Shalom, the word we use for peace, is not the mere absence of conflict—although that would be wonderful in today’s world—but the harmonious, holistic sense of well-being and fulfillment of both individuals and societies. Both Isaiah and the Psalmist describe an awesome, breathtaking view of such a Shalom. These descriptions very clearly describe a reconciliation where God’s peace and abundance embraces the whole of creation: the wolf shall dwell with the lamb; the cow and the bear shall feed side by side can play with; the young child can play with the cobra and not be harmed .He describes God’s holy mountain where there will be no hurt or destruction; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord. This is such a moving passage. These promises, these hopes are foundational in our Jewish/Christian heritage, yet how can they possibly come true?

Isaiah says that this shalom will be made possible through the coming of a little child as our leader, this child shall be a shoot out of the stump of Jesse, meaning that he will be descended from the house of David (Jesse was David’s father). Isaiah goes on to describe this descendent as being filled with the Spirit, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord (v.2). Not only will this leader be wise and strong with respect for the divine, “he shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear.” The secular world judges by superficial and surface criteria; for example one is often judged by how much money or power one has; the survival of the fittest; those who have more are better or greater. This new leader from the stump of Jesse will look beneath the surface and practice a new kind of justice. He will dispense ‘better-than-justice’, a phrase I have borrowed from Rev. Bruce Prewer.

Who is this person? The child that was born to Mary, Jesus, the Messiah, is that one Christians are waiting for in this Advent season. It is Jesus that has shown us this way of seeing beneath the surface. Let me share with you some examples of this deeper seeing so well identified by Prewer, whom I quote:

He saw Simon Peter, a bumptious and fickle character, and told him he was going to be a rock of faith.

He saw an agent from the hated Roman authorities, Zacchaeus the tax collector, and with a justice beyond justice, Jesus went to dinner with him.

Jesus saw a woman at his feet, and heard her accusers declare that she had been seized in the act of adultery. He saw a person who needed some true love, and sent her on her way as a forgiven person.

Others, even his own disciples, saw street children as a nuisance. He saw them as signs of the kingdom of God, and placed his hands on their heads in blessing.

In our gospel lesson we have a very harsh, judgmental proclamation by John the Baptist. John, quite a radical fellow in his own right, dressed in clothing of camel’s hair and eating locusts and wild honey, came to prepare the way for Jesus. As he baptized those who came to him he tended to preach quite a sermon to them. John told the people that God was sending the most powerful leader ever to defeat all the current powers in their world. John’s message was basically that the one described by Isaiah was coming and people better get ready by repenting, turning away from their sinful life to a life of righteousness. In today’s scripture he is especially hard on the Pharisees and Sadducees, calling them a brood of vipers and telling them if they failed to repent they would be cut down and throne into the fire. Remember these were the religious lay leaders of the time. Maybe rigid and certainly emphasizing external rather than internal things, these men were not evil men, yet they didn’t have a clue as to what Jesus was wanting for the world. John was calling them and us to self-examination, looking at what part they and we play in the brokenness of the world around us. With this scripture John invades our own pleasant manger scenes in order to help us see any complicity, either by what we do or what we leave undone, and hopefully propel us to healing actions for this broken world.

However, I think it’s clear that John didn’t completely get Jesus. John was a believer in strict justice, the letter of the law type of justice. I don’t think he had the capacity to look beyond the surface to that “better-than-justice” God was offering us in the person of Jesus. We know that even later on in Jesus’ ministry when John was in prison, he was puzzled by Jesus. He sent a messenger to ask Jesus, “Are you the One that was to come, or must we look for another?” Jesus definitely confused John.

The thing that John with his harsh attitude didn’t grasp was God’s grace. Jesus brought to us a new way, the way of God’s grace. Grace is divine generosity; it is the undeserved blessings that God bestows upon all of us. Grace is a gift from God, not based on merit but based on how much God loves each of us. Jesus was God’s love poured out into the world, a redeeming gift to you and to me. Because of this wonderful gift, we want to be involved in this “better than justice” mission to our world. Standing up for the rights of others is a good start, but it is not enough. To bring about Shalom, we too must be agents of grace; we must be compassionate and merciful as Jesus modeled for us. We are called to go beyond what our eyes see and our ears hear. We are to be like the father that welcomed home the Prodigal son in spite of all he had done. In this holiday season with the many family get-togethers can you look past the hurts and wrong doings of your family members and be together in a loving, grace filled place? Can we be like the Good Samaritan who risks himself in order to help a wounded stranger? Do you dare to go into the inner city and do deeds of kindness, not with patronizing attitude but with thanksgiving at being able to share the gift of Christ’s love? Can we be like the generous host in Jesus’ teachings who invites to his dinner parties not those who will return the invitation but those that are truly hungry? Can we share meals during these holidays with those who are truly in need of food or company?

Lastly, can you accept God’s grace for yourselves? Are you willing to let God’s love pour over you like the falling rain? The Psalmist describes a king that will judge with righteousness and bring justice to the poor, deliverance to the needy. He will be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth. Righteousness will flourish and peace abound. I’m going to ask you all to take a deep breath and listen to the rain falling down. Imagine the rain washing away all of your burdens, all of the dead or dying parts within you. Some of you may only need a soft sprinkling; others will feel the need of a torrential downpour to feel completely refreshed, forgiven, and free. The constant flowing of water against an object can soften or wear away the hardness. We know that the springtime rains make the flowers grow; rain brings forth the natural tendency in the seed. Please accept that God is pouring out God’s love on you; that love will help you become more alive, more the seed in you was meant to be. Jesus came to share the better-than-justice kind of attitude with the world. God came to the earth in Jesus. The divine, the holy is also within you. When you allow yourself the time, the reflection, and the willingness to accept God’s love and grace, the Christ grows in you and allows you to be the Christ for others. During this Christmas season, I pray that all of us will allow Jesus to be born anew in us and that with God’s grace we shall be able to bring about a world of true Shalom for all. Amen