Luke 3:1-6 BibleGateway.com
Most of us focus on the last three verses of this passage from Luke, the message of hope that transforms all flesh and changes the face of the earth. Thanks to Handel, many of us know these words by heart and can even sing them!
In comparison to the glorious strains of “Messiah,” the list of rulers and religious figures found in the first three verses seems drab, merely preparatory details for the “real” message of Advent. Yet these details are important: Luke takes time to describe John the Baptist’s context. Luke tells us that attention to people, places, and current events is critical if we are to hear the good news. The word of God does not hover above the ground but sinks an anchor into the earth, claiming that earth as God’s own. The word of God comes to John, the son of Zechariah, at a time when an emperor is reigning over much of the known world, when other political and religious figures are vying for power and influence. Most of the people mentioned in this list are not paragons of faith or virtue: many become implicated in Jesus’ death as recorded later in the gospel. But God’s word comes to contexts like this and to people like these: to contexts like ours, to people like us. In the midst of hopelessness comes the hope of the world. The way has already been prepared.
Prayer: Prepare us the way, O Lord, for your coming: out of discord bring harmony; out of war bring peace; out of hatred bring love. Prepare the way so that all may see, taste, and hear your Word.
Amen
David H. Jensen
Professor of Constructive Theology
Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary
CLICK HERE to listen to each day's devotional.
Most of us focus on the last three verses of this passage from Luke, the message of hope that transforms all flesh and changes the face of the earth. Thanks to Handel, many of us know these words by heart and can even sing them!
In comparison to the glorious strains of “Messiah,” the list of rulers and religious figures found in the first three verses seems drab, merely preparatory details for the “real” message of Advent. Yet these details are important: Luke takes time to describe John the Baptist’s context. Luke tells us that attention to people, places, and current events is critical if we are to hear the good news. The word of God does not hover above the ground but sinks an anchor into the earth, claiming that earth as God’s own. The word of God comes to John, the son of Zechariah, at a time when an emperor is reigning over much of the known world, when other political and religious figures are vying for power and influence. Most of the people mentioned in this list are not paragons of faith or virtue: many become implicated in Jesus’ death as recorded later in the gospel. But God’s word comes to contexts like this and to people like these: to contexts like ours, to people like us. In the midst of hopelessness comes the hope of the world. The way has already been prepared.
Prayer: Prepare us the way, O Lord, for your coming: out of discord bring harmony; out of war bring peace; out of hatred bring love. Prepare the way so that all may see, taste, and hear your Word.
Amen
David H. Jensen
Professor of Constructive Theology
Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary
CLICK HERE to listen to each day's devotional.
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For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.CLICK HERE to learn how you can support the mission of Austin Seminary
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