Have you ever found your self in a position, where you were certain you were doing the right thing? And then suddenly it seemed everything went to all wrong?
Well that is the kind of situation we see John the Baptist faced in our reading from Matthew. Remember John was at the height of his ministry. He had a group of followers, he was causing the king to notice him. Then bang he finds himself locked in prison.
Now he sits in a prison cell wondering what he had done. He is even doubting his faith, and his calling. He wonders if his cousin really is the Messiah. So what does John do? He does what we all do when we question our decisions. He looks for an answer.
John sent out one of his followers to Jesus to ask him, “Are you sure you’re the one we are to follow? Or is their somebody else?”
I like Jesus’ reply. Or at least the way he replied he didn’t grumble, or question John’s faith instead he reassured by telling John’s messenger the following, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me." (Matthew11: 4-6 NIV)
He wanted the messenger to report back to John on all that Jesus was doing. Jesus knew John was very familiar with passages from Isaiah especially our Old Testament reading from Isaiah:
"Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you." Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy… (Isaiah 35:4-6 NIV).
You see in essence Jesus was telling John to be strong, you are about to see the fruits of your labors come true. He wanted John to know that all he had been doing and saying was not in vain. Moreover the Kingdom was near.
So how about in our own lives? How about when we find ourselves wondering if what we have been working on was worth it all. Do we ask for reassurance? Do we seek out somebody to tell us that what we have done has been worth the effort?
One has to wonder how many times the president probably goes over and over a decision he has made. Wondering whether or not it was the right one. Wondering if the end result has been justified in the means to getting to the goal.
How many of us have ever worked in a job, where what you did seemed but a small part of the whole? Think about farming for instance. A farmer spends six months out of the year growing a crop such as corn, soybeans, or wheat. On the surface, those kernels or seeds may seem insignificant. However that farmer can go to the supermarket and see the “fruits” of his labors at work.
In fact that farmer can be reassured in the fact that all sorts of products would not be in existence. If it were not for the work he had done in the previous six months.
Try and imagine if John was the farmer and Jesus was an agribusiness manager…He might say to John… the blind have received Bauch and Lomb soft contacts, the pedestrians ethanol for their cars, medicine for the ill, and so on …..
The point to be made here is that, unless we look beyond our own boundaries we won’t see the full purpose of our mission.
John also represents what many of us get like in ministry. John was an evangelizer. He had a large following. However until he was locked up, he probably had not spent much time looking into deeper purpose of his faith.
Have you ever stopped to consider that maybe God gave John this opportunity in his incarceration. God used Herod to get John to look deeper within his self. To allow John to see and fully understand his purpose in the announcing of the Messiah.
Does this sound like something God would do? Think of all those prophets and patriarchs from the Old Testament. Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Elijah, and Jeremiah just to name a few. All men of strong faith right?
And what about in the New Testament? Can you name anybody he might have done this too? Paul and Silas? Peter and John? Just to name a few. So why not John the Baptist as well?
So if he would put all of these famous people from history in positions of self doubt in their purpose, do you think God might do the same thing with us as a church, as a family, as individual Christians?
Sure he does, God wants us to dig deeper into our purpose as Christians, as families, and as a church. He wants us also to look outside our own little worlds to see the whole glory of God.
The reason being if we don’t make that effort to dig deeper, if we don’t make that effort to look at what God is doing in the world as a whole. We can miss being able to see a more complete picture of God’s Hand in the World as well as our lives. We can begin to lose sight of the goal, to quote Paul.
No body is exempt from getting to narrow in their perception of the world. Even John thought his whole purpose was to announce the coming of the Messiah. He thought that once Jesus made his appearance the world would be changed in a flash. He lost sight of the whole message. He lost sight of the other signs. He had become so focused he even doubted his own faith.
Every day we as Christians can fall into that same trap. We can become so focused on what is happening to us in our own lives, or our own communities we lose sight of the greater purpose. The spreading of the Good News.
This can be especially true in the Christmas Season. This becomes a very busy time of the year. Time spent buying gifts. Time spent going to and preparing Christmas parties. Making sure everything is ready for Christmas. Planning the itinerary for the day.
In fact, it can become too overwhelming for some people, and families. They may see that their purpose in the world is meaningless. That no matter what they do, nothing changes there is still war, hunger, and death. They do not see any differences in their own lives, or families or communities, leading this person to find themselves in their own dark dank dungeon, questioning their purpose in the world.
It is then that God calls out to them in their weakest moment, when they have reached that point where they ask him “Why? Why all this? Am I not doing what you want?”
Then God calls to them, “Be strong and do not be afraid I am with you.”
It is in that moment, that God can lift the veil that covers our eyes to the whole picture. We can begin to see all those little things that He does each and every day.
We can even begin to see how God is at work each and everyday of our lives. Even when we do not see it directly, even when what is happening isn’t exactly the way we think it should be.
We need to always remember this important fact; Even though we cannot see the whole purpose behind what we are doing, God can. Moreover, just because we cannot see any immediate results or changes in the lives we are involved. That does not mean that the Holy Spirit isn’t at work.
God does not call us to bring people to Christ in order that we can make ourselves look better, or so that a church can boast it that it has brought this many people to know the Lord.
No God calls us to bring people to Christ so that message of the Good News can touch another soul. We are called so that The blind spirit will receive sight, the lame will walk, those who are sick will cured, the deaf will hear, the dead in spirit will have hope, and the good news is preached to all.
Moreover, during this season, we as Christians need to be most conscious of our mission to the world. Maybe even more so than any other time of the year. It is easy to get caught up in all the hustle and bustle of the season. It is easy to get caught up in all the warm holiday cheer.
It can be very easy to miss those people who may not feel that they are doing all they can. Moreover what they are doing isn’t making a difference to anybody. So you don’t miss an opportunity. Allow yourself to slow down, and let God lead you to them. You might find that person is closer than you think. You may find God saying to you, “Be strong! Do not be afraid. Here is your God. Amen.
