“Living Like the Messiah is Coming”: 12/17/2006
Pastor David Nicol
Zephaniah 3:14-20 Isaiah 12:2-6 Philippians 4:4-7 Luke 3:7-18
“‘His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.’ And with many other words John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them.” Well—today’s text doesn’t have much brimstone, but Luke did seem to say that the Good News has at least something to do with FIRE! It may have been awhile since any of us heard a sermon that called us to flee from the wrath to come, but if I read this passage from Luke’s Gospel right, that’s a message that, while maybe not the whole of the Christian faith, does demand some of our attention from time to time.
I’ve heard a number of sermons that basically equated believing in Jesus to getting a “get out of Hell free card,” and that’s not where I’m going today—the fact of the matter is, Wesleyan Christians believe faith, Christian living, and “fleeing from the wrath to come” is something far more complicated than that. But for most of our history, Methodists have not shied away from preaching a message much like John the Baptists message in Luke 3. You see—John the Baptist’s message is a very full one, connecting faith and repentance with holy living. John asked his audience the question “who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” because he KNEW that the Messiah was at hand—today, I want to ask you the following questions, “are you ready to flee from the wrath to come?” and “are you living you life like the Messiah is coming?
For Methodists, these questions shouldn’t be new. “The General Rules of the United Societies” governed the first Methodist Societies in both Britain and America. According to these rules drawn up by John Wesley:
Today, it can be hard to imagine that Methodist Christians were once so serious about their faith as to be considered quite odd. It’s easy for us to blend-in to the world around us. Some of you might remember the days when more of the General Rules applied to how Methodists were expected to live—mostly the first section of rules about “doing no harm”—but over the course of our history we have let other standards determine how we are to act and live in the world. I sometimes still here folks complain about “The taking of the name of God in vain” and “The profaning the day of the Lord,” especially at the beginning of youth Football or Little League season, but many of the harder standards get little attention, and I’m not just talking about the Don’t Do List.
You see, both John the Baptist’s hearers, and the early Methodists were looking for a way to flee from the wrath to come, and both had ready excuses to avoid living out their faith in the radical ways they were being called to live. Early Methodists, by and large, were baptized Christians and so members of established churches. The Church of England officially called Christians to live transformed lives, but in a country where everyone was Christian, and many failed to live like it, the Methodist message of radical repentance and intentional Holy Living was far from ordinary! In the same way, John the Baptist’s hearers could have claimed to be descendents of Abraham, but John rebuked them, reminding them that God could find other descendents for Abraham, even by raising them out of the desert stones!
John’s message was truly radical—he called Jews to convert to Judaism![1] So too today, we as baptized Christians are being called to convert to Christianity! John’s message wasn’t really new—it was what being Jewish was always supposed to be. So too, being an early Methodist wasn’t really new—Methodist Holy Living was just living the way Christians always should have been living. Being born a descendent of Abraham wasn’t enough in the days of John the Baptist, and being born, baptized, and even raised in the Church wasn’t enough in the days of John Wesley. The same is true today. Faith cannot be inherited, it must be claimed anew by each member of each new generation. Faith can be caught, taught, and even sought, but a life-transforming, repentance yielding, fruit bearing relationship with God through Jesus Christ cannot be inherited!
We might begin life close to people of faith or far from them, but our original ties to the Church are fragile and must be claimed by us if we are to bear fruit worthy of repentance! John the Baptist warned his hearers, “the ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” So, are we ready to flee from the wrath to come? Are we today, in this place, living like the Messiah is coming? Are we concerned enough for the souls of those around us to call them into a new, right relationship with God?
John the Baptist’s hearers wanted to know what to do, and he told them “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same…” and to those with power over others John commanded “…don’t extort, don’t accuse people falsely, and be content with your pay.” Live like the Messiah is Coming!
Today, as Christmas is almost upon us, we too need to live like the Messiah is Coming! If you have more than enough, share with others! If you know of a need, meet that need! Don’t lay up treasure on earth, but in heaven, avoid drunkenness, live frugally, share generously, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit prisoners, study scripture, pray, join in public worship, and tell your friends and neighbors how great the Love of God is! Live like the Messiah is Coming! Do you wish to flee from the wrath to come and be saved from sin? Now is the time! It’s never too early or too late!
[1] Inspired by a sermon on this passage by the Rev. Dr. Carl P. Daw, Tuesday Eucharist BUSTH, 12/12/2006.
Zephaniah 3:14-20 Isaiah 12:2-6 Philippians 4:4-7 Luke 3:7-18
“‘His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.’ And with many other words John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them.” Well—today’s text doesn’t have much brimstone, but Luke did seem to say that the Good News has at least something to do with FIRE! It may have been awhile since any of us heard a sermon that called us to flee from the wrath to come, but if I read this passage from Luke’s Gospel right, that’s a message that, while maybe not the whole of the Christian faith, does demand some of our attention from time to time.
I’ve heard a number of sermons that basically equated believing in Jesus to getting a “get out of Hell free card,” and that’s not where I’m going today—the fact of the matter is, Wesleyan Christians believe faith, Christian living, and “fleeing from the wrath to come” is something far more complicated than that. But for most of our history, Methodists have not shied away from preaching a message much like John the Baptists message in Luke 3. You see—John the Baptist’s message is a very full one, connecting faith and repentance with holy living. John asked his audience the question “who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” because he KNEW that the Messiah was at hand—today, I want to ask you the following questions, “are you ready to flee from the wrath to come?” and “are you living you life like the Messiah is coming?
For Methodists, these questions shouldn’t be new. “The General Rules of the United Societies” governed the first Methodist Societies in both Britain and America. According to these rules drawn up by John Wesley:
“There is only one condition previously required of those who desire admission into these societies: "a desire to flee from the wrath to come, and to be saved from their sins." But wherever this is really fixed in the soul it will be shown by its fruits.”Early Methodism wasn’t for the weak of heart! In a very real way, Methodists were Advent people—our focus was on the desire to flee the wrath to come, to be saved from our sins, and to “produce fruit in keeping with repentance.”
Today, it can be hard to imagine that Methodist Christians were once so serious about their faith as to be considered quite odd. It’s easy for us to blend-in to the world around us. Some of you might remember the days when more of the General Rules applied to how Methodists were expected to live—mostly the first section of rules about “doing no harm”—but over the course of our history we have let other standards determine how we are to act and live in the world. I sometimes still here folks complain about “The taking of the name of God in vain” and “The profaning the day of the Lord,” especially at the beginning of youth Football or Little League season, but many of the harder standards get little attention, and I’m not just talking about the Don’t Do List.
You see, both John the Baptist’s hearers, and the early Methodists were looking for a way to flee from the wrath to come, and both had ready excuses to avoid living out their faith in the radical ways they were being called to live. Early Methodists, by and large, were baptized Christians and so members of established churches. The Church of England officially called Christians to live transformed lives, but in a country where everyone was Christian, and many failed to live like it, the Methodist message of radical repentance and intentional Holy Living was far from ordinary! In the same way, John the Baptist’s hearers could have claimed to be descendents of Abraham, but John rebuked them, reminding them that God could find other descendents for Abraham, even by raising them out of the desert stones!
John’s message was truly radical—he called Jews to convert to Judaism![1] So too today, we as baptized Christians are being called to convert to Christianity! John’s message wasn’t really new—it was what being Jewish was always supposed to be. So too, being an early Methodist wasn’t really new—Methodist Holy Living was just living the way Christians always should have been living. Being born a descendent of Abraham wasn’t enough in the days of John the Baptist, and being born, baptized, and even raised in the Church wasn’t enough in the days of John Wesley. The same is true today. Faith cannot be inherited, it must be claimed anew by each member of each new generation. Faith can be caught, taught, and even sought, but a life-transforming, repentance yielding, fruit bearing relationship with God through Jesus Christ cannot be inherited!
We might begin life close to people of faith or far from them, but our original ties to the Church are fragile and must be claimed by us if we are to bear fruit worthy of repentance! John the Baptist warned his hearers, “the ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” So, are we ready to flee from the wrath to come? Are we today, in this place, living like the Messiah is coming? Are we concerned enough for the souls of those around us to call them into a new, right relationship with God?
John the Baptist’s hearers wanted to know what to do, and he told them “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same…” and to those with power over others John commanded “…don’t extort, don’t accuse people falsely, and be content with your pay.” Live like the Messiah is Coming!
Today, as Christmas is almost upon us, we too need to live like the Messiah is Coming! If you have more than enough, share with others! If you know of a need, meet that need! Don’t lay up treasure on earth, but in heaven, avoid drunkenness, live frugally, share generously, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit prisoners, study scripture, pray, join in public worship, and tell your friends and neighbors how great the Love of God is! Live like the Messiah is Coming! Do you wish to flee from the wrath to come and be saved from sin? Now is the time! It’s never too early or too late!
[1] Inspired by a sermon on this passage by the Rev. Dr. Carl P. Daw, Tuesday Eucharist BUSTH, 12/12/2006.
posted by Rev. David Nicol at 8:59 AM
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