He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire

 

 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

'Prepare the way of the LORD;

 Make His paths straight.'"

Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.  Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.   But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.  And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

 

- Matthew 3:1-12 

 

Yesterday we read that when the wise men who came to find the Christ Child had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son." Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male  children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more."  Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

 

 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'"  My study Bible comments that the wilderness of Judea is the barren region which descends from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea (see this map).  It says the preparation for the Savior's ministry begins with John the Baptist's call to repent.  Repentance, which accompanies faith, is a total about-face.  The word in Greek (μετανοια/metanoia) means literally to change one's mind, or more generally to turn around.  Repentance, my study Bible says, is a radical change of one's spirit, mind, thought, and heart.  That is, a complete reorientation of the whole of one's life.  This is the necessary first step in the way of the LORD, but it is an ongoing process throughout one's lifetime of movement more deeply toward God.  My study Bible tells us that it is accompanied by the confession of sins and the act of baptism, and it's followed by a life filled with fruits worthy of this change.  

 

 Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.  John the Baptist's ascetic life conformed to that of Jewish sects such as the Essenes.  My study Bible explains that they lived in the wilderness, and their purpose was to prepare for the coming of the Kingdom of God.  John is distinguished in his clothing as an image typical of a prophet (2 Kings 1:8).  The monastic movement in the early Church took inspiration and was patterned after John's manner of life.  

 

 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.   The confession of sins is essential to baptism under both the Old Covenant and the New, my study Bible says.  But John's baptism was a sign of repentance and the forgiveness of sins only.  It did not give the power of total regeneration nor adoption as a child of God; that will come with Christian baptism.

 

  But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"  My study Bible explains that Sadducees were members of the high-priestly and landowning class, who controlled the temple and the internal political affairs of the Jews.  It says they denied the resurrection of the dead and had no messianic hope beyond this life.  The Pharisees formed a lay religious movement centered on the study of the Law and on strict observance of its regulations.  They believed in the resurrection of the dead, and they also cherished a messianic hope.  But they taught that righteousness is based on the strength of one's works according to the Law.  Moreover their understanding was that the Messiah would be a glorious man.  John calls them brood of vipers here, but Jesus will later do the same (Matthew 12:34; 23:33).  My study Bible adds that this term indicates their deception and malice and their being under the influence of Satan.

 

"Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance . . . "  My study Bible comments that repentance, confession, and baptism lead to fruits worthy of repentance; in other words, a way of life consistent with the Kingdom of God (see Galatians 5:22-25).  If a fruitful life doesn't follow, it notes, sacramental acts and spiritual discipline are useless.  Therefore in many icons of the Baptism of Christ, an ax is imaged chopping a fruitless tree (verse 10).  

 

. . .  and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones."  This warning that from these stones (Hebrew 'ebanim) God can raise up children (Hebrew banim) is a play on words.  My study Bible says that God will not admit fruitless children into His house, but adopts other children from the Gentiles.

 

 "And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."  This first reference to fire (every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire) refers to divine judgment (see Isaiah 33:11, 66:24; Ezekiel 38:22, 39:6; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9).  Christ baptizes in the fire of Holy Spirit, which my study Bible calls the power and grace of God divinely poured out on all believers at baptism.  But the fire of judgment is the same fire of the Holy Spirit; it burns what cannot stand in it and enlivens and enlightens those who will receive it.  John says that he is not worthy to carry Christ's sandals: in John's culture, a slave would carry the sandals of the king, so John is declaring himself to be lower than a slave of Jesus.  His inability to carry Christ's sandal has a second meaning cited by my study Bible, and that is that carrying another's sandal once meant to take someone else's responsibility (Ruth 4:7).  So John is showing that he could not have carried the responsibility that Christ carries, and also that the Law could not redeem the world as Christ has come to do.  Winnowing is a metaphor for divine judgment, as it separated the threshed grain from the chaff, and thus images the separation of good and evil.

 

Today's reading may prompt us to wonder, what is a prophet?  Both St. Matthew and St. Luke report Jesus as saying of John the Baptist, "But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet" (Matthew 11:9; Luke 7:26).  In accordance with the traditional view of the Church, we could call John the prophet of prophets, or perhaps even more literally, the prophet to end all prophets.  It is John, after all, who is the last in the line of Old Testament prophets, for he is the one proclaiming the time of the Messiah and the Kingdom at hand, preparing the people for Christ's public ministry.  As my study Bible points out, John comes dressed in the clothing distinctive of the prophet Elijah (John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey).  This is a reflection of the prophecy that Elijah would return before the Messiah came.  In the prophesy of Malachi we read, "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse" (Malachi 4:5-6).  Jesus will later tell the disciples, "I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands."   Through this the disciples understood He was speaking about John the Baptist, who came Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist, who came "in the spirit and power of Elijah" (Luke 1:17).  In all of this understanding, and more, John is considered to be the last and greatest of the Old Testament prophets.  But what is the function of a prophet?  Is it simply to tell of future events?  When we look at the prophets of the Old Testament, what we see are servants of God calling the people back to God, reminding them of the promises to Abraham and his descendants, and challenging their lack of loyalty to the Lord.  These prophets are the ones who warned of hardships to come for the people's lack of fidelity to God, a community's failure to stick with the Lord who loved Israel.  But then, the return to the Beloved is also found in the prophecies, and the redemption of Israel's fortunes.  So John's warnings come not only with the great good news of the coming of the Lord, but also with the warnings to those whom he calls a brood of vipers, the religious leaders who betray their calling with corruption.  Repentance is the word given here, and it is a word given to all:  in repentance is found the preparation for the Lord's coming into the world and for His ministry.  For in repentance we find a commitment to turn and face God, to shake away or burn off the things that cannot stand with God, to turn from the things God wants us to leave behind, and to find God's way forward for us.  A call for repentance from a prophet cannot be without this reminder, this knowledge that we need to prepare for the time, and to take it seriously, for there are effects created by our choices.  Why do people so often seem to wish to see prophesy only as that which can "tell the future" as if some grand thing will be gained by knowing the time of Christ's return, or what new thing will happen that we don't yet know about?  So often, no one wants to hear the warning and the message of repentance, to look in the mirror or even toward the Cross and to say, "What do I need to do for You?"  Let us consider that it is the love of God which calls us forward and our own refusal that holds us back.  For as Jesus said, "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be" (Matthew 24:36-37).  Replacing all the prophets of old, Christ teaches repeatedly that we are to be awake and aware, prepared for His return (Matthew 25:1-13), and above all that we are to endure in our faith through all things, for just like ancient Israel, the Lord is our first love and the One upon whom we must depend.  So every day, we may prepare the way of the LORD; and make His paths straight, even if the cry comes from a lone voice in the wilderness of the world.  For we are baptized with the Holy Spirit and fire, and that promise also will be kept.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones

 

 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.  And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

 

- Matthew 3:7–12 

 

Yesterday we read that in those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:  "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:  'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'"  Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.  Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. 

 

  But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"  My study Bible explains that Sadducees were members of the high-priestly and landowning class who controlled the temple as well as the internal political affairs of the Jews.  In a sense, therefore, they were a type of aristocratic class.  They denied the resurrection of the dead and they had no messianic hope beyond this life.  The Pharisees, it notes, on the contrary, formed a lay religious movement.  This movement was focused on the study of the Law (or Torah) and strict observance of its regulations.  They believed in the resurrection of the dead and also cherished a messianic hope.  However, they taught that righteousness is achieved on the basis of one's works according to the Law, and my study Bible adds that they believed the Messiah would be simply a glorious man.  John the Baptist's title for them here, brood of vipers, will later be used by Jesus as well (Matthew 12:34; 23:33).  My study Bible explains that this title is a description of their deception and malice, and being under the influence of Satan -- vipers being an image of the character of the demonic.

"Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance . . . "  My study Bible comments that repentance, confession, and baptism lead to fruits worthy of repentance, a way of life which is consistent with the kingdom of God (see Galatians 5:22-25).  If a fruitful life does not follow, it notes, sacramental acts and spiritual discipline are of little use.  So, therefore, in many Orthodox icons of the Baptism of Christ, there is an ax portrayed chopping a fruitless tree (in the image given by John the Baptist here in verse 10).  

 

 ". . . and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones."  This warning is a memorable play on words in Hebrew:  from these stones (Hebrew 'ebanim) God can raise up children (Hebrew banim).  My study Bible adds that God will not admit fruitless children into God's house, but adopts other children from the Gentiles.   This is John's warning to the religious leaders.

"And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."  See the commentary at verse 8, above.  Fire here is a reference to divine judgment, my study Bible notes (see Isaiah 33:11, 66:24; Ezekiel 38:22, 39:6; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9).  See also fire in the next verse.

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."  My study Bible comments that Christ baptizes in the fire of the Holy Spirit, the power and grace of God which is divinely poured out on all believers at baptism.  Note how fire figures also in the verse above.  Furthermore, my study Bible tells us that in the culture of John the Baptist, a slave would carry the sandals of the king.  Therefore, what John is saying here is that he is lower than a slave of Jesus.  John's inability to carry the sandal of Christ also has another meaning -- carrying someone else's sandal once meant to take someone else's responsibility (Ruth 4:7).  Used here, it tells us that John is declaring he could not have carried the responsibility that Christ does -- and that the Law could not redeem the world as Christ has come to do.  John the Baptist himself is a figure of the Law, in that he is considered to be the last and greatest prophet of the Old Testament.

 

"His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."  A winnowing fan was used to separate the threshed wheat from the chaff, the nourishing grain from the inedible parts of the plant.  This is a metaphor for divine judgment, which will separate good from evil.

Fire figures largely and in seemingly different ways in today's reading.  Let us first note that fire is an image of energy.  If we turn to the story of the Burning Bush in Exodus 3 we see a bush consumed with fire.  But the bush, as Moses observes, is not consumed; it is burning but the fire does not actually burn the bush.  "And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, 'I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn ' " (Exodus 3:2, 3).   Out of this burning bush that does not actually burn in the fire comes the voice of the Lord to Moses.  The fire energy renders the place holy, as the "angel of the Lord" tells Moses, "Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground" (Exodus 3:5).  The Lord gives Moses instructions, and tells Moses the Name of the Lord:  "I AM WHO I AM." And the Lord said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.' " (Exodus 3:14).  So this energy of fire, of the "angel of the Lord" and the voice of the Lord guiding Moses, is an energy that consecrates, out of which God speaks and encounters God's servant Moses, and although it is burning, it does not consume the bush.  In today's reading, John the Baptist speaks of fire in these senses, and in another:  the fire of judgment.  The fire of judgment is the same fire of the Burning Bush, but that same fire has an effect on soul and spirit:  it is a purifying fire.  It burns that which cannot stand in its energy, and sustains that which can receive it and find compatibility with it.  In a similar passage to today's reading, Luke 3:16-17, my study Bible comments about Christ's baptism as John the Baptist prophesies here, that fire in this context has the primary meaning of the gift of the Holy Spirit, given to the world at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4, in which we note the tongues of fire that appeared on the apostles).  It is moreover a declaration of the judgment of Christ, in which the faithless will burn.  But we must note that this fire is one -- it is the same power and the same Spirit which both enlivens the faithful and destroys the faithless.  John the Baptist preaches repentance for the people -- and the religious leaders -- to prepare for a new age ushered in by the Messiah, the Christ who is coming, bringing the kingdom of heaven which is at hand (see yesterday's reading, above).  This new age is brought to us with Christ's Incarnation, and John the Baptist prepares the people for His public ministry, ushering in what are truly the "end times" which will culminate in the judgment at the end of the age.  Let us for now be assured that it is the same fire of love, of the mercies of God, that judges, burning that which cannot stand in it, vivifying and renewing all of creation to be brought into the Kingdom.  May we cherish this gift for faithfulness that leads us on the path to such a joyful reconciliation, through a world that so remarkably needs it.   John tells the religious leaders of his time, "For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones."  The power of God is life absolute.  Let us ask for the power of God to raise us up as children to Abraham, to teach us to live that same faithfulness of Abraham, the living stones about whom St. Peter will so effectively preach (1 Peter 2:4-5).

 

 

He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire

 

 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.  And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

 

- Matthew 3:7-12 

 

In yesterday's lectionary reading we were first given the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:  Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers.  Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.  Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon.  Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.  David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.  Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa.  Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah.  Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah.  Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah.  Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon.  And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel.  Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor.  Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud.  Eliud begot Eleazar, Elezar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob.  And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.  So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.   From here the lectionary began with chapter 3 of Matthew's Gospel:   In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:  "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:  'Prepare the way of the LORD; make His paths straight.'" Now John himself was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.  Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.  

"But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"  My study Bible explains that Sadducees were members of the high priestly and landowning class who controlled the temple and the internal political affairs of the Jews.  They denied the resurrection of the dead and had no messianic hope beyond this life.  The Pharisees, on the other hand, formed a lay religious movement, which was centered on the study of the Law and on strict observance of its regulations.  From their understanding of the Old Testament Scriptures, they believed in the resurrection of the dead and they cherished a messianic hope.  But they taught that righteousness is attained on the strength of one's works according to the Law, and that the Messiah would be merely a glorious man.  John uses the title for them, brood of vipers.  This same title will later be used by Jesus (Matthew 12:34; 23:33).  This title is indicative of their deception and malice, and also reflects an influence of Satan.

 

"Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance . . ."  My study Bible comments that repentance, confession, and baptism lead to fruits worthy of repentance, a way of life which is consistent with the Kingdom of God (see Galatians 5:22-25).  It says that if a fruitful life does not follow, sacramental acts and spiritual discipline are useless.  Therefore in many icons of the Baptism of Jesus, there is an ax chopping a fruitless tree.  See also the commentary on verse 10, in which John declares that "even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

". . . and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones."  This warning that from these stones (in Hebrew 'ebanim) God can raise up children (Hebrew banim) is a play on words.  My study Bible says that God will not admit fruitless children into God's house, but adopts other children from the Gentiles.  

"And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."   See the commentary on verse 8, above.  Fire here refers to divine judgment (see Isaiah 33:11, 66:24; Ezekiel 38:22, 39:6; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9).  See also "fire" in verse 11 which follows.

 "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."   Christ baptizes in the fire of the Holy Spirit; this is the power and grace of God which is divinely poured out on all believers at baptism, my study Bible says.   In John's culture, a slave would carry the sandals of  the king.  Therefore what John declares here is that he is even lower than a slave of Jesus.  John's inability to carry Christ's sandal has another meaning; for to carry another's sandal once meant taking someone else's responsibility (Ruth 4:7).  Here it shows that John could not have carried the responsibility that Christ carries, and that the Law could not redeem the world as Christ has come to do.  

"His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."  Winnowing the threshed grain from the chaff (a process by which the indigestible chaff is separated from the good grain) is a metaphor for the divine judgment, which will separate good from evil.  

John the Baptist sets his call for a baptism of repentance within the framework of the coming of the Messiah, and of Judgment.  It is a call for preparation for what is understood to be a cosmic event of the utmost significance.  So, even in the context of the Old Testament Scriptures and Jewish religious literature of this period in which Christ's ministry took place, there was expectation of the Judgment with the coming of this messianic figure of whom John the Baptist speaks.  Preparation, then, was not simply for a Messiah who would rule as an earthly king, but for a judgment regarding the preparation of the people for this divine visitation, for God coming near.   When John speaks of fire in warnings to the Pharisees and Sadducees, the religious authorities of his time, who oversaw the temple and its activities and formed parties of the Council, he is speaking in the context of Judgment and the failure to live a life devoted to the true things of God.  Jesus, of course, will continue to speak in this vein of discourse throughout His ministry.  This also takes place within the context of Jewish Scripture, as Jesus will quote from Isaiah:  "These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me" (Matthew 15:8, quoting from Isaiah 29:13).  Jesus' cleansing of the temple (Matthew 21:12-17) will indicate to us the extent of corruption and the ways in which personal profit was being derived, and the care of the poor neglected will be evident in Christ's many teachings, such as His observation for the disciples of the poor widow who gave all that she had to the temple treasury (Mark 12:41-44).  John the Baptist's words regarding the dead wood of fruitless trees, the ax, and the fire also remind us of the figurative significance of Jesus' withering of the fruitless fig tree so soon after the cleansing of the temple (Matthew 21:18-19).  When Christ enters the temple, what He does are authoritative acts which indicate Christ's role in Judgment, His authority in the Judgment which is to come.  But what we cannot forget, and why these Scriptures and these acts are important for us to consider today, is that John's words in today's reading remain ultimately true for us all.  It is a question of how we are living our lives, and what we accept as our priorities and values.  Do we pay lip service to things but fail to show compassion?  Do we put emphasis on an outward show or does the state of our hearts matter to us?  To throw out the chaff from the good grain, to put the chaff in the fire and chop off dead wood from a tree, are all images that resound with meaning regarding a great and final judgment by the One of whom John says that he is not worthy of carrying His sandals.  But they also teach us about our daily lives.  Repentance is a process whereby we can winnow from ourselves and our worldly sense of self the things that do not serve Christ in that ultimate Judgment, the things He calls us to cast off.  And in so doing, we support the good growth, the fruit we are willing to bear for Him, the spiritual fruits of a life lived in prayerful devotion.  The poor widow may not look like she gave much, but she gave all that she had -- which is significant simply because it expressed the great love in her heart.   Ultimately, the fruits we bear are not about the judgment the world might render from our appearance, but about the closeness of our hearts to God, our capacity to welcome Christ's visitation which is always present to us now, even as John sought to prepare people for Jesus' presence as human being with a ministry in the world.  These meanings and values remain present to us, even as John's and Jesus' term for the religious leaders of their time "brood of vipers" remains meaningful for us -- suggesting those who do not work for God, but rather against God.  The hidden motivations of those who "put on a good show" so to speak, but whose actions cause chaos and destruction and harm the poor rather than help, reveal the hardness of their hearts, a lack of compassion, and true motivations of greed and power.  Let us consider our place in this great historical story of salvation, for we each have a role to play, and fruits to bear, within the context of our communities and our love of God.  John speaks to all of us when he warns us to prepare for the One whose sandals he is not worthy to carry.  For fire is the real fire of the Holy Spirit, an energy that both kindles the heart with its infinitely creative spiritual power, and also destroys what cannot stand in its holy presence. 

Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father"

Grape harvest detail, 4th century, mosaic.  Nave of Santa Costanza Church, Rome 

 

Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.  And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying:

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

'Prepare the way of the LORD;

Make His paths straight.

Every valley shall be filled

And every mountain and hill brought low;

 The crooked places shall be made straight

And the rough ways smooth;

And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"

Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, 'Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.  And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."  

 

So the people asked him, saying, "What shall we do them?"  He answered and said to them, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise."  Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do?"  And he said to them, "Collect no more than what is appointed for you."  Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, "And what shall we do?"  So he said to them, "Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages."

 

- Luke 3:1–14 

 

In our recent readings, we have been covering Jesus' final hours with His disciples.  We read His Farewell Discourse (beginning with this reading) and also His High Priestly Prayer (starting here).  Yesterday, we read the last verses of that prayer:  "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

 

Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene . . ..  Today the lectionary starts readings in Luke's Gospel.    Luke is careful to establish dates, times, places, and the people of the historical setting to the story of Jesus Christ.  Herod the tetrarch of Galilee is Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great who was king of Judea at the time of Christ's birth.  (Herod the Great ruled Judea from 37-4 BC.  My study bible notes that there was an ancient prophecy of Jacob which indicated that the Messiah would come when  king ruled who was not of the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10).  Herod was a non-Jew who called himself the king of Judea, a sign that the coming of Christ was at hand.)  At the time setting of the beginning of Luke chapter 3, both Jesus and John the Baptist are mature adults.

. . . while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.  At this time Caiaphas was now the sole high priest, but people also recognized the continuing power of his father-in-law, Annas, a previous high priest who had been deposed by the Romans.  

And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins . . ..   My study bible says that the call to repentance was a traditional call of the prophets.  John's baptism does not grant remission of sins once and for all, but was a prefiguring and preparing people for Christ's baptism which was to come (see Romans 6:3-11).   It adds that John is a figure of the Law, in the sense that, like the Law, he denounced sin but he could not remit (literally "put away") sin.  (The word for remit here is the same word found in the Lord's Prayer, when we're told to pray for forgiveness as we offer forgiveness -- see Luke 11:1-4, Matthew 6:8-15.)

. . . as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying:  "The voice of one crying in the wilderness:  'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.  Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough ways smooth; And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"  John ascribes himself the role of the voice of one crying in the wilderness in John 1:23.  John quotes from Isaiah 40:3-5.

Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, 'Brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'  For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.  And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.  Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."   My study bible comments that while parents and ancestors help to impart piety and holiness, ancestry itself doesn't make a person worthy of God.  Each person in every generation needs to bear fruits worthy of repentance.  That is, to come to God in a dynamic living relationship.  Stones in this context are symbols of the Gentiles who would become children to Abraham through faith in Christ (Romans 4:16-18).  

 

 So the people asked him, saying, "What shall we do them?"  He answered and said to them, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise."  Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do?"  And he said to them, "Collect no more than what is appointed for you."  Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, "And what shall we do?"  So he said to them, "Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages."  Luke, through the responses of John the Baptist, gives us images of fruits of repentance:  to share or give alms to those in need when one has abundance, that tax collectors and soldiers do their work justly, and not commit extortion (a common practice).  

I find it very interesting that John the Baptist does not tell the tax collectors or soldiers to stop doing their jobs, to find other forms of employment.  Instead, he counsels them to be just in doing their work:  the tax collectors to collect no more than what is appointed for them, and the soldiers to refuse to intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and to be content with their wages.   Clearly it was common practice for tax collectors and soldiers to use the power of the Roman state to extort by either claiming someone owed more taxes or by intimidation and false accusation.  We know the tax collectors were Jews appointed to do this job among fellow Jews, and it seems quite clear that the soldiers seeking repentance in preparation for the Messiah are Jews as well.  But John does not tell them they should not be tax collectors, and he does not tell them they should not be soldiers.  What this means is, first of all, he is not separating people along political lines.  He doesn't tell people that repentance consists of refusal to work for the Romans.  Similarly to Jesus, the emphasis here is on the soul and one's place before God, the judgment brought near by the Messiah, and preparation for that reality.  Apparently, nationalist or other politics plays no role in that for John.  This also speaks of John's great faith in the Messiah, for if those issues need be addressed, surely they will be addressed in the coming of the Lord.  We know, however, that this is consistent with Christ, who did not preach politics as salvation.  Neither does John assert that to be a soldier or a tax collector is evil in and of itself.  He does not assert that the violence and power of the Roman state makes those who work for the state automatically ineligible for membership in the kingdom of God or able to prepare for the coming of Messiah.  And in this context, we must remember that tax collectors were despised by the people and seen as sinful, as no doubt were the soldiers who might back them up and do their own predatory practices against the people and prop up the hated occupiers as well.  John the Baptist's focus is redemption, and the preparation for a Messiah who will be capable of offering the remission of sins.  Therefore his preaching is perfect preparation for Christ Himself, who will not be counted with the rebels like Barabbas, but who will offer a different sort of Kingdom for the remission of sin, and a different sense of justice.  What John preaches instead is righteousness, and personal righteousness, the responsibility to do what is just in one's own life.  He preaches a personal responsibility to God, even among tax collectors and soldiers of the Roman state.   He preaches loyalty to God.  To be a child of Abraham is to be like Abraham, loyal and obedient to God, and humble before God, aware of where one is asked to go and what one is asked to do in this dynamic relationship of love.  To be a child of Abraham is to bear fruits worthy of repentance, to take on personal responsibility for our place before God, not a slogan and not a political solution to all evils.  John's baptism is a not a collective effort, but one that recognizes the heart and soul of the individual as the place where the preparation for the kingdom of God must take place.  It is a sense in which justice and righteousness must exist within a person first, a right responsibility to God.  Let us remember that at the time described in the historical setting, there were all kinds of rebels and rebellious sects seeking to overthrow the Roman rule, but this is not John's preparation for the Messiah.  John tells them "do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' "  It is not pride in ancestry that saves, but rather a clear focus on the knowledge that it is God who creates God's children, a living and dynamic communion.  Let us consider in our own hearts, and our own time, what this means for us.  What does it mean to take on righteousness as a personal expression of our place before God?  What would it look like to be a true child of Abraham, one who is prepared to leave all to follow where God asks us to go, and what God asks us to be?  What is it to take full responsibility for righteousness, and not a political side or a slogan?  These questions remain important, in every generation, just as every generation -- as my study bible says -- and each person in it, must consider what it means to bear fruits worthy of repentance.