Behold, The Gospel Comes To You To Be Seen And Heard :: Matthew 11:2-11
Rejoice! That’s the name given this Third Sunday in Advent. Rejoice!
This is the day of the year designated to help us remember to Rejoice in the Lord always! (Pp 4:4). This call to rejoice can be heard as both a greeting and a command. And it can be heard in the Word for our meditation today, from Matthew chapter 11, where Jesus says to John’s disciples, After you have gone, announce to John what you hear and see: the blind gain sight and the lame are walking, lepers are being cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are being raised, and the poor are being evangelized. And blessed is whoever is not being scandalized in me (vv 4-6).
In other words, Rejoice. I will say again, rejoice at what you see and hear: Jesus comes to you with good news of great joy ... You, the baptized children of God, the inheritors of the heavenly kingdom, are hearing and seeing the Gospel that our Lord Jesus Christ has come, he will come, and he continues to come. He comes with healing. He comes with double comfort. He comes bringing redemption. He comes to sanctify. He comes in Word and sacrament. He comes so that we can rejoice.
Let us rejoice always. That’s why you called me to be your pastor. ... You know you long to rejoice with Word and sacraments! You long to rejoice in hymns of praise. You long to celebrate all the ways God has forgiven your sin. Rejoice!
As our Lord Jesus comes to serve, you don’t need to be anxious about anything. The blind are gaining sight. The lame are walking. Lepers are being cleansed, and the deaf are hearing. You don’t need to hang your heads in shame. The dead are even being raised (v 5)
Brothers and sisters in Christ, this what you came to see, isn’t it (v 7)? All of the company of heaven is rejoicing. Your Lord has come, will come, and is coming with good news for the poor: the forgiveness of sins is yours, and you can share that now with those around you.
BEHOLD, WE CAN NOW SEE AND HEAR THE GOOD NEWS OF JESUS
Blessed is the one who is not being scandalized [by this proclamation] (v 6).
As we continue our journey in Advent, we are reminded of the threefold coming of Jesus. Each of our readings drives home this beautiful, comforting message of hope. From Isaiah’s proclamation, we have a clear message: Your Lord has promised you double comfort ... not only his presence, but his forgiveness. In our Epistle, Paul reminds us that when the Lord comes, he will bring to light the mysteries of the faith. And most importantly for today, our Gospel opens with John the Baptist points us once again to Jesus (v 2).
1.
It has often been speculated that our gospel reading shows us that John the Baptizer had his doubts amid his suffering. Look, the scholastics say, he’s in prison: Therefore, he must have been in despair. He must have been worried about his life, about what he will eat or drink. John’s no different than you and me. We all have our doubts because I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus.
That argument certainly could be true ... it is only human nature to doubt the presence of God in our lives ... especially when we are being persecuted like John was for standing on his confession that sin in our life has no place with God. But today take a moment and read verse 2 again: Matthew tells us what John was thinking. He writes ... When John heard in prison the works of Jesus (v 2).
Brothers and sisters in Christ, John the Baptizer had been waiting for this moment. He knew who Jesus was. Remember, he leapt in the womb of Elizabeth at the mere presence of Jesus. He devoted his life to calling men to repentance, to prepare the way of the Lord, and ultimately to point out Jesus. When Jesus went to John to fulfill all righteousness in baptism (Mt 3:15), John recognized him immediately.
I did not know him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, “Upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining on him, this is he [who comes]” (Jn 1:29-34).
And of course, that is exactly what happened. From that day on, John proclaimed to all who would listen ... There he is ... the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (Jn 1:29). ... There he is ... The Christ.
2.
That brings us to today’s reading. After Herod had him arrested for being a Christian, John then began hearing the works of Jesus, too. It’s like double comfort!
And what were these works people had been telling him? You know them ... none other that the blind receiving their sight, the deaf being able to hear, the lame being healed, and that sinners were being cleansed and the poor were receiving the good news that the treasures of heaven belong to them on account of Jesus. The Gospels are filled with these accounts. The Old Testament ... Isaiah in particular ... told us Jesus would do this. And John’s disciples began sharing that news with John.
John knew who Jesus was. But his disciples didn’t.
So John sent them to Jesus to ask the question we all want to ask. Are you the coming one?
By pointing his disciples to Jesus ... once again ... John was giving his disciples the opportunity to bear witness to the truth he already knew ... Jesus is the only begotten son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten not made.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, this realization should cause us to leap for joy. God is with us!
3.
Today we can’t go to Christ personally ... at least in the way John’s disciples did ... to ask Jesus ourselves if he really is the coming one. But though we have not seen him, we [can] believe in him, and even though we cannot see him now, we love him. God is with us!
We can do these things because our Lord shows us the evidence in his Word and Sacraments, which the Holy Spirit employs to proclaim the Good News that Jesus is the coming one, and that by trusting his means of grace we will have life in his name.
This good news should fill us with his glorious and inexpressible joy as we await the outcome of our faith, the salvation of our souls (1 Pt:1-8-9). But this good news will mean little until you at least begin to realize how blind, deaf, lame, and filthy your sin really leaves you. This good news will mean nothing ... until ... we confess that we are sinful and unclean and cannot free ourselves. This good will mean nothing ... until ... we recognize just how poor we really are ... that we have nothing to offer our Lord. Our sinful nature constantly desires more and more (Prv 27:20).
So heed the words of John the Baptizer and repent everyone in the name of Jesus. Blessed is the one who is not being scandalized in him ... because God who is faithful and just will cleanse you of all unrighteousness in Word and sacrament.
4.
Jesus is coming with this good news that is meant to be seen and heard and even proclaimed. He is coming to redeem us ... that is, to deliver to us the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation.
He has already lived the perfect life for you ... the one we could not live. Then as the Lamb of God, he has already provided us with the perfect sacrifice that appeased all of his Father’s wrath for all of our sin. More than that he has already risen from the grave, so that all who confess with their mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in their heart that God raised him from the dead will be saved. You can hear and see this good news in the scriptures.
But that isn’t all.
Though we were blind in sin, Jesus ... through his Gospel ... opened our eyes through baptism (Isa 35:5). Though we were helpless, Jesus ... through his Gospel ... healed us (Isa 35:6). Though we were covered with the leprosy of sin, Jesus washed that away, cleansing us in baptism and giving us robes of righteousness (Isa 61:10). Though we were deaf, Jesus opened our ears to hear his Gospel proclaimed. We can now recognize that we were once dead in our trespasses and sins, but Jesus has raised us into everlasting life through the waters of Holy Baptism. We were starving for righteousness, but Jesus continues to come to feed us his bread of life and provide us his cup of salvation that was poured out for the forgiveness of your sins.
5.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, you have every reason in the world to be at peace and full of joy right now, no matter how bad life may be treating you. You have every reason to rejoice, even in the midst of this dark and dank world that languishes in sin. He forgave the iniquity of his people; he covered all our sin. He withdrew all his wrath. He turned from his hot anger (Ps 85:2-3).
So again I say rejoice.
May God grant us the opened eyes and ears to recognize his blessed Gospel truths in our midst, and may He grant us mouths to proclaim boldly, unapologetically, and joyously all that Christ has done for us and for all the world in His life, death, and resurrection.