Prepare the way of the Lord

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,

‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

“Prepare the way of the Lord,

make his paths straight.

Every valley shall be filled,

and every mountain and hill shall be made low,

and the crooked shall be made straight,

and the rough ways made smooth;

and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” ’

John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin 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 axe 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.’

And the crowds asked him, ‘What then should we do?’ In reply he said to them, ‘Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.’ Even tax-collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, ‘Teacher, what should we do?’ He said to them, ‘Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.’ Soldiers also asked him, ‘And we, what should we do?’ He said to them, ‘Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.’

- Luke 3:1-14

As we move into the gospel of Luke for the daily readings, we begin with the work of John the Baptist. I find it interesting, first of all, that the Baptist's mission is set via the word of God. This is not set out as John's personal holiness or grand idea, but that John is acting on the word of God. So, it is the right time for this work to begin. In notes and commentary I read that the details Luke has carefully set out here on the rulership of the region set the date of John's ministry sometime between A.D. 26-28.

Luke quotes the prophet Isaiah as prefiguring the work of John the Baptist. This is the awaited time; it is the advent of a new age that is to come. John's focus is on the just judgment of the One who is to come. In the quoted text from Isaiah, preparing the way for the Lord involves a great leveling. The mountains should be cut down into plains, the valleys filled, all roads made straight through wilderness or desert, in preparation for the Lord. To me this speaks of the great leveling before just judgment. We all stand on equal ground, and truth does not judge or stake its opinions on false pretenses.

John tells the crowds who follow him that they can't rely on ancestry - that even the stones could be made children of Abraham (prefiguring the image of "living stones" which we read in Peter's epistle). Instead, he tells the crowds that repentance involves true change, justice and honesty, fair dealings with one another. To prepare for the Lord involves the equality of fair dealings, the great leveling between all people that is in the eyes of the just judge. This is the way to prepare for the judgment of the One who is to come, and the time is at hand for the beginning of this new time.

John also uses the imagery of the tree and bearing fruits - and tells them that every tree that does not bear fruits of repentence: honesty, fair dealing, equality - will be cut down and thrown into the fire. Christ's words about himself as "true vine" will hold with this same figure or image for us. It is a time of change, of transition. Are we prepared for it via repentence and fair dealings?