I’ve never worn camel’s hair, but I’m betting it’s scratchy. And I love fresh honey (a friend gave us a jar yesterday that they’d harvested Saturday – amazing), but I care none for the locusts. This John the Baptist fellow was a fierce man. He doesn’t land in many of the holiday tunes or animations, but he gets plenty of play in the Advent readings.
John the Baptist basically repeats one message: Hold on to your hats. God’s coming.
It wasn’t actually the words that got the people riled up. Everybody throws God-language around, especially pastor-types like me. But this wild prophet held the words with fire. He had a haunt in his eye that told you this was serious business. John went into the wilderness, and I wonder if he was trying to escape, if maybe he was weary from the violent collision of hope and hope unheeded. He went into the wilderness, but the crowds only followed. Some think it was the spectacle that drew the throng, but I think it was the fire. I’ll go a long way to hear someone say a word they truly believe, a word that burns.
In the end, though, John simply gave away what he’d been given. Nothing more, nothing less. And with that simple act, he threw a monkey wrench in everybody’s visions, confused all the best laid plans. Rather than calling him John the Baptizer, I think we should call him John the Disruptor.
Advent isn’t a docile season, not so long as the locust-eating prophet is your man.
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Here are two shots from yesterday’s #adventpicaday posts. Welcome the disruption.
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Arrival / travis watson |
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More Light Will Be Revealed Soon / sabrina fields |