ADVENT 2, B – December 4, 2011

SCRIPTURES – Psalm 80; Isaiah 40:1-11; 2 Peter 3:8-14; Mark 1:1-8

The Lord is coming! Get ready! That is the message of Advent, the message John the Baptist is sent to proclaim. But isn’t He is everywhere? Isn’t He here already? Yes. In Jeremiah 23:24 God says, “Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him? Do I not fill heaven and earth?” And, before He ascended into heaven Jesus promised, “I am with you always.” 

The Lord is indeed everywhere. But, He is also nowhere, for there is no place on this earth where we can see Him and talk with Him as we see and talk with one another. “You have hidden your face from us” the prophet Isaiah lamented in last week’s Old Testament reading. Why does God hide Himself? Because of our sins. He cannot be among us with His holy and mighty presence, for we sinners could not endure the brightness and intensity of His holiness, His hatred of and opposition to our sin and disobedience.

Ø  Being in God’s presence would be even more intense than standing before and looking directly at the mid-day summer sun.

God’s holy presence cannot be endured by us sinful mortals. And so, God is nowhere among us with His visible presence. We have His voice, but in words on a page, and not sounding audibly in our ears. We have the promise of His presence, but He is hidden and invisible, like a ship over the horizon. Oh, to be able to see Him, listen to Him, hold Him and be comforted by Him! So often – especially when you’re really sick, or alone, or sad, or worried or guilt-ridden – living without His presence seems like living alone in a wilderness. 

It won’t always be this way. “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it,” says Isaiah. That we might be ready, God sends us a messenger. 

God sent me a messenger the other day with a message from Him. At least, I took it as a message from Him. The messenger I’m referring to is my dog, Jack. 

Jack had a rough day on Thursday. He was banished to the wilderness; at least, I imagine it seemed like the wilderness to him. You see, we had work going on inside our house that day. Guys were finishing up putting insulation in the upstairs attic spaces, and then John Meek was patching a couple of holes that had been cut in the ceilings. Men that Jack doesn’t know and doesn’t get along with – sorry, John! – were tramping in and out of the house, and we could not have a snarling and barking dog baring his one fang at them and snapping at their heels. So, Jack was banished to my wife’s and my bedroom. Lorayne put his bed in there so he’d be comfortable, put him in there, and then closed the door behind her and left for work. Howling and whining, Jack was left alone in the wilderness for the day. 

Late in the afternoon I returned home. John and the insulation guys were finished, so the house was empty… and very quiet. I went into our bedroom and, lo and behold, there was Jack, sound asleep: not on the floor in his bed, but in my bed, and buried in a pile of my clothes, my just washed clothes that Lorayne had gotten out of the drier and folded that morning. I had stacked them neatly on the bed before I left for work, intending to put them away later. Now, they were scattered and my stinky dog was lying in the middle of them, his tongue hanging out and resting on my black clergy shirt! Banished to the wilderness, separated from his master and surrounded by strangers, Jack did the only thing he could: he buried himself in his master’s clothes and surrounded himself with his master’s smell. There he found solace. 

I have always considered Jack to be a Lutheran dog: a Law and Gospel, punishment and reward kind of guy. I did not know that he is a prophet, a modern day John the Baptist. He was acting out the message that John the Baptist brought to the people of Israel to prepare them for the coming of their – and our – Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. You who are in the wilderness, longing for your Master’s presence and help and comfort and awaiting His coming: how do you get ready for Him? Bury yourself in your Master’s “smell.” And what is that? What carries and conveys the comforting presence of Christ? His wonderful words and His holy baptism! Even more than they bring the promise of His presence to your mind, they actually bring Him in His holiness to you, to your body, mind, and spirit. 

We see this in the ministry of John the Baptist. He is the greatest of God’s prophets, for he is given the honor of preparing the way for the coming of God Himself into this world in the flesh. Where does John conduct his ministry? God does not send him to Rome, the city from which Caesar rules the world. He is not sent to Athens, the city famed for its wisdom and learning. He is not sent to Jerusalem, the center of piety and devotion to God. God puts John in the wilderness, where man’s power and wisdom and piety are seen to be absent and have no sway. It is there that John baptizes and preaches a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. In the wilderness, where people have nothing, are utterly dependent and must rely solely upon God, God comes and offers Himself to the people. 

In that wilderness John baptizes and preaches a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Don’t be fooled by his words, “I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." It sounds like he is saying that his baptism isn’t much of anything. He would not preach it and call people to it if this were so! We look at John’s baptism and think that it is the people’s confession of sins that is the most important thing. Actually, John was calling them to confess that they had nothing of importance and were utterly unworthy of God! Yes, this is vital to admit. Our power does not impress God or bring His blessing, for we often misuse it; our wisdom does not lead us to Him, but only away from Him; our piety and devotion are fleeting and far less than the praise and devotion our great and merciful God deserves. Even the great John admits: "The strap of His sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.” We are unworthy, and so we must confess our sins. But, don’t make this confession the central thing. God’s Word and Baptism – they are the truly important and holy things. True, John knew that his baptism was preparatory and would be set aside by Christ. But this did not mean it was of little value. It was still a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. It brought the forgiveness and holiness the people so lacked! 

How much more so does your baptism. For, Jesus brought us a baptism that is in the very name of the Triune God Himself. Not only is your sin forgiven and Christ’s holiness given you in your baptism. Your God puts His name upon you! He takes you to be His child! In your baptism He is with you and fills you. You are never alone, then, and in the wilderness. You are baptized! You are God’s child, and the Lord of all is with you! God’s Word proclaims this and calls you to remember and rejoice in this. It fills your baptism with Christ’s scent, His comfort and life. 

Bury yourself in Christ’s Word and your baptism! They are your Master’s scent. Rejoice in them and inhale them deeply, paying close attention to what Christ has done for you and says about Holy Baptism. Take Martin Luther’s advice and start every day by saying: “I am baptized! My sins are forgiven, and I am God’s child!” You will find His peace and He will give you rest in your life while you await the coming of your Master!