Preparing for His Coming

Second Sunday of Advent, C

December 9, 2012

Luke 3:1-6

Greek Orthodox Icon of St. John the Baptist in Thessalonikki, Macedonia, Greece.

Introduction

Today is the Second Sunday of Advent, and we continue to prepare for the “coming” of Christ. We are preparing to celebrate his first coming on Christmas; at the same time, we are preparing for his coming again in final victory. How do we prepare to celebrate his coming?

Today’s Gospel reading begins with Luke listing down historical figures to place the story in context: When Jesus was born, Augustus Caesar was emperor of Rome (Luke 2:1); while Herod the Great was King of Judea (Matthew 2:1). Now, thirty years after, Tiberius Caesar is now emperor of Rome. Herod the Great is now dead; now, his kingdom was divided into four (“tetrarchies”) and ruled by his sons. When Jesus was born, Quirinius was governor of Syria, under which Judea was governed. Now, Pontius Pilate is procurator of Judea. In addition,, Annas (Hananayah) was high priest (kohein gadol) (John Wesley notes that there can only be one high priest; Caiaphas probably served as Annas’ associate high priest.)

Over this backdrop, “the word of the Lord came” (an expression often used of the prophets) to John the Baptist (Yochanan ben Zacharyahu). The mission of John the Baptist is to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah (Mashiach), just as his father, Zachariah the priest, prophesied at his birth:

“And you, child, shall be the prophet of the Most High, for you shall go before the face of the Lord to prepare his way; to give knowledge of salvation to his people, through the forgiveness of their sins…” (Luke 1:76-77).

I. We prepare for Christ’s coming by receiving the Word of God.

John the Baptist stayed in the desert, waiting, until the Christ was to be revealed. When the time has come, “the word of the Lord came” unto him (3:3). This Advent season, let us return to the Word of God, both by attending to public preaching and to private reading. We should not only depend on the reading and proclamation of the Word during public worship. We should also go back to daily Bible reading both in our families and in our personal lives. We prepare for Christ’s coming by receiving the Word of God.

II. We prepare for Christ’s coming by repentance.

The next way of prepare for Christ’s coming is by repentance. When the Word of the Lord came to John the Baptist, he went into all the country around Jordan “preaching the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin” (3:4). When we encounter the Word of God, we may become aware of our own sinfulness. The appropriate response is repentance. Some of us may think that repentance is a more appropriate theme for Lent instead of Christmas. But Advent is a season of preparation. And we prepare for Christ’s coming by repentance.

Our first reading (Malachi 3:1-4) gives us an image of repentance. The preaching of God’s “messenger” (fulfilled by John the Baptist in Mark 1:1-2) is about repentance, which is like “a refiner’s fire” and “fuller’s soap” that purifies us. As our second reading (Philippians 1:3-11) says, “that you may be sincere and without offence until the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God” (v. 11). We prepare for Christ’s coming through repentance.

III. We prepare for Christ’s coming by preparing the way of the Lord.

The ministry of John the Baptist is a fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah the prophet.

The voice of one crying in the wilderness, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth;

and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”  (Luke 3:4-6; cf. Isaiah 40:3-5)

The imagery is of that of preparing the road for the coming of a king or dignitary: the crooked is made straight; the rough ways are made smooth. This Advent season, we are prepare the way to our heart: What are the things that need to be straightened and made smooth in our lives?