Sermon - 12/4/22

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Religion

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I have a quotation by theologian, Soren Kierkegaard, hanging above my desk and I read it every week. His words have meaning for me as I work on my sermon. This is what he said, “People have an idea that the preacher is an actor on a stage and they are the critics, blaming or praising him [or her]. What they don’t know is that they are the actors on the stage; he [or she] (the preacher) is merely the prompter standing in the wings, reminding them of their lost lines.” In other words, as we gather to worship, the liturgy that we experience week after week, that work of the people, is a work that we do. We hear the readings and proclamation of Scripture and then we act out the Gospel in the ritual drama of a meal. We believe that God acts in our words and, in that ritual of drama making, the Gospel happens. And then, that work of the people happens not simply in the context of Sunday morning worship, it continues to happen as we leave worship and live our lives throughout the week. I really appreciate Kierkegaard’s words when he says the gathered people are the actors and the preacher is the prompter standing in the wings reminding the people of their lost lines. I am reminded of Kierkegaard’s words as we hear today’s gospel reading about this unkempt, eccentric preacher, John the Baptist. John is the one standing in the wings of the wilderness on the banks of the Jordan river, crying out lost lines to the actors saying, “This is it! Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. Turn around, turn back to God.” And, I have to say that for someone who might be considered a “prompter standing in the wings,” he is the one who is stealing the show. You just gotta love John the Baptist. He is such a colorful figure. I love it when he appears on the scene each Advent. This intriguing, eccentric, prophetic figure is the one who introduces us to the narratives of Jesus’ ministry in all the go

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