Third Sunday of Advent

13^th December 2009 9:00am & 11:45am

Preacher: The Revd Desmond Cox

Readings: Zephaniah 3:14-20, Philippians 4:4-7, Luke 3:7-18

What shall we do?

The prophet Zephaniah, writing in the seventh century BC, bids Jerusalem to rejoice because salvation is near (First Reading). God stands in her midst and will deliver her from her enemies. God is portrayed, not only as a king and warrior, but also as a loving bridegroom, who steadfastly loves his unworthy and unfaithful bride.

The theme of joy is even more emphatic in the Second Reading. Paul calls on the Philippians to rejoice because the Lord is near. (Paul was thinking about the Second Coming, which he believed was near.) So there is no need to worry. If they need anything, they are to pray for it, and the peace of God will be with them.

The theme of the nearness of the Lord is also at the heart of the Gospel. John the Baptist tells the people what they must do in order to prepare for the Lord’s coming and to escape his searching judgement. At the same time he makes it clear that he is subordinate to Jesus.

Practical Christianity

It is obvious from today’s Gospel that John the Baptist was a very practical man. Christianity is a very practical and social religion. It is not just a matter of God and me, but of God, me, and others.

There is a story about a cobbler by the name of Martin who lived and worked in a basement room. Its one window enabled him to see just the feet of the passers-by on the street above. But since there was hardly a pair of boots or shoes that had not passed through his hands, he was able to identify the passers-by by their shoes.

Life had been hard on him. His wife died, leaving him with a young son. However, the son had barely reached the age when he could be of help to his father when he fell ill and died. Martin was devastated. After burying his son, he gave way to despair. At the same time he gave up the practice of his religion and took to the bottle.

One day an old friend dropped in. Martin poured out his soul to him. His friend advised him to read a little from the Gospels each day, promising him that if he did so, light and hope would come back into his life.

Martin took his friend’s advice. At the end of each day he would take down the Gospels from the shelf and read a little. At first he meant to read only on Sundays, but he found it so interesting that he soon read every day. Slowly things began to change. Hope crept back into his life.

One night as he sat reading he thought he heard someone calling him: ‘Martin, look out into the street tomorrow, for I will come to visit you.’ Since there was no one else in the room, he reckoned it must have been the Lord himself who had spoken to him.

When he sat down to his work next day he was very excited. As he worked he kept a close eye on the window. He scrutinised every pair of shoes or boots that passed above him. He was looking for someone special. But all he saw was the usual people passing by.

In the early afternoon he saw a pair of familiar boots. They belonged to an old soldier called Stephen. Going to the window he looked up and saw the old man hitting his hands together for it was bitterly cold outside. Martin wished that he would move on, because he was afraid he might obstruct his view, and that he would not see the Lord when he passed.

But old Stephen just stood there by the railing. Finally it occurred to Martin that maybe Stephen had nothing to eat all day. So he tapped on the window and beckoned him to come in. He sat him by the fire and gave him tea and bread. Stephen was most grateful. He said he hadn’t eaten for two days. As he left, Martin gave him his second overcoat as a shield against the biting cold. All the time Martin was entertaining Stephen he had not forgotten the window. Every time a shadow fell on it he looked up but nobody special passed.

Night fell. Martin finished his work and very reluctantly closed the window shutters. After supper he took down the Gospels and, as was his custom, opened the book at random. There his eyes fell on these words: ‘The people came to John and asked: “What must we do?” And he said: “If anyone has two coats he must share with the man who has none, and the one with something to eat must do the same.’”

Martin put down the book and reflected. He understood then that the Lord had indeed come to him that day in the person of Stephen, and that he had made him welcome. And his heart was flooded with joy, a joy the likes of which he had never before experienced.

Martin had already received Christ into his life through a prayerful reading of the Gospels. So the second step followed naturally: to make room for him in the person of a needy neighbour.

We are preparing for the Lord’s coming at Christmas. And we have no doubt but that he will come and bring gifts to us. But he doesn’t come to us only at Christmas. He comes to us always, and at the oddest times and places, and wearing different disguises. He comes in the person in need.

Advent urges us to prepare a way for the Lord. There is no better way to prepare than to be welcoming towards those in need. The way to find peace and happiness and goodness is to forget oneself and love others.