Living into Satisfaction and Expectation
December 13, 2024 | David King
About the author: David and his wife, Lauren, and their four kids have been members at ZPC for almost 10 years. He teaches at Indiana University Indianapolis and the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy where he directs the Lake Institute on Faith & Giving. They have been involved in volunteering in the children’s ministries and teaching Youth Inquirers.
John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 9 Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 And the crowds asked him, “What, then, should we do?” 11 In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none, and whoever has food must do likewise.” 12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” 13 He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”
15 As the people were filled with expectation and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah,[a] 16 John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water, but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandals. He will baptize you with[b] the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
18 So with many other exhortations he proclaimed the good news to the people.
Luke 3:7-18
John the Baptist is never one to mince words. No doubt he gets the attention of the crowds that have come out to see him by first calling them a brood of vipers! Probably not the most courteous of greetings. Then he seeks to remind them that they cannot simply rely on their family tree as Abraham’s descendants and a chosen people. Instead, if they truly live a life worthy of repentance, it will be clear to all through their actions - bearing good fruit.
What does bearing good fruit look like? John offers a fairly simple first step: fighting against the temptation to take more than our fair share. Why have two coats when someone has none? And to the tax collectors and soldiers who might be tempted to use their positions to take just a bit more than prescribed, John admonishes them to be satisfied with what they earn. Just as we are entreated to share with others, we are also told to be satisfied with what we have.
How does John’s call to satisfaction also line up with the Advent message of expectation? I remember the feeling of expectation came much easier as a kid during the Christmas season. For me, it was thinking about the gifts that might be waiting under the tree, family coming together, and the activities that we did together only once a year. Now as an adult, the Christmas season can oftentimes feel a lot more like what all needs to be done rather than expecting what is to come. Turns out that all those Christmas memories I looked forward to as a child are a lot of work when you’re the one making them happen. So, even if we put aside all the things that may have been left undone or not didn’t turn out as expected, in looking back at those that did, our response as adults in Advent might be more one of satisfaction – tasks completed. Yet, I think that kind of satisfaction is not quite what John had in mind when calling us to be satisfied with what we have.
In this season, I think the temptation is that satisfaction can lead us to complacency. For many of us, yes, we have enough. And with a lot of work, we can pull off a Christmas season full of gifts, traditions, and experiences that we can be proud of. But perhaps that kind of satisfaction keeps us from being a people “filled with expectation,” as Luke describes those that came to hear John the Baptist. For me, the familiar (the same everyday rhythms, places, or even biblical texts) can sometimes make it difficult to find a sense of fresh expectation. In times where I have traveled to places with which I am unfamiliar and even uncomfortable, I have found that I have often sought after and encountered God in new ways. But, I also know, that such extraordinary experiences have often been significant precisely because they were not ordinary. So, when in the midst of the ordinary yet extremely busyness of this season, how we can live in these days and weeks ahead with a sense of simplicity that all need not be perfect, satisfaction that we have more than enough and a need to share with those around us, and an expectation that we may just meet Christ anew as we are open to his coming? It’s an easier question to ask than answer, but perhaps John the Baptist’s strong words can lead us to a first step of leaning back into expectation.
Prayer
Gracious God, help us this day to live satisfied with the lives that we are now living yet filled with expectation for opportunities to meet you and sharing the good news of your coming in this season.