Bible
Study: Isaiah 49, 3 to 6. 1 Corinthians 1, 1 to 3 and John 1, 29 to 34.
Last Sunday,
we celebrated the Feast of the Epiphany of Jesus, the manifestation of his
identity to the world as King, Priest and Saviour. The story of the wise men
who came bringing gifts from the East shows us that we all are part of the
salvation that Christ Jesus has come to bring to the world. In the Epiphany of
Jesus, we see the gifts of the wise men showing Jesus to the world as no
ordinary person. Today, we see the words of John the Baptist doing exactly the
same thing.
John saw
Jesus coming towards him and said: “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the
sins of the world.” If not for John the Baptist, many would not have known
Jesus. This is because, at this time, John the Baptist had already established
himself as a prophet and already had a crowd following him. Even the Jews sent
priests and Levites to ask about his identity in John 1:18-24. John the Baptist
would redirect that same crowd before whom he had gained some popularity to
Jesus.
By showing
Jesus to the world, John the Baptist becomes a model for all of us Christians.
He becomes what our First reading today describes as the “Light to the Nations.”
Like a torchlight in a dark room, John the Baptist having attracted a lot of
persons to himself by his way of life and preaching, he pointed the way to
Jesus. Even more than that, he perfectly described Jesus as the Lamb whose
blood will be shed for the remission of the sins of the world.
Jesus himself
would tell us in Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city built
on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel
basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the
same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good
works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” As Disciples of Christ, we all
have one goal- our mission is to live in such a way that we become lights like
John the Baptist to the world.
We should
be able to point people to Jesus. We should offer Jesus to others. Our lives should
so reflect not only our understanding of Jesus as the Lamb of God but our love
and admiration for Jesus. Something about us should direct the attention of
people to Jesus. John the Baptist said: “After me comes a man who ranks before
me, for he was before me…” How often do we talk about Jesus to others?
In other
for us to effectively carry out our mission as lights to the world pointing
others to Jesus, we must be attuned to the Holy Spirit. A Christian whose
spiritual life is dead is like a light bulb that never shines even when there
is electricity. When we are not concerned about growth in the Spiritual life,
we become deaf to the promptings of the Holy Spirit who is always by our side.
John the Baptist was spiritually awake and alert. That was how he got to know
who Jesus was. In his testimony he declared: “I did not know him; but he who
sent me to baptize with water said to me: ‘He on whom you see the Spirit
descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have
seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”
The Holy
Spirit is always ready to inspire us and give us certain knowledge that is far
deeper than the ordinary eyes can acquire. But if we lack an interior life, if
we don’t take out time to listen to the Holy Spirit, we would not hear
anything. We must hear from God always if we must live in a manner that truly
testifies to the existence of God. It is not surprising today that many
Christians rather than pointing the world to Christ are doing the very opposite
by the way they live. It was Mahatma Gandhi who said: “I like your Christ, but I
don’t like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
How can we
point the world to Christ? Our responsorial psalm answers: “See, I have come,
Lord, to do your will.” This should be our disposition in life. The willingness
to do the will of God at all times is what actually makes us lights to the
world. And what is the will of God for us? That we keep his commandments and
live above sin. The Psalmist declares: “In the scroll of the book it stands
written of me: I delight to do your will, O my God; your instruction lies deep
within me.” God’s instruction must never depart from our hearts and lives. When
we try to be like everyone else in the world, we only end up betraying our true
identity as pointers to Christ.
Above all,
as St. Paul prayed for the Corinthians in the beginning of his letter from
where we took our second reading today, we must constantly pray for ourselves and
for one another that the grace and peace from God may push us always to do what
is right and pleasing in the sight of God.
Let us
Pray: Lord Jesus, may I become another John the Baptist by the way I live.
Amen.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you. Happy new week
Fr. Abu.
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