The readings for this Sunday are for those of Advent 3:

• Zephaniah 3. 14 – end
• Canticle: Isaiah 12.2 to end
• Philippians 4. 4-7
• Luke 3. 7-18

You might like to use the link below to find the above readings, and click on any of the reading above that you wish to use: http://www.katapi.org.uk/CommonWorship/CWLectionarySelV.php

Collect of the day

Let us first spend a few moments in silence to centre ourselves,
to gather ourselves in our souls,
to come before the Lord just as we are with our joys and sorrows,
our hopes and our fears, our loves and our pains.
Let us just focus our minds and hearts on Jesus who is the answer for every problem.
Let us pray that the Spirit will work through our lives
to bring Christ to the world.

Silence is kept …

O Lord Jesus Christ,
who at your first coming sent your messenger
to prepare your way before you:
grant that the ministers and stewards of your mysteries
may likewise so prepare and make ready your way
by turning the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the just,
that at your second coming to judge the world
we may be found an acceptable people in your sight;
for you are alive and reign with the Father
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Amen.

or

God for whom we watch and wait,
you sent John the Baptist to prepare the way of your Son:
give us courage to speak the truth,
to hunger for justice,
and to suffer for the cause of right,
with Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

Post Communion

We give you thanks, O Lord, for these heavenly gifts;
kindle in us the fire of your Spirit
that when your Christ comes again
we may shine as lights before his face;
who is alive and reigns now and for ever.

Amen.

Prayer before the Sermon

Loving Heavenly Father,
we thank you for the words you have given us today.
We know they are words of life and salvation.
Open our hearts Father, touch our souls,
forgive us our sins especially our lack of faith,
help us to respond to your word.
May we know that you are our Lord and Saviour
who promises us the power from on high,
your Holy Spirit.
May we experience in our hearts your love
and your presence always.

Amen.

A homily based on the readings of today is given below:

Luke 3:7-18 (The Gospel)

⁷ John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. ⁹ Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” ¹¹ In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.” ¹² Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” ¹³ He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.” ¹⁴ Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”

¹⁵ As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah,^[a] 16 John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with^[b] the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸ So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

All:     Praise to you O Christ.

“Bear fruits worthy of repentance.”

(Luke 8.8)

1. John the Baptist and the message of repentance:

 “Bear fruits worthy of repentance.” (verse 8)

“Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” (verse 9b)

The message of John the Baptist is strong, radical and difficult but it is a message that is still very relevant also for us today. We must see this message in the context of the expectation of the people of Israel for the Messiah, the Liberator-Saviour. Unfortunately, many of them thought that the Messiah would be a political liberator who would free them from the oppression and occupation of foreign powers like the Roman occupation of the time.

John the Baptist, who is a prophet and the last of the prophets, is anything but a political messenger. As we know, prophets seldom mince words and always speak and proclaim the truth of God’ will, plan and purposes. John the Baptist, the archetype prophet, challenges the people to a repentance and a change of heart, a change of life, spiritual regeneration. He uses examples and metaphors to explain his message. (verse 9b.)

God wants to see us regenerated, renewed, changed, converted, become new people, John proclaims. In fact, St Paul says, writing to the Philippians: “If you are in Christ, you are a new creation.” (2 Corinthians 5.17)

John is telling us as he told his listeners more than 2000 years ago:

Don’t be happy with your repetitive, habitual, half-hearted life that has become a vicious cycle, day after day, doing the very same things again and again! No! He says! Repent! Have a change of heart! Come out of the prison of vicious cycle of habits, addictions and ordinariness that does not help to be a new creation in Christ.

2. What shall we do?

And the people asked him, “What shall we do?” (verse 10, repeated in verse 12 and 14) It occurs twice more in the gospel of Luke in chapter 10. 25 and 18.18 in which a lawyer and a ruler respectively ask Jesus for an authoritative response about what they must do to inherit eternal life – and they receive different answers. Thrice in Acts of the Apostles (2.37, 16.30, 22.10) this question occurs and, in each instance, Christian baptism is part of the answer.

In answer to their question “what shall we do?” John does not enjoin the offering of sacrifices or the performance of ascetical practices like fasting. His injunctions are far more radical and practical, namely a selfless concern for one’s disadvantaged brothers and sisters:

• sharing with the poor (verse 11)
• just living (verses 12 and 13)
• don’t extort money (verse 14)

We remember the words of the prophet Micah (Micah 6.6): “What does the Lord God ask of you but to love tenderly, act justly and walk humbly with your God!”

3. The Baptism of fire

In verses 15-17, John gives us an idea as whom to wait for as the real liberator and saviour: “I baptise you with water; but one who is more powerful that I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thongs of his sandals; he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (verse 16)

We know that fire cleanses, consumes and gives light.

That is what the Baptism of the Holy Spirit does to people – cleanses
and purifies us, enlightens us, gives us light and consumes us
with his love.

This happened at Pentecost – “tongues of flame.” (cf. Acts 2.3)
This happened at the “burning bush” on Mt Sinai. (cf. Exodus 3.2)
The baptism of fire, the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, happens to
everyone who sincerely and deeply accepts Jesus as Saviour and Lord  of their lives.

4. Conclusion: “Bear fruits worthy of repentance”

How does the Word of God apply to us today? You and I know what and where we need to repent and change so that we can bear fruits for God. There may be things that we can do, small things to start off. But we can’t just stay where we are and do nothing. “Faith without good works is dead” (James 2.26) Let me share with you a thought that I found useful while reading this book “Greater” by Steven Furtick. He says that we must dream bigger but start smaller and that is how you can ignite God’s vision for your life.

We see in 2 Kings chapter 3 that king Joram, Jehoshaphat of Judah and the king of Edom who are attacked by the Moabites have run out of water for their armies and animals and they come to prophet Elisha.

Elisha tells the kings to take a small, ludicrous step first. “This is what the LORD says: Make this valley full of ditches.” (2 Kings 3.16) In other words: You want water because you have a drought. You are thirsty. Your animals are thirsty’. But dig the ditches first if you believe God will send you the rains. In other words, he is saying: ‘Start doing something. Don’t stand there doing nothing expecting God to do everything!’

“It all comes down to this: What small steps and practical preparations is God asking you to make for the greater life He wants you to live? What ditches is He asking you to dig?

You can’t expect God to entrust you with a big dream if he can’t trust you to make a small start.

You can’t have the apostle Paul’s walk with God overnight.

Big dream.

But you can pray ten minutes a day beginning tomorrow.

Small start.

You can’t entirely mend a broken relationship overnight.

Big dream.

But you can have a conversation and open the door, write the letter, make the call, say, ‘I’m sorry.’

Small start.

If your kid is far from God, you can’t bring him back overnight.

Big dream.

But you could start prayng for him every day.

Small start.”[1]

God wants to do things in your life but you have to take the first step!

And the first step is always to turn to God with a sincere, repentant heart. It is to tell him of your desire to make a new start in life.

Have you really given your heart to God? Have you received the Holy Spirit in to your heart? Have you begun well but slowed down spiritually over the years?

You might want to bring about a change in your life and live a more faithful and free life in Christ. It is never too late for God. There is no better time than Advent time to do that. That is why we celebrate Christmas. “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3.16).

One way we can definitely do something is to be a more active members of the Church, to offer ourselves and our talents for God’s work. As Archbishop Justin Welby says: “When the Church is working, it is the most mind-bogglingly, amazingly, extraordinarily beautiful community on earth. It heals, it transforms, it loves. It changes society and it brings people face to face with God. It’s wonderful. God chose to create the Church in order to carry on the work of Jesus, so the mission of the Church is to build the community as God intended it.”

“Bear fruits worthy of repentance!”

Are we listening to God in our hearts and committing ourselves to Christ in a new way this time around at Christmas?

Pause to pray …

Lord Jesus,
I believe you are the Son of God.
Thank you for becoming one of us.
Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins.
Thank you for rising from the dead
to give me hope and the gift of eternal life.

I repent of my sins
and invite you into heart and life
as my Lord and Saviour.
Please grant me your Holy Spirit
so that I may know you, love you
and follow you every day of my life.

Amen.

[Revd Dr ST Mattapally, Rector, Springline Parish, Diocese of Lincoln]
[1] Steven Furtick, “Greater” (Multnomah Books Colorado 2012), p.68