A sermon preached by the Reverend Michael Anderson Bullock
at St. Philip’s, Easthampton, Massachusetts, on 12 December 2021 [Advent 3]:
Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18


The Hope and Joy of a Tree

When crowds of people came out for baptism because it was the popular thing to do, John [the Baptist] exploded: “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to deflect God’s judgment? It’s your life that must change, not your skin. And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as ‘father’. Being a child of Abraham is neither here nor there – children of Abraham are a dime a dozen. God can make children from stones if he wants. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire… There was a lot more of this – words that gave strength to the people, words that put heart in them. [It was] The Message! [Luke 3:7-9, 18] – trans. The Message

What do you think? Would you want John the Baptist to be your priest? Would he be the one you would call in a hospital crisis? (Some among us believe that John the Baptist is already here!) Yet, whatever your feelings happen to be about John’s approach, his tone, his message, at the heart of his proclamation lies an important, albeit implicit question. How can we talk about hard, factual things without losing hope?  READ MORE>>