The gospel reading begins with a litany of the rulers of the day: Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate, Herod, Philip, Lysanias, and religious leaders. This is a list of the who’s who in power. Then the reading pivots to the arrival of John the Baptist wandering in the wilderness. The contrast is intentional. Seats of power on the one hand and someone with little worldly power on the other hand. But the word of God was with John as he proclaims a baptism of repentance, signalling that John was a prophet. The word of God suddenly shows up, disrupting centres of power. John seems non-assuming at first, as eccentric as he might be. Sure he is loud and dressed a bit weird, but he doesn’t have money or a title that people recognize. He has no employees or bureaucracy to dispatch and do his bidding.
Instead we hear the prophecy from Isaiah used to describe John, sometimes described as the only prophet of the New Testament. Associating John with Isaiah points to a continuity of God acting in the world through prophets. John comes pointing toward Jesus. In a positive sense he’s inviting people to turn toward a different kind of life that Jesus is ushering in. A life and world different than leaders desire for the people. Rather than subservience to the rich, John points to following Jesus. Following one who desires the unconditional love for all people.
John’s arrival in the wilderness is often seen with the backdrop of end times. We’ve talked about eschatology in previous weeks. One summary is that in the fullness of time, God is ushering in a kingdom or dominion in which love and justice will reign. Historically this theology of eschatology or end times has been used in different ways. For example in Canada and the US it has been taken up in the secular age in the myth of progress. The idea is that as science and technology progress, so too will the lived realities of all people. And while to some degree this is true, we are noticing that sometimes the progress of technology benefits a few people, while many people suffer. Not everyone benefits from advances in technology.
Just a few examples that signal deep inequalities. Recently in New York a healthcare CEO was murdered, which is terrible for this man’s family. The Bible forbids murder. Others have pointed out that the death of a rich man is called terrorism by the media but the death of tens of thousands of poor people denied healthcare coverage goes largely ignored.
Recently I was talking with a friend about how she, her partner, and their two-year-old are doing. She said at the moment they are doing very well and that his job in IT pays well and is stable. He even got a promotion. She quipped, “However, that’s as long as software developers aren’t replaced by AI.” Today there is a greater sense among younger people that financial security is fleeting. And anxiety for the future persists because a small number of people who have billions of dollars to build AI can threaten countless job of others. As a result my friend has gone back to working full-time earlier than planned. In part this is to advance her career, but perhaps also in order to increase their financial security.
Sometimes it feels like basic human rights and standard of living are advancing and then the next moment it feels like they’re in retreat. This extreme optimism in the future that has been pervasive for much of the 20th century is called Postmillenialism. Postmillenialism in its origins is the belief that before Jesus returns to Earth, there will be a period of progress, flourishing, and Christian dominance in governance. However postmillenialism over time became divorced from its theological roots. Instead of trusting that God is ushering in a different kind of world, instead there is a trust that technology and moral progress will save us. And there is some truth that we are benefiting from advances to science, transportation, seeming advances in rights, etc. However we also know that this accelerated world of technology can also make things worse, thinking about the climate crisis and basic rights being rolled back.
There is a lot more that can be said about the history of eschatology, end times theology. Perhaps we’ll share a link in Crossroads to an essay by Daniel Hummel in Comment Magazine, from which I drew inspiration for some of this thinking. He goes into greater detail about the history of eschatology and how its influenced Christians over the past few centuries especially.
Recently during the theology book group, we had a productive conversation that touches on this idea of continual progress. Some of us wondered why we need to keep talking about trans rights when we’ve been a Reconciling in Christ or queer-affirming congregation for two decades already. That’s a good question and one that lit of discussion. Together we came to the realization that history doesn’t follow a straight line. Both in society and within the church, understanding of being queer as children of God has continue to grow. We didn’t talk about trans youth and adults as much twenty years ago because these people didn’t feel safe doing so. And now as we have the Herod Antipases of today threatening to strip trans kids of their rights because it wins votes. And we find that as followers of Jesus, reflecting upon John the Baptist, at times we are also wandering in the wilderness. At times we find ourselves in dry, parched places, in search of good news and freedom for our kids, for our grandkids, for students at UVic, for ourselves.
On Thursday we welcomed the premiere of Ruby’s Advent evening prayer setting which was simply amazing! The joy and beauty here in the worship space was palpable. Ruby was playing piano, with Abby, DJ, and quill as soloists and leading congregational singing. You have two more opportunities to join whether in person or online the next two Thursdays. Last Thursday the local queer community came out in support of Ruby and received the grace of evening prayer. We packed the foyer for the soup supper and then gathered around candle light in the sanctuary. It is a reminder that even in times of wilderness there are those pointing toward Jesus’ love, beauty, and acceptance.
Let’s take a moment for discussion and break into small groups for 5 min. The discussion question is printed on the top of the order of worship: John the Baptist points to a different path of following Jesus. Where do you hear John’s voice calling out in the wilderness today?
