Advent is Upon Us
From Mark 1:1-8: The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, "See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way; the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: "Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,' " John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, "The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
In spite of my sinfulness, in several of my churches, some children knew me as Jesus. This was funny, but scary at the same time. I remember being in the grocery store and hearing children using their "whispers voice" to tell their parents, "There's Jesus!" I would smile and wave. It was also funny for Nellie, who taught a Sunday school class of little ones, and as they concluded the lesson, she asked them to clean the room. One little boy looked out the window and said, "Jesus is coming! Hurry up! Get Ready!" She wondered what he meant and then I walked in to greet the kids and she knew that he was referring to me.
Mark is saying basically the same thing in this passage from his gospel. He quotes the prophet Isaiah and refers to the Advent of a "messenger" who would prepare the way of the coming Messiah, and compares his role as a "voice crying in the wilderness." The job of those who heard this cry were to hear it and get ready. In Mark's gospel he shares how this took place in the person and purpose of John the Baptist. His simple, but hard-hitting message was to repent. It was a needed message because many were those who lined up to confess their sins and to be baptized in water seeking forgiveness of those sins. And his message continued, There is one coming who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to untie, who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.
The trappings of the season are already all around us, and as one preacher said yesterday, "Give them a season for the reason!" And it is true. Many have never truly heard what Christmas is all about. Advent is the time of year we can remind them. The important message for believers is not the greeting we use during this time that matters, it is the Person of Jesus Who matters. Keep Christ in Christmas say the bumper stickers. We should say, Keep Christ in Your Heart and Your Life; Live a life that says Jesus is Lord!
PRAYER: Come, once again, Lord Jesus, into my heart, my mind, my soul, my home, my work, my play. Let me live in a way that truly does give a season for the reason. This I pray in Thy holy name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
