Imagine
The rabbit would often look up and see the crow perched high in the branches of the tree. He would say to himself: “That crow has a great life, perched up there all day doing nothing.”
Then he began to imagine what it would be like if he did the same thing. “Imagine”, he would say to his friends, “sitting doing nothing all day. Wouldn’t that be a great lifestyle? I’m going to do that, just like the crow.”
So the rabbit sat down under the tree looking forward to doing nothing. A few minutes passed and then suddenly a fox darted out from behind a bush and ate the rabbit. The moral of the story is that if you are going to sit around doing nothing all day you need to be very, very high up!
The story is also a reminder that we can sometimes get so carried away by our imagination that we end up in a utopia that is far removed from reality.
John Lennon’s song “Imagine” released in 1971 is rated one of the greatest songs of the 20th century. But Lennon admitted it was unreal and added: “it’s sugar-coated so it’s accepted.”
It’s been said that with a well-polished imagination we may believe what we want to believe regardless of the truth. We may “sugar coat” our own self-constructed world and swallow it whole, no questions asked.
John the Baptist was a hard talking, straight from the shoulder kind of prophet. The last of the Old Testament prophets, his mission in life was to prepare the people for the coming of the Messiah. “Prepare the way of the Lord” was his message. And woe betide anyone who turned a deaf ear.
His style was certain. His convictions direct. And people went out to hear him from all over the region. The Pharisees and the Sadducees took a direct hit. “You brood of vipers”, he called them. “The axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire”.
No sugar coating there. Indeed John the Baptist imagined that the Messiah’s priority would be to clean-up Judaism and get rid of all the corruption and double dealing that was going on in the name of religion. John couldn’t wait to see what he described as “the coming wrath”. He imagined how this Divine power would burn up the chaff of hypocrisy “with unquenchable fire.” He imagined that with a passion.
However as Jesus began his ministry and became known to the people the “fire” John had imagined wasn’t there. He heard the news with incredulity. Consequently his fervent conviction flickered like a flame threatened by a cold draught of air. Jesus’ ministry was looking quite different to what he had imagined it would be like. John had shaped things in line with his own expectations and had thrown in a pinch of prejudice for good measure.
But his imagination had given him a false reading. Yet to his great credit John the Baptist found the humility to accept that he may not have got it quite right. So he asked the question of Jesus: “Are you the one?” In so doing he probably surprised himself more than anyone else. He showed an open mind and a readiness to listen to Jesus. He didn’t tangle himself up in details and cling to very fixed ideas about the nature of God.
“Are you the one?” Jesus didn’t give John a “Yes” or “No” answer. He used powerful, very positive and hopeful images from Isaiah to describe the character of his healing, restoring ministry. He makes plain that his work is a fulfilment of Israel’s hopes. Nevertheless there is no neat fit with John’s expectations.
So John’s experience is a lesson, among other things, about the need for an open mind and a willingness to wait on the Lord, in the sense of being patient and trusting in His Coming.
It’s said: “The simple Gospel isn’t as simple as some simple people think”. We need to exercise patience, not the kind that clings on with determination, but rather the kind that waits with hope and expectation. The kind the gardener exercises after he has sown the seed.
The American theologian Jane Wolfe says, “Patience means letting things take time and being happy with that. Content. It means enjoying the journey along the Holy Way; it means understanding that travelling on the Holy Way is the goal, not getting anywhere in particular. For being excessively goal-oriented about the Kingdom of God leads more generally to indifference and inattention, to a lack of interest in the whole business of salvation, spiritual health and spiritual wholeness. It can become something rather unreal, a notion that has no particular impact on our lives.”
John the Baptist was not given a “Yes” or “No” answer. There was no neat fix. Instead Jesus invited him to reflect on the Scriptures and to look at his ministry and see what the coming of the Kingdom was really all about. It was then up to John himself whether or not he recognised the Messiah.
So this Advent season we do well to cultivate an open mind as we seek to recognise Jesus and the coming of His Kingdom into our lives. That coming is for real. Can you imagine that?
The poet John Betjeman asked the question.
And is it true? And is it true,
This most tremendous tale of all,
Seen in a stained-glass window’s hue,
A Baby in an ox’s stall?
The Maker of the stars and sea
Become a Child on earth for me?
Is it true? Are you the One?
Amen
