Loving God, you call us to be your witnesses, and to point to Jesus in all that we do. Make us faithful in this calling by the power of your Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A sign is something that points beyond itself to something else. If you walk into a building and see a sign that says, "Office" and has an arrow on it pointing in a certain direction, you know that the sign itself is not the office. It simply points to the office. In the same way, as you come into the church you'll see a sign that says "Elevator" and points to the left. The sign itself is not the elevator. It simply points to where the elevator is.

In the same way, John the Baptist was a sign. His sole job was to point people to Jesus - to get them ready for his coming. He himself was not the Messiah. He was there to point to the Messiah. In a similar fashion, the entire gospel of John is a sign. It, too, has one purpose - to point us to Jesus. In fact, the purpose is stated this way close to the end of the gospel of John:

"These [things] are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name" (Jn. 20:31).

Is not the same thing true of the entire Bible? It, too, is a sign that points us to Jesus.

However, once pointed to Jesus, we discover that he, too, is a sign. He points beyond himself to the God who loves us and who cared enough to come, in Jesus, and live among us. He points to the power to heal that belongs only to God. He points to the huge gap that exists between how God intended people to live and how we actually do live. He points to the power of love, and the call to respond in love to the God who has first loved us.

This said, all those who follow Jesus are also called to be signs. The question is, of course, what we are going to be a sign of. Do we point to Jesus, or do we point to ourselves, or to something else? This is a question that can be asked of each of us as individuals, and also as a congregation. What is it that we are pointing to in the decisions that we make, in what we say, and in what we do?

The natural human tendency, of course is to point to ourselves. We can see this in children who insist, "Look at me! Look at me!" Of course, adults do this, too, but usually not quite as bluntly. Instead it's things like, look at what I've accomplished - look at my car, my house, my toys - look at my success! Many spend their lives always looking for recognition - always looking to be the center of attention - always needing to be in the limelight. Yet, our calling as Christians is not to point to ourselves, but to point to Jesus. This is what it means to be a witness and to "testify to the light" (Jn. 1:7).

Now, this doesn't mean that we all have to be shrinking violets and fade into the woodwork. John the Baptist was very much in the public eye, yet he used this position in order to point to Jesus. It can be a very fine line that we walk at times, especially those of us who are "up front", so to speak. The challenge is always to point to Jesus, and never to ourselves. This is what it means when Jesus says, "You will be my witnesses" (Acts 1:8).

In many ways, it is far more complicated for us as human beings to be signs than it is for some of the more inanimate signs that decorate the sanctuary this time of year. The Advent wreath is a sign - a sign of the cycle of time, or the "ever-circling years," as the hymn says (LBW #54). Each candle is a sign of a passing week - of the approaching light - of the approaching celebration of Christ's birth. And at the center of it all is Christ, symbolized by the candle at the center, which is also a sign.

The Christmas tree is a sign - a sign that points us heavenward and points us to God. It is a sign of life in the midst of death - greenery in the midst of winter - and everlasting life. The lights, too, are signs - signs of the light in the darkness - reminders of the stars in the sky - reminders by their colours of things that are part of the life of Jesus. The red stands as a reminder of Jesus' blood, which was shed for us. The green stands as a sign of growth and new life, which is ours through Jesus. The blue remains the colour of hope - the colour of the sky, and the white stands as a reminder of the purity of Jesus and his sinless life. The silver and gold are a reminder of the colours of heaven, and the precious treasure that is ours in Jesus Christ our Saviour. Even the balls that hang from the branches are signs - reminders of the whole world, which is in God's hands, and of Jesus as the light of the world - especially where the lights on the tree reflect off of the other decorations. Finally, the chrismons on the tree are even more obvious signs, with each one revealing something about Jesus and representing him in some way.

Yes - reading the signs in the sanctuary are relatively easy - at least, once we know what they all mean! However, reading people is an entirely different matter. Being a sign, or a witness, is a different matter, too. Obviously we are not all called to leave home and start preaching in the wilderness like John the Baptist. So how do we point others to Jesus?

One way is through the choices that we make - especially our choices about how we are going to use our time, talents and treasure. For example, do we arrange our time in such a way that there is time for worship and for prayer and for reading and studying the Bible, or do we fill it all with other things? Do we arrange our time to allow us to be of service to others, or is it all self-focused? Do we give of ourselves or simply expect others to always give to us? Do we spend our money on lots of large gifts for ourselves, or do we use what we have in order to give to others who have less than we do? Do we use our God-given talents and abilities in God's service, or do we bury them, keeping them only for ourselves? Do we learn generosity by giving more and more away, or do we give back to God only our leftovers? All of these are choices that bear witness to our faith and to our priorities.

In the same way, any choices that we make about how we are going to celebrate Christmas also bear witness to what is truly important to us. Do our Christmas celebrations point to Jesus, or do they point to something else? Do we support the big corporations who help the rich to get richer and the poor to get poorer, or do we support fair trade initiatives, local artisans and self-help projects? Do we send Christmas cards and letters that say little more than "Happy Holidays," or do we send greetings that point to the birth of our Saviour? All of these are valid questions to ask for those of us who are called to be signs that point to Jesus Christ our Saviour.

At the same time, even though we are not all called to preach, we are called to be ready to give an accounting for the hope that is in us (1 Pet. 3:15). I don't think it's particularly helpful to walk up to people and ask questions like, "Are you saved?" Being a witness often involves far more listening than talking. Yet, when another person wants to know more about what we believe, it's important for us to know what we believe and to be able to talk about it. It's important to know the stories, and especially the story of Jesus and of what his life, death and resurrection mean for us. It's important for us to speak from personal experience and to be willing to share with others what God has done for us.

All of this goes together - being willing to talk about our faith, and the choices we make - in order to bear witness to our faith in Jesus Christ. We are called, just like John the Baptist, to be signs. May all who come near to us be pointed to Jesus - our Saviour, our Redeemer, and our Friend. Amen.

Advent 3(B) John 1:6-8, 19-28

December 11, 2005

St. Luke's Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison Moore

? 2005 Lynne Hutchison Moore All Rights Reserved