Loving God of all places and things, bless and protect this dear reader in all that they may face today; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Our text for today comes from Matthew 12: 1 While Jesus was living in the Galilean hills, John, called "the Baptizer," was preaching in the desert country of Judea. 2 His message was simple and austere, like his desert surroundings: "Change your life. God's kingdom is here." 3 John and his message were authorized by Isaiah's prophecy: Thunder in the desert! Prepare for God's arrival! Make the road smooth and straight! 4 John dressed in a camel-hair habit tied at the waist by a leather strap. He lived on a diet of locusts and wild field honey. 5 People poured out of Jerusalem, Judea, and the Jordanian countryside to hear and see him in action. 6 There at the Jordan River those who came to confess their sins were baptized into a changed life. 7 When John realized that a lot of Pharisees and Sadducees were showing up for a baptismal experience because it was becoming the popular thing to do, he exploded: "Brood of snakes! What do you think you're doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to make any difference? 8 It's your life that must change, not your skin! 9 And don't think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as father. Being a descendant of Abraham is neither here nor there. Descendants of Abraham are a dime a dozen. 10 What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it's deadwood, it goes on the fire. 11 "I'm baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. The real action comes next: The main character in this drama - compared to him I'm a mere stagehand - will ignite the kingdom life within you, a fire within you, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. 12 He's going to clean house - make a clean sweep of your lives. He'll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he'll put out with the trash to be burned." (The Message)
Whew! It matters not the version, John's anger is clearly visible in all of them, and well it should be. The coming of the Lord for John was not something he took lightly. It was an urgent matter and one that required a completely new being inside of each person, and the place to start was to ask God to remove sin from within. So, John offered baptism, an unheard of ritual for Jews! The Jews thought that by birth they were born clean and chosen; John knew better and tells them so. And as they heard this message many truly presented themselves for a washing away of sins, fresh and old. Yet, some saw it simply as the thing to do and in line they stood to receive this, among them Pharisees and Sadducees. Had they been there to truly repent I don't believe John would have turned them away, but he knew their hearts and challenges them and us; baptism is a sacred thing that does remove our sin from within, not just the putting of water on our skins. To prepare for the coming of Christ we must be completely new in all aspects of our lives; anything less is as John says, "deadwood, (which will go) on the fire." (v. 10).
The arrival of Jesus means we can ask and receive for a "kingdom life" to come within us, setting us on fire for service and work in God's Kingdom. His coming meant a complete transformation of the person and just a ritualistic presentation of "the thing to do."
Our day today should reflect that new kingdom life that is ours in all things we say, think, or do.
PRAYER: Loving God, as I begin this Advent journey, make me completely new. Make my mind, my heart, my spirit, and yes, even my body new in all things. Help me to share that which You alone can do inside us. And begin by removing my sin from within. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.
Eradio Valverde
