It is the season for deliveries. Now more than at any other time of the year, there is more mail, there are more packages being sent and received, and the people working in the shipping and delivery professions might even be working longer hours. As we look at these people, these postal workers, UPS, Amazon, and FedEx truck drivers delivering our packages, our bills for said packages, our messages of Christmas greetings to loved ones near and far, have you ever noticed anything about them? Something sets them apart. It sets them apart so that you can recognize them in their vocation as one who is delivering something to you that is yours. You can trust that they aren’t a sales person or a traveling heretic a la the Mormons or Jehovah’s Witness when they ring your doorbell, or some other person who may or may not be up to no good. What is it? It is their uniform. You can recognize them by their uniform.

In today’s Gospel lesson we are able to recognize by his uniform and his message another delivery man, John the Baptizer. John the Baptizer delivers the message from God to mankind, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” His uniform is the same uniform as Elijah the Tishbite. The same Elijah of the Old Testament who preached against the sins of Israel at the time of wicked Ahab and Jezebel and their son Ahaziah. This particular uniform of the prophet Elijah was no ordinary look, but is described in 2 Kings 1:8 the same way John the Baptizer’s look is described in our Gospel lesson. “John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt.” The purpose of this uniform as well as the diet mentioned “locusts and wild honey” is not to distract from the message, but rather to point to the seriousness of the message: The comforts and luxuries of this world will not save you nor bring you comfort in the face of God’s coming judgment. There is an end to this life and this world and there is only one way to “Make ready the way of the Lord, prepare His way, make straight in the desert, a highway for our God.” How is it and why is it that the hills and mountains must be made low and the rough places made smooth? The how to prepare is not by earth movers and a highway development project. It is much much more difficult. Why is it difficult? Because it involves sinners repenting and the moving of their hearts of stone. Yes, human broods of vipers, hard-hearted sinners whose souls are a wilderness of tangled weeds and fruitless trees that should all be crushed, cut down, laid bare and thrown into the fire. This describes us too, not just the people of Elijah’s or John the Baptizer’s day. We along with all people have been disobedient to our creator and master. We have sold ourselves to become slaves to our worldly cares and wants, to sin and the power of the devil, time and time again.

Yet the Law of God as cried out by John the Baptizer in the wilderness and throughout the ages is , “Repent, Repent, turn back from your sin!” This message has packaged within it, the message leading to hope. Hope for mercy, the message that there is a way to flee from the wrath that is to come. That hope is not within ourselves, and it is not within humanity. We do not have anything that makes us worthy to be saved. The message delivered within the Law, the message which exposes our sin and cuts us down in our pride, which brings us down from the hills of sand which we have gathered under our feet, causes us to repent so that the way into our hearts and minds and spiritual darkness might be cleared and de-cluttered for the hope that comes from God.

Behold the hope within the lesson of the stump and root of Jesse: the line of David many of whose sons were unfaithful kings and then were brought down in humility: chopped down to the very root by God’s judgement. This remaining stump and kingly line looked to be done as though no great tree of life or hero could come from it. Yet from this humble stump comes the branch and greatest tree of life, the One to whom John the Baptizer pointed, and still points. This is He who comes in the name of the Lord, who is righteous and has salvation as judge and redeemer. He is Jesus Christ of Nazareth. He who was born of Bethlehem of Judea. The son of God and Son of man through Mary. His was the way John the Baptizer prepared, yet Jesus did not come in His first coming to clear His threshing floor, with a winnowing fork in His hand. He came in humility to serve, to preach, to heal, to suffer and to die. It is true what we heard Isaiah the prophet say in today’s Old Testament text, “The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.” Jesus came not with a prophet’s garment of camel hair and leather belt, nor did He come in king’s robes or priestly raiment, yet He fulfilled all three offices of the Messiah in His perfect sinless life. During His earthly Ministry His full glory was clothed in humility and meekness, but what the world perceived to be weakness was actually part of Jesus’ and God’s plan of salvation for us. The garment which Jesus wore was imperceptible to human eyes. Righteousness is the belt of His waist, and faithfulness the belt of His loins. This righteousness and faithfulness could not be fully perceived until all the clutter of earthly expectations were stripped and burned away. Then we and all mankind may behold Him as He is by faith, our sacrificed Savior, crucified among sinners as the payment for our sins. Through His sacrifice, because of His faithfulness to His Father in the keeping of the Law, His righteousness and love can cover over a multitude of sins. He experienced the full wrath of God upon sin at the cross, the same wrath which should have come to us and all people.

This is the Gospel hope. Jesus did come and has taken our punishment upon Himself. He is the One who prepares His own way delivering this message of repentance and salvation through His Word and sacraments. He is the one who sends His Spirit to move men, women and children to repent and be given the eyes of faith, to see Jesus Christ coming to them clothed in that righteousness and faithfulness. He does indeed baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire through water and the Word. As He has baptized us, He has washed away our sin and filth and burned away the brambles and weeds of unbelief. He has crucified our sins and has brought us forth through His resurrection to be grafted upon Himself and become His children and people. We are now clothed with His righteous robes, set free from sin and condemnation in Christ’s name.

We now wear the garment of salvation, we now have Christ put upon us as we have been anointed in His blood. Therefore, we are able to rejoice and praise the Lord with all His people, and come into His presence with thanksgiving. We are able to confess His Holy name, and receive His body and blood in the bread and wine as we celebrate His victory and the stomping of the serpent’s head in His death and resurrection.

Now that we have been redeemed, we leave this place clothed with Jesus Christ. When people of the world see us, do they see the garment and uniform of a Christian? Do we deliver to them a message which they can trust? A sure message of hope, forgiveness, and love in Jesus Christ? Or do we cover ourselves again with the garments of the world so that we blend in with our surroundings? It is difficult during this season, throughout our life, in a culture of consumerism and self-worship, with our old flesh nagging at us. It is difficult not to succumb and fall back into sin, selfishness, and lazy blending in. If we rely on ourselves and our own power, failure is inevitable. And if you sin, pray “Lord have mercy” and return, repent. This is what we do every Sunday and every time we are gathered together, we repent, and we are washed anew by the power of our baptisms in Absolution by the blood of Christ. He cleans those garments of salvation and prepares our hearts and minds to receive Him again through faith for the forgiveness of our sins and be grafted again upon the tree of life.

He continues to prepare us each and every day of our life, for we know that the day is coming soon, when time will have run out, and Jesus Christ will return with a shout and a trumpet blast. Then He will be coming with that winnowing fork for He will be returning to judge. Woe be unto unbelievers and the wicked on that day, but to those have returned and repented, who live by faith and not by sight, who have been clothed in Righteousness, we shall recognize Him as Christ our deliverer, who comes to deliver us to His resting place which shall be glorious and eternal. May God keep us in this hope, In Jesus’ name, Amen

Pr. Aaron Kangas