Between 1 and The One

REFLECTIONS
December 14, 2008

In the play Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare writes, “Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” If we categorize, John the Baptist would fall into the third of these. His cousin was the son of Mary and Joseph and they could trace the lineage to the house of David, but John’s parents were just a couple of oldsters who counted him a late in life blessing. There was some talk of his being a distant relative of Elijah, but nobody knew for sure.

So, John went about his life in the hills outside of Jerusalem until he was drawn to the wilderness of the southern desert. It was here he experienced God in ways unimagined. He heard God say the law alone was not enough. For people could follow the letter of the law and remain fallen in spirit. People must turn away from those things which separate them from God. So John preached as he believed God had called him to, for people to change their ways and accept God. His existence was unusual for some, but the spirit of God moved and John had a following.

The inevitable questions came from those in authority. Who are you? And who sent you here? When he told them he wasn’t the Messiah, they asked if he was Elijah. He said he was not. They pressed, are you a prophet? “Not even a minor one,” he responded. They wondered why he was doing this unusual ministry with water, and he told them because God had called him to bless with the power of life giving water.

John was not born into a Royal Priesthood. He served in wild places wearing wild and ragged clothes and eating wild food. He did not seek recognition or acclaim. It came because of the power evident in his ministry.

When Jesus came to the Jordan River to be baptized; John knew he and the water were instruments. The greatness of God’s glory was beheld in the One on whom the water fell.

Dr. Joey K. McDonald
First United Methodist Church
4832 Tujunga Avenue, North Hollywood, CA 91601