Is Jesus the one? John’s purpose in life was to prepare the way for the one – the Messiah who would redeem Israel. Already in prison, it’s not looking good for John, but can he die knowing the Messiah has come? Will everything be okay now? John sends messengers to ask Jesus directly. Jesus, classically, does not answer directly.
Rather, as a response, Jesus names the salvation others have already experienced in his presence: sight is restored, people can walk again, diseases are healed. The disciples are to tell what they “hear and see” as experiential proof of Jesus’ credentials. Jesus will not name himself as the Messiah but focuses more on the works of “kingdom of heaven” and his role in launching such a reality (Matt. 4:17b).
My attention today is drawn to the popular desire for a Messiah who would fix everything, and Jesus showing the reality that everything cannot get fixed at once with a cosmic finger snap, but through the intentional and persistent unfolding of the kingdom of heaven.
I know that we can all get frustrated at the enormity of the environmental crisis and wish someone would just do something about it already. Didn’t Jeff Bezos say he was going to give away most of his wealth!? There we go! Easy and done. Whew. For a moment there, I thought I would have to change. We want the easy fix, and yet, begrudgingly, we are beginning to realize that we all have a part in creating a sustainable future starting with our actions in day to day living. Everyday we keep trying.
I am so proud of my congregation for switching over to compostable trash bags (the ones that don’t tear apart, of course) and for moving to LED lightening. The Altar Guild volunteers voiced their concern over using disposable communion cups, so they took it upon themselves to wash glass communion cups instead. Did we try many other solutions first? Yes. And when they didn’t pan out, we kept trying. Does it take more time? You bet. But I have watched these volunteers use that time to visit and giggle with each other, taking pride in their work in the church and knowing they prevented more plastic from ending up in a landfill.
Jesus is doing the hard, time-consuming work of bringing about the kingdom of heaven without needing to fit within the Messianic dream that arose from the inter-testamental period. Anyone can claim they are the Messiah – and my understanding of this time is that a lot of people did. Jesus uses his life and death to work redemption in the present for those who suffer throughout Judea. He keeps at it and keeps trying. It’s not a cosmic finger snap, but it’s relentless, compassionate action in the present that supports Jesus’ ministry proclamation: “the kingdom of heaven has come near” (4:17b).
Jesus will go on to describe the kingdom of heaven as spreading slowly but persistently like a mustard seed (13:31) or yeast (13:33). It will create a new reality with great reversals as Jesus indicates at the end of the gospel passage today regarding John: “No one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he” (11:11b).
Is Jesus the one? John does not get a direct answer today, but Jesus appears to answer with a wink so that we may find hope in hearing that the lame can walk, the deaf can hear and the poor are sustained with good news. It’s not fast and flashy work, but God is at work. Jesus’ consistent acts of love and compassion point to the unfolding kingdom of heaven among us. And instead of a Messiah who will overthrow an empire, we find a humble servant, a leavening agent who gives us the power to keep going and the power to keep trying.