Words of Love
2…during the high-priesthood of Annas and
Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 He
went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance
for the forgiveness of sins.
Luke 3: 2-3 NIV
Overcoming the Barrier
Yesterday we looked at the possibility that someone could
have such a low opinion of their spiritual life that he or she might not even
set out on a Lenten journey. They shrug and declare that they just aren’t
“spiritual” enough to follow Jesus from the Judean wilderness to Jerusalem and,
thus, just aren’t fit for the journey. My prayer is that you were convinced to
reconsider that position based upon the reality that much of Jesus’ own
preparation was simply growing up like most people do, balancing a life of
work, play, and worship. Today, I want to slide over to the other end of
continuum and consider how we might think that because of our family church
tradition, our own current participation in church, our general goodness as a
person, or other contributing factors that we feel like we have no need for the
journey. That particular barrier to the deeper life can be hard to see. Think
of it as an ‘I’m okay – you’re okay” spirituality. Enter John the Baptist. He may
have been Jesus’ warm-up act, but John the Baptist was serious and his routine
was intense. In this season of political waffling and flip-flopping John the
Baptist’s unequivocal call to repentance stands in sharp relief. And his main
audience was the people of Israel, the regular churchgoers, the folks with the
righteousness of God practically in their DNA. And the bull’s-eye of that
target audience were the leaders of the faithful. (Don’t think that doesn’t weight
heavily on this preacher.) He called them a “brood of vipers,” which in that
religious culture was worse than calling a Vol fan a Gator or an Alabama fan a
War Eagle. He accused them of leaning on their Jewish lineage as their ticket
to righteousness yet living as though they never heard of the God of their
ancestors. His message was to repent of their sins and get ready to follow
Jesus.
That’s the message I hear in my own spirit. I am under no
illusion that just because I’m a preacher means wherever I wander is
automatically following Jesus. I am painfully aware of my stumbling journey and
misguided side trips. In fact, as I have settled into my new role at the church
I have a heightened awareness of my need to follow Jesus more closely. That’s one
of reasons I’m writing these devotions, which I am approaching as a spiritual
discipline. I am praying that if I even begin to think in terms of having some
sort of privileged spiritual position because of a seminary degree or a title
from the United Methodist Church John the Baptist’s words will ring loudly in
my already ringing ears. I need Jesus, every minute, every day. I can’t make it
without him and neither can you, But, thanks be to God, we don’t have to. Now,
let’s hit the trail.
Prayer
Dear God of mercy, thank you for your patient attitude
toward me and please correct me when I start to think I’ve got this. In Jesus’
name, amen.
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