Gaudete, 2021

Rev. Thomas Van Hemert

St. Matthew 11:2-11

Gaudete

December 12, 2021

In the name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit.

The term, “reed shaken by the wind,” may be understood as a political attack against Herod Antipas and rightly so. That’s all that Herod Antipas was—a reed shaken by the wind. He was no king. His father, Herod the Great was granted the title, “king” by the Romans. He could not claim that title for himself. But upon Herod the Great’s death, Rome intervened more directly into the affairs of Israel and split Herod the Great’s kingdom onto four sections because his sons were weak rulers. Herod Antipas was weak, a reed shaken by the wind, a beta male.

We now find John the Baptist was in prison. Herod Antipas found John’s preaching interesting, but when John preached repentance to Herod, that it wasn’t good for Herod to live with a woman and pretend that she was his true wife, Herod threw John in prison. He didn’t want to listen to the truth. No doubt this took a toll on John’s own disciples, who had heard his preaching that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand. This was John’s message all along: Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Even now, the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree, therefore, that does not bear good fruit is cut down and throne into the fire. I, John, baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire. John was preaching and waiting for the coming of the Messiah. He knew who He was. His own cousin was Himself the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. His kingdom is what John and his disciples were waiting for. 

John’s preaching pointed the masses toward the inauguration of the Kingdom of Heaven—a kingdom greater than any kingdom or government on the face of the earth. For it was near. This Messianic Kingdom that was to come, would be and is greater than even the tiny, one-fourth kingdom of Herod Antipas. But at that present time, it didn’t seem like John’s preaching had any weight or truth to it. John was suffering, wasting away in prison, which would eventually end in his beheading. And so it seems as if though the message of his preaching would waste away with him. And it may have seemed to John’s own disciples that it was all for nothing, that the small kingdom of Herod Antipas, that reed shaken by the wind, would hold always the upper hand, that Antipas would continue his reign over Galilee as a puppet ruler of Rome. Antipas ruled unjustly. After all, he threw John into prison for preaching God’s Word, for calling him to repent of his sexual immorality. Herod Antipas’s father, Herod the Great unjustly slaughtered hundreds of baby boys, the likes of which we have not seen until today where countless babies are massacred by the thousands in their own mothers’ wombs. Nothing has changed in our day. There is injustice and sin, terror and unrest now as there was back then. Where was this Kingdom of Heaven? How would it compare with Herod’s tetrarchy? Was Jesus the true Messiah who was to come or not? Would He put a stop to all this? Would He put an end to the oppression of Rome?

John sent his disciples to Jesus to ask this very question. John cared about his disciples, wishing them to come to Jesus, to become His disciples. For John must decrease, Jesus must increase. And so John sent them with the question that he knew the answer to. “You’ve heard me preach this very truth,” John may have said. “Go and ask Jesus yourselves.” And so they went. “Are you, Jesus, the one who is to come or shall we look for another.” Some ancient commentators believe that John did this for the sake of his disciples and out of love for them—that he loved them to the end of his life. And so Jesus answers John’s disciples, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind are receiving their sight and the lame walk, lepers are being cleansed and the deaf are now hearing, the dead are being raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by Me.”

How did they know the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand? Jesus told them so. They looked to the signs that Jesus gives. Even during His earthly ministry, even in the midst of this sad, cold, dark world, the Light of the world shined forth. With the arrival of the Son of God on the scene, in the flesh, He begins to restore creation to its perfect form. These are the signs that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand: the blind see, the deaf hear, disease is eradicated, the lame walk, and the dead are raised up. No doubt, those who were blind and saw, those who were deaf and then heard, those with diseases who were cured, those who were lame then walked, and no doubt those who were downcast, they all rejoiced. They rejoiced with St. Paul who boldly proclaims in the midst of his own sorrow and tribulation, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say Rejoice!” 

The Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand! Shout aloud and rejoice! What did they go out to see? What did they expect? What did all those Israelites go out into the wilderness to see and hear? A weak ruler? A reed shaken by the wind? No. What did they go out into the wilderness to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? No. They didn’t go out to see the kingdom of Herod the Great or Herod Antipas. Those ones wore soft clothing. Those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. What did they go out to see and hear? They went out to see John the Baptist, clothed in camel’s fur and a leather belt around his waist.

John the Baptist announced that the Lord was nigh. Wake up! Hear Him! Repent! For He does not come to destroy you but to bring you glad tidings. Prepare to meet Him rightly. Your iniquity is pardoned. His is a Kingdom that lasts forever and His Kingdom brings comfort. The grass withers and the flower of the field fades. But the Word of our God, the Kingdom of Heaven lasts forever. He is not a weak ruler but the Lord of Hosts, the General and Commander of legions of angel armies. All rulers of the earth are and will be subject to Him. The government shall be upon His shoulders. Tyranny, licentiousness, and political machinations, all of it will be destroyed. For the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him.

No doubt this brought great comfort to John’s disciples and gave them reason to rejoice. But this also ought to bring us great comfort in our day as well. Herod’s kingdom didn’t last. The Roman Empire is no more. The Ottoman Empire doesn’t exist. The Soviet Union has been dissolved. Earthly kingdoms crumble. Earthly kings rise and fall. Put not your trust in princes. And so also know that even this United States of America and the troubles we have and have always had with our own government will also fall to the wayside to make room for the Kingdom of Heaven. No earthly kingdom lasts forever, not even this United States of America.

Jesus is the one who came as the Babe of Bethlehem. And He is still the one who is to come. We look for no other. We look for no other earthly ruler, we put our trust in no other king or senator or governor or new president. Jesus is the one who is to come. How do we know this? We look to the signs: those who are dead in their sin are raised up to new life in Holy Baptism. The poor eat and drink without price. The hungry and thirsty eat and drink bread and wine, body and blood unto their salvation. Those who are spiritually deaf have their ears opened to the Gospel. They hear and they live. Those who are downcast—those who are beaten down, made fun of, teased, and ridiculed for being Christians now have reason to rejoice. Christmas is drawing nearer and nearer. The valleys are being lifted up. Every mountain and hill is made low. The rough places are made into plains.

And Jesus, as our ruler wears no soft clothing either. Upon His body, He wears the scars of His cross, the trophies of His passion. He has paid for the sin of the world. He has paid with His life that we might be His and live under Him in His Kingdom of Heaven and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness. The Kingdom of Heaven is His. It is coming. The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

Jesus is coming. He is coming and He will tend His Church as a shepherd tends his flock. All those who are beaten by this world and crushed by their sin, He will gather like lambs into His arms. He will carry them in His bosom and gently lead those who are with young.

We now find ourselves in the latter half of Advent. It will not always be dreary, dark, and cold. We will not always suffer the consequences of our sin and our shortcomings. Christmas is coming. Jesus is coming. He unites God with man. The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Therefore, rejoice, you sad-hearted! Rejoice in your Lord Jesus, for He fulfills everything God has promised you. He fulfills God’s Word!

In +Jesus’ name.