Response: ”God called it good.”
God saw John the Baptist.
Not that John was hiding like Adam or Eve –
God knew John was an odd duck.
God knew he wore camel’s hair and ate locusts.
God blessed John anyhow. And John accepted the blessings.
As strange as John was, he still got to baptize Jesus.
What an amazing honor!
Somehow John could see that Jesus was “of God.”
John knew he (himself) was unworthy –
But he stepped into the water and baptized the One
who would eventually cleanse all of us.
He did what he was called to do!
Why would a guy like John the Baptist be given such an honor?
Wouldn’t it have been even more appealing if
someone special had baptized Jesus?
Why this man? This very strange man!
Or should we ask – WHY NOT?
After all – respond together: God called it good.
Why does God seek out these strange folks?
Think about it –
The 12 disciples weren’t exactly GQ cover material.
And Mary Magdalene wasn’t the girl next door.
How about Moses? Joshua? Solomon?
David – who would be good – and bad –
and good again. He still became King.
What about all of these folks?
What does God think of them?
Respond again: God called it good.
Guess what? God sees you too.
God knows how peculiar we all are.
God sees our flaws – our faults – our frailty.
God sees that we can’t even fathom the power
we have when we allow the holy spirit to lead us.
God knows that once we accept the divine within us
we can be effective, in demand, even unstoppable.
We can be odd – unusual –
even unlovable by many of our fellow humans –
And yet we can become kings, servant leaders,
wise ones, traveling from afar to be with our savior.
Is God asking us to travel?
Is God asking us to baptize or to heal one another?
Is God asking us to lead our community into a new place?
What is it that God is asking of us?
Of you, of me, of faith Church?
We can be the ones who are called by God, and who respond to God,
And who bring light into the dark places.
And when we do that, we will respond together:
God called it good.
