Isaiah 11:1-10/ Romans 15:4-9/ Matthew 3:1-12
By this time of the month, which in Church terms is the second Sunday of Advent, most of us would already have gotten one thing done.
We would have already taken out the Christmas tree from the store room and started decorating it.
By and large, setting up the Christmas tree seems like no big deal. We can choose whether it is a 4ft or 5ft or 6ft tree or taller even.
And we can also choose what types or species of Christmas tree, whether fir or pine, and even what colour. After all they are artificial and can come in whatever shape and colour.
But buying a Christmas tree is not as simple or easy as it sounds.
Just the other day while I was looking around for Christmas decorations, I overheard a lady asking the salesperson for a particular kind of Christmas tree with a particular kind of fiber optic lights on its branches.
The salesperson said: Oh that one. No stock now. Come back in a week’s time.
The lady was exasperated: A week’s time?!?! I took leave just to come here to get that tree and then you say no stock. And Christmas is coming. So how???!!!.
So how? Just to put up the Christmas tree and the decorations can be like a really good Advent spiritual preparation.
Because we will have to learn how to handle the frustrations and disappointments of the season.
Like … cannot find the right Christmas tree, so how?!?! The lights cannot work, so how?!?! Cannot find the right present, so how?
So how to have a merry Christmas when we cannot get what we want, when we cannot get things to work, and when we can find what we need?
Yet when we look at the commercials and advertisements, everything seems so perfect: the perfect Christmas tree, the perfect decorations, the perfect gift.
So we dream, not so much as a white Christmas, but a perfect Christmas. But can we ever have a perfect Christmas?
Today we have someone telling us how to have a perfect Christmas. And crowds went to him to hear how it is possible.
Today, John the Baptist appears in the gospel and the people from Jerusalem and all of Judaea and the whole Jordan district made their way to him.
His message for a perfect Christmas is simple, and can be summarized into one word: Repent!
And his message also comes with an axe, and with that John the Baptist goes for our precious nicely decorated Christmas trees.
But why would he want to do that? Let’s listen again to what he said:
Even now the axe is laid to the roots of the trees, so that any tree which fails to bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
Of course he is not referring to Christmas trees in particular, but nonetheless the Christmas tree has a biblical and religious significance.
The Christmas tree is a symbol of Jesus. He is the shoot that springs from the stock of Jesse, the scion that trusts from Jesse’s roots, as we heard in the 1st reading.
Jesse was the father of king David, whose reign brought about the golden age of Israel.
But after his reign, Israel declined and the kingdom was split and was overrun by her enemies over and over again.
Eventually when Israel was exiled into Babylon, king David’s line of descendants became an obscurity.
But the prophet Isaiah wrote of hope, that one day a shoot will spring forth from the stump of Jesse and bring about Israel’s glory.
Jesus was that shoot that sprang into a tree, a life-giving tree, a hope-giving tree, a tree that bore fruits of love.
And that is why the Christmas tree is an appropriate symbol for the season, provided we know what it stands for.
That is why we decorate our Christmas tree with meaningful symbols like the star, the lights, the little angels and those other ornaments that symbolize what Jesus is about and what He came to give us.
Hence our lives must also be like the beautifully decorated Christmas tree. Otherwise it has no connection to our faith.
In other words, our lives must bear good fruits, not just to show our repentance, but also to bear fruits of love for others.
Repentance is a beautiful spiritual experience when we see God’s self-sacrificing love in the beautiful mystery of the Incarnation at Christmas.
We may have heard of the story of the “Giving tree”. The story reflects the self-giving love of God at Christmas. The story:
Once there was a tree and she loved little boy. And every day the boy would come and he would gather her leaves and make them into crowns and play king of the forest.
He would climb up her trunk and swing from her branches and when he was tired, he would sleep in her shade.
And the boy loved the tree very much.. And the tree was happy.
But time went by, and the boy grew older. And the tree was often alone. Then one day the boy came to the tree and the tree said:
"Come, Boy, come and climb up my trunk and swing from my branches and eat apples and play in my shade and be "happy"
"I am too big to climb and play" said the boy. "I want to buy things and have fun. I want some money. Can you give me some money?"
"I'm sorry" said the tree, "but I have no money. I have only leaves and apples. Take my apples, Boy, and sell them in city. Then you will have money and you'll be happy."
And so the boy climb up the tree and gathered her apples and carried them away. And the tree was happy...
But the boy stayed away for a long time and the tree was sad.
And then one day the boy came back and the tree shook with joy, and she said: "Come, Boy come and climb up my trunk and swing from my branches and eat apples and play in my shade and be "happy"..
"I am too busy to climb trees," said the boy. "I want a house to keep me warm," he said. "I want a wife and I want children, and so I need a house. Can you give me a house?"
"I have no house" said the tree. “The forest is my house, but you may cut off my branches and build a house. Then you will be happy"
And so the boy cut off her branches and carried them away to build a house. And the tree was happy.
But the boy stayed away for a long time and the tree was sad. And when he came back, the tree was so happy she could hardly speak. "Come, Boy" she whispered, "Come and play"
"I am too old and sad to play. "said the boy. "I want a boat that will take me away from here. Can you give me a boat ?"
"Cut down my trunk and make a boat," said the tree. "Then you can sail away and be happy."
And so the boy cut down her trunk and made a boat and sailed away.
And the tree was happy But not really…
And after a long time the boy came back again.
"I am sorry, Boy, "said the tree, "but I have nothing left to give you — My apples are gone."
"My teeth are too weak for apple, "said the boy.
"My branches are gone," said the tree. "You cannot swing on them — "
"I am too old to swing on branches" said the boy.
"My trunk is gone," said the tree. "You cannot climb — "
"I am too tired to climb," said the boy.
"I am sorry" sighed the tree. "I wish that I could give you something. . . but I have nothing left. I am just an old stump. I am sorry..."
"I don't need very much now" said the boy. "just a quiet place to sit and rest. I am very tired"
"Well" said the tree, straightening herself up as much as she could, "well, an old stump is good for sitting and resting. Come, Boy, sit down... and rest."
And the tree was happy … (by Shel Silverstein)
God so loved the world that at Christmas, He gave us His only Son Jesus.
On Good Friday, Jesus allowed Himself to be chopped down and reduced to a stump in order to save us.
But out of this stump, Jesus rose, and He want us to rise with Him.
Yes, to rise with repentance from our sins so as to bear good fruits, fruits of love that will bring about peace and joy.
So may our Christmas tress symbolize who Jesus is for us.
And may it also symbolize what we want to be for others.