The Day of Visitation

By Jared Warner

Willow Creek Friends Church

December 15, 2024

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Click to read in Swahili

Bofya kusoma kwa Kiswahili

Luke 3:7–18 (ESV)

⁷ He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. ⁹ Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” ¹⁰ And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?” ¹¹ And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” ¹² Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” ¹³ And he said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” ¹⁴ Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.” ¹⁵ As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, ¹⁶ John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” ¹⁸ So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people.

I have reflected a great deal on John the Baptist over the past few years. The more I consider him, as I reflect on what his life might have been through the study of the culture during that era of history, I have come to realize just how counter cultural he truly was.

We focus on his attire and his diet. We consider his proclamation about being the voice in the wilderness crying out to make a path for the messiah. But have we fully considered his ministry?

I know we have read the words that are attributed to him. We read them often at this time of year, because like those ancient people we too long with anticipation for the coming of our king. But there is something interesting about the ministry of John that we might over look as we rush forward in the story to see Jesus.

John was a reformer.

I have often likened John to the almost monastic sect of Jewish faith called the Essenes. There are many similarities from my limited research of the group but there are also differences. Who were the Essenes?

This religious group we are only recently finding more about. They were the community that is believed to have lived in the area of Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. They believe this because they have found a settlement, and the documents found in the caves around Qumran contain writings from this religion faction. As scholars have studied the writings of this group they are finding similarities to many of the early teaching in Christianity. Some have even stated that the topics and structure of many of Paul’s letters follow one of the more highly regarded teachers within this movement.

Yes, I am sure you all think this is pointless knowledge, but what this tells us is that the early teachings of the church were not as controversial to the Jewish community as we might be led to believe by our own contemporary culture. But there is something significant. Many of the Essene teachings were similar but due to their sanctified lifestyle, sanctified in the sense that they lived separated from the wider culture, their movement may not have had much recognition outside of ancient academia.

This is one way that John is important. The Essenes taught that the current religious class within the temple system were not worthy of serving. Not only unworthy of serving but they went so far as to say the people themselves were not worthy of living in the land promised to their ancestors. This is why they lived just outside Israel proper. They lived there in the wilderness in a sort of symbolic reenactment of the Exodus. And as they waited in the borderlands, they considered the activities of their ancestors prior to crossing into that holy land.

Joshua stood there overlooking the land as he mourned the loss of their leader Moses. God came to him telling him, “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses.”

They had just spent forty years wandering through the wilderness. Learning to be a people, a nation, they were gaining their identity. But they were also becoming a people devoted to God. Ancient Israel during the Exodus did not have a formal religion. They did not have any organized faith structure until Moses received the teachings of God on the mountain. They did not know how to approach God, and because of this they often carried the ideas of the surrounding cultures into their worldview. We see this as they began their desert wanderings. God did not initially intend that they spend a generation in the desert. After they received the teachings of God at the mountain and confirmed the covenant between them, becoming the people of God. God led them to the border of the land, they saw the fields, vineyards, and groves. They knew that God was indeed leading them to the land of promise. But there was a problem. Moses sent twelve into the land to scout it out. Those twelve came back and ten said there are giants in the land and we are like grasshoppers to them.

We can debate if there were actual giants. Science does not support the claim as they have not found any ancient remains of people of that stature. That being said, after thousands of years there really is not much remaining of most bodies. It would be highly unlikely to find any remains unless they were purposefully preserved like the mummies of Egypt. What we can find though is teaching and theological understanding. Giants is a term that is large, but there are other ways of being large without being tall. They could be great, powerful men. And more likely like Egypt, their leaders could be seen as being the offspring of the gods. These ten spies came back and said we cannot go into the land because they have divine help, they have supernatural aid. And we are just grasshoppers, we are insignificant puny humans.

They lacked faith. They did not believe that the God that led them out of Egypt, the God that took on and defeated the gods of Egypt, could do the same with the smaller kingdoms of Canaan. So God took them into the wilderness to teach them for forty years. And now they sit upon the borders once again. And God tells Joshua, “this is yours, go in and take it.” But God knows Joshua. He knows that Joshua has some doubts. “I am not Moses.” Will they even listen to me? Who am I?

Be strong and courageous God urges Joshua multiple times. And he then sends him to the people to prepare. They prepare by consecrating themselves. They remembered the teachings they received from God through Moses, they washed themselves, abstained from intimacy, so that they as an entire people could stand before the Ark of God, which was regarded as the footstool of his Heavenly throne.

This is what the Essenes were doing out in the wilderness. They were consecrating themselves. They were attempting to rediscover who they were as God’s people and how God wanted them to live. And John was out there in the wilderness also. Maybe he was a member of their community, we are not told. But the baptism he shared was a baptism of repentance and forgiveness of sins. He was telling the people that came out to hear him speak, to consecrate themselves, because the kingdom of God is near.

John was a reformer. He urged people to examine their lives. And just see if they are truly reflecting the teachings of God.

He stands out on the banks of the Jordan and the crowds come out to him. He watches them as they come to be baptized. He proclaims at the top of his lungs. “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”

I have to admit that I do not like snakes. To me every snake is harmful to my health and potentially venomous. So I do not take a great deal of comfort in contemplating a brood of vipers. Yet this is important to do because the image of the snake runs deep within our human experience. Some scientist actually believe that humanity developed the ability to see color because it gave us an advantage to see snakes better.

I think those scientists need to try a little harder, because snakes often have the most effective camouflage in nature. But they would say they developed that because it would protect them from us. But there is deeper spiritual connection to snakes. Who is said to have deceived our first parents? A serpent, a snake. This is interesting because it shows us something about ancient thought. The term for this particular serpent is also used for vipers. And they use this term because of the burning sensation one feels after being bitten, and it can also mean bronzen or shining.

I have not been bitten by a viper and I do not plan on it. I have been stung by a wasp, and as the venom from that sting moved through my body I did feel as if that part of my body was on fire. In my case it was on the top of my ear, and I was ready to just cut it off it burned so badly. This idea of burning, fire, or shining is what is important in regard to snakes, and vipers in particular. Israel emerged out of Egypt, out of Mesopotamia, out of the lower Hittite regions. Each of these ancient pantheons have spiritual beings of various rank and many of the guardian beings were depicted as vipers. And this has led some to think that what we know as serpent could have been called a serpent because it was dangerous and shining. Meaning Eve and Adam were deceived because a being they thought was a messenger from God’s very throne. Yet this shining one did not deliver God’s message but instead tricked them into joining the spiritual rebellion.

“You brood of Vipers.” John yells across the valley. You spawn of the serpent. You worldly and rebellious people, “Who warned you to flee?”

Who warned you to flee? This is an interesting concept. In Christian circles there are basically two main schools of thought on how we are saved. We all believe that it is through Jesus’s life, death and resurrection that we can have salvation, but who is saved is what I am meaning. Some would say that God has predestined us from the dawn of time to come to repentance, while others say that we choose. Every denominational believe falls somewhere between those two extreme positions. I do not really think they are extreme but they are on two ends of the spectrum. Each of these positions will list and quote references from scripture to defend their case. As Friends we do not necessarily take a hard stance on either side of that debate. We really do not take a hard stance on many theological concepts, instead we ask questions. And when it comes to who is saved many Friends have from the very beginning of our tradition have had a both and response to who can be saved. Their main teaching was that everyone has the opportunity through Jesus to be saved. They call that opportunity the day of Visitation. This is a moment within your life where you have some leading that is urging you toward God, but at the same time there seems to be an opposite urge that is pushing you away. It is as if there is a battle waging for your very soul. And we are left there in the crossfire to wonder which direction to run.

This I believe is that John is speaking about when he yells across the Jordan valley. He is telling that crowd that you are of a rebellious nature. You are a people that has been raised among people that are unclean, unfit for the presence of God. We live in a world where we are only concerned for what I can get. We only associate with people that will be able to advance my standing within a world that focuses on exploitation and excess.

These are the same teachings that Jesus spoke about just prior to his trial. How does the world view power, success, and achievement? This is not how it is with you, Jesus told his disciples. If you want to be first you become last. If you want to become the greatest, you must become the slave to all.

John looks out at the crowd, who are compelled within their hearts to come out and listen, and he cries out to them you brood of vipers. You children of this corrupt and sinful world, living among the deceptions of the serpent. Who warned you. What compelled you. Why are you here?

Why are you here?

I can make a list of things I would rather do on any given day. But there is something that compels me to be here at this time every week. Some might say that’s easy you are paid to be here. No that is not it. I left a decent job with great benefits to become a pastor. I was a branch manager of a rental car location. Not the greatest job, but it paid well. Something compels me to be here. It is that visitation.

I look at the world around me, and I know that there has to be a better way. We should not live in a world that is at constant war. We should not be in a world where the air in some places is so polluted you cannot go outside without a mask. Our soils should be able to produce enough food to feed us all and yet there are people that go to bed hungry. There must be a better way.

We can succumb to the pessimism of the world. Saying that fate just gives some people much and others little. We can hold to the idea that we live in a world where everyone is battles for resources and the one that has the most wins. What good is that way of thinking? It just gives us a justification to be selfish, to take what we deem is ours individually or collectively. But there is always a day of reckoning. Those that were exploited will rise up against their oppressors. It might take a thousand years, or a few decades. Every empire will fall. Yet people remain, this is the point John is trying to make.

We are not great because we come from this or that country or people group. I am not saved because I went to some church, or was born Jewish. There is no Christian Nation on this planet, because the kingdom of God is not of this world. This is what John means when he speaks of stones for Abraham. The culture was saying that we are good and great because our father was Abraham. They put their faith in their heritage not in their God. God can raise up children for Abraham out of the dust of the earth and that is what we are dust.

“What must we do?” They cry out to John. Notice his answer to this question. The baptizer does not tell them to be baptized and everything will be fine. He does not say this because baptism is only a sign or symbol. It is a tangible sacrament that points us to a greater reality. We must be changed. You cannot be a child of God, a stone of Abraham if you are dwelling in the brood of vipers.

You cannot live like them. You must take on a different life and lifestyle. The world says get more stuff. Buy the latest fashion, get the new pair of Jordan’s, or that nice apple watch. And there is nothing wrong with those things, but now you have two pairs of shoes and a closet full of clothing that you never wear. You have more than enough to satisfy you needs. The world says who cares you deserve it. But the kingdom of God says to be mindful of others. To regard them more highly than yourself.

If you have more than you need share it. I do not want you to take this too lightly either. I mention two pairs of shoes. There is at times a need for two pairs of shoes. You do not want to go out and scoop snow in the shoes you need to wear with a suit, and you definitely do not want to wear dress shoes to a construction site. There are needs for more things as we journey though life. And at times our needs may look like excess in the eyes of another. That is not the point, they do not know your needs and you do not necessarily know theirs. If someone is using guilt or shame to manipulate you into giving something you need to them it is just as wrong as living a life of excess. The point is living contently with what you have. And using what you have at your disposal to become a blessing for others.

John was a reformer. He went out into the wilderness, we are not told why. Maybe he joined that religious group living in the borderlands. But what we can see from his life, his lifestyle, his teachings and his actions is that he saw something that was not quite right with the world of his day, and that things really needed to change.

We see thing same things today. We complain about taxes and tax collectors, just like they did back then. We complain about CEO’s and their multi millions or billions of dollars, well they had rich and poor too. Jesus even said that there will always be poor among you. There is always more work to do. And we should be compelled to participate.

Each of us are unique, we have different personalities, and passions. Yet when we look at the world in which we reside, are we compelled to do something? Not everyone is called to be a pastor and not everyone is gifted with the intelligence of business. Not everyone is able to host a party and not everyone is patient enough to listen while someone shares the struggles of their life. The world needs men and women of business to provide jobs and goods and services. We need counselors, lawyers and retailer. We need scientists that are driven to find the cure to cancer, we need teachers that inspire students to learn, and artists to challenge us to look at things from a different perspective. What is compelling you? Are we being driven by the teachings and ways of this world living in a brood of vipers, or are we bearing fruits in keeping with repentance.

I have reflected quite a bit on what John had to say on the banks of that river. Are we listening? Are we willing to respond to that Spirit’s day of visitation? Are we willing to turn from the lifestyles of this world which we all know are filled with corruption and greed. Are we willing to embrace and follow the one that comes not only washing the dirt but refining us with fire? Advent is a season of anticipation, of longing, and of hope. Will we join with Christ to become instruments of hope in our world today?

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