… I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you …
Matthew 11:2-11
The Rev’d Rhonda Waters
Archives for December 2019
John the Baptist: Political Prisoner, Prophet, and Hopepunk Hero
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The Story
Dec 15, 2019
Third Sunday of Advent
Matthew 11:2-11
When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offence at me.”
As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”
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Something to Do
Stand with Political Prisoners
John the Baptist was in prison because he told King Herod that divorcing his wife and marrying his sister-in-law was not acceptable behaviour.
Speaking truth to power is still dangerous. Join with Amnesty International to write a letter on behalf of a young person who is suffering the consequences of standing up for what is right as part of their December Write for Rights campaign.
Go and tell what you hear and see
Jesus answers John the Baptist’s question with instructions to the disciples to report what they witness Jesus doing – acts of compassion, healing, and justice.
This work is still going on. Notice it, give thanks to God for it, and help other people notice it, too. There is enough bad news in the world – let’s pay attention to the good news for a while!
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Something to Wonder
Are you the one who is to come or…?
Have you ever waited a really long time for something to happen – an answer to come to you, perhaps, or an opportunity? And when it came, did you know for sure this was it or did you wonder if you were supposed to keep waiting?
How did you decide what to do or what to think?
How do you think John the Baptist felt about Jesus?
Hopeful? Worried? Scared? Happy?
How do you think his disciples felt about Jesus?
What did you go out into the wilderness to look at?
Jesus is pointing out that John the Baptist is exactly what he should be – a strong, somewhat scary prophet in the wilderness – so no one should be surprised by him. In fact, he is precisely what they were all looking for in the first place. And yet, Jesus seems to imply, people are disapproving of John’s wildness and use it as an excuse to ignore him.
Have you ever had the experience of “well, what did you expect?!” If so, what was the context? How did you respond?
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Something to Learn
John the Baptist – Hopepunk
As promised in last Sunday’s sermon, here is the link to the article that introduced me to the concept of “hopepunk”
Waiting and Resistance: Advent and Star Wars by the Rev. Mindi Welton-Mitchell
“Advent isn’t just about waiting for Christmas, waiting to place the baby in the manger in our Nativity crèches. Advent is about resisting the empire around us—the empire of consumerism and consumption, the empire of majority that pushes minorities to the margins. Advent is about resisting the “War on Christmas” and instead saving what we love: that the Word became flesh and lived among us.”
A Crash Course in the Gospel according to Matthew
The Bible Project’s videos on Matthew’s Gospel give an entertaining and helpful overview of the whole book and some helpful background on the author and their community.
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Something to Pray
Holy God, we do not always understand your word or your ways.
Give us wisdom and imagination and courage as we learn and grow.
The story this week has made me wonder about…
(what questions are still on your heart?)
Receive my questions and help me hear your answers.
The story this week has filled me with…
(how are you feeling?)
Accept my praise, heal my hurt, ease my worry.
The story this week has reminded me of…
(are there situations or people you are thinking of?)
Be with all who are in need of you.
In Jesus’ name, we pray.
Amen.
Mary’s Story: Part Two
The Visitation
by Rhonda Waters
There once was a young woman named Mary. We don’t know much about her except that she was engaged to marry a man named Joseph and she lived in a town called Nazareth. Then, one day, something extraordinary happened to Mary. Do you remember what happened? (Read Part One)
We do know a little bit more about Mary, in fact. We know that she had a cousin whose name was Elizabeth. Mary and Elizabeth were very good friends and they were both having miracle babies at the same time! Today, we are going to hear part of their story.
______
Mary:
I said yes to God and the next thing I knew – I was pregnant! I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised but I was. And it was hard. Joseph was really unhappy but, thankfully, decided to stay with me. My parents were furious. The neighbours gossiped all the time. I thought about telling everyone about the angel – but who would believe me. I was pretty sad, and lonely, and scared.
Choir: Do not, do not, do not be afraid. Do not, do not, do not be afraid.
My parents sent me to my cousin, Elizabeth. I was glad to go – I love Elizabeth. She’s older than me but she is smart and funny and I knew she would be nice to me, no matter what. Besides, she was in the middle of her own surprise. She was miraculously pregnant after a lifetime of not being able to have children – and her husband had suddenly stopped being able to speak!
So off I went, to Elizabeth and her very quiet husband, Zechariah.
“Hello, Elizabeth! I’m here!”
Elizabeth:
The instant I heard Mary’s voice, my baby started doing somersaults in my belly. He was filled with joy – I just knew it – and it filled me with joy, too.
Then, suddenly, I was filled with more than joy – I was filled with the Holy Spirit! I ran out to Mary and threw my arms around her in a big hug! “Mary”, I shouted excitedly, “you have been blessed by God beyond anything we could imagine! You’re pregnant with the holiest of babies! I can’t believe the mother of my Lord has come to visit me – my baby knew who you and your child were immediately. You are so brave to trust in God this much!”
Choir: Do not, do not, do not be afraid. Do not, do not, do not be afraid.
I knew it was a good idea to come see Elizabeth! I was so happy that I burst into a song!
My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.
Mary’s Story: Part Three
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Second Sunday of Advent – December 8, 2019
… the voice of one crying out in the wilderness …
Matthew 3:1-12
The Rev’d Rhonda Waters
“Repent! For the Kingdom of heaven has come near” a conversation with John the Baptist
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The Story
Dec 8, 2019
Second Sunday of Advent
Matthew 3:1-12
In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said, The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.'”
Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
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Something to Do
And his food was locusts and wild honey
Locusts are hard to come by but crickets are becoming an increasingly common sight in grocery stores…
Have a John the Baptist inspired snack of crickets and honey (or perhaps dipped in chocolate?)
Bear fruit worthy of repentance
John the Baptist reminds us that repentance is not just about words – it’s about behaviour that bears fruit. We are called to take concrete steps as we turn towards God and live into our baptismal identity as members of the Body of Christ.
Bear fruit this week, fruit that reflects your true identity.
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Something to Wonder
He will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.
Chaff is the unnecessary stuff that must be disposed of in order to access the good wheat.
What is the chaff that you need burned away to prepare for the coming of Jesus and make the wheat available?
In those days, John the Baptist appeared
Who is John the Baptist in our day?
Whose voice is calling out to us from the desert?
Are we prepared to listen?
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Something to Learn
John the Baptist – the back story
The Gospel according to Luke tells the story of John the Baptist’s origins, all mixed up the story of the birth of Jesus himself. Read it for yourself in Luke, Chapter 1
John the Baptist – a member of the Essenes?
It has been speculated that John the Baptist was a member of the Essenes, a Jewish sect active at the time of Jesus and possibly influential in the development of Christianity.
A Portrait of Jesus’ World – The Essenes and the Dead Sea Scrolls is a summary provided on PBS’ Frontline.
Jesus and the Essenes: An Esoteric History is a more scholarly but still accessible article by Dr. Simon Joseph, a lecturer in Early Christianity at UCLA
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Something to Pray
Holy God, we do not always understand your word or your ways.
Give us wisdom and imagination and courage as we learn and grow.
The story this week has made me wonder about…
(what questions are still on your heart?)
Receive my questions and help me hear your answers.
The story this week has filled me with…
(how are you feeling?)
Accept my praise, heal my hurt, ease my worry.
The story this week has reminded me of…
(are there situations or people you are thinking of?)
Be with all who are in need of you.
In Jesus’ name, we pray.
Amen.