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Walt Whitman is a widely read
and much loved American poet. His life spanned the 19th
century. If you saw the movie “Doc Hollywood” a few years ago
(starring Michael J. Fox), you will remember there was an old
town doctor in that movie. It was said of this doctor that if
he was a few sheets to the wind, he could recite the complete
Walt Whitman.
Whitman was also somewhat of an
eccentric human being. He is sometimes called the “wild man of
American poetry.” If you have seen pictures or paintings of
him, you might understand why he was given that kind of title.
One tradition says that Walt Whitman would frequently go to
the beach, strip naked, and run through the sand yelling his
poetry into the wind.
I don’t know what that image
does for you. However, it reminds me of a man named John. John
was a wild and surprising character at the beginning of all
four of the New Testament gospels. He shouted his prophecy all
over the wilderness. He howled his message into the wind. One
writer refers to John as a first century “Grizzly Adams.”
John came up with some
fascinating images. One of those images echoes the words of
the prophet Isaiah: “Every valley will be lifted up; every
mountain and hill will be made low; the rough places will be
made plain; and the crooked places will be made straight.”
I am particularly taken with that last line—“The crooked
places will be made straight.” One translator says, “The
curves shall be straightened out and the washboard roads
scraped smooth.” John simply cried, “Make the road smooth and
straight.”
John said some other things too.
Many of these were tough things. He referred to some of the
people who came to hear him preach as a “brood of vipers—a
group of slithering snakes.” He talked about divine judgment
and the wrath of God. His wilderness worship services were not
exactly “seeker sensitive!”
But his primary message, his
consistent message was this: “In Jesus who follows after me,
things will get straightened out.”
Many of you will be familiar
with the great tenor solo from Handel’s “Messiah”, which sets
these words to music. God is going to straighten things out.
One of my favorite childhood
memories was an automobile trip my family took to Tennessee to
visit my maternal grandparents. These were the days before
there were very many interstate highways. We drove out of the
winding, twisting roads of West Virginia onto the nice
straight highways in North Carolina. Before my father knew
what was happening, a police car was right behind us with his
sirens blowing and his lights flashing. I can still remember
my father getting out of the car to go back and talk to the
policeman. I heard the conversation. My father said something
like this: “Officer, I just came out of those winding,
twisting hills in West Virginia. When I hit these nice,
straight roads in North Carolina, I simply forgot where I was
and drove too fast.” My sisters and I could not believe that
the officer let him off. He gave him a mild warning and sent
us on our way.
Anyone who has grown up in
Pittsburgh knows about crooked roads. You cannot go around the
block in this city. Visitors to San Francisco always go to see
something that is called the “crookedest street in the world.”
Route 19 runs throughout West Virginia, cutting off a part of
Interstate 79 that goes through Charleston. For a while, Route
19 was fairly crooked, but because of a massive earth-moving
project, the road has been straightened out. I cannot imagine
that it happened without some huge costs. I also know there
are more police on the roads now on Route 19 than ever
before.
John says, “When Jesus comes,
things will get straightened out.” Is he right? Do you believe
that? John says that when God acts, God will make things
straight. Does Jesus make things straight?
Either John is crazy, or John is
onto something big. What do you suppose John means here?
GOD IS IN CHARGE
For one
thing, John means that God is now fully in charge. Maybe God
has always been in charge. But John saw something new here. He
also saw what Isaiah saw. Maybe God has always been in charge,
but if you didn’t believe it before, you can believe it now.
Things are about to change. God
will not be defeated. God is our present, and God is our
future.
Do you know who Ray Vincent is?
He’s that nasal, twanging voice who advertises for American
Equity Mortgage. They even had a contest on the radio not too
long ago to see if anybody could imitate his voice and declare
it a winner. (I almost entered the contest!) The tag line at
the end of the commercial goes like this: “American Equity
Mortgage—the future belongs to you.”
No way! says John. The future
belongs to God. Jesus is coming to seal that promise to us.
I remember reading a story about
some seminary students who played basketball in a high school
gym on occasion. An old janitor sat in the bleachers reading a
book and waiting to lock up the building. On one occasion one
of the seminary students walked over to the man and said,
“What are you reading?”
“I’m reading my Bible,” came the
reply.
“What book are you reading in
the Bible?”
“I am reading the Book of
Revelation.”
“You’re reading Revelation? Do
you understand it?”
“Yes sir, I do.”
“You understand the Book of
Revelation? Tell me, what does it mean?”
“It means,” came the quiet
reply, “that God’s gonna win.”
That’s part of the message that
John brings. No matter what, God is going to win.
On the “Today” show this week,
there was a discussion about the issue of terrorists possibly
using something called “dirty bombs.” The interviewer said
people don’t seem very concerned about this. Why do you think
that is? Do you think it’s simply fatalism?
All I know is that for a
Christian it means we know we are always in God’s hands.
Whether we live or die, whether we are in safety or in harm’s
way, whether we are in sickness or in health. That’s why the
Psalmist can say, “God is my rock and my fortress.” We see
things now through different lenses.
God is going to straighten
things out because God is in charge. It’s more than a promise.
It’s a way to live your life. It’s a way to walk.
SEE LIFE IN A NEW WAY
Fundamentally, John is saying you can now see life in a new
way. You can see a world of righteousness and justice and
safety and compassion. You can see the kind of world dreamed
of by prophets and poets.
Next week we will celebrate the
100th anniversary of the first airplane flight. On
December 17, 1903, two bike shop owners took wing for the
first time. They flew a bi-winged plane with a gasoline engine
at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Orville Wright flew his plane
for 12 seconds. Wilbur Wright flew for 59 seconds and 852
feet. That was a grand total of one minute and eleven seconds
of flight. But on that day, people started to think
differently.
Actually, the Wright brothers
sent a telegram to their sister on the occasion. The telegram
said this: “We have actually flown a few feet. We’ll be home
for Christmas.” The sister took the message to the editor of
the local paper. The editor replied, “How nice. The boys will
be home for Christmas.”
Thinking differently took a
while to get up and get going. That was probably also true
with John. John is saying, “Start to think differently! See
yourselves and the world through new eyes.” And that’s exactly
what Jesus allows us to do.
I think that’s why the gospel
writer John says, “The light shines in the darkness, and the
darkness has not overcome it.” Because of the birth, the life,
the death, and the resurrection of Jesus, we see life in a
whole different way. Things are made straight. The road is now
clear of obstructions.
JOIN THE ROAD STRAIGHTENING
CREW
John also
says that we ought to join the road straightening crew. Soar
with Jesus into a life of right living, of justice, and of
hope.
Great promise brings great
responsibility with it. “Bear fruits worthy of repentance,”
shouts John. “God is in charge. Now make it work. Bear some
fruit. You will find a new source of power.”
We are to help make things as
straight as possible. The angel said to the shepherds on that
first Christmas, “Peace on earth.” Is that a promise? Or is it
a way of life? Is it a gift? Or is it a call?
Peace is God’s work. Justice is
God’s work. But it’s our responsibility to be a part of the
road crew. I am still discovering this for myself. We don’t
build the Kingdom. But we work hard on Kingdom-centered
issues.
John offers a great promise and
a great responsibility. He offers it especially to the church,
and especially to the community of believers. We are meant to
be a community of co-creators with God.
If you believe in Jesus, you
want to work for peace. If you believe in Jesus, you want to
work for justice. If you believe in Jesus, you want to help
make the path straight.
Is this not the work of
repentance to which John points? So much of this is easily
forgotten amid holiday busyness and jolliness. John shouts it
at us incessantly.
Peace among nations, and peace
among diverse groups in the church. Peace for the environment,
and peace for the delicate ecosystems of life. Peace in our
homes, and peace in our work places. And John calls for just
systems throughout. Let justice roll down all around!
You say, “What can I do? What
can one church do? Maybe we haven’t given ourselves a chance.
I read a story about a man who
was driving home from work one night and saw a group of little
league ball players on a community ball field. He stood at the
fence for a while and then said to one of the players, “How’s
it going?”
“Oh, it’s going great,” said the
young boy.
“What’s the score?” he said.
“It’s 18-0, the other team’s
winning.”
“You’ve got a smile on your
face?” said the man, “and things are going great, and you’re
behind 18-0?”
“Oh,” said the boy, “our team
hasn’t been up to bat yet.”
I’m not sure the Christian
community has batted yet. Remember Paul, who said, “Be
steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the
Lord, knowing that in the Lord your work is never in vain.”
Last week I met with a clergy
book discussion group that I have attended for years. In the
course of our conversation I spoke of God’s encouragement in
my life. I said that I believe I am called to preach that
encouragement. One senior member of the group looked at me and
said, “Why do you have encouragement? Where do you find that
encouragement?”
I responded with something along
the lines of what I’m saying to you this morning. I believe
that God is in charge. I believe that we are called and gifted
to help out, to help make good things happen.
I think this morning of one of
our favorite Christmas carols, “O Come, All Ye Faithful.” Do
you remember the next three words? “O Come, all ye faithful…
joyful and… TRIUMPHANT.”
This is not a pipe dream. This
is not an inauthentic promise. It is a mantra for road
builders.
“Every valley shall be lifted
up. Every mountain and hill shall be made low. The rough
places shall be made plain, and the crooked places shall be
made straight.” We shall see it happen. We will help make it
happen. |
