Sermon Notes

John the Baptist prepares a way for the Messiah who comes not only to help us but also to go head-to-head, as Will Willimon writes, against the powers that be.  This pronouncement eventually leads to John the Baptist losing his head.  King Herod Antipas was not as Great as his father, and not only that, but he also couldn’t shut John the Baptist up and he didn’t want the message getting back to Tiberius Caesar through Pontius Pilate that he couldn’t control his territory and he himself lose his power or even his own head.

We are naturally suspicious of anger.  Most of that is because of the cultures that we have been brought up.  The ancient Greeks believe anger was a feeling that needed to be overcome, it was subhuman.  This leads to a problem because Malachi is promoting an idea that is often not painted in with the first advent of Jesus.  Malachi is saying, “the refiner is coming, and he is ANGRY because we are not living as we should!”

“And there will be strange signs in the sun, moon, and stars. And here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides. 26 People will be terrified at what they see coming upon the earth, for the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 27 Then everyone will see the Son of Man coming on a cloud with power and great glory. 28 So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation is near!”

Let’s put ourselves into the story here today.  A month or so ago we spoke about the Armor of God and how it is armor that is provided by God, that it belongs to God.  So, for that Armor to belong to us, we must belong to him.  When it comes to leaders in the early church, battles occurred frequently.  Timothy is a perfect example of this.

Paused in time is Luke’s record of Paul during his final years.  It seems that most Jews are at odds with Paul in Rome.  However, the Gentiles, pagans seemed very interested in what he had to say that they went to his rented home to see him under guard.  However, as historians dictate, the number of Christians in Rome during this time is very small.  They are the smallest of minorities and soon they will be persecuted heavily.  Of course, Paul already knew this.

I will declare your name to my people; in the assembly I will praise you. You who fear the Lord, praise him!  All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!  For he has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.  

So justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but all is darkness;
for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows.

Like the blind we grope along the wall, feeling our way like people without eyes. At midday we stumble as if it were twilight; among the strong, we are like the dead.

Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.  For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them.

Paul is writing this letter to Christians, no matter their background. The key to this passage is that Paul is telling the churches in Rome on how to achieve biblical unity. Paul places the first idea on finding out what we all have in common, whether they were a Jew, a Gentile, or a Pagan who now follows Christ.