Forerunner Jn 1 19-23

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4th Advent 23 Dec 2012

Dr Lutz Ackermann (Friedenskirche, Hillbrow)

Forerunner

(Jn 1:19-23)

The Jewish authorities in Jerusalem sent

some priests and Levites to John to ask

him, "Who are you?" John did not refuse to

answer, but spoke out openly and clearly,

saying: "I am not the Messiah." "Who are

you, then?" they asked. "Are you Elijah?"

"No, I am not," John answered. "Are you

the Prophet?" they asked. "No," he replied.

"Then tell us who you are," they said. "We

have to take an answer back to those who

sent us. What do you say about yourself?"

John answered by quoting the prophet

Isaiah: "I am 'the voice of someone shoutingin the desert: Make a straight path for the

Lord to travel!' "

(Joh 1:19-23)

What would it be like, if President Zuma came to us

for a visit? If he decided he wanted to come to

Hillbrow and for some reason wanted to visit his

church? Not very likely to happen, but just imagine

what it would be like. First you might hear rumours

that he is coming. Then there would be some kind

of official announcement. But before it could

happen, all sorts of people would pitch up to check

2012 REVD DR LUTZ ACKERMANN FRIEDENSKIRCHE, HILLBROW

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out security and logistics and so on. A bit like before

the centenary, when the Mayer of Johannesburg

was supposed to come just a bit more of that. We

would need to make all sorts of preparations andprovisions. And we would feel a certain anxiety as

we would wait for the day of his coming.

That is the kind of atmosphere here in the opening

chapter of the fourth Gospel. It is clear, the stage is

being prepared for someone important to come

but before he even appears, some things need to be

sorted out.

The one, of course, is Jesus, but we dont even get to

him in the text we read today. We first have to deal

with John the Baptist. We need to understand the

relationship between him and the one who is to

come.

The fourth Gospel (we usually call it G o John butI will avoid that, because it gets confusing if we talk

about another John in the text all the time) opens

with a solid piece of theology: In the beginning he

word already existed etc. So the actual narration

starts in v 19 and it turns immediately to the issue

of his relationship between John the Baptist and

the one who is to come. Its almost like thestoryteller cant wait to make very sure, who John is

NOT.

Its a bit like I come to visit you and before I even

enter the house or say hello or introduce myself I

tell you (and insist): I am NOT the president of SA.


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And please note, for the records, I am not so-and-

so, either.

And to make sure this doesnt go unnoticed, there

are officials present from Jerusalem. All they do isask: Who are you? Isnt it strange that with an

open question like this one, John the Baptist can

answer like that: I am definitely not the anointed

one call him Christ or Messiah I am not the

one.

Wait a minute, who said anything about theChrist? We dont see that anywhere in the text,

but we can sense this need to make sure from the

beginning that there is no confusion. Already in v7

we hear about John that he came to tell people

about the light, so that all should hear the message

and believe. He himself was not the light. Can you

see how much effort the writer puts into making

sure that we understand the difference between

John t.B. and the one who comes after him?

Then other options are explored: are you Elijah, are

you he expected prophet but John denies them

all, and finally, almost in exasperation, the officials

ask him once again: So who are you now? You

must be someone. Tell us, who you are, we need toknow it for our records.

And finally John comes up with a statement, but

surprisingly he still doesnt say directly, who he is.

It is almost like he is saying: I am not someone, I

am a nobody. He doesnt say, who he is but he tells

them, what he does.


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I am a voice he says, a voice crying out loud.

Like the thunder that announces the approaching

storm. Like a voice in a lonely place. Imagine you

are out there in the velt, far away from anybodyelse, it is so quiet; and all of a sudden you hear

someone singing or shouting very loud. Wouldnt

you be surprised?

So after all that, whatever comes next must be a

very important announcement. Even if we didnt

know, what it is that this voice has to say, we would

know that it must be extremely important. After allthat back and forth about who John is or is not.

After him telling us that he is not about himself but

a voice of someone crying out for preparations to be

made, it is clear: whatever comes next, whoever

comes next is of utmost importance.

And luckily his message is rather simple and easy:

Make a straight path for the Lord to travel! John

is here like a forerunner, a verger, making a way. All

this is not about him; it is about the one who comes

after him. Sure enough, in the next section of this

chapter he meets Jesus and he identifies him as

the one who is the Lamb of God.

In the fourth Gospel there is little doubt: this Jesusis the anointed one of God, he is the Christ

and no one else. It seems to be universally

understood and acknowledged. Make a way for the

Lord means: here comes the one who has a right

on our lives like no-one else. It means: get

prepared, be ready.


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But ready for what? Ready for the Word that

became flesh. Ready for God to visit us in this our

world. Ready for the one, who makes that clear like

no-one else: God is on our side. God is there for us,in the flesh, in a real human being.

As we come to the end of this time of Advent, we

may have experienced some of that. We may have

gone through some time of preparation. Getting

ready. Ready for God to come to us.

When we were little children, the time forChristmas to come would always seem so long. We

couldnt wait for it! Day by day we were coming

closer (door by door on the advent calendar) but it

would always go so slow!

Nowadays I feel like Advent is one of those times

thats flying by. We are busy with all the stuff that

needs to be done before the end of the year; ormaybe we are already in holiday mood. But in any

case, for me it does no longer feel so much like a

time of waiting, of expectation. I dont know, should

I blame the commercialisation of Xmas for that? Or

is it just our general human tendency that we cant

wait?

Having to wait often seems like a waste of time. And

often it is. Often I have to wait because of a lack of

organisation or communication. Often I have to

wait unnecessarily (because others are late or do

not care) and I experience that as a waste of my

time. But in all that, waiting for God for God to

come into our lives can be a valuable exercise, in


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which waiting actually has got a value. Where

waiting becomes part of our spiritual discipline, our

spiritual formation. Because it is not an empty

waiting. It is a waiting full of expectation. It is awaiting full of preparation.

And so, as we finally approach Christmas, as we get

our last preparations done, let us not forget to

prepare, most importantly, ourselves. As important

as all the outward preparations may be: more

important it is to be prepared in our hearts.

A quiet moment, a short prayer or even listening

carefully to one of our many and beautiful

Christmas Carols can be a key to finding that secret

space, where Godself can prepare our heats for his

coming.

Amen.

And the peace of God, which is far beyond human

understanding, will keep your hearts and minds

safe in union with Christ Jesus now and forever.

Amen.


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Forerunner Jn 1 19-23