Introduction
When was the last time you saw a street preacher? For example, someone who stands on a box and preaches in the pedestrian zone. Some may stand on the pedestal of a monument so that they can be seen better, others simply stand there with a Bible in their hand and preach at the top of their voice.
I'm not often in a pedestrian zone, but I don't think I've seen a street preacher for a long time.
I found a few on YouTube. For example, there is a small missionary organisation in Germany that sends street preachers throughout Germany and there are also videos of some preachers.
I watched a few videos and I have to say I admired the courage of these people. For example, there was someone in the pedestrian zone in Hanover who clearly preached about Jesus with a Bible in his hand and a loud voice. He wasn't writing around, but he was speaking loudly.
However, virtually no one has stopped.
I think it was partly because he spoke a lot of Canaanite, and you have to realise that today's Canaanite is not the same as what we older people know from our youth.
In the past, Canaanite was when people spoke in the language of old Bible translations. For example, the well-known verse John 3:16 from an old Luther translation from 1892:
"God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son"
"So" is confusing here, "beloved" is an unnecessarily confusing grammatical form, and "indigenous"? Was Jesus a black man?
And that is still a harmless example. I am now of the opinion that it is better not to use Bibles in the old language for reciting Bible texts, because this only creates artificial barriers for this brand-new Bible verse.
The Bible is relevant today and will still be relevant tomorrow, but we have often used a translation in the past that casts doubt on this relevance: Outdated German, outdated content, I know that's a fallacy, but can we blame people for drawing it?
The street preacher mentioned earlier did not use such Canaanite, he already spoke today's German.
But in his sermon he very often assumed a knowledge of the Bible that many people today are very unfamiliar with, e.g. "We are in this light, but we do not walk in this light, so we have no fellowship with him", this was the style of his sermon and that is probably one reason why hardly anyone stopped.
I don't think this Canaanite is as bad as the old one, but it still misses most people from outside the community, and these are the people you want to address in a pedestrian zone.
On the other hand, it's easy to criticise a video at home in front of the screen. This preacher is out there and dares to do something and I admire that in any case.
I remembered another street preacher. Some of you may remember Sonja's and my wedding. The preacher back then was an educator by profession, but often travelled the streets as a street preacher.
And in Munich there is a conference of street preachers from time to time, no joke. And I also found a video of him. And people stopped to watch him. As it was Oktoberfest, he chose the four-legged and two-legged cattle as an introduction. The four-legged ones stop drinking when they've had enough, even if there's still water left, while the two-legged ones keep on drinking until it comes out at the top. That is somehow a successful start.
Why am I even talking about street preachers?
Today I would like to look with you at the first appearance of a street preacher in the New Testament, John the Baptist.
I read Matthew 3, 1-12; NL:
John as a person
Somehow he seems like a classic street preacher here, almost like a caricature you might recognise from television.
But who was John? We don't know much about him.
He was related to Jesus (perhaps a second cousin, if Mary and Elizabeth were cousins), half a year older than Jesus, his father was a priest and so he probably also enjoyed an education and a good upbringing. He was strong in spirit (according to Luke 1:80), whatever that means exactly. The translation "Hope for All" writes at this point, "he became a man of understanding and wisdom", similarly translated "The Good News".
I don't think the word "spirit" here simply means the same as "mind", but he was certainly a clever and understanding person.
And according to Luke 1:15, he was also filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother's womb. He therefore already had this special relationship with God at that time, which could only be had through Jesus' death on the cross.
We don't know what John did until he started preaching in his late twenties; perhaps he trained as a priest with his father and studied.
But then he moved into the wilderness, into the desert. He had only simple clothing and fed on locusts and wild honey. He probably realised what his mission was and prepared himself for it in silence.
The sermon
And then he began to preach. What exactly his first sermon was is not entirely clear from this text. But the summary of his first sermons was:
Other translations such as the Elberfelder or Luther write "Repent". This is of course Canaanite, which nobody understands any more.
When people hear the word "penance", they either think of a monk flogging himself or they think of a fine. "Of course, the church is only interested in money."
No, you can't buy your way out of repentance, you can only do it personally with your whole life, with your whole heart.
We once had a similar motto for the year: "Repent and believe in the gospel."
And this call to repentance is the preparation for Jesus Christ. You quickly realise that you reach your limits if you want to change your life in your own strength. But if you realise that change is necessary, then you are also ready for forgiveness of sins, repentance and a new life in Jesus Christ.
His mission
V.3 of our Bible text is a quotation from the prophet Isaiah 40:3. I would like to read the passage from Isaiah with the verses that follow (Isaiah 40:3-5; NL):
John did his best to level the hills and mountains that prevent people from seeing the glory of God, namely Jesus Christ. Valleys and ditches are also to be filled in so as not to keep people away.
Perhaps even a Canaanite language or choice of words is such a mountain that obscures the view of God's glory. But there are certainly other ditches and obstacles for people on the path to Jesus.
John's mission was to break down these obstacles, and he probably succeeded. Many people came to him and listened to him.
He certainly didn't just repeat this one sentence, but he was a speaker who captivated. John did not stand in the centre of a city like the street preachers mentioned at the beginning, but he preached completely outside, in the desert, on the banks of the Jordan.
And the people came, and not just the simple, easily influenced ones, people from all walks of life came and they confessed their sins, even publicly, and were then baptised by John.
You can also see here that the time was ripe for this. This is also what it says in Galatians 4:4a; LUT
The time had come and John was the trailblazer.
Is the time still ripe for this today? It's a question that almost begs to be asked.
In 2 Timothy 4:2; NL this is discussed in detail. There Paul writes to Timothy:
Luther puts it a little more succinctly: "Preach the word, stand by it, whether in season or out of season."
We often don't even know whether the time is right or not.
Of course, it's not just about street preaching. Our life can be a lived sermon, our testimony can be a sermon without us preaching.
Let us level the mountains and fill the valleys so that people can come to Jesus.
You have to dare to do something!
I would like to make one more point about John's work.
He dared to do something. I also admired that about the street preachers whose choice of words I had criticised. But they dare and go out and maybe God sends people by who understand this choice of words.
In this day and age, so many Christians are afraid of being considered unworldly. They emphasise that they are also completely normal people.
John's demeanour certainly seemed unworldly even then, and there were probably also people who mocked him. There certainly were.
Perhaps there were also wise counsellors who advised John to wear something decent so as not to put people off. Perhaps there were also pious relatives of John, as he came from a priestly family who were embarrassed to be related to John.
And, of course, Johannes also went way out on a limb.
When the Pharisees and Sadducees came to him, he did not mince his words. He insults them as "brood of vipers", in Luther it says "breed of vipers". Nobody understands that today, but it sounds almost poetic.
I'm sure that he didn't provoke people recklessly and make any rash remarks. After all, he had prepared well for his sermon.
You have to be very sure about such statements.
And he also makes it clear that you have to make a decision. He announces Jesus, who will baptise with the Holy Spirit and fire and separate the wheat from the chaff.
You have to make a decision, at some point in your life you have to decide for or against Jesus and at some point it is too late because you can no longer decide.
John dared to proclaim this message publicly and despite some harsh words, he found the right words for the people so that they came and listened. And many confessed their sins and were baptised.
Summary
I'll come to the end:
- At the beginning, we thought a bit about street preachers, how they work and how important the right language and the right choice of words are. But you can admire their courage and pray that people will find Jesus through them .
- Then we looked at John as the first street preacher of the New Testament. We don't know much about his life, but he was about the same age as Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb, strong in spirit and probably a wise and understanding man . Before his ministry, he spent some time in solitude.
- John preached repentance and confession of sins, and people from all walks of life came and confessed their sins and were baptised by him . And he didn't hide the fact that he was only the forerunner for a greater one, for Jesus Christ.
- And that was also his actual mission: to pave the way for Jesus. John captivated people with his preaching and prepared them for Jesus. He levelled mountains and filled valleys. And we too can open our eyes to Jesus through our lives, through our actions and words.
- And he dared to do something . He
- had no fear for his reputation, he proclaimed the truth and also took on the powerful, certainly not lightly, but courageously nonetheless . And he made it clear that you have to make a decision for Jesus Christ.