirty and smelly. No one but me will touch them.
But John the Baptist said he wasn't even worthy to do such a lowly job for Jesus. By that, he was telling everyone that Jesus was the most holy and most important person in the whole world, and John was just the lowest servant of Jesus. That's how a repentant Christian feels about himself and Jesus. That's how we feel, isn't it? Jesus is good and holy, and we are lowly and sinful. But the amazing thing is that Jesus loves us and considers us so important he came to die for us. He came to die for you and me to take away all our sins and make us holy! That makes us so happy and thankful we want to serve Jesus and do all he asks. We especially want to tell others about his love. Let's thank Jesus for his love, shall we?
Prayer
Jesus, no matter how hard I try, I can't be as holy as I should be. I'm like John the Baptist, unworthy to untie your sandals, but you love me anyway. You came to forgive me and make me holy by living and dying in my place. Thank you, that by faith you make me worthy to be your servant. In your name I pray. Amen.
Ash Wednesday
Isaiah 40:3-8
Mark 1:1-11
Sermon
The Voice Of The Baptizer
So, you want to hear about me, John the Baptist, do you? Actually, I'd much rather point you to Jesus. My life only has importance in relation to him. But if knowing more about me will help you hear better what I proclaim about him, then I suppose I could say a few things about myself. You must forgive me, though. I do feel very awkward about this, and I tell you these things very reluctantly. My parents, Zechariah and Elizabeth, the prophets Isaiah and Malachi, these are really whom you should turn to if you would learn more of me.
But as you wish. As with all people, I was in the gracious plan of God long before I was born. You see, all of history is proceeding toward a great end, the day of the Lord when Christ comes in power and glory to judge the world, purifying it with fire and bringing about the restoration of all things to the goodness God intended at first.
As that day approaches, you have a part to play in God's plan. Your part is to repent of sin, to acknowledge God's love and forgiveness that is yours in Christ, and to bring forth the fruits of faith in your life. In addition to that, my part is to prepare the way for Christ by calling you to repent, to be baptized, to live a life transformed by faith.
My calling was made known centuries ago through the prophets. Then as now, the people of God were often rebellious and unbelieving. Idolatry, materialism, the pursuit of pleasure, cruelty to the helpless, trusting in man rather than God; all these described Israel in years past. Through the prophets, God pleaded with his people to return to him and his ways that their lives would be long and happy in the land he had given them, but they refused. At long last, God had no choice but to humble them in their pride. Foreign soldiers destroyed Israel's cities and farms. Many were killed. The survivors were taken away to far-off lands.
In Babylon, they reflected on their sins, and cried out to God for help and mercy. He heard. He always does. Through Isaiah, he promised one who would prepare the way for the Lord who would come to lead his people home. "A voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind will see it' " (Isaiah 40:3-5).
In a limited way, those words were fulfilled when many of the Jews were allowed to return home after the Persians conquered the Babylonians. But a greater fulfillment remained. All mankind had yet to see the glory of the Lord. So my job is to proclaim the complete fulfillment of that promise in Jesus, the one who is the very glory of God, who came once as a servant and sacrificial lamb, but who comes again as king of all creation.
Though some of God's people returned to Israel, and many were humbled and brought to faith by their experience in Babylon, others quickly forgot and were just as faithless as their ancestors. The prophet Malachi had harsh words for the empty religious ritual of those who returned, whose lives showed how little they valued God's Word and goodness to them. They were offering blind and diseased animals as sacrifices. Worship was thought a burden. Lying and deceit characterized their relationship with neighbors. Divorce was rampant. Few bothered to give God the whole tithe they had promised him.
But soon, the days of their half-hearted love and service to God would be over. A day of accountability was coming. Through Malachi, the Lord warned, "See, I will send my messenger who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple ... But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire ... It will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire ... see, I will send you the prophet Elijah, before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes" (Malachi 3:1a, 2a; 4:1, 5).
Jesus has said of me that I am that promised coming of Elijah. Literally, of course, I am not Elijah, but in that my job is like his, calling people to repentance and faith, I am Elijah. That is partly why I dress and live as I do. Elijah and other prophets of God dressed in rough leather and hair clothing to set them apart from the worldliness they condemned. Fine clothing and fancy food don't convey a message that this world and its pleasures are passing away. But a life of simple tastes, a life of self-denial does. Thus, I dress as I do and eat what most despise, locusts and wild honey. Why accumulate wealth when all is destined for destruction by fire? This is what you are to remember when you stare at me and are tempted to laugh.
So here I am, a wild-looking man with a humorless message. But I have not always been this way. My childhood and youth were perhaps much like yours. In childhood, I wasn't reared in the poverty I later chose as an adult. We were as well off as anyone. Zechariah, my father, was a respected priest. He was serving in the temple when he learned from the angel that I would be born. My mother, Elizabeth, was an honored lady in the community. How the relatives and neighbors rejoiced when they learned I was born to childless parents!
Being born to an elderly couple had its advantages. I was an only child upon whom was lavished all the attention proud parents can give. I was well educated. As any Hebrew child, I learned to read and write in the synagogue. From my father I was trained in all the learning of the Levitical priesthood. Growing up I would sometimes visit my cousins with whom I played, including Jesus who was but six months younger than I. Though the hand of God was on both of us, our respective callings didn't preoccupy us as small boys. We played tag as any children, we made mud pies, we floated little boats in puddles after the spring rains.
It was when I became a young man that my thoughts turned to God's plan for me. As with countless men of God in every century, I left home and entered upon a life of contemplation, of study, of seclusion. Often, I had conversations with religious leaders; the powerful Sadducees who controlled the priesthood, the Pharisees who were the self-appointed guardians of the Law and public morality, and those who had fled this world for the isolation and self-denial of the desert, the Essenes.
There was something true and yet false about all of them. The Sadducees saw to it that worship was conducted according to the ancient rituals, that all was done properly, as was only right, yet many of them didn't even believe in a spiritual world. They were more than eager to compromise truth in order to maintain their political position.
Pharisees, on the other hand, were utterly committed to obeying the Law of God, every letter of it, including all the traditional interpretations. They tolerated not the slighted deviation from what they considered lawful. But though outwardly obedient and pious, they had no real love for God or neighbor. Some would tithe the smallest bit of spice, but would let their parents starve.
The Essenes who lived apart in the desert in the community of Qumran rejected all this hypocrisy. They sought to live lives of purest devotion to God, baptizing themselves frequently for spiritual cleansing, meditating on the scriptures, preparing for the coming day of the Lord. But how can one love God and neighbor in isolation? God does not call us to prepare for the coming of his Son by leaving the world but by living holy lives of faith and compassion in the world.
Yes, I live in the desert, I live simply, but I am no recluse. The kingdom of God that I proclaim is not a protected ritual, it is not a legalistic regimen, it is not the solitary life. It is a relationship with God demonstrated in one's relationship with others. It begins with faith and repentance and baptism. It is lived out each day as one bears the fruit of the Spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
And it is also something impossible for us to achieve on our own. We need a Savior. And it is the Savior whose way I have been sent to prepare. I think you probably already know a relationship with God and a worthy life in his kingdom are things out of reach, at least by our own efforts. We've all tried and failed. That's why you and so many others have come out to the desert to find me and hear my message, isn't it?
You've tried on your own to please God and you couldn't do it. Your particular sin may not be exactly the same as those addressed by Isaiah; you haven't literally made an idol and worshiped it. Your sin may not be one of those railed against by Malachi; it never occurred to you to bring a one-eyed sacrifice to God's house. Your sin may not be precisely the sin of those coming to me in the desert for baptism. You've never extorted money, and you're not a dishonest tax collector.
Your sins are different. Mine are different. Perhaps your sin is gossip, or disrespect of parents, or some sexual sin. Perhaps it's being uncharitable, or speaking unkindly. Only you know what it is that in your own strength you've been unable to free yourself of. But that's why God sent me, John the Baptist. He's sent me not only to call you to repentance, to call you to change your mind about sin and walk in a new direction, but to point you to one who comes to forgive you and cleanse you from your sins. That one is Jesus, proclaimed to be God's Son by the voice from heaven on the day I baptized him. That one is Jesus whom I proclaim to you today as the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." Let me make that more specific. That one is Jesus, the Lamb of God sacrificed for you, to take away your sin.
My message, I know, is full of the threats of God's Law. "... Flee from the coming wrath." "The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire" (Matthew 3:7b, 10). Yes, they are frightening words, and they are intended to frighten. But there is more to my message than fear. Mine is also a message of sweet gospel, of sweet good news. Even my name should tell you that. It is after all, "John," meaning, "God is gracious."
And that is what every repentant sinner, every baptized believer in Jesus finds God to be, gracious, more than willing to forgive and accept you. Repent! Believe in Jesus! Receive the forgiveness God brings you in baptism. And then through his Spirit, bring forth the fruit of faith for him.
You've come a long way into the desert to find me. Your feet are tired and sore. It will be a journey you'll always remember. But may it not be just a memory of a visit to a strange man in strange clothes who ate strange food. May it be the beginning of a new life with a new direction. May you come as a sinner to the river of God's grace. And may you go forth as God's basket overflowing with his fruit.
Prayer
Father in heaven, through your Word proclaimed by faithful John the Baptist, you call us to repentance. Help us trust in the Savior he directs us to, that we might have forgiveness and be ready for the day of his coming. And Lord, through your Spirit may our lives overflow with fruit that benefits others. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
