The Surprise

One of the surprising things about the brief story of John the Baptist in Mark's gospel is that people went out to where he was preaching and baptizing.  So many came, it had to be of God.  He was not a preacher who made it easy for people. He was not into tickling their ears, or saying easy things to swallow.  He preached about the need for a baptism which spoke of repentance and forgiveness.  What is often missed because of the cultural differences is that baptism was a ritual for the unclean Gentiles who wanted to convert to Judaism.  Baptism was both unnecessary and unthinkable for any respectable person of the Jewish faith.  

In light of this reality, Mark 1:5 proclaims a surprising Word, "And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized in the river Jordan, confessing their sins"  The message John was preaching was attracting and changing the lives of country folks as well as those who lived on crowded city streets.  His preaching had such power it penetrated the barriers put up by religious institutionalism and touched hearts that were hungry for something new from God.  What was happening out there at the Jordan was a precursor to what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Roman Christians, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for the salvation to everyone who has faith.,," (Romans 1:16).  

It was not the eloquent speaking of John the Baptist, nor his wilderness attire which attracted so many, but the power of the gospel.  What he was preaching was inherently powerful.  The church today, with its ears so attune to the directives of culture and its desire to please, needs to once again reclaim a vision of being a vessel of God's power in the world.  All that stuff the church says and does to blend in with culture will be part of its vestments when buried.  It is in the embracing of the radical message of Christ which has saving power that it will find its life and its future. 

The Greater Purpose

When we read the beginning of Mark's gospel, we are not introduced to men who heard angels singing, or to a young couple searching for a place to give birth to their child, but to a man who had been listening to the silence of the wilderness most of his life.  His skin was darkened by decades of exposure to the burning sun of the desert and coated with layers of its dust and sand.  He was  born with the name John, but came to be known as the Baptizer.   

From his early adult years to the onset of his thirties, he was unseen and silent.  The only explanation for him coming out of obscurity is that it was time.  He was a part of the plan of God and his time had fully come in those days.  His appearance had been spoken and written about by the prophet Isaiah.  He was as sent by God as much as any prophet or Apostle.  When God's timing was full, "John the Baptizer appeared..." (Mark 1:4).  He wore the clothing of a prophet and his voice sounded forth with the authority of a man called by God.   

John was like a bright burning flame that only burned for a moment.  Before the lights on the stage of history had become fully focused on him, he was arrested and quickly died a martyr's death. This messenger of God who was called to "Prepare the way of the Lord,"  (Mark 1:3) spent the bulk of his life alone in tbe wilderness preparing for a ministry that would be measured more by months than years.  John served God as one whose voice announced the coming of the Lord and whose ministry pointed people toward Jesus.  Whether we are called for the lights of center stage or the shadows offstage, there is no greater purpose for our living than to be one, who like John the Baptist, points people to Jesus. 

The Beginning Point

When I was active as a pastor of a local church, I was frequently asked about a good starting point for reading the New Testament.  I always directed folks toward the gospel.  It seemed more important to encounter Jesus before reading the systematic teachings about Jesus that the Apostles wrote to the early developing churches. Of course, there are four gospels and I usually ended being torn between suggesting either Mark or John as the beginning  point.  The first three gospels are collectively referred to as the Synoptic Gospel because of their similarities. 

Of those three Mark was the first one written and may well have served as a guide for Matthew and Luke when they later wrote their respective accounts of the life of Jesus.  From a practical standpoint, it was often chosen because it is the shortest gospel as well as one which has little fluff.  Mark wrote in a manner that was to the point utilizing as few words as possible.  On some occasions the gospel of John was selected  There were three reasons.  It has always been my favorite.  Secondly, it has some wonderful stories of people encountering Jesus which are not recorded in the Synoptic group.  Finally, John is rich in  images that take us beyond the factual information about Jesus to a place of wonder and contemplation. 

There are always some who want to begin at the beginning.  Genesis and Exodus are full of great stories of God interacting with His people, but Leviticus has often turned into a graveyard full of the bones of those who began as eager readers.  Of course, the whole Bible reveals God at work among His people.  Those who read the gospel first will learn much about the nature of God for as Jesus said, "Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father>" (John 14:9). 

The Great Experiment

I thought of it as the year of The Great Experiment.  Some of the church folks who gave me permission and then endured it probably remember it as The Great Disaster. It all came about because I took the Scripture too seriously.  In I Corinthians 12:7, the Word says, "To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." In this section about spiritual gifts it also says, "...there are varieties of gifts,,,but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone."  (I Corinthians 12:4-6)  The book of Romans speaks of each of us having gifts that differ ((Romans 12:6) and Ephesians 4:12 speaks of spiritual gifts being given "to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ."  

My simple way of thinking led me to believe that everyone had a spiritual gift useful for building up the body of Christ.  My conclusion was to get rid of the committees the General Church said were necessary and to create a program structure which was based on the idea that spiritual gifts should determine the missions and ministry of the church.  To make it simple: there would be no evangelism committee or children's ministry unless someone came forward convinced that such a ministry was their spiritual gift.  The programs and missions of the church would be based on spiritual gifts God had given to each one of us individually instead of a structure passed down to us.  

As I recall some programs and missions went well and some which we had always done lacked the support to go forward.  What I remember most is that it drove the hard liners who said, "This is the way it has always been done" absolutely crazy.  Maybe the church actually operates in such a way in some places, but in the year of The Great Experiment, we either lacked the faith for it to happen, or a preacher was trying to put the square pegs of the Kingdom in the round holes of the institutional church.   

Authentic Prayer

Praying in public is not as easy as it looks.  Of course, there are some who think that any kind of public speaking is frightening enough to send the bravest soul running the other way.  Praying in public is difficult for reasons other than some kind of brain freeze which makes words impossible to speak.  The sixth chapter of Matthew lifts up the real dangers.  "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven....And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners so that they may be seen by others."  (Matthew 6:1, 5).   

When I was preaching, it was my practice to write the sermon, memorize the manuscript, and preach without any notes.  This practice is not for every preacher, but it worked for me.  When I came to the end of my preparation, I would often pray, "I give this now to you, Lord, I ask You to give it back as You please at the time for preaching."  It was my way of submitting it to the Lord for a final editing.  What I noted often was that some particular sentence or sentences which I thought to be particularly well written were not given back to me as I depended on my memory and Spirit in the moment of preaching.  The Editor  struck them out.  

The words from Matthew are important words for any preacher or lay person who leads the congregation in a public prayer.  Anyone who dares to pray in the public arena must make sure that the prayer is prayed to God and not for admiring ears of the congregation.  I have heard and offered all kinds of praying.  Some seems so manicured and precise in theological language, it could come from a seminary professor and others are so rambling and repetitive that the one praying seems lost in a sea of words where there is no "Amen."  Regardless of how we pray, the Word calls us to consider the motive for the prayer we offer to God.  It is not always an easy thing for us to do, but it is an important first step toward authentic prayer. 

Taking Inventory of Wonder

When I hear or read the name "Wendell Berry," I stop and take note.  I have read many of his novels, poems, and essays that reflect his commitment to the land and the agrarian lifestyle.  I have never been disappointed by a writing which bears his name.  Today I heard a quote attributed to him which I wish I could put in context, but, unfortunately, it has not been possible to find.  Actually, it is just a phrase, but it speaks volumes.  "Taking inventory of wonder" is a phrase attributed to a discipline practiced by Berry at the end of the day.  

To "take inventory of wonder" each day would create a time for us to remember each day's blessing, the events that have blessed, and the people within those events who have brought blessing to us as well.  It is a discipline which has within it the way to gratitude.  What is true is that we often end our day with an exhaustion that says, "I made it through one more day.  Maybe I can do it tomorrow."  We need no one to tell us there must be a better way to live.  In our better days we know that even in the worst of things there are things which call for gratitude.  No amount of darkness can take the wonder out of our day.  The wonder in our life is about grace.  

We live in a world where we are loved. We live in a world where the creation all around us continues to astound us.  We have a measure of success and prosperity which is not just about our efforts, but about the gifts of God which have filled our lives.  Anyone who cannot end the day without knowing that the day has been filled with things of wonder is blind to the goodness of God and the way grace comes to us for no reason except it is grace.  Today is another day for "taking inventory of wonder."

Carrying the Word

It is a good thing to carry some Scripture with us every day.  This is not to say, we should carry our Bibles with us everywhere we go though it is not a bad idea.  A few minutes here and there reading the Word would surely be more beneficial to us than looking at social media sites on our hand held devices.  Of course, as soon as such is mentioned, there will be someone to suggest that the Scripture can be carried with us and read on those devices.  True enough, but not likely.  It sounds a little fishy to me, like the story some folks always told about the river being a sanctuary on Sunday morning!   

Actually, one of the best places to carry the Scripture is in our heart.  I confess to being sporadic when it comes to memorizing Scripture.  I wish I had done more of it.  There are times when a written copy of the Word is not available, or there are times when life seems so overwhelming that reading is too big a chore and in those times what we carry with us in our heart can prove to be invaluable.  Even those who have made no efforts in the discipline of Scripture memorization will be surprised at the amount of Scripture which is on file simply through the process of hearing it read again and again, or in singing some of the great hymns of the church.  

The Holy Spirit has a way of bringing God's truths into our conscious mind in those moments when we need an encouraging word from Him, or when we once again need to be reminded of one of His unchanging promises.  I am grateful my mother got me started memorizing Scripture verses early and regret that I did not keep at it as faithfully as I should have.