Presented to Nipawin and Tisdale Corps on December 16, 2007. Presented to the Swift Current Corps on July 11, 2010 & Jan 25/15. Presented to Alberni Valley Ministries on December 22, 2019 and December 14, 2025 By Major (Captain) Michael Ramsay
This is the 2025
version – to view the earlier versions, click here:
https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2007/12/are-you-one-to-come-or-should-we-expect.html
The
original presentation began with a quiz: the congregations were shown pictures
of famous people that are readily recognisable and asked to identify them and
at the end they were also shown a decades old picture of myself: the latter
they weren’t able to successfully identify.
I
remember - about the time these pictures were taken – I was a janitor; I worked
nights for a big janitorial company. They have many buildings all over the city
and I worked for this company since before I ever went to university so when I
did go back to school, they were kind enough to work around my schedule.
They
made me a ‘floater’: now a floater is a very important position because we are
given the keys and alarm codes to banks and other businesses all over the city
and our shifts often end late at night or early in the morning so one doesn’t
want just anybody walking around some of these buildings (for security reasons)
in the middle of the night.
I
remember one night. I’m on ‘floater’ duty. I have four buildings to clean. The
first one, I have a staff working with me and I am given the unpleasant job of
letting one of them go and that doesn’t go over so well. My second building
takes me twice as long to clean as it should and when I get to my third
building, it is well passed midnight and I have never been in this building
before and I can’t find the light switch anywhere. As a result, I am late
turning off the alarm and it goes off: it is loud. So while it is still ringing
and the place is still dark I run and trip over a desk trying to turn it off
and then the phone rings (the alarm company always calls to see why an alarm is
going off) so I’m off and running again and this time it is in the other
direction -still in the dark - to find the phone before I miss the call and the
alarm company phones the police. I get to the phone just in time but not before
crashing into another desk in the pitch black and yelling out some words that –
don’t worry – I won’t repeat here.
I
finally get this alarm mess sorted out but by now my leg that I have hurt twice
is killing me as I am limping around the whole building still looking for the
light switch in the pitch black. I am very lost in a maze of cubicles and I
really can’t see anything and I am not feeling too happy at all when I hear
something.
I hear
something growl. I hear something growl and bark loudly. This is not good. So
what do I do? I yell. I yell quite loudly as I hit the floor. Peering up I can
see a couple of police dogs and a police officer staring down at me. I can tell
you – I don’t know if you have ever encountered an angry police dog but that
was one of the scariest moments of my life.
What
happened was when I spoke with the security company on the phone – remember I
was just a spare, not the regular cleaner – my name wasn’t on the list of
people who were approved to be in the building and instead of calling the
company I worked for, like they are supposed to do, they called the police and
so I almost got seriously hurt by a police dog.
Even
though I told them my name they didn’t really know who I was.
This
is not entirely unlike our story here today. Look at Matthew 11:2-3: “When John
heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples to ask him, ‘Are
you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?’”
John
knows Jesus - just like the alarm company knew my name from our phone
conversation – John knows Jesus, just like we know who many of those people
whose pictures flashed on the screen at the beginning of the sermon are but
here, it seems, John, like the alarm company with me and like many of us with
those famous people, John is not entirely certain who exactly Jesus is.
Now I
don’t know if you remember, John is Jesus’ cousin. Not only that. Jesus’ mom
and John’s mom are fairly close. Remember from Luke chapter one, that when Mary
finds out she is going to have a baby; she gets ready and hurries to meet
Elisabeth and when Elisabeth hears that Mary is going to have a baby –the baby
in her stomach – John the Baptist – leaps, it says. John and Jesus are family
but still in the passage before us today John asks, “Are you the one who was to
come, or should we expect someone else?”
And
not only that, John is actually the one who baptises Jesus. These two know each
other in this way but still John asks, “Are you the one who was to come, or
should we expect someone else?”
Not
only do they know each other. Do you remember the interchange between the two
of them when Jesus comes to be baptised? John says, “I need to be baptized by
you, and do you come to me? (Matt 3:14).” John obviously knows Jesus and he
obviously knows something about Jesus, even before and right at the beginning
of Jesus ministry but now, now for some reason, John asks of him, “Are you the
one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?”
But
there is even more: remember the heavens open up and God declares, “This is my
Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased (Matt 3:16)” and still John, who
is there at the time asks, “Are you the one who was to come, or should we
expect someone else?”
Well
this is interesting then – if John knows Jesus so well, who, other than the
Messiah, the expectant King, could John be expecting?
Could
John be expecting that Jesus is Elijah?[1] Some theorists have posited that
John may have thought Jesus was Elijah; certainly other people did (cf. Matt
17:10-12; Mark 6:15, 8:28; Luke 9:19). After all – even though Jesus claimed
that John was Elijah later in this very chapter we are looking at here today,
in 11:14 (cf. also 9:11-13; Luke 1:17), John himself at one point denies that
very claim (John 1:21). So if here John does not realise that he himself is
fulfilling the role of Elijah and if he does not realise that Jesus is the
Christ, he could have thought Jesus was Elijah – maybe.
Maybe
John was just asking this questions for others and he really knew the answer
all along. This was a popular view of the Reformers evidently– an unlikely view
given the context of the passage, I would think– but maybe?[2]
He
could be a prophet (Jeremiah; cf. Matt. 16:14)– much like John himself– only
greater. If John saw the dove at Jesus’ baptism he may even recognise that,
yes, Jesus is God’s son but maybe he just doesn’t know what that means? After
all aren’t we all the children of God? Weren’t angels in the Genesis account
sometimes referred to as ‘sons of God’ (Gen 6:2-4)? So then what does it mean
to be the ‘Son of God’ and who, who is Jesus? Is he the one who is to come, or
should we expect someone else?
This
is an important question for us today then too: Who is Jesus? The most
educated, religious people of Jesus day, the Pharisees and Sadducees did not
accept him as the Messiah, the Christ, the King to come, and in our story today
John the Baptist, someone who knows Jesus even before he is born, someone who
is his cousin, someone who baptises him, someone who teaches the same message
of ‘repent for the Kingdom is near’ (cf. Matthew 3-4), someone as close to
Jesus as John asks the question, are you the one to come, or should we expect
someone else? Well, is Jesus the one to come or should we expect someone else;
who do we say Jesus is?
A good
man? - I have heard people say that. An imaginary figure? - I have heard that
too –this one is rather silly though since we have much better evidence for
Jesus as Christ than we do for Julius Caesar as Roman Emperor or the even the
very existence of Socrates.
Was
Jesus just a prophet as some suggest? Was he a mere man? Was he only a voice
calling from the wilderness? Much of the world today would say that he was some
kind of the prophet.
Could
he just have been a religious teacher from a minor Roman province who developed
a cult following that continued to grow for well – thousands of years now –
there are more Christians in the world than ever before and, of course, the
Bible is the world’s best-selling book. But all that aside, could he be just a
dead teacher?
These
are all answers with which people today answer the question, ‘Who is Jesus?’ Is
he the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?
I
think this is important because it changes everything doesn’t it? If Jesus is
our Lord; if he is our king and his kingdom is at hand; if he is our wonderful
counsellor, mighty God, everlasting father and prince of peace (Isa 9:6) – then
we need to submit to his authority don’t we? So who is this Jesus?
Matthew
answers this question right in our text today. He does it in a couple of
different ways. First, he does actually call him the Christ / Messiah (same
word, different language) in Verse 2 and even more than that, look at how
Matthew records Jesus’ response to the question, ‘are you the one to come?’
He
says, verses 4-6, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind
receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear,
the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the
man who does not fall away on account of me.” Jesus is drawing John’s attention
to the glory of the Kingdom of the Messiah mentioned in Isaiah 35:5-6 and
42:18.
Here,
listen to part of Isaiah 35, where the Christ’s Kingdom is described:
The
desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and
blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and
shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendour of
Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendour of our
God.
And
more, look at verse 5, HERE IT IS. It says that in the Messianic Kingdom to
come, “… the eyes of the blind be opened (just like it says is happening now in
our passage in Matthew) and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame
leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in
the wilderness and streams in the desert. The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow. - And a highway will be there; it will
be called the Way of Holiness.
Isn’t
this great?! And Isaiah 42 is much the same: this is what Jesus is answering to
John’s question. John asks, are you the one who is to come, or should we expect
someone else? And Jesus answer gives John tangible evidence that indeed this
Kingdom of God is at hand. The Kingdom of the Christ, the Messiah is being
established now; it is here. Just like John and Jesus proclaim – it is now at
hand.
Who is
Jesus? He is this Messiah. He is this Christ. This kingdom is being established
and the wondrous aspects of it are available now. This is what Jesus lets John
know and he reveals it in His own way in His own time. It reminds me of a story
I read once in the Expository Times.[3]
James
V, the King of Scotland used to go around the country dressed like everyone
else: a common person. That is because he wanted to meet the everyday people of
the country not just the rich and powerful. He wanted to see how the normal
people lived.
One
day he was dressed in very old clothes and was going by a place known as
Cramond Brig, when he is attacked by robbers who don’t know who he is. There is
a fierce struggle and he is nearly overcome when, at just the right moment, a
poor farm worker - Jock Howieson - hears the commotion comes to the disguised
king’s aid.
Now
Jock, the poor labourer, who works on this portion of the King’s land, known as
Cramond Brig, now Jock unawares takes the undercover king home and gives him a
dinner of broth and Jock - as the king is recouping – naturally asks the man
who he is.
The
King responds, ‘I’m a good man of Edinburgh.’
‘And
where do you live in that city and where do you work?’
‘Well,’
says James, ‘I live at the palace and I work there too.’
‘The
palace, is it? I’d like to see the palace; if I could see the King, I’d tell
him a thing or two…’
‘About
what?’ asks the man.
‘I’d
tell him that I should own this land that I am on. I work it every day and he
never comes here & gets his hands dirty working this land’
‘You’re
right enough’, says the man. You come tomorrow to the palace at Holy Rood and
I’ll show you around. Come at two.’
So the
next day at two o’clock, Jock Howieson, is washed, dressed and at the palace to
meet his new friend at the back door. The good man, whom Jock had saved the day
before, shows him around the kitchen, the dining room, the bedrooms – the whole
place. Then, at last, the two of them come to the great rooms of the State.
‘Do
you want to see the King?’ the man asks Jock.
‘Oh
yes indeed’, says Jock, ‘I do. I do want to see the King.’
So
they enter the great hall and as they come in, men bow and ladies curtsey. It
is really quite a thing to see.
So
Jock whispers to his friend, ‘How will I know who the king is?’
‘He’s
the only one who keeps his hat on’
Jock
says, ‘But… there’s only us two with our hats…’ and Jock immediately takes off
his hat as he realises that James is indeed the King of Scotland.
And so
it is with us today. Jesus is King. He is walking around with each of us
showing us his domain here on earth and just waiting for us to take off our
hats as we realise that indeed Jesus is the one to come and he has arrived (and
he’s coming back too, soon!)
Appeal:
If there are any of us here today who have not taken off our hats and lain them
before the Lord, I invite you to come up front here to the mercy seat and do
just that – acknowledge the truth that Jesus Christ is Lord.
------------
http://www.sheepspeak.com/
[1]
Cf. The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Matthew/Exposition of
Matthew/IV. Book Version: 4.0.2. re: Schweitzer.
[2]
Ibid.
[3]
Margaret Forrester. The Expository Times. Vol. 119 Number I Pages 47-48.
Isaiah
42:10-13
10 Sing to
the Lord a new song,
his praise from the ends of the earth,
you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,
you islands, and all who live in them.
11 Let the wilderness and its towns raise their
voices;
let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice.
Let the people of Sela sing for joy;
let them shout from the mountaintops.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord
and proclaim his praise in the islands.
13 The Lord will march out like a champion,
like a warrior he will stir up his zeal;
with a shout he will raise the battle cry
and will triumph over his enemies.
James
5:7-10
7 Be
patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the
farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently
waiting for the autumn and spring rains. 8 You
too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. 9 Don’t
grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged.
The Judge is standing at the door!
10 Brothers
and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the
prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
Matthew
11:1-11
11 After
Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there
to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee.
2 When
John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he
sent his disciples 3 to ask him, “Are you the one
who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”
4 Jesus
replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The
blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed,
the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the
poor. 6 Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on
account of me.”
7 As
John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about
John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed
by the wind? 8 If not, what did you go out to see?
A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’
palaces. 9 Then what did you go out to see? A
prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This
is the one about whom it is written:
“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’
11 Truly
I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than
John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than
he.
Isaiah
35:1-10: Responsive Reading
Leader: The desert and the parched land will be glad; the
wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given
to it, the splendour of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD,
the splendour of our God.
All: Strengthen the feeble hands,
steady the knees that give way;
Leader: say to those with fearful hearts,
"Be
strong, do not fear;
your
God will come,
he
will come with vengeance;
with
divine retribution
he
will come to save you."
All: Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the
deaf unstopped.
Leader: Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and
the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water
will gush forth in the wilderness
and
streams in the desert.
All: The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
Leader: And a highway will be there;
it
will be called the Way of Holiness.
The
unclean will not journey on it;
it
will be for those who walk in that Way;
wicked
fools will not go about on it.
All: No lion will be there,
nor will any ferocious beast get up on it;
they will not be found there.
Leader: But only the redeemed will walk there,
and
the ransomed of the LORD will return.
They
will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting
joy will crown their heads.
All: Gladness and joy will
overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
AMEN
And Amen.
OOS TSA AV, 3rd
ADVENT, 14 Dec 2025
Welcome
and Announcements
CTW:
Isaiah 42:10-13
· Mighty is Our God
· Come O Come Emmanuel
Lighting
of Third Advent Candle
· Come Thou Long-Expected
Jesus
James
5:7-10
· King of Kings and Lord
of Lords
· Angels We Have Heard on
High
Prayer
and Offering
Isaiah
35:1-10 Responsive Reading
· Jesus Name Above All
Names
Scripture:
Matthew 11:1-11
· What Child is This?
Message
· He is Lord
· Follow on / I will
Follow Jesus
OOS TSA AV, 3rd
ADVENT, 14 Dec 2025
Welcome
and Announcements
CTW:
Isaiah 42:10-13
· Mighty is Our God
· Come O Come Emmanuel
Lighting
of Third Advent Candle
· Come Thou Long-Expected
Jesus
James
5:7-10
· King of Kings and Lord
of Lords
· Angels We Have Heard on
High
Prayer
and Offering
Isaiah
35:1-10 Responsive Reading
· Jesus Name Above All
Names
Scripture:
Matthew 11:1-11
· What Child is This?
Message
· He is Lord
· Follow on / I will
Follow Jesus
Posts
