So what is this gruesome last Christmas story all about? Well, for one thing, it is a test. It asks the question of whether or not we can hold on to the Good News as we return to our routines. It challenges us to continue with the joy and enthusiasm that we felt on Christmas Eve when we first heard the angels and saw the stars. It asks if we can carry the Good News with us through the tragedies that are a part of this life.
When I first came to the Church of the Saviour in the mid-50s, I told Gordon Cosby after a sermon on salvation that I did not know if I was saved, and when people asked me, I never knew what to say. He gave me an answer that has lasted these fifty years: Just tell them you're in the process.
Jesus does not actually answer John's question. In his trademark way, he says to John's disciples, "Go and tell what you see and hear..." In a way, the answer of "yes" seems obvious. Nevertheless, I wonder. Might not the answer be Yes and Yes? Yes, I am the one who is to come. Also, Yes, you are to wait for another.
Too often, we assume that Isaiah was speaking only about Jesus or the future messiah. Suppose, instead, that Isaiah is describing the Jesus-people of every generation, who will speak truth to power and work for peace and justice?