Sermon – Advent III (Year A)- Sunday, 14th November 2025 – St Peter’s, Stanley – Eucharist
Isaiah 35.1-10 | Matthew 11.2-11
Which is it — the message or the messenger?
Which do we value more?
And does it always stay the same?
Do we look at the messenger and say – ‘ooo you look nice, have a TV show…or a podcast…!’
Or do we hear the message and respond by dismissing it… ‘it’s nothing new, too expensive, heard it before, makes no sense…’
Or maybe…. ‘Wait a moment….that makes perfect sense, it fits with what I think, and everyone else must think it too…’.
It is written: Don’t shoot the messenger! Hmmm… I wonder..
What if it sounds like good news now, but tomorrow you don’t think so…?
How many times has the messenger brought the message, only to be misunderstood – placed on a high pedestal one moment and then cast into outer darkness the next.
It could be that the messenger has a whole other agenda, and the message you liked for a while was a way for you to like them… for longer….
The world and its history are filled with short-term ideas, fads, fashions, vote-winners, like-clickers and momentary influence! Yet sometimes the madness goes on far longer than it should!
You might be wondering where all of this is going….a fair question…
Well, last week, in Matthew Gospel, the message of John the Baptiser had a certain popularity – proclaiming – “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (3:2) – and they did – coming to him to be baptised… even those he called a “brood of vipers”. But his season as “influencer” came to an end – popular one moment and then like off-milk the next!
How many times in our history has the message of love, redemption, hope and light been swallowed up by a fearful and violent response to the one that brought it?
Or when it looks like its from God… seems popular, urgent, full of passion… but lacking in love, devoid of compassion and empathy, is ultimately self-serving and un-Christ-like.
The message Jesus Christ brings is one of love – a love that changes the world — not cheaply, but truthfully and at cost..
Find value in yourself and one another, have respect for the created universe, look out for the stranger, the outcast, the poor and vulnerable etc – nothing you haven’t heard before. It’s not a new message…. But it was once… and realistically, it can seem to be so now, cant it?
Fear is a default human response to many things, but it doesn’t have to be. The Gospel message seeks to overturn that fear so it doesn’t win – doesn’t grow into greed, hunger for power, hatred and suffering.
Is it Good News that comes to John the Baptist, in his prison cell, hearing the reports of his friends that sought out Jesus….? Is he reassured that yes – Jesus is the one for whom John was making the way straight?
What does Jesus say to him?
“… the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” (5)
Then Jesus speaks to the crowd….
They had followed John into the desert…
What did they expect to see? To hear?
Comforting words, from a person used to comfort and softness? Certainly not!
A prophet…. Yes! What kind of prophet?
Jesus quotes from Isaiah…
Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
‘Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God. (4)
Jesus seeks to reassure John, who is imprisoned, that a transformation shall come to pass. John’s message in the desert shall bring forth life, through Jesus.
Isaiah again…
For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;
the burning sand shall become a pool,
and the thirsty ground springs of water;
the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp,
the grass shall become reeds and rushes. (6-7)
The desert… the wilderness… Time and again, the bible reveals these places of transformation. From 40 years to 40 days…
God does more with us in wilderness places than in our comfort zones. He forms prophets there, confronts lies there, speaks tenderly and feeds us there, and leads us to new life. Yet such transformation isn’t instant, is it?
I often use garden metaphors as I find hope in what will come after the Winter. I struggle in these darker days and long for the light; when the 22nd comes, I know that the darkness will not prevail…!
In the garden, the green shoots are revealed even in the Autumn now – a consequence of our warming climate. Even as the leaves are turning, the promise of Spring is visible – so much is still in flower! And yet, fear of the overwhelming darkness makes us focus on what is dying off… and wondering…. Will it come again…?
Do you sense the wilderness, the desert, the wasteland? The daily news, rising prices, personal circumstances, failing health in ourselves or loved ones… perhaps it never ends.. or that is what it seems like. The darkness wants to win.
And we wait… This season of waiting… And this is where Advent speaks most clearly to us…
Waiting is something we do….as Christians, as humans; when we were children, now as adults. We are not waiting for Jesus to be physically born in a stable, in 2025. That was a long time ago.
We do wait for Jesus to be born and reborn into our lives, our world, and each other – everyday…
What is that waiting like… for you.. for me?
Is it easy? Or is it a trial… an ache…
Dear God – come soon – and bring a light in the dark – not just for me but for everyone. We need help!
Advent teaches us that our heart-felt longing is not in vain, that God’s promises will be fulfilled. We wait for Christmas, when God came to us as human, in poverty, oppression and rejection. We know how to wait for something more, something better, something that transforms the wilderness into a place of rejoicing.
We come to church, you and I, and we worship, we pray, we share and we learn.
For many of us, Advent, Christmas and the Epiphany all have their distinctiveness…
Times of preparation – rejoicing and moving on….
But what about those who do not know these things….
Those yet to discover or even to hear about Jesus…
The people for whom Christmas is a strange time of mixed messages: family & friends – spending money – eating & drinking lots – bringing trees indoors, giving gifts… None of which applies to everyone…
It’s such a complicated landscape! Imagine if they hear the wrong messages….
We often take for granted that families will come to nativity and Christingle events, and that they will ‘just get it’ – the ideas, the story, the images… to create long lasting memories… to hear of love….
How many of us got our first glimpse of what a camel, or a stable might look like from a Christmas card, or nativity service? And the wonder of star-led “kings”, shepherds and the wee donkey?
All of which offers a vision of welcome and inclusion. There is room around the manger not just for Mary and Joseph, but for humble shepherds and travelling wise-persons, and the animals too.
What is the reality of that, and how is it the message of Christmas?
Those visitors to the infant Jesus include local, low-paid workers who were often on the edges of society (the shepherds), and foreign travellers who would have spoken different languages and practised different forms of religion (the magi). This stable is where God begins the work of breaking down divisions, making room for everyone, building relationships, community and solidarity across all our differences.
If that’s the message, how will it actually work in the world of today? Well, that’s where you and I have our part to play…
The messenger … from prophets in the streets and in the wilderness…. Jesus, in the crowds, in the desert, upon the cross… and since then, all those who have spoken up and called out to love and have mercy…. And now: us… always us….
If the message seems an easy win — unchallenging, unquestioned — then it probably isn’t the Gospel.
If the message is based on fear, then beware it doesn’t beguile you, trick you and ultimately turn you away from Christ…
The words of Jesus were returned to John to say – have hope, what you did in the wilderness will bring forth life – it was worth the wait… the work of building the kingdom will carry on.
Messages that encourage, are inclusive and speak of welcome are the ones that have the greater value, that last, and are worth waiting for, are worth passing on…
The free, radical grace of God, that shows love and forgiveness is the water flowing in the desert to bring life from death.
It doesn’t have to be something new and strange. If you try to love your neighbour, are welcoming and forgiving; if you tell others about your own struggles in the wilderness, and how Jesus brought you light and water…. Then the message is with you, so keep going!
Because…
It’s down to you and me…
To wait… not always patiently, because this world needs hope now!
But its you and me…
To be the green-shoots of hope in the desert….
To be the guidance and reassurances that others need now.
To be the light in the darkness…
To be the Christ-like presence in this earthly life….if you can.
To be the messenger…!
Keep it simple, but make it true and from your heart…
For…
If it’s not about love, then it’s NOT about God – begin there, every day.
God be with you this Advent.
Amen.
Image: Bus Stop Nativity by Andrew Gadd
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