The Message, December 10, 2023: "A New Way," Mark 1:1-8

Author: Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
December 12, 2023

 

“A New Way”
A Message by Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
Mark 1:1-8

            Last Sunday we lit the Candle of Hope and we heard from a desperate people. We heard from people that had been attacked and defeated by the Assyrians and had been hauled off into exile. We heard from a people that believed that God had used the Assyrians to punish them, or even worse … had abandoned them altogether. They called out for the Presence of God, “Let the light of your face shine upon us! Restore us, O God.”

            This morning, we fast forward seven hundred years and we encounter people that were still desperate. The Assyrians had been replaced by the Romans. They had not been hauled off into exile. Rather, they had been occupied in their own homeland.

            Adding to their desperation was the fact that there had been no word from the prophets for three hundred years. Once again, the voice of God had gone silent. We can imagine that some of the people were thinking of the words of the ancient psalmist, they may have even uttered the same words, “Where are you, God? Have you forgotten us? Have you forsaken us?”

            Into their darkness and desperation, a voice did appear. A voice emerged from the wilderness. The voice belonged to a wild looking man that reminded the people of the Prophet Elijah. That man spoke with passion and with power. The desperate, darkness-dwelling people flocked to him.

            That man, John, was offering something new. He spoke of a new way, a new life, a new relationship with God. His message had a magnetism that spoke to the desire of the people, and they began following him.

            John emerged from the wilderness, just as the Prophet Isaiah foretold. He lived in a place far from the comforts of the city. He lived in a desert area that the people referred to as “The Devastation.” He had lived in isolation. He lived in a manner in which he could hear and experience the Voice of God.

            He emerged onto the scene, and he was his own message. He lived simply. His clothing and diet were simple, basic. He did not trouble over what he would wear or what he would eat. But even more, he offered a message for the people that was genuine. John was not putting on an act. He did not retire to a fancy home with comfortable clothing at the end of a long day of preaching.

            He was humble. He asked nothing for himself. He did not collect a “Temple” tax or sell sacrificial animals before he delivered his message.

            John offered them something very different than what they had experienced in Jerusalem. In him the people heard the authentic voice of God.

            The people of the day were familiar with the practice of ritual purification. They were also familiar with the practice of baptism. BUT … baptism was something that the Gentiles did when they converted to the faith of Israel. John’s baptism was different. John’s baptism was for all people, Gentile and Jew. John offered a baptism of repentance.

            John spoke to a truth that the people knew but would not, or could not, admit. Every person that came to the river knew that there was sin in their heart. Every person knew that there was something that they wished they could hide from their neighbors, and even more, hide from God. And John told them that it was that “something” that was getting in the way of their relationships with God.

            John asked those who came to the river to look inside their hearts and to be honest with themselves. The word for “repentance” in Greek means “to change one’s mind.” Behind it was the Hebrew verb “to turn around” or “to turn back,” that is ‘to change one’s heart, will and conduct.’ The word is related to the act of confessing one’s sins. Confession is an act of humility. Confession moves us from a place of pride, or perhaps even arrogance, and brings us to a place where we can ask for forgiveness … grace.

            John was asking the people to participate in the same ritual act that they required of the Gentiles. Examine their hearts and see their stumbling blocks, what was separating them from God … and then remove them … turn away from them.  Free from those burdens they could then turn toward God.

            The message resonated with the people. The promise of the new way spoke to their desperate hearts, and as we heard they flocked to them. But then in the midst of their enthusiasm and passion, John said, “Wait! This is not about me. This is about him. The One who is coming is greater than I am. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize with the Holy Spirit!”

            John knew that his baptism was the beginning. He knew that the passion of the moment could wear off. He knew that sin was still lurking, and speaking, and working on the people’s hearts. That was why the faithful practiced ritual purification every day. Because they knew that their bodies would be defiled every day. Baptism by the Holy Spirit would speak to the people’s heart in a much more powerful way.

            Baptism by water was intended to be, but was not necessarily, something that lasted forever. Baptism by the Holy Spirit affected a more permanent change in the relationship between the person and God. It was not necessarily concerned with past behavior, but rather looked forward to future holiness and righteousness. One who is baptized with the Holy Spirit enters into a whole new relationship with God.

            John emerged from the wilderness to prepare the way for that more powerful Way.

            Little did the people know that that Greater One was already among them. Little did they know that his arrival was near.

            But we do. We know that as John spoke those words that day, the Greater One was likely walking through the Judean countryside. He was already on His way.

            Today we lit the Candle of Peace. As we look at the world around us, as we see the devastation and destruction, the hopelessness and despair, we know that there is hope. We know that there is Good News. We know that God is here. We know that God is in the smoldering rubble. We know that God is in the ashes. God spoke through the Prophet Isaiah, “When you are at your lowest, I am there with you. When you are beaten and broken, I am there. In the darkest depths … I am there.”

            Those promises are our Peace.

            As we light the candles today, we proclaim to the world that God is not done. We proclaim that Jesus Christ is not done. And as we hear the words of John once more, we also realize that we are not yet what, or who, God calls us to be. We are not done either.

            The power of Christmas is bigger than we ever imagined it could be. The gospel … the Good News … is just beginning. Amen.

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