John the Baptist knows something big is coming. He knows that he is destined to announce someone important. He is someone far greater than John. John knows that he existed before him. Does he know that he was in the beginning with God? Even if he knows that, he does not yet "know him". But even though he does not know him he still goes where he is called to go. He takes up his post in the desert. He waits. He waits even though he doesn't know exactly for whom. He sees people come and go wondering when the promised one will appear. He has no particular insight into who it will be. He has to wait for the Spirit to show him.
The Spirit does show him. He descends on Jesus and remains with Jesus. He anoints him to proclaim the good news. The Father speaks, saying that Jesus is his only Son, his beloved. John sees the Spirit. He hears the voice of the Father. He comes to know that the one who existed before him is a specific individual with a name: Jesus. In what can only be a thrill of hope he sees a glimpse of the Father's plan for humanity when he recognizes the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. It is a good thing his expectations aren't too specific. Where the world insists on a powerful and conquering messiah John is able to recognize the lamb offered as a sacrifice for all of us. He recognizes this even though he knows that Jesus existed before him, which would seem to make the world's expectations for the messiah even more likely.
The Spirit descends on us, too. The Father speaks over us, too. The Spirit remains with us and we are called "the children of God. Yet so we are."
For ye have not received the spirit of slavery to be in fear again, but ye have received the Spirit of adoption of sons, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. (cf. Rom. 8:15)
We are so blessed. John the Baptist is killed before he sees Jesus fulfill his destiny. We know so much about Jesus. John knows that Jesus is the lamb of God. But we know what that means concretely. We know about his life, death, and resurrection. We know that he does this for us all. We know that it is this mystery which makes salvation available to us. We receive that salvation to a degree which John does not, for even the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John (cf. Mat. 11:11). Yet even with all that we know and experience we realize that "what we shall be has not yet been revealed." The more we know about God the more we realize we don't know. The more closely we see Jesus the more we realize his transcendent glory. We are promised a share in that glory. What can that possibly mean?
What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard,
and what has not entered the human heart,
what God has prepared for those who love him
In this we are a little like John. We don't fully comprehend the promise for which we wait. Yet unlike John, we have a fixed point on which to gaze even, perhaps, without understanding.
We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.
Even now all the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God. Yet many places still want and thirst for the transformation that saving power brings. Many places in the world do not yet burst forth with song to the king. Many places in our hearts are slow to sing as well. It is hard, sometimes. We don't understand everything.
Let's fix our eyes on the promise. We see it more concretely than John the Baptist. But John teaches us not to run ahead with human expectations. He teaches us to live in this in between time in which we find ourselves. Since we have such a great promise let us pursue it with all that we are.
Everyone who has this hope based on him makes himself pure,
as he is pure.
How is he pure? We can see it even if we can't quite understand.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
No comments:
Post a Comment