2009 Dec 11~13 “What Should We Do ? ”

“ What Should We Do? ”
Sermon --- Rev. Paul Wu

Scriptures:

Zephaniah 3: 14-17

14 Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! 

Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem!
15 The LORD has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy.
The LORD, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm.
16 On that day they will say to Jerusalem, 

"Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands hang limp.
17 The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. 

He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love, 

he will rejoice over you with singing."

Luke 3: 7-14

7John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 9The axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire."
10"What should we do then?" the crowd asked. 11John answered, "The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same." 12Tax collectors also came to be baptized. "Teacher," they asked, "what should we do?" 13"Don't collect any more than you are required to," he told them. 14Then some soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He replied, "Don't extort money and don't accuse people falsely—be content with your pay."


Reflections:


1. Produce Fruits of Repentance (Luke 3: 7-9)

How does one prepare for Christmas? Our overtly commercialized society teaches us to prepare gifts for our loved ones, or to write to Santa for gifts (assuming you have been a good boy/girl for the year). In this overtly commercialized society, we are led to believe that giving each other gifts is the same as giving each other joy. In this overtly commercialized society, the coming of Santa Claus down the chimney has seemingly replaced the coming of baby Jesus in a manger. Or has it?
The salvation in Jesus Christ does not begin at the cross, it begins at the Word of God becoming flesh. It begins at the birth of Jesus when God decided to be with us. Incarnation or ‘Word became flesh’ changed the relationship between God and people, it changed the history of humankind. It turned everything up-side-down, in-side-out! “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulder, and he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Might God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)
So, How does ought to prepare for Christmas? In the words of John the Baptist, the messenger who was sent to prepare for the coming Lord, “Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.” (Luke 3:8) Notice that John did not call for repentance, but for producing actions consistent with repentance. Repentance is often associated with a change in the inner-state of being. It is a sincere acknowledgement that one’s current direction in life is somewhat misguided, wrong, and sinful. It is a determination that one must change or else. For those who were gathering around John the Baptist, repentance was in their mind – after all, they had come to repent and to be washed cleaned of their sins.
But, John challenged them further, to produce fruit in keeping with repentance. Actions speak louder than words. John also warned them not to fall back on the false assumption that their heritage to Abraham would somehow exempt them from God’s coming judgement. As that judgement was coming soon, “the axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire." (v.9)

Question: Have you ever ask God for forgiveness for a particular sin that you had committed, but then continue to go back to recommit the same sin?



1. Rejoice Over the Coming Day of the LORD (Zephaniah 3: 14-17)

Repentance resets one’s relation with God. The fruit of repentance brings joy to the humble.
The Scripture passage of Zephaniah address the ‘daughter of Jerusalem’, which in its time refers to the inhabitants of the city. But the usage of the ‘daughter’ metaphor also conveys obedience and humbleness. Contrast this term with the ‘sons of Israel’, that refers to the descendants of Jacob, but which also conveys a sense of stubbornness and disobedience. In the Ancient Easter culture, a city is often personified as a woman, and the deity that protects that city is often described as her husband. Therefore, the term ‘daughter of Jerusalem’ describes those who come under the protection and care of the LORD God.
So to those who are humble and those who obey God, “sing…shout aloud…be glad and rejoice with all your heart.” (v.14) “For the LORD God has taken away your punishment.” (v.15)
The life of someone who is truly repentant, who truly produce fruit of repentance, is a life of joy. That joy is not built on getting gifts from someone, nor waiting for Santa to come down the chimney. The true joy of repentance is in knowing that you are on the side of God. Furthermore in some mysterious and unexplained way, the LORD you God is already with you.

Question: In this season of Advent, as we wait for the coming of the Lord, what is the source of my joy in life? How dependable is that source?


1. To Share Generously, To Act Honestly (Luke 3: 10-14)

So what should we do, to produce the fruit in keeping with repentance?
John the Baptist was asked this same question by three different groups of people. Three times he offered practical day-to-day advise to these people.
To the ‘crowd’ who were the common Jewish people, John’s instruction was to ‘share’. The sharing of tunic and food were not frivolous; such sharing maintains and sustains life. We should not see this sharing as simply packaging boxes of toys for the Third-World children. The truly meaning sharing is to work towards a global economic system that is fair and just for all. That may seem like a too-big-of-a-thing to tackle for some, but we can all start by making small changes in our daily purchasing decisions. We can refuse to buy products produced in sweatshops where many workers lived on dismal wages of a few dollars a day. We can choose to buy fair-trade coffee, tea, and rice where the producers of these commodities receive a fair compensation for their labour. There are many things that we can do to share.
To the ‘tax-collectors’ who were Jewish themselves but who were working for the Roman Empire, John’s instruction was to be ‘honest’ – “don’t’ collect any more than you are required to” (v.13) From time to time, we may find ourselves in the situation where the ethic of our work conflicts with the teaching of faith. It would be too simplistic and inauthentic for a preacher to say ‘quit your job, you faith is more important!’ John’s instruction reminds us to continue to seek that balance between faith and vocation – ‘don’t do any more than you are required to’.
To the soldiers who were most likely Romans, John’s instruction was to ‘not be greedy’. Evidently, some soldiers were supplementing their low wages with extortion and false accusation. John’s instruction was simple and yet remarkable, because even those who were outside of God’s covenant were invited to participate in this life of repentance.

Question: What practical and every-day-life changes do I need to make to live a life of true repentance?