Sometimes, when you hear the same thing all the time, it starts to become less and less meaningful. For example, right now, at this time in the year, the newspaper, the TV, and the radio are all saying the same thing: "There is a special sale going on right now. JCPenny is having a special, one-day only sale. Sears is having a special, three hour sale, Saturday only, from 7AM until 10AM. When you see these commercials or read these ads, you feel a sense of urgency. At first, you think, "Wow, I really don’t need anything, but it sounds too good to miss." But after awhile, this kind of advertising becomes less and less meaningful. You start to realize that JCPenny has one-day-only sales all the time. The Saturday only, three hour sale at Sears will happen again, there’s no doubt about that. The advertising, the sales, all becomes less and less meaningful. And the reason why is because we have become saturated with advertising language. It all sounds the same.

I wonder if this is how it is as people think about the spiritual aspect of Christmas, and about Christianity, and churches in general. Come to our church, they all say. We are the friendliest. We have the best pastor. We have the best Sunday School. We have the best worship services. We have a six-piece band. Come to us, and you will experience all the love and sharing and caring and hugging and singing that you’ve been craving.

And then you meet John the Baptist, and you realize right away that he is different from all the others. I don’t think you’d see him at any of those one-day sales at JCPenny – we’re told that he wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt, probably homemade, around his waist. Instead of Big Macs, we’re told that he ate locusts and wild honey. He probably would have done well on physical challenges of the television series Survivor. But he probably would have been the first one voted off the island, because of the things he said – his message. He doesn’t use all those cliches about caring and sharing and family and giving and hugging and singing that you hear this time of the year. You can tell right away that he’s not a salesman – John the Baptist will not try to sweet talk you into anything. And he’s certainly not a politician, trying to match his words to whatever the popular opinion of the day is. He’s a breath of fresh air. This guy doesn’t care what people say or think about him. And his message is one that hits you in the heart.

What would it be like to meet John the Baptist? If John the Baptist sat across from you at your kitchen table, what do you think he would say to you? The first thing John the Baptist would do is pull out his credentials. "I’m not just another guy trying to get you to come to church," John would say to you. He had a special job – the prophet Isaiah tells us God’s proclamation about John role in salvation history when he wrote, "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way, a voice of one calling in the desert, Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him." John had been spoken about in the Old Testament – his job was to prepare people for the coming of the Messiah. That’s what John the Baptist would do to you if you talked to him face to face - he would work on preparing you to celebrate the arrival the Christ. And he would work on preparing you for the second coming of Jesus. His credentials?

What would be his message? What would John the Baptist say to you? Verse 4: "And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance." John would tell you that you need to repent. There is something wrong with you, John would say. And it’s time to change.

How would you respond? Maybe you’d think to yourself – "What does this guy know? I’m fine the way I am. I work hard. I take care of my personal responsibilities. I’m not perfect, but I’m OK." But that’s the problem – we’re not perfect. And the Bible makes it very very clear that God is not satisfied with anything except perfection. God wants you to be the perfect husband, the perfect wife, the perfect son or daughter. You need to be a perfect worker on your job. You need to be perfectly loving, perfectly patient, perfectly kind, perfectly generous, not just in your actions, but in your thinking. You need to be a perfect Christian, a perfect person of prayer, a perfect worshiper, a perfect student of the Word of God. You need to have perfect priorities. Jesus Christ says, "Be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect."

But you and I know that this isn’t the case. We are not perfect. And, according the Word of God, if you’re not perfect, then you’re sinful. That’s why John the Baptist would say to you, repent. Do you remember what it means to repent? There are three "R’s" to repentance, the first one being recognizing your sin. Verse 5 of our lesson tells us that this is what those first century Christians did: "The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins…" Recognize your sin. Where have you been less than perfect in your life? Look back on your conversations, on the way you have dealt with the people around you. Think about your relationship with God. Think about your thoughts. Where have you been less than perfect? Recognize your sin, and confess your it to Christ.

After that first "R" of repentance comes the second "R," and that is receiving forgiveness from God. Verse 4 of our lesson talks about a "baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." The Lord God almighty forgives you for all your imperfections. Because of Christ, your sins are gone. God holds no grudges, keeps no record of wrongs. He forgives you completely. The people that came out to John received God’s forgiveness through Baptism. Today, you also receive that same forgiveness, when you were baptized, and every time you repent and receive God’s forgiveness declared to you through the Priest. That is the second "R" of repentance, receiving God’s forgiveness.

The final "R" is reforming your life. That means that after you have been forgiven for being so impatient, you become patient in your life. After you have been forgiven for having a bad temper, you become gentle. After you have been forgiven for being so greedy, you become generous. After you have been forgiven for disobeying God and making excuses, you begin to obey God, not because you have to, but because you want to. You change from a self-centered worshiper of pleasure to an others-centered worshiper of God. The final "R" of repentance is when your life is reformed, changed, from how it was before.

But how do I do this? How do I find courage to confess all my sins to God? How do I know that I am really forgiven? Where can I find strength to change, to reform my life? How does this take place? What would John the Baptist say to you? He would say, "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie." Back then, that was the job of a slave. I’m not even worthy to do that, John says. Someone is coming. Someone greater than you, greater than I. He is the one who will give you courage to confess all your sins to God. He is the one who will take every single one of your sins away. He is the one who will strengthen you and change you into a new person, a new creation. John said, "I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." Someone greater, more powerful, more compelling, more amazing than anyone that has ever lived, that is who is coming. He will demonstrate his power in all kinds of ways. His miracles. His resurrection. His gift of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. And his gift of the Holy Spirit and faith and hope and love to you.

One thing I’ve noticed recently in the Sunday Kansas Star insert magazine (the one that has the local pictures, and crossword puzzles) is that every week there are recipes published. Obviously, John the Baptists didn’t have a lot of recipes people would have been interested in, unless you’re planning to eat grasshoppers and wild honey for your dinner. But what would John the Baptist say to you, if you were to ask him, "What is the recipe for a successful Christian life?" What would John the Baptist say? According to our text for this morning, John would tell you that there are two main ingredients – the recipe for a successful Christmas is this – a heart full of repentance, and a heart full of Christ. Practice the three "R’s" of repentance, and ponder the mystery and majesty of Jesus Christ – those two ingredients make up the recipe for a healthy Christian, regardless of your circumstances. You can be living by yourself out in the desert, with nothing to eat but grasshoppers and wild honey. But even for you, your Christian life will be successful, as you repent and focus on Christ.

Let our lives; our preparations for our eternal lives, be a time that is filled with more than just a series of advertising and empty cliches. Our lives cannot be truly enjoyed as our Creator intended until we first understand that the here and now is a time for repentance, and a time for Christ. It is a time to rejoice that someone has come, someone greater than even John the Baptist, greater than you or I, someone has come who brings real meaning to this life we live, and will live forever. Amen.

Deacon Michael Grear [15 January 2010]