Preparing our Hearts for Easter (Luke 3)


Journey with Jesus to the Cross (Tuesday, March 8 )
Read Luke 3

Traditionally, we study the ministry of John the Baptist during Advent. But considering our purpose – preparing our hearts for the Cross and the Resurrection – John’s ministry serves equally well.

We won’t much like his message: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance….”

We’re a bit offended at first. After all, aren’t we among the few who’ve come to hear what John has to say? Aren’t we sincere in seeking God? What about all those other people who could care less? Give us a break, John!

On second thought, maybe his message is precisely what we need to hear. For if we know where the story is going (God on a Cross for your sins and mine), we must prepare our hearts to see, hear, and feel the story fresh each year. We need to repent of our poor housekeeping, our debris-cluttered lives, our crooked ways, our rough roads. We need John’s message just as much today as when we first met Jesus.

John called these devout Jews to the surprising act of baptism. They knew this ritual, but it was for Gentiles who wanted to convert to Judaism, not for upstanding Jews like themselves. After all, their ancestors had been “baptized” in the Red Sea when they fled the slavery of Egypt, and again in this self-same River Jordan as they entered the Promised Land.

But in all honesty, weren’t they in slavery just like their forefathers? Even worse: they were slaves in their own land. Luke hints at this by mentioning the political power brokers as he opens John’s ministry: Caesar, Pilate, Philip, and Lysanias — all representatives of Roman oppression. Annas and Caiaphas (we’ll meet them again later) are reminders of the religious corruption and spiritual impotence among their own leadership.

Yes, all was not well in Galilee. Deliverance was on its way; they’d best get ready. It was time to repent, to make a change. They would acknowledge their need by surrendering to baptism. They would clean house by sharing with those in need, and by being honest in their business dealings with others. And they would eagerly wait to see what God would do.

We would do well to do the same as we prepare for Easter. We can clear the clutter crowding out God’s work in our lives. We can live generously and honestly in relationship with others. We can surrender to the cleansing baptism of the Holy Spirit. We can wait expectantly to see what God will do. And when Jesus comes, we’ll be ready.

“Lord, show me what I must surrender in order to prepare my heart for the work you want to do in and through my life.”