The Third Friday of Advent -- December 16, 2011

John 5:33 - 36

“You have sent to John and he has testified to the truth. Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved. John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light.

“I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to finish—the very works that I am doing—testify that the Father has sent me."


"Preach the Gospel at all times. If necessary, use words."

I first saw those words almost two decades ago, finding them attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. The words seemed to fit Francis, he who was a Troubadour for the Lord, an engaging, charismatic doer of the Gospel. Francis ordered his life around the Sermon on the Mount. He was not known as a speaker or a teacher or a writer, but rather as one who embodied the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His influence was the fruit of a life that had been transformed by God from the inside-out.

In truth, the saying is apocryphal. As far as I can tell, you won't find it among the relatively meager collections of Francis' writings. Again, he was first of all a doer, not a writer.

But the truth of the saying is not diminished by its unknown origins. It says to us that "preaching" is not what we ordinarily think of when we hear the word. It is only secondarily a matter of speech. Preaching is mostly our living, the quality of our lives, the way the Gospel is enfleshed in our actions, the life of Jesus within each of us.

As one of my mentors says, we are each a "living experience" of Christ's life in the world.

So in the text for today, Jesus pointed out that John testified about the identity of Christ, the long-expected one. John's testimony was a "bright and shining light" that lit the world for many people. John testified about Jesus with his words.

Jesus' testimony, though, was weightier than John's (v. 36). What was Jesus' testimony? It was what he did . . . his actions, works, deeds . . . his healing, touching, engaging.

There was a holy witness, a testimony in how Jesus engaged life, how he valued people, how he treated those underneath the weight of society. Jesus testified about God by his very stance toward life.

It causes me to ponder about the time I've spent in my life in the formal act of "preaching", mostly using rhetoric from pulpits within the confines of church buildings . . . when perhaps I should have been building a pulpit in the world.

The Second Friday of Advent -- December 9, 2011

Matthew 11:16 - 19

“To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:

“‘We played the pipe for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her actions.”


The immediate setting of these Jesus-words is a playground or a marketplace where children are playing a variation of "follow-the-leader." But the game is not getting off the ground because the "followers" are not following the "leaders." The leaders are giving the cues, but the followers -- who are peers, or playmates -- are not responding.

John the Baptist gave cues, inviting people to repentance, but many did not respond.

Jesus gave cues, offering a heavenly feast, but many did not like the company he kept, and were offended that if they "attended" the feast they would have to sit at the table with ne'er-do-wells.

So the cues were rejected, the implicit rejection of those who may not have said "no" with their lips, but who said "no" because of their refusal to participate.

Thus, it is the last sentence of the saying that stands out to me today: "Wisdom is proved right by her actions," or "Wisdom is vindicated by her deeds."

Truth is not determined by its number of adherents, by the number of people who give ascent to its propositions. Truth is not determined by how many people follow the leaders cues.

Truth is truth, and ultimately it is witnessed in what it does.

In other words, the truth of God is not determined by how many people follow or do not follow along . . . it is not determined by who follows. The witness of Truth is what it does, how it operates in the world. It is not determined by the ones who follow (or do not follow).

I'll make this more personal. Who God is, is not determined by my response to God. Who God is, is not determined by who I think God is. God's Being is not contingent on whether or not I listen to God, follow God, obey God, link my life to God. . . .

It is human hubris, for instance, to think that debate or theological inquiry has any ultimate benefit. I get it that our lives are shaped in some respects by what we believe; but does the fact that I believe some doctrine or theological concept ultimately make that concept more valid? Does my belief -- or non-belief -- change its truth?

Whether I follow or not, Truth is truth.

Whether I believe or not, Truth is truth.

What is wise and true is borne out in actions and deeds, whether I go with it or not.