Jenny Eversole
When I think of John the Baptizer, I
am always filled with just a bit of awe and wonder, and maybe a little fear. After
all, the gospels tell us that John dressed in camel hair, wore a leather belt
around his waist and survived on a diet of locusts and wild honey.
John would have been the kind of
person that I would have crossed the street to avoid.
Aren’t we all just a little frightened of “those
people” ...the ones
who are different from us? There
was no doubt; John was different!
John had been preaching and baptizing
the people of Judea and Jerusalem. He
had quite a following! It would
have been easy to let that power go to his head, but the Gospels tell us that
John knew his calling. John
demonstrated that he knew his purpose in the world.
On the day he baptized Jesus, he told
the crowds that he was not the Messiah. Instead
he was sent as the prophet Isaiah had predicted to be a voice crying out in the
wilderness.
His calling was to prepare the way
for the true Messiah.
John 1:35-42 begins by telling us
that John was standing with two of his disciples when Jesus passed by. John
said to his disciples, “Look, here
is the Lamb of God.”
Now I don’t know about you, but if I had loyal
followers, I might have kept my mouth shut.
After all, more disciples surely
meant more prestige….I know it
would have today. Instead,
John lived out his calling, and he identified Jesus. John faithfully pointed to
Jesus and when the disciples heard this, they began to follow Jesus. John was humble. He
knew what he was called to do.
After this passage of scripture,
little else is heard from John the Baptizer until his death. John
understood his role. He had come
to proclaim the Messiah. He had to
live out his calling as one sent to prepare the way, not be the way.
We all have a lot to learn from John
the Baptizer; no one more than me.
So this Lenten season, when I find
myself wanting to be “first” or
most important, let me remember the humility of John. When
I try to “fix” things
that don’t
really need fixing, I will remember John. When
I try to give advice that no one wants; I will think about John.
How many among us are guilty of
thinking that maybe, just maybe we are the Light instead of the one whose job it is to reflect the Light?
It is my prayer that God gives each
of us the strength and wisdom to know what is ours to do….and
then to do those things with grace and love.
As we journey together through his
Lenten season, join me in asking, “Is
this the job I have been called to do?”
Jenny is on Facebook and tweets over
at @eversole_ jenny.
0 comments:
Post a Comment