Filled With Expectations
Stories
Lectionary Tales for the Pulpit
Series V, Cycle C
Object:
As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." (vv. 15-16)
In Daily Guideposts 1994 , Fay Angus claims to be a habitual pot-scraper and spoon-licker. Often when entertaining, she is so busy serving that she really doesn't get to enjoy the meal. So after her guests leave, she indulges in savoring the food by scraping the pots and licking the spoons as she packs up the leftovers.
After one such dinner, she sat down with a cup of tea and a pan of teriyaki chicken. With great expectation, she sunk the serving spoon into the sticky goop of sauce and popped it into her mouth.
Instead of the expected bliss, she was shocked at the taste. The food didn't taste like teriyaki chicken -- it tasted like chopped liver and kidney. She soon discovered that her husband, John, had used the spoon to scoop dog food out of a can.
As disgusting as it sounds, at least dog food is edible. At any rate, she didn't get what she expected.
Did you ever want something so bad, you could taste it? Figuratively speaking, of course. We all have expectations in life -- sometimes they get met and sometimes they don't. Sometimes we set expectations only to later discover that we were expecting the wrong thing.
Today's scripture from Luke tells us that after hearing John preach that "the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts ... whether he might be the Messiah." In very prophetic language, John set them straight and told them he was not the Messiah. John wasn't even good enough to be the Messiah's servant boy.
How interesting it is, though, that the people had such small expectations. Don't get me wrong. John had charisma. He was a good enough preacher to draw a crowd eighteen miles out into the wilderness. But is that enough for people to think he might be the Messiah?
It reminds me of the Monty Python movie The Life of Brian. The plot of the movie was that a man named Brian was believed to be the Messiah. He didn't claim the title, but the people were so desperate for a savior that they wanted him to be the Messiah. They kept following him around claiming his greatness even as he denied it. Brian didn't care for the attention he gathered from Roman soldiers. A telling point in the movie was when his newfound followers missed finding the true Messiah of Jesus because they keep pursuing Brian.
That's pretty much what was going on in today's scripture. John's followers were in danger of missing the true Messiah because their expectations were too low. John had his gifts in preaching and leadership, but is that all we expect from a Savior? These aren't bad gifts for a minister or a prophet, but shouldn't we have higher expectations for a Messiah?
Apparently it was enough for these people. Their expectations were met with John. But, as John told them, God had something better in mind. They needed to set higher expectations, and God would meet them.
I wonder how much are we like these people? Aren't we too often willing to settle for second best? If we honestly expected to encounter God here each Sunday, would we ever miss worship for any reason? Of course not! Maybe we settle for a nice service instead of expecting to come into God's holy presence.
And what about Christmas? Tell me, what are your expectations this year? We freely wish each other a "Merry Christmas." But what has to happen for you to be merry on December 25? Most would say that if we get a few days off, spend time with our families, get a desired gift, and have a feast it would be a merry Christmas.
But is that the extent of our expectations? If it is, it's like eating dog food instead of teriyaki chicken. It's like settling for John the Baptist or some schmo named Brian. They may be good guys, but God has something better in mind to make the holiday special. And we are in danger of missing God's gift when we have limited expectations for Christmas.
(Daily Guideposts 1994 [Carmel, New York: Guideposts Associates, 1994], p. 31)
In Daily Guideposts 1994 , Fay Angus claims to be a habitual pot-scraper and spoon-licker. Often when entertaining, she is so busy serving that she really doesn't get to enjoy the meal. So after her guests leave, she indulges in savoring the food by scraping the pots and licking the spoons as she packs up the leftovers.
After one such dinner, she sat down with a cup of tea and a pan of teriyaki chicken. With great expectation, she sunk the serving spoon into the sticky goop of sauce and popped it into her mouth.
Instead of the expected bliss, she was shocked at the taste. The food didn't taste like teriyaki chicken -- it tasted like chopped liver and kidney. She soon discovered that her husband, John, had used the spoon to scoop dog food out of a can.
As disgusting as it sounds, at least dog food is edible. At any rate, she didn't get what she expected.
Did you ever want something so bad, you could taste it? Figuratively speaking, of course. We all have expectations in life -- sometimes they get met and sometimes they don't. Sometimes we set expectations only to later discover that we were expecting the wrong thing.
Today's scripture from Luke tells us that after hearing John preach that "the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts ... whether he might be the Messiah." In very prophetic language, John set them straight and told them he was not the Messiah. John wasn't even good enough to be the Messiah's servant boy.
How interesting it is, though, that the people had such small expectations. Don't get me wrong. John had charisma. He was a good enough preacher to draw a crowd eighteen miles out into the wilderness. But is that enough for people to think he might be the Messiah?
It reminds me of the Monty Python movie The Life of Brian. The plot of the movie was that a man named Brian was believed to be the Messiah. He didn't claim the title, but the people were so desperate for a savior that they wanted him to be the Messiah. They kept following him around claiming his greatness even as he denied it. Brian didn't care for the attention he gathered from Roman soldiers. A telling point in the movie was when his newfound followers missed finding the true Messiah of Jesus because they keep pursuing Brian.
That's pretty much what was going on in today's scripture. John's followers were in danger of missing the true Messiah because their expectations were too low. John had his gifts in preaching and leadership, but is that all we expect from a Savior? These aren't bad gifts for a minister or a prophet, but shouldn't we have higher expectations for a Messiah?
Apparently it was enough for these people. Their expectations were met with John. But, as John told them, God had something better in mind. They needed to set higher expectations, and God would meet them.
I wonder how much are we like these people? Aren't we too often willing to settle for second best? If we honestly expected to encounter God here each Sunday, would we ever miss worship for any reason? Of course not! Maybe we settle for a nice service instead of expecting to come into God's holy presence.
And what about Christmas? Tell me, what are your expectations this year? We freely wish each other a "Merry Christmas." But what has to happen for you to be merry on December 25? Most would say that if we get a few days off, spend time with our families, get a desired gift, and have a feast it would be a merry Christmas.
But is that the extent of our expectations? If it is, it's like eating dog food instead of teriyaki chicken. It's like settling for John the Baptist or some schmo named Brian. They may be good guys, but God has something better in mind to make the holiday special. And we are in danger of missing God's gift when we have limited expectations for Christmas.
(Daily Guideposts 1994 [Carmel, New York: Guideposts Associates, 1994], p. 31)
