Leads Us To Repent

See Your Deep Need & God’s Salvation

12.5.21 [Luke 3:1-6] River of Life (2nd Sunday of Advent)

John the Baptist came into a world of sharks. The men Luke lists were keen on keeping themselves in power. Some were greedy for their power and influence to grow. But none were on par with the Great White Sharks of the previous generation. Tiberius Caesar didn’t measure up to Julius Caesar or Caesar Augustus. Herod Antipas of Galilee and Philip were not Great, like their father Herod the Great. Lysanias’ career has been nearly lost to historians. And Pilate, Annas, and Caiaphas remain more famous for what they did—or allowed to happen—in the book of Luke than they are in any history books.

But when great and powerful men like Caesar Augustus and Herod the Great die, their power is up for grabs. A scramble ensues. Tiberius was the fourth or fifth choice to succeed Caesar Augustus. When he rose to power, he did not shy away from keeping his title of emperor through threats of violence and acts of bloodshed. Most historians describe Tiberius as a self-indulgent ruler who took sadistic pleasure in torturing his foes.

Pilate was an ambitious Roman cavalry soldier. He was a friend of a friend of Tiberius Caesar. Pilate was not a favorite of the people he ruled in Judea. Jerusalem was a stepping stone to him, and so he prided himself on placing his neck on the Jewish people. Eventually, even Rome had enough. Pilate stood trial for excessive cruelty and oppression and was sentenced to death.

Herod and Philip were constantly jockeying for power and titles. The sibling rivalry grew even more fierce when Herod stole Philip’s wife. Both were petty, selfish, and power-hungry.

The corruption & dysfunction in Rome affected the priests of Israel, too. God himself created the office of high-priest and intended a man to serve in this capacity for the rest of his life. Annas was the high-priest of Israel for almost a decade. Then, five of his sons followed in his footsteps. Finally, Annas was able to finagle his son-in-law Caiaphas into this office. And from what we learn in the Gospels, they were not men of high moral character or deep interest in meeting the Messiah. These high priests set a low bar.

In this sea of sharks, teeming with corruption and dysfunction, God sent someone different. He wasn’t fighting for a Roman title or throne. He wasn’t looking to steal anyone’s wife or be named king of the Jews. He wasn’t angling for cultural esteem and power like Annas or Caiaphas. He wasn’t driven to make something of himself. Rather God chose him to be the long foretold forerunner. In this sea of sharks, teeming with corruption and dysfunction, (Lk. 3:2) the word of God came to John, son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. God’s Word came to John.

God’s Word compelled and empowered John, son of Zechariah, to serve as John the wilderness prophet, John the Baptizer of repentant sinners. John’s preaching was summarized even before he step foot into the wilderness. (Lk. 3:5) Every valley shall be filled in. Every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth.

John did not march to Rome or Jerusalem, because the real problem in this world was more widespread. The world’s great problem was not that it had wicked rulers and leaders. The world’s great problem was that every single person, at their core, was no better than Tiberius or Pilate, Herod or Philip, Annas or Caiaphas. (Rom. 3:23) All had sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. The power of these men had only served to magnify their sinful natures.

Our world is no different, is it? It’s easy for us to sit in judgment of those in power. To examine elected officials in local and national government and identify all the ways they have failed us and failed to live up to God’s law. Without any effort, we can pinpoint pop stars and athletes and celebrities who have made immoral, shameful & sinful choices. And they all have. The people we have elected, the people society has chosen to pay attention to and even celebrate have made wicked choices, time and again. But the Word of God tells us that that is not our biggest problem. Our biggest problem is not that other people are sinful. Our biggest problem is that we are sinful. That our hearts are proud and crooked. That our minds are rough and ready to take advantage of our neighbor rather than serve and love them.

In this season of Advent, we are called to repent. To recognize our wicked ways and turn to Jesus and live. But, as Christians who are familiar with the call to repent and the process of repenting, we are susceptible to taking short cuts. We know where we are supposed to get and so we take the quickest route, the path of least resistance. We have that one sin that we quickly recognize. Maybe it’s a sin of the tongue—gossip, lying, foul language, or coarse joking. Maybe it’s a sin of the eyes—lust, greed, or vanity. Maybe it’s that you worry too much or don’t pray enough. Perhaps you know you could do better as a spouse or a parent. You could be in the Word more frequently. You could spend less time on the internet or social media. Every time we gather to confess our sins, this is where you mind runs. This is the sin you confess. This is the evidence you submit to prove that you aren’t a perfect person.

That’s true. But repentance isn’t content to settle for surface sins. The spirit of repentance doesn’t just settle for being able to say, here’s where I messed up. I’m still not perfect. Repentance is the deep recognition that I don’t just commit sins, I am sinful. At my core.

Spiritually speaking, we are like a young child who has been told to clean their room. By nature, everything about us is a disaster. Our room is a pig sty. And sometimes, we convince ourselves that repentance is just a matter of clearing a single path. Making sure you can walk from the door to your bed to the dresser or the closet. But that’s not enough, is it? (Lk. 3:5) Every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight. The rough ways smooth.

When we look carefully into the whole Law of God as a mirror—when we examine our duties and responsibilities as a spouse, a parent, a friend, a neighbor, and an employee—we see that we don’t just have a few blemishes here and there. It’s not just that we need to cut back on screen time or really focus on being present. It’s not just that we need to be more careful, more grateful, or more helpful. When we look carefully in the whole Law of God as it has come to us, we should be shocked. Appalled. We ought to recognize (Rom. 7:18) that good itself does not dwell in us, that is, in our sinful nature. Far too often, our first reaction is spiteful, selfish, and sinful. Even when we have inclination to be careful, grateful, or helpful, it is usually because it makes us look or feel better. Even when we have the opportunity to do good, we typically turn it down if it is going to be difficult or demanding or if we think those people are really going to appreciate our effort. We will embrace any flimsy excuse to avoid doing what we know to be right, if it will also be tough. We will offer laughable reasons and rationales to try to justify what we know to be wrong behavior, too. (Rom. 7:20) We don’t do the good God calls us to do. And the evil he forbids, this we do, far too frequently.

When the Word of God comes to us in its full force, it decimates us. Everything we are proud of is leveled. Everything we are ashamed of is laid bare. But the Word of the Lord isn’t done with us. God’s grading work continues in baptism.

We see the power of water in this physical world. Water cuts paths down and through mountains. Water fills in valleys and ravines. Given enough time and power, water makes crooked paths straighter and rough ways smoother. Baptism is much more than just physical water. Baptism is water that is in the hands of our eternal and omnipotent God. (Mt. 19:26) With God all things are possible. Through the waters of Baptism, God washes away the mountains of our attempts at righteousness and the hills of our pride. Through the waters of Baptism, God fills in the shameful, shadowy ravines of your past failures. Through Baptism, the crookedness of your mind has been straightened. God himself renews & (Rom. 12:1) transforms your mind through his powerful Word and Sacraments. Through the waters of Baptism you have been connected to the salvation that comes from God. Through Baptism, (Gal. 2:20) Good itself has made his dwelling in you.

Each of us, when we stare in the mirror of the Law must recognize that our sin problem is not one we can remedy on our own. Imagine having to fill in the Grand Canyon by yourself! Yet, we would be more capable of doing that than atoning for our sin. This is why John’s work was (Lk. 3:3) preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. John did not come telling people to amend their sinful ways and do better next time. He came pointing people to the one who would save them from their sins.

Even though he made his ministry home in the wilderness, people came flocking to listen to him preach. Soldiers and tax collectors, religious leaders and notorious sinners, everyone knew of John the Baptist’s powerful preaching. And what made his preaching powerful? It was nothing less than (Lk. 3:2) the Word of God. He was a forerunner for the One who would run the race perfectly in our place. He was the herald of the King of kings and Lord of lords. He spoke powerfully of (Jn. 1:29) the Lamb of God who came to take away the sin of the world.

And Jesus was everything John said he would be. He lived the perfect life you and I could not. He was more than just a man of high-moral character. He lived a life beyond reproach. Even those who hated him did so (Jn. 15:25) without reason. They had to fabricate crimes when they wanted to sentence him to death.

He lived this way because he loves people—as sinful as we all are. The Son of the Most High came into this corrupt and dysfunctional world to redeem and justify sinners. Jesus recognized that sin was our greatest problem. Jesus wasn’t looking for Roman power and prestige, but for the redemption of poor, miserable sinners. Jesus didn’t see Judea and Jerusalem as a stepping stone to somewhere greater in the world, but as the place where God had promised to do the work of saving the world. Jesus wasn’t looking for cultural influence like Annas and Caiaphas. He came to be (Heb. 4:14-16) our Great High Priest and (Heb. 2:17) make the atonement sacrifice for all our sins. Jesus is God’s salvation for you and me.

You know that because of the power of God’s Word. Through God’s powerful Word, you have been brought to faith. God’s Word has cut mountains of your pride down to sizes you could not. He has filled in deep ravines of doubt with his (Eph. 3:18) immeasurably deep love. He has smoothed out crookedness and rough ways in your life so that you would be led straight to him. God has worked powerfully through his Word to lead you to repentance, to return to him and live. You have seen God’s salvation & it is yours by grace.

In a world full of sinful sharks, we are called to be something different. To be filled with the same word that filled John the Baptist. You don’t have to live in the wilderness to do God’s work either. You can live humbly—not looking to accrue a life of comfort for yourself, but willingly offer the comfort of the Gospel to lost sinners. You can love people unconditionally. You can call sinners to repentance gently, but firmly. You can forgive freely, without conditions or qualifiers. In a world of corruption and dysfunction, you can point people to the same power John the Baptist did—the salvation of God that is found in Jesus Christ. Amen.