CAMINANDO WITH JESUS: What Then Should We Do?

John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. 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. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

And the crowds asked him, "What then should we do?" In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." 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."

As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 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 thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 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."

So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

Luke 3:7-18

Say what you will about God’s prophets in the Bible, one cannot fault them for beating around the bush, much less for making nice.

You brood of vipers? Wow. John the Baptizer skipped right over the pleasantries and without so much as a good morning let them have it. But before we dismiss him or try to understand him as simply being angry, we would do well to remember that prophets have a profound sense of urgency about the crisis that confronts the people of God.Their mission is to awaken the people to the urgency of the hour, in which there is no time to waste.

The word crisis means judgment. A crisis is a moment of decision. To me, the emblematic story that shows the meaning of the word crisis comes from the covenant renewal ceremony that we find in the book of Joshua, as the Israelites prepare to settle down in a new land. Joshua said to the people: Choose ye this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord [Joshua 24:15]. Choose between God and your gods. It’s that simple. A choice must be made, and not to make a choice is itself a choice—meaning that we choose to stay on the path we have traveled so far, despite the warnings we hear about the road ahead. We tend to think that judgment in the Bible is something that God does to us. It is not. God’s judgement is declarative: This is what you are doing. God’s judgment is also an act of grace and mercy: You always have other options. Repent. Change course. A crisis is the moment in which we ourselves must judge the way we shall go. A crisis is our moment of decision. The rest is simply consequences.

So, John gets right to the point: Repent! Change the way you live!

And he gets downright practical. People ask him, what then should we do? His answer is very specific. He does not propound the idea of generosity; John gets down to basics.

You have two coats? Give one to the person without one.

You have food? Share it with the hungry.

Do the right thing.

And isn’t his counsel to tax collectors and soldiers fascinating?

Collect only what is prescribed for you.

Do not extort people; be content with your wages.

I am fascinated because John does not tell the tax collectors to quit. They were hated as collaborators with the empire and despised because under the cover of Rome they made themselves very rich, grabbing every bit of money they could extract from the people. Because they could. Same for the soldiers. They had the swords; they made the rules. Because they could. But John didn’t tell them to quit either. Remember that for the longest time in the early life of the church, Christians were forbidden from serving as soldiers. (Full disclosure: my father was a fighter pilot, a career officer in the Venezuelan Air Force, and a devoted follower of Jesus. I am very proud of him). John gives tax collectors and soldiers a north star that can guide them in their difficult daily choices: It is not about you and what you can get. Do the right thing.

Do the right thing. It’s not about doing what’s legal. Our souls are on the line. To do otherwise is to choose to become less than the full human being God made us to be. Not doing the right thing makes us part of the problem instead of part of the solution. The path of integrity is the path to spiritual health, wholeness, and holiness. Doing the right thing keeps us walking in the way of love, following the example of Jesus. Someone has famously said that one should never let a crisis go to waste. Every day we live is a blessing because it is a moment of crisis. A crisis is a good thing, for it is an opportunity to grow, to reconnect with all creation, to build beloved community.

This is the work of Advent: To choose how we live.

The Rev. Daniel Robayo is the missioner for Latino/Hispanic ministries for the Diocese of North Carolina.