What happened to grace?

     Okay, okay.  No, it is not a mystery whether we are saved by faith, not works.  We are saved by faith, bathed in the death and resurrection of Christ, and it is his perfection that is given to us, his faith that is given to us, his life and forgiveness freely granted, all because he came down.  That said, the text for Sunday from Luke 3 could make one question that.  We have a continuation of last week's text, going on right after John's proclamation, and it sounds an awful lot like he is saying that our salvation is based on merit.  And he doesn't just say it once. He does go on at length about this.

• Bear fruits worthy of repentance.
• Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
• Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.
• Collect no more than the amount [of money] prescribed to you.
• Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.
• His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.

Flower of Fire on display at Kazuya Akimoto Art Museum

     To me, this seems like a long list of moral laws to which John the Baptist is wanting us to adhere, to show that we have truly repented.  And herein lies the great theological question: What role do works play in the life of a disciple?
     If we take John at his word, it seems that works are necessary for repentance.  That is, that a truly repentant person shows by their life that they have repented.  The proof is in the pudding, as they say.  But if that's the case, that works are necessary for repentance, where does grace fit?  And this isn't even the biggest question I have with this text.  The second comes at the very end.
     After John has just warned them that the ax wielder is ready to cut down any tree that doesn't bear fruit, after John has told them that there is one coming who will burn the chaff, after John has told them that we must share our possessions, "with many other exhortations he proclaimed the good news to the people."
   
  GOOD NEWS?!?  Unless I read the wrong lines, that doesn't seem very much like good news.  Going to be burned unless I do these things?  Great.  So much for God's forgiveness...

      Except that's not it at all.  If you read closely you realize that forgiveness is NOT conditional of repentance, but repentance IS conditional of forgiveness.  So you can't repent unless you've first been forgiven.  Which actually makes sense, if you read verses 16-18 again.  Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.  Don't you see?  In baptism we are the wheat and the chaff.  Each of us.  Both.  And in our baptism the chaff part of us was burned away so that all that remains is the wheat - good fruit.  Our good fruit, our repentance, is only dependent on being chosen by Christ to begin with.  In the waters of baptism we received the resounding, 'YES!' from God and were cleansed.  We were forgiven, and renewed, and then the repentance began.
     Well, almost.  Obviously repentance is something we have to deal with each day.  Obviously all the baptized are not all good fruit - I know from my own life there is plenty of chaff still to be burned away.  Which is where our Advent comes in.
     Even though we have already been baptized, cleansed with the purifying fire of Christ's love, we are not yet there.  We wait for the day when faith shall be sight, we wait for the day when Christ's love conquers all, we wait for the day when we no longer struggle to do what is right and fair in God's eyes. 
     And so we pray.  Come, Lord Jesus, come.