There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light.

This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?" He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, "I am not the Messiah." And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the prophet?" He answered, "No." Then they said to him, "Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?" He said, "I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, "Make straight the way of the Lord,' " as the prophet Isaiah said. Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. They asked him, "Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?" John answered them, "I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal." This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing. (John 1:6-8, 19-28 NRSV)

Who are you?
The question, put to John the Baptist, was definite.
Are you the Christ?
Are you Elijah?
Are you the prophet?
For John, the questions were expected.
He knew what to expect.
We, if asked, would have our own expectations.
Who are you?
Are you a Christian?
Are you a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
Are you called to cry forth in the wilderness
proclaiming the way of the Lord?
Are you a member of the priesthood of all believers?
Who are you?
And why are you here, today?
I can think of no question which is more probing,
today,
On the Second Sunday of Advent.
I mean, there are better things for you to be doing today,
right?
The malls are open!

You’ve still got a long list of people to buy for, right?
You’ve only got 19 shopping days left before Christmas!
What are you doing here, this morning?
If a modern day Pharisee, a Pharisee of the religion of this world
came and asked you Who you were,
and what you were doing here,
at Cockrell Hill United Methodist Church
What would you tell them?
Who are you?
What are you still doing here?
I would like to submit to you that we are here
to bear witness to the light;
to be the voice, crying out in the wilderness
that this world has become,
“Prepare the way of the Lord!”
Who are you?

Would you pray with me?
[opening prayer]

I am sure that most of us have gotten into our cars many times
and have turned the key
and start up your motor
and driven across town to a distant destination
and, having gotten there, have no recollection
of the trip.
Driving a car is pretty much second nature for most of us.
We’ve been doing it for years.
We could drive to work in our sleeps --
Sometimes, we do drive to work in our sleeps.
Quite frankly, most people don’t pay much attention to driving.
I know I’m guilty of this.
One Saturday, just a few weeks ago,
I was heading down Westmoreland toward Redbird mall,
and I was tootling along without much thought to the road.
I had some nice music playing on the car stereo,
and my mind was preoccupied by the many things I
had left to do before Sunday morning.
I was pretty much in my own little world,
It took the sound of screeching tires
the sound of horns blasting
and the sight of two big red tail lights
looming ever larger in my windshield
To tear me away from my privet thoughts and back to
the road.
I slammed my foot on the break
and came skidding to a stop just inches from the bumper
of the car in front of me.
And, with my heart racing,
I spent the rest of the trip to the mall
fully aware of everyone
and every square foot of the road.
That’s what Advent is like,
and that is what today’s Gospel lesson does to us.
In the midst of all the hustle and bustle of the Christmas time,
with the Christmas shopping
with the Christmas decorating
with the Christmas parties
with the Christmas music specials
and the special worship services,
we often travel through the season of Advent
without paying much attention Him whom we are
preparing to receive.
Why are we getting ready to throw this big party on December 25?
Why are we doing all this stuff?
The birth of Jesus Christ.
And so, in the midst of all of this madness of the Christmas rush,
The image of John the Baptist, standing in the Jordan River
calling Israel to repentance
and answering the questions of the pharisees,
Is like the big red tail lights of the car in front of us
Bringing us to a screeching stop
To consider he who came into the world.
To consider the incarnation of Christ.

One of the reasons why I went on vacation during Thanksgiving
One of the reasons why I went to Boston, and to that monastery,
Was to get away, pray, and prepare for Christmas
For the coming of the Lord
For the Incarnation.
The Monks at the Monastery where I stayed know the importance of preparation.
They have a simple way of preparing for the Advent of our Lord.
They mark the beginning of Advent on Saturday night before the First Sunday
of Advent.
They all gather in the Chapel of the Monastery,
and with the lights dimmed,
and with the candles burning,
They contemplate -- for an hour and a half! -- an icon of Christ
And, between readings of scripture,
and the singing of Advent Hymns
They prepared their inner selves for the birth of Christ into their lives.
It was like the tail lights of that car in front of me.
It drove me to a screeching halt!
It made me sit there, and consider why this season is so important.

Why is Christmas so important to you?
Why are you here?
Who are you?
The Pharisees asked John the Baptist this question.
If he wasn’t the Christ, Elijah, or the prophet,
than what was he doing baptizing?
What are you doing here, my friends?
What are you doing here today?
I asked earlier: Are you a Christian
are you a member of the Body of Christ?
are you a minister of the Gospel?
If you are -- you’ve got a calling today.

We all have a calling today.
The world is just as lost today,
as it was in John the Baptist’s day.
The difference is that we have the story, in its completion,
the story of our Lord’s life, ministry, death and resurrection.
We have the Gospel message to proclaim,
and during the Advent season we are supposed to prepare to
proclaim it.

Now, why the table of our Lord?
I’ve preached many times about the Holy Table as a means of grace,
a source of the presence of Christ.
And, in just a few weeks, we’re getting ready to celebrate the incarnation,
the coming of God into the world.
And this coming is symbolized at this Altar Rail,
and at this Altar Table
In the Bread and Wine
How do we make our proclamation?
With our mouths and with our lives.
How do we receive the strength to make the proclamation?
At the table.
I can think of no better way of preparing to prepare
the way of the Lord
Than by receiving our Lord into ourselves again
in the Sacrament of Holy Communion.
When you come today,
ask yourself one simple question.
Who are you?
Are you a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
And if you’re a Christian, you are.
Are you a member of the Body of Christ
Ad if you’re a Christian, you are
Then when you come to the table, and receive him by faith
Stand and leave this sanctuary
and enter that crazy world out there
and proclaim his coming again.
Advent is a time to stop.
Not to rush
Advent is a time to stop
and prepare for the incarnation of God
for the coming of God to be with us In Jesus Christ our Lord.
I know, you’ve got 15 million things to do,
and a long list of presents to buy
But you do have time to prepare for the coming of our Lord.
You have time to receive the sacrament
You have time to answer the question.
Who are you?
Why are you here?
And what are you going to do?

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
--Amen