Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.
Image is everything. So said the Canon camera commercials of the 90’s. It is a bit of an overstatement, especially if you ask John the Baptist and his followers. They cared nothing for image, while the Pharisees and Sadducees wore the flowing robes that Jesus condemned in Luke 20:46. John the Baptist looked like a freak while the “respectable” religious leaders dressed nice. John the Baptist saw the brood as wearing snakeskin.
“Image is everything” is even more of a problem in our culture, to the point that we are forced to vote for candidates with digital personas without substance. More tragically, while we expect immoral behavior and rotten fruit, not in keeping with repentance from most people, now our well dressed church leaders are being exposed as snakes in suits, bearing foul fruit. No longer can we look at an image to see who is real. We need to see fruit of repentance, a turning away, even from those who look like they don’t need to. We all do.
Dear Lord, thank you for changing our hearts and minds and that it is real. Help us to discern what is image and what is rotten fruit. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church