Homily for Advent 4 - Rorate Coeli (2018)

Who Are You?
John 1:19-29

Who are you, John? This is now the second week we’ve pondered the identity of John the Baptizer. Last week we heard John asking if Jesus was the “Coming One.” Jesus answered, “Yes, just look at the words that I speak and the works that I do.” Jesus was rolling back sin and death. The blind could see. The deaf could hear. The Gospel was preached to the poor. And then Jesus drew our attention to who John really was—a prophet, yes, but more than a prophet. “Among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist” (Matt. 11:11).

Today we hear the question again: “Who are you, John?” This time we receive a different kind of answer—not one telling us who John is, but telling us who John is not. “No,” John says, “I am not the Christ.” On this Sunday before Christmas, John the Baptist shows us how to deflect attention away from ourselves and instead focus ourselves, and others, on the true Christ.

“John, who are you, anyway?” John was at the highpoint of his preaching career. He was proclaiming repentance and baptizing for forgiveness, and crowds were going out in droves to see him. John was successful! So the priests and the Levites came to John, asking, “Who are you?”

This was no question of basic identity, such as “What’s your name?” or “Where do you work?” No, this was a question with another question—even a hope and a dream—hiding behind it. You see, these Jewish leaders respected John. He was from a priestly family. They liked his way of life, complete with camel’s hair wardrobe and that austere diet of locusts and wild honey. They liked his preaching of repentance. After all, fire and brimstone always appeals to the good and the religious.

Contrast all of that with what the Jews knew about Jesus. As far as they knew, He was the son of a lowly carpenter. And He came from that wretched little village called Nazareth. Can anything good come from there?

But John, John, he’s our man, they thought. If only they could get him—lure him, convince him—to confess that he was the anointed one, then they would love for him to be the long-promised Messiah. You see, these good, religious folks wanted a Savior of their own choosing.

But John burst their bubble! “He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, ‘I am not the Christ.” Then he just had to add, “And no, I’m not Elijah either. And no, I’m not  ‘the Prophet’ either.” “Well, then, who are you?” they persisted. So John said he’s “the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord.’” John’s vocation—his whole purpose in life—was to speak of Someone Else, point to Someone Else.

So these priests and Levites asked a different question. “Well, if you’re not the Christ or the Elijah or the Prophet, then why are you baptizing?” And John answered that he was baptizing simply to prepare for the true Christ. After all, John knew he was not worthy to untie the sandal of the true Savior. All of John’s actions and explanations bring to mind a quote by someone called “Anonymous”: “Humility is the acceptance of the place appointed by God, whether it be in the front or in the rear.” John knew and accepted his place appointed by God. And John’s place was not in the front as the Messiah, but in the rear, pointing to the Savior.

Let’s ask the question of ourselves. “Christian, who are you, anyway?” Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, or wife? Are you a worn-out worker or a stressed-out student? Are you a frantic, frazzled shopper, decorator, baker, or party-goer? How about that identity we like to keep secret: “sinner”? Or do you look in the mirror and see your very own self-made savior?

You see, who you are comes out in what you do. If only you can find that perfect gift for that someone special, then you will really make their Christmas. If only you can receive just the right gift, then you can proclaim this a wonderful Christmas. If only you can get the clerk at the store to say “Merry Christmas,” not just “Happy Holidays,” then all will be merry. If only you can get that overgrown To-Do list done, bake all the goodies, run all the errands, sing all the right songs, then you will make it a “good Christmas.”

Now, there’s nothing wrong with these activities. Not at all. But God wants to shine the light of His Truth on you and what lurks within you—that identity we’d all rather keep secret, that identity of “sinner.” You see, the real reason for the season is, yes,…our sin. We—yes, we Christians—are sinners who need the real Savior. What really matters is that you and I are not the Christ. You and I really don’t make the season any “more Christmas” or any “less Christmas.” We are the ones who need the Christ. We are the ones who need to keep Christ in Christmas—for others and for our own sake.

So as we prepare to celebrate the joys of Jesus’ Birth, let’s learn to imitate John. That’s why we heard that extra verse at the end of the Gospel reading. “The next day [John] saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’” (Jn. 1:29). Now there’s the Messiah—the Christ! There’s the Savior for you, for me, for everyone around us. I’m not the Christ. You’re not the Christ. But Jesus? He is the Christ! He’s the Messiah wrapped in swaddling cloths and placed in a grungy feeding trough. He’s the Coming One anointed by the Holy Spirit in the humble water of the Jordan River. He’s the One who endured the shame of betrayal by His friends, felt the sting of Pilate’s lash, bore the crown of thorns, and heard the jeers and taunts of unbelief. He’s the One who felt the metal spikes piercing His flesh and crunching His bones. He’s the One who endured forsakenness from His Father. He’s the One who slept in the breathless silence and darkness of death. And—are you ready?—He’s the One who received the sudden resuscitation of resurrection life! Who is that? The real Christ! Your true Savior! Jesus Himself!

That’s why we learn to imitate John and say, “He must increase; I must decrease” (Jn. 3:30). You see, when you and I decrease, and when Jesus increases as the real reason for this joyous season, we find that He increases us in Himself. How does St. Paul say it today? “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand.” Christmas is coming soon. Immanuel is God with us and among us. And He comes to change who YOU are.

The prophet Isaiah said: “And they shall be called The Holy People, The Redeemed of the LORD; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken” (Is. 62:12). The apostle Peter echoed that. Who are you in Christ, the real Savior? “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” (1 Pet. 2:9-10).

Who are YOU, people of Hope? You are a people confessing the true Christ, both individually and together. What does that look like? It looks a lot like John that day beside the Jordan River. It looks like people looking beyond themselves. It looks like people fixing their eyes on Jesus and pointing others to Jesus. It looks like each of us building one another up by pointing to Christ, the Lamb of God. It looks like each of us inviting others to come and celebrate Christ and His coming, the Word becoming flesh and dwelling among us. It looks like people at peace, because the real Savior, the Lamb of God, is near.

Who are you, people of God? You are people who live in the comfort, joy and confidence of St. Paul’s words: “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:7). Amen.