Matthew 3:1-2, 4-8, 10 (NIV) 1 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 4 John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 10 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.
I Corinthians 11:27-29 (NIV) So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.
The prophets had been telling the same thing for centuries: the threat of destruction if the people of Israel did not turn away from the wrong they were doing. The message was as startling as it was compelling. This new message of John’s to repent was a call by one who looked like and spoke like one of the prophets of old. John called on the people to focus on the wrong they had done rather than on the wrong done to them. Repent was a call to basic moral responsibility. It meant courageously accepting the burden of blame. John spoke of the fire of catastrophe that would come to them very soon if they did not change their attitude and change their ways. And, John’s prophecy was fulfilled in 63 A.D. when Rome ordered the total destruction of Jerusalem. They laid the ax to the root of the tree and leveled the Holy City.
How do we account for John’s popularity and appeal to the people of Israel? It was not the novelty of his looks or his message. The prophets had been telling them the same thing for centuries. Nor was it purely the threat of destruction. Rather, it was the basic promise of hope, which meant they could be different and life could be different if they accepted responsibility for the wrong they had done.
Today, we continue to answer John’s call. We do not have to wage war for it, we do not have to escape to the desert for it, we do not have to spend tedious hours learning the law for it or have education, or wealth, or power for it. We need only be morally responsible for our life. We hear Paul echo John’s words: Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. Change your attitude, focus on the wrong you have done and change your ways and your life can be significantly better.
From a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope February 28, 1993
© Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell Broyles
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