Jesu Juva

“The Joy of Christmas Is the Gift of Forgiveness”

Text: Mark 1:1-8; Isaiah 40:1-11; 2 Peter 3:8-14

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

How appropriate to have a baptism today! The Second Sunday of Advent, when John the Baptist always makes his appearance. John, who was baptizing in the wilderness. Who was proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And who was pointing forward to the one coming after him, the greater and mightier one. All the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, and little Silas has taken his place among them. Though he was not baptized by John, but by Jesus Himself. Jesus, using the hands and voice of a pastor sent to do this in His stead and by His command, but it was Jesus who baptized little Silas, and not just with water, but with the Holy Spirit. So Silas is now a child of God. He will be raised by you, Destry and Ashley, but he is a child God has now made His own.

John was the one who came to prepare the way for this. Because this is why the Son of God came into our world; this is exactly why: to make lost and condemned sinners His own. His own children. Children with hope and a future. Hope and a future beyond this meager existence so fraught with sin and death. Destry and Ashley, you will try your best to raise Silas well and provide for all his needs, as all you parents here today do as well. But all that you can do is give him hope and a future for a time - for a time that will end in death. But Jesus has now given him what you never could: the hope of a life that will never end. A life that will extend beyond the grave that once tried to shut Jesus in, but couldn’t! In Jesus, it will not be able to hold Silas either. Though he die, yet shall he live (John 11:25), when Jesus calls His child out of the grave to life.

So Destry and Ashley, you have done your most important job as parents thus far: you have brought Silas to Jesus, just as those parents did in Jesus’ day, as we heard in the baptismal liturgy, when Jesus said: Let the little children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God (Mark 10:14). To Silas, today, belongs the kingdom of God! This is why baptism is such a joyous event in the life of the church, and why satan hates it so. He lost another one. The cover of the bulletin today shows a John the Baptist who looks like a mad man! But I’m not so sure. Sure he was a bit unusual; he dressed funny and ate funny. Sure he was a preacher of repentance, which means calling out people’s sin. But he got to do all that baptizing! Which is great and joyous! And he knew this, too: that the promised Messiah was on the scene. That all he was doing was for this greater work: the Lamb of God who was coming to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Who was coming to fill baptism with His Spirit and His blood. Who was coming to do what John never could: save a world fraught with sin and death, and raise it to life again.

John was simply preparing the way for Him. When He came, when Jesus came, He would increase and John would decrease (John 3:30). That long, boney finger of John was to point people to Jesus.

He came in the wilderness, Mark tells us. Or in the desert, fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah. The wilderness, which exemplifies the domain of satan. A place where life is hard, not easy. A place where food is scarce, not abundant. A place of struggle against the elements and beasts. A place of not good, where criminals roamed. A place fraught with sin and death. The wilderness is where Jesus Himself went to do battle with satan. In other words, the wilderness is enemy territory, where satan has the home field advantage. So John, and later Jesus, are like an invading army. An invading army of one.

But the wilderness doesn’t have to be a place in the middle of nowhere . . . If you listened to how I described the wilderness just a moment ago, I could have been talking about here and now. Life is hard for many today. Fully stocked grocery store shelves do no good for the guy on the corner who cannot afford to buy anything there. We struggle against the destructive force of the elements and men roaming the streets acting like animals. New ways of scamming and swindling people are being invented everyday. Our world is still fraught with sin and death. This is the domain of satan, who, just as in the beginning, wants to take everything that God created good, and make it not good.

So John didn’t go to the Temple, but into the wilderness, the heart of enemy territory, to do battle with the enemy and plunder him. His weapon was the Word of God. So John preached. But he didn’t preach against the enemy without, against satan - that would be too easy. And too easy for the people to ignore. All would agree that satan is bad! We would, too. And that doesn’t do us any good. So instead, John preached against the enemy within - the sin and pride and selfishness that lives in each of us. He preached for the people to repent - not of the sin of others and not of the sin of satan, but of their own sin. Their own sin that was making this world and their lives a wilderness fraught with sin and death.

And you and me, too. Why is the world the way it is? It’s Hamas! It’s Putin. It’s the scammers and swindlers. It’s Republicans! It’s Democrats! It’s the rioters and looters. It’s the deadbeat dads. It’s the greedy pigs on Wall Street. It’s because our government isn’t spending enough. It’s because our government is spending too much! It’s him It’s her. Stop! John would say. Stop. It’s you. You who walk past the homeless. You who don’t feed the hungry. You who have more than you need and yet think you don’t have enough. You who forget to pray. You who fail to love. You who, yes, hate others. You who bemoan the sins of others and continue with your own. It’s you. That’s the message of John to call you to repentance. That’s the message satan doesn’t want you to hear so that you won’t bother to repent or even think you need to. Satan wants to keep you comfortable and at ease and pleasure yourself to death. John wants you to be uncomfortable and to realize: I need help. I am a poor, miserable sinner. To not only say it, but know it, and mean it.

Then you are prepared for the Lord. The Lord who came for the forgiveness of sin. Then you hear those words: as a called and ordained servant of the Word . . . in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins . . . You hear those words as the life-giving words they are; as healing medicine for your wounded soul. You who have been mortally wounded on the battlefield, who lay dying and without hope, until your Saviour comes into enemy territory to rescue you. And who, when He did, was attacked Himself. Who laid down His life to save yours. And you know: here is one who loves me unlike any other. Who would do this for me.

And the people heard, and repented, and were baptized. To live a new life. Just as little Silas today. For satan is an equal opportunity killer. He wants all of you dead, no matter how old, no matter how young, now and forever. And so Jesus came as the Saviour of all. The Saviour who wants all of you alive, no matter how old, no matter how young, now and forever. So still He is coming onto the battlefield, here, at the font, and here, in the pulpit, and here, in the chancel, and here, on the altar, to rescue you and save you, to give you forgiveness, to give you life. The new life He won for you in His death and resurrection. A new life for you to live here in the wilderness of this world.

This is the comfort Isaiah wants you to hear and have. Encouragement, when it is so easy to get discouraged. That you know that while the battle rages around us and in us, the warfare is over, and we know who won. That you know that the iniquity, the guilt, of your sin has been pardoned, forgiven. And the Lord is blessing you with even more - double for all your sin. Which is not a reason to sin more! But to give thanks to the God who is so gracious and merciful and abundantly generous to the likes of us.

And when you know that, the holiday we’re all getting ready for . . . what is it? . . . what is it called? . . . oh, yes, Christmas! When you know that, Christmas is different. For it’s not just about who is in that manger, the very Son of God, but what came from that manger: the Lamb of God, to take away the sin of the world. Of every single person in the world. Even yours. Especially yours. And today, especially Silas’.

Now in the Epistle we heard today, from Peter, he’s writing to the baptized in Rome, those like us, not waiting for the first coming of Jesus, but for His second coming, When this old creation is going to come to an end, and there will be a new creation, a rebirth of creation, a new heavens and a new earth. Knowing this, he says, that our life is not here in this old world that is passing away, but in the new creation . . . knowing this, he says, how ought we to live? Shall we cling to the things of this world and hang on for dear life? Of course not. That doesn’t make sense. Rather, he says, live lives of holiness and godliness. Clinging to Christ and the gifts He gives that make us holy. For this, Silas (and we!) was baptized. For this, we confessed our sin and cling to the words of absolution. And for this, we will come and receive the Body and Blood of Christ and cling to Him and His words and promises. And as we do, whether Jesus takes a long time to return or comes today or tomorrow, we will be ready, prepared. The work that John began, continuing still today, and until Jesus comes again.

And thus clinging to Christ and not the things of this world, maybe, just maybe, we won’t walk so fast past those in need. We’ll start loving a little more and hating a little less. We’ll share the bounty we have received, including the bounty of forgiveness! and we’ll ask forgiveness a little more. And we’ll see others in a new way. Through the eyes of the infant in the manger. Like maybe John did. And in our lives and in our words, give them Jesus. And with Jesus, the hope and the future they need.

In the Name of the Father, and of the (+) Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Now the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.