May 2 2019 Luke 3: 1-14

“What then should we do?”

The reading from the Gospels today jumps to Luke. We get a narrative of John the Baptist. His ministry comes before Jesus, as he’s proclaiming that every valley shall be filled and the rough ways made smooth. Many people came to him to be baptized, including all sorts of degenerates including tax collectors who lined their pockets with excessive taxes they collected and soldiers who extorted money. 

Seeing these folk and the rest of the crowds, John offers one of the great put down lines in the Bible. He looks out at the crowd, and says, “You brood of vipers”. Vipers are poisonous snakes that infect and kill others when they open their mouths. Not a great comparison to offer to a group of people who’ve come to John to be baptized. 

To the tax collectors and soldiers, John’s clear. Don’t take more money than required, and don’t extort – basically don’t take advantage of the people you’ve been given some authority over. This seems obvious. 

To the masses, however, his advice is actually more hard-hitting. In response to his snake comparison, they ask him, What should we do?  His response is that whoever has two coats should give away one, and whoever has food must do the same. I’m sure that most everyone there had food, and many (maybe most) had 2 coats. He’s asking them to share with their brothers and sisters not from abundance, but from just what they have. They may not have perceived their 2 coats as abundant, or the fact that they had food.  But if you have, share with those who do not have. 

This morning, I’m thinking about the richness of the Jewish faith, even before Jesus entered the scene. John is preaching good Jewish law, protesting the excess and entitlement of some, at the expense of those who are ‘served’ by the tax collectors and soldiers. Love God and Love your neighbor weren’t entirely new concepts to pre-Jesus Jews. Love God and Love your neighbor are basic beliefs for all God loving people. Jesus simply gave us story after story, example after example, of what that was supposed to look like.