I'd like to start with a thank you to the Rutgers SKATE class who are helping to lead worship this morning, and to say "welcome" to the sermon. I'm going to begin with a subject that SKATERS and everyone else in the church knows something about: name calling. Almost all of us, at some time or another, have been called a name. Maybe it was a name for being heavy or thin; tall or short; for being African American or white or Chinese; for being gay or lesbian. We may have been called a name for doing well in school, or doing poorly. Everyone has been called a scaredy-cat at least once. (I think it's a compliment to be compared to a cat, but that's not usually how it's meant.) And most of us, at some time point, have called someone else a name. Probably someone younger or smaller: like a kid sister or brother. Maybe it was someone standing alone, when we were with a group of friends. Or maybe it was someone so far away they'd never know we were calling them a name—like the president of the United States. Name-calling hurts and causes problems. So teachers and parents talk about it a lot. I've learned there will be a national no-name calling week this year in January. Teachers and students will talk about why you shouldn't call people names and what to do when you're called one: such as walk away, or talk to a teacher or parent. Name-calling is a big problem in middle school, but grown-ups do it too—we've just learned to hide it better.
There must not have been a national no-name calling week during the time of John, son of Zechariah. John is baptizing people at the river Jordan, calling them to turn from things they're doing wrong and be forgiven. But when the crowds come to him, what does he do? He calls them a brood of vipers, which is the biblical way of saying, you family of poisonous snakes. Then he scolds them for thinking that God favors them because they're descended from Abraham. He warns them that a day is coming when all the trees that do not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. Everyone must have been wondered: is he saying that I'm one of those trees?
I find it surprising and unsettling that a holy man in the Bible would use name calling and scare tactics. But I'm even more surprised by the reaction of the crowd. First of all, they didn't call him any names back! It must have been tempting—for John would have been an easy target. There were many of them, and one of him. John had been living in the wilderness, so he must have smelled. Mark and Matthew, in their gospels, say that John ate locusts—which are bugs. But they didn't call him "bug-lover" or anything else. They also didn't walk away and say to one other, "John's gone crazy after living so long in the wilderness." They didn't tell on him to the police, or the priests, or the religious teachers. The crowds stayed. Perhaps they stayed because even though John called them snakes, he didn't single anyone out, and tease them for who they were or how they looked. Perhaps they stayed because the Holy Spirit was working among them, and telling them that John meant good, not harm. Perhaps they stayed because they remembered the stories about John's birth. Do you remember? Everyone thought his parents, Elizabeth and Zechariah, were too old to have children. But one day, when Zechariah was serving as a priest in the temple, the angel Gabriel came to him. Gabriel told John that he and Elizabeth would have a son, but Zechariah was skeptical. So Gabriel made it so Zechariah couldn't talk—at all—until the baby was born. And when John was born, Zechariah's tongue was freed, and he told everyone his story and praised God. People talked about it in the whole hill country of Judea and everyone said, "What then will this child become?" So perhaps the crowds remembered that story, and knew that John must be a prophet. So they stayed, and asked him, "What then should we do?" They were very brave.
John told them what to do. Then, as now, some people had many coats while others had none; some people had too much to eat while others were hungry. John told them, whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise. Now in the crowds were tax collectors—let me tell you about them. At that time the people of Israel were ruled by the Romans. The Roman emperor had lots of power and wealth, but he and his friends wanted more, so they collected money from all the people they ruled, especially poor people. The men who went from door to door and got this money were tax collectors. And often tax collectors made things worse: they collected more than they had too, and kept the extra for themselves. I'm sure tax collectors were called many names, none of them nice. I'll bet everyone else thought they'd be one of those trees that would be cut down and thrown in the fire. But even tax collectors asked him, "What should we do?" And John told them: collect no more than you're supposed to. In the crowds were also soldiers. Soldiers helped the Romans rule over Israel, and they could be arrogant and cruel. Sometimes they asked people for money and threatened them if they didn't get it or told lies to get people in trouble. I'm sure soldiers were called many names, none of them nice. I'll bet everyone else thought they'd be one of those three that would be cut down and thrown in the fire. But the soldiers came to John and asked, "What should we do?" and John told them: don't threaten people to get money or make false accusations. Be satisfied with your wages."
The crowds listened. Even after all these exhortations, they stayed—they didn't shake their heads and say that John was too tough. Quite the opposite: all the people were filled with expectation, and questioning in their hearts if John might be the Messiah. But he answered them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but the one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of this sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." We know that the one who came after was Jesus, who would baptize all who followed him with the Holy Spirit, and who baptized the church with tongues of fire at Pentecost. John was the first to tell everyone, and to say: get ready!
These past few weeks we've been getting ready, ready for Christmas. And—let's be honest—the first thing we do to get ready for Christmas is write our Christmas list. The second thing might be to buy stuff on other peoples' Christmas lists, the third to decorate a tree, the fourth to go to parties or bake cookies. Those things are lovely, it's fine to do them—but Jesus doesn't care about those things, or he doesn't care about them very much. John tells us what Jesus cares about: he cares about people who are hungry. He cares about people who are cold. He does not want us to use threats, or lies or any kind of violence to get more for ourselves. And because John included tax collectors and soldiers, we know that Jesus cares about people who we usually call names.
John is also telling us how to get ready, how to prepare for the coming of Jesus at Christmas. Not by making Christmas lists, but by sharing with our neighbors. We can start by putting money in the baskets we'll pass around at the offertory, or by bringing socks and gloves for the guests in our homeless shelter, or by asking Dermonte about working in the shelter during the year. John calls us to get ready not by decorating a tree, but by turning from our greed, so we don't exploit people, or use threats and violence to get more for ourselves. The ways we do this now are too many to count. I would include the war in Iraq, even though many soldiers there are hoping to do good. I would include our search for ever cheaper stuff, no matter what workers are paid. And John calls us to get ready, not by buying presents, but by welcoming people we usually call names. That may include tax collectors and soldiers, or it may be the kid in the class who doesn't fit in, or Muslims we call terrorists because they are Muslims. And if all this seems overwhelming, remember that nothing John asked people to do was impossible. He didn't tell people to give away all they had or to go hungry themselves, only to share. He didn't tell the tax collectors to quit their jobs, since they may not have been able to find others. He didn't tell the soldiers to revolt, or desert the army, and put their lives at risk. He asked them to begin turning towards what is right. To bear fruits worthy of repentance.
When the angel Gabriel came to Zechariah in the temple, Gabriel told him that his son would turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. That with the spirit and power of Elijah, he would turn the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. As we await the coming of Christ, let's pray for the wisdom and courage of those crowds, so we, too, can ask "What should we do?" and let John turn us towards the wisdom of the righteous. Then we will be preparing our hearts, and making room.