Merging onto the Kingdom’s Highway
December 9, 2018
On this second Sunday of Advent, Luke introduces us to the mission and ministry of John the Baptist.
John’s word and ritual are not radical because they offer forgiveness; the Bible offers both a forgiving God and repentance rituals long before John arrives. What’s radical is that this word and this ritual are signs to ourselves and the whole world of our willingness to go beyond mending morality and engaging in the ethical, and join God’s new Kingdom action in the coming of Jesus.
At our 9:30 A.M., Sunday worship, in prayer, Word, song, sermon and Meal, we’ll join John in rediscovering that crossing over these waters expresses our willingness to receive the change God’s Kingdom vision desires and to be prepared for that change by receiving divine forgiveness. John announces baptism as submission to God’s new initiative. Again, the experience isn’t JUST individual. It’s personal and communal. It isn’t ONLY singular; it’s particular and corporate. It isn’t coercive; it’s compassionate (wombing) and inclusive.
Pastor Jeff
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