The Nativity of Saint John the Baptist - 24 June 2012

The Nativity of John the Baptist - 24 June 2012

Isaiah 40:1-11

Psalm 85:7-13

Acts 13:14b-26

St. Luke 1:57-80

                                                                                   

Background: Nazirites

In the Hebrew scriptures we read of men who either took vows, or whose mothers vowed in advance of their birth, to live as a Nazirite.  These vows were not restricted to men but could be taken by women as well.  The two most known to us are Samson, and the prophet Samuel.  Two examples of passages documenting such vows are Judges 13:6-7 and Amos 2:11-12.  The name comes from the Hebrew (Nzr) which means to “take a vow”, although other meanings can be “consecrated” or “separated”.  In these vows, the man or woman taking them vowed to abstain from “strong drink” (this included all grape products: wine, vinegar, grapes, raisins, and liquors.  The nazirite was not to cut his or her hair, and they were not allowed to be in proximity to or to touch corpses or graves.  Even the remains of loved ones were to be avoided.

There are aspects to the life and birth of John the Baptist that has a nazirite flavor to them.  In St. Luke, the Evangelist writes that the angel who announces the birth of John the Baptist describes that he “shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.”  Such vows might explain John’s ministry, the separation from society at the Jordan River, his appearance, clothes, and diet. 

Isaiah 40:1-11

Comfort, O comfort my people,

says your God.

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,

and cry to her

that she has served her term,

that her penalty is paid,

that she has received from the LORD's hand

double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:

"In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD,

make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be lifted up,

and every mountain and hill be made low;

the uneven ground shall become level,

and the rough places a plain.

Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,

and all people shall see it together,

for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

A voice says, "Cry out!"

And I said, "What shall I cry?"

All people are grass,

their constancy is like the flower of the field.

The grass withers, the flower fades,

when the breath of the LORD blows upon it;

surely the people are grass.

The grass withers, the flower fades;

but the word of our God will stand forever.

Get you up to a high mountain,

O Zion, herald of good tidings;

lift up your voice with strength,

O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,

lift it up, do not fear;

say to the cities of Judah,

"Here is your God!"

See, the Lord GOD comes with might,

and his arm rules for him;

his reward is with him,

and his recompense before him.

He will feed his flock like a shepherd;

he will gather the lambs in his arms,

and carry them in his bosom,

and gently lead the mother sheep.

In this prologue to the writings of Second Isaiah (Isaiah 40:1 – 55:13) we witness the call of this prophet by God.  There are various interpretations about the language of the call, some feeling that the initial invitation, “Comfort, comfort” is addressed to the heavenly council, while others see it directed to a gathering of prophets, among whom is the second Isaiah, and finally there is the view that the words are directed to Jerusalem.  The ultimate recipient is, of course, Jerusalem, either through the tongues of the heavenly council, or through the words of the prophets.  It is a message of mercy and tenderness to a devastated city and people.  The prophet is not interested either in the temple and its rituals, nor is he interested in the puppet kings who rule Jerusalem.  What is important is the Word that comes from and is part of the rule of YHWH.  The description of God is stunning, as the prophet uses the image of a shepherd to describe the tender mercies of this God.  The reading is chosen for this day for its images (herald of good tidings) that have been assigned to John the Baptist.

Breaking open Isaiah:

1. In your mind, what are the comfortable words?
2. Likewise, what is the “good news” to you?
3. How are you a herald of good news to others?

Psalm 85:7-13 Benedixisti, Domine

Show us your mercy, O LORD, *

and grant us your salvation.

I will listen to what the LORD God is saying, *

for he is speaking peace to his faithful people

and to those who turn their hearts to him.

Truly, his salvation is very near to those who fear him, *

that his glory may dwell in our land.

Mercy and truth have met together; *

righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

Truth shall spring up from the earth, *

and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

The LORD will indeed grant prosperity, *

and our land will yield its increase.

Righteousness shall go before him, *

and peace shall be a pathway for his feet.

In the psalm, the author imagines what he hopes will happen through his prayer to have already been accomplished.  The setting is likely the author’s musings over the fate of Jerusalem during the Babylonian exile.  Here, in this nether land of hope, the author longs for a future of past actions: mercy, salvation, God speaking to a faithful people, truth, prosperity, and righteousness.  There is a sense of bargaining in verse eight – if God will speak peace to God’s people, then the people will be faithful.  These idealisms are captured in the final verses of the psalm where the ideals (mercy and truth, righteousness and peace) are personalized, and as characters defining the hopes of Israel greet one another with a kiss – as should all the people.

Breaking open the Psalm 85

1. We do you hope that God will do in your life?
2. How has God met you in your sorrows?
3. What does it mean to have “righteousness and peace” kiss one another?

Acts 13:14b-26

On the sabbath day Paul and his companions went into the synagogue and sat down. After the reading of the law and the prophets, the officials of the synagogue sent them a message, saying, "Brothers, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, give it." So Paul stood up and with a gesture began to speak:

"You Israelites, and others who fear God, listen. The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it. For about forty years he put up with them in the wilderness. After he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance for about four hundred fifty years. After that he gave them judges until the time of the prophet Samuel. Then they asked for a king; and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, who reigned for forty years. When he had removed him, he made David their king. In his testimony about him he said, `I have found David, son of Jesse, to be a man after my heart, who will carry out all my wishes.' Of this man's posterity God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised; before his coming John had already proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing his work, he said, `What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but one is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of the sandals on his feet.'

"My brothers, you descendants of Abraham's family, and others who fear God, to us the message of this salvation has been sent."

In the Acts of the Apostles, Luke graces two main characters with aspects of the life of Jesus.  So it is that Peter heals, preaches, and performs miracles after the model of Jesus, and likewise, Paul as well.  In this reading we see Paul in the guise of Jesus at Nazareth, or in the guise of Peter at Pentecost, or even of Stephen when he preaches to his accusers.  Thus Paul, in the course of the Sabbath service (readings from the Law and the Prophets, the great Shema, the blessings, and then a homily) is asked to comment on all of this.  The sermon that he delivers has three parts of which we have a portion of the first – a retelling of Salvation History.  The people Paul is addressing are his fellows not only due to their common Jewish heritage, but also their experience as Jews in the Diaspora. The rehearsal of their common history is brought to an end with the ministry of John the Baptist.  For Luke this marked the end of one era, and the beginning of another in the ministry of Jesus.

Breaking open Acts

1. Can you recite the acts of Salvation History?
2. How does Paul attempt to identify with and bring along his hearers?
3. How are Christian’s a part of “Abraham’s family”?

Luke 1:57-80

The time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, "No; he is to be called John." They said to her, "None of your relatives has this name." Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, "His name is John." And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, "What then will this child become?" For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him. Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:

"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,

for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.

He has raised up a mighty savior for us

in the house of his servant David,

as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,

that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.

Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,

and has remembered his holy covenant,

the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,

to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,

might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness

before him all our days.

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,

to give knowledge of salvation to his people

by the forgiveness of their sins.

By the tender mercy of our God,

the dawn from on high will break upon us,

to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the way of peace."

The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.

The scene that Luke paints for us here is an important one in the life of John, and the actions are those of what would soon become a former time.  Following the Babylonian Exile, the act of circumcision became an important part of binding the people of Israel to their heritage and to God.  So it is that through this ceremony and the giving of a name, John, the child is bound thoroughly to the Salvation History of Israel.  The question of the people, “what then will this child become?” is a common Lucan devised used to herald some future action, and prepares the hearer to expect something more.

Luke has his Infancy Narrative characters burst into holy song.  Zechariah, “filled with the Holy Spirit,” utters the first of these.  Mary (the Magnificat) and Simeon (the Nunc Dimittis) will follow.  The verses of the Benedictus (Zechariah’s song) borrow many of the phrases from the prayers that surrounded the circumcision ceremony, and have the flavor and feel of the praise psalms (34, 67, 103).  The final verses of the song embody, as in the psalm for this morning, and indeed the first lesson, the anticipated fulfillments of the hopes of Israel.  There is a strong feeling of “visitation” through the actions of God, and the looked-forward-to actions of the child, who is “strong in the spirit.”

Breaking open the Gospel:

1. What do you imagine Zechariah’s emotions to be at this event?
2. How is John the Baptist an end to an era?
3. What are the hopes portrayed in the Benedictus?

After breaking open the Word, you might want to pray the Collect for Sunday:

Almighty God, by whose providence your servant John the Baptist was wonderfully born, and sent to prepare the way of your Son our Savior by preaching repentance: Make us so to follow his teaching and holy life, that we may truly repent according to his preaching; and, following his example, constantly speak the truth, boldly rebuke vice, and patiently suffer for the truth's sake; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.