Seasons of doubt
Sermon for the Third Sunday of Advent (December 11, 2022)
View the scripture readings and the Collect of the Day: Third Sunday of Advent, Year A
Preached at St. James’ Episcopal Church in Hyde Park, NY. A video of our whole 10 am service is available here.
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When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” Matthew 11:2
Edited Transcript
May only truth be spoken here and only truth be heard: In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Please be seated.
This year in Advent, we get to enjoy John the Baptist among us for two Sundays in a row. A lot of years he only gets one.
If you had a chance to look at the Gospel for last Sunday and John's presence in it, and then you look at this Sunday's gospel, you notice that we have two very different Johns. Last week, John was really in his element. He was out in the wilderness wearing his camel's hair. I have a friend who says that...you know that Matthew's gospel says that John lived on locusts and wild honey. So my friend likes us to imagine a guy dressed in, you know, a dirty old robe with bugs in his teeth. It's really quite an image. But John was out in the wilderness and he was full of vigor. He was saying, "Prepare the way of the Lord." He was telling people to repent. And he was giving people the good news that they could be part of the preparation for the one who is coming. And out there in the wilderness he said, "One is coming, one is coming who is greater than I. I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal."
That's where John was last week. But this week we meet John at a different point in his life. He's in prison and being in prison, we see this man who at one point in his life said "One is coming..." Today he says—he has to send his friends becaues he can't go—he sends his disciples to ask Jesus, "Are you the one who is coming, or do we need to wait for another?"
John the Baptist, who at one point was full enough of certainty in the coming of the anointed one, finding himself in prison in a different part of his life, does not have that same certainty, does he? He needs to ask.
It's important for us to witness to this because as Jesus tells us, there was no prophet greater than John the Baptist. "Among those born of women, there is none who is greater than he." And that great prophet lived through times of certainty and uncertainty. He lived through times of feeling firmly grounded in his hope and he lived in times of despair. And yet Jesus says: He IS a prophet. Did you go out to see a reed shaken by the wind? No. You went out to see a prophet. And I tell you that IS a prophet.
The fact that John experienced uncertainty, experienced doubt, and experienced seasons where his faith did not feel like firm ground under his feet, in Jesus' eyes, did not diminish him, did not diminish his place in the kingdom of heaven. And in fact, Jesus said, he belongs in the kingdom of heaven and so do all of you! '
All of us in our lives are gonna be going through seasons where we feel firmly fixed and we can feel God's presence in our lives and our faith is a guidepost for us. And all of us in our lives are also going to question that faith that in other seasons felt so sure. All of us in our lives are gonna go through seasons where we lose hope, where we feel angry, where the weight of our grief is too much to bear.
What I noticed is that even when John the Baptist did not know Jesus and said, "Are you the one?" Jesus still knew him. Jesus will still know you. Whether you're in a season of darkness where you do not see or a season of illumination, whether you're in a season of despair or a season of hope, Jesus will still know you. Jesus will still be holding your place in the kingdom. So that we can experience the valleys, all those images from scripture...
In Advent we practice this movement over and over again. Part of the reassurance of Advent is that even on dark days, that light is shining. We're gonna move through those seasons.
And I want to add to that... you noticed we light the rose candle today, the third candle. Both in Advent and Lent, as we go through seasons of reflection, penitence, self preparation... there's always a rose Sunday, which reminds us that even in seasons like this, there's still cause for celebration, there's still cause for joy. And this is Gaudete Sunday, that means Latin for joy. So we light this candle for joy.
So the last thing I want to leave you with is just reflecting on the difference between happiness and joy.
Because our happiness depends on our external circumstances. Can be affected by the things that happen to us or not, by whether we get our way or not, by whether we have a feeling of hope or not, by whether we feel faithful or not. But joy is a gift from God that cannot be taken away from you. Joy is given to you at your baptism. It belongs to you. Even if you don't feel it, it endures.
We are practicing that today and practicing knowing that Jesus knew John even when John was not sure he knew Jesus.
And Jesus knows every one of us by name too. Amen.