3rd Sunday of Advent Year B - 17/12/2023 - Gospel: Jn 1, 6-8. 19-28
Testimony
In today's reading, the Gospel of Mark focuses on John The Baptist, known as the Precursor for Jesus the Son of God, who is the true Light for the world. The world is darkened by human sin; Jesus comes to the world as the Light for the world to follow. He himself is the true Light. John came as a witness to testify for the Light, and those who love the Light come to John; those who prefer darkness refuse to heed John's message; they remain in the darkness of sin.
John's message is clear and loud. The crowds from all over the place flocked in to see him, and that made the Temple authority live in fear and jealousy. From Jerusalem, they sent Priests and Levites to question John. They asked him,
'Who are you'?
John came straight to the point,
'I am not the Christ'.
They put further questions to him, before putting even more pressure on him,
'Then why are you baptizing, if you are not the Messiah, or Elijah, or the prophets? Jn 1: 25.
John confirmed that he is not Elijah. He is the voice, not to himself, but to the Lord, said prophet Malachi 3:1. He is a messenger who prepares the way for the Lord, said prophet Isaiah 40:3. It is hard for the questioners and the Temple authority to swallow this bitter truth, because they prided themselves on their expertise of the scriptures, and yet they didn't know John, a new prophet, who lived amongst them. His message and his mission confused them even more when he said,
'I baptise you with water, but among you stand one whom you do not know' Jn 1: 26.
They now have two unknown persons. The first one was John, and the second was much more important than John. John opened their eyes to see, but pride and jealousy concealed their eyes to recognize the One who is not far away, but 'stands among you', and they do not know. They failed to recognize Jesus simply because they thought they could bypass John. They believed they didn't need John but simply relied on their knowledge, and that would be enough for them to know the Messiah when he came.
Human knowledge is useful to query faith, but knowledge alone can't lead to faith. It needs revelation, and the two leads to have faith in Jesus. The revelation is the work of the Spirit and that is what Jesus gives to anyone with a humble heart. Humility is shown through repentance and manifests itself through the water of baptism John gave. John is very strong about this when he says,
'Jesus(He) will baptise you with the Holy Spirit'. Jn 1:33
The Spirit is given to a humble heart. The Spirit will lead, guide, and direct that person to a deeper faith in Jesus. The Spirit has been working quietly in a person's heart before that person came to John's baptism.
John is not the Light but the herald, and witness for the Light. John declared openly that the Light is much more power than him, and he is unworthy to undo his sandals. John, a creature, and the Light the Creator; according to John, there is an immense gap between a creature and the Creator. We come to know something about the Light, simply because the Light comes to live among us and reveals himself to us.
Welcoming Jesus into our lives can make us truly happy because He is the endless source of joy and peace. This special heavenly gift is given to a humble heart.
John's message is clear and loud. The crowds from all over the place flocked in to see him, and that made the Temple authority live in fear and jealousy. From Jerusalem, they sent Priests and Levites to question John. They asked him,
'Who are you'?
John came straight to the point,
'I am not the Christ'.
They put further questions to him, before putting even more pressure on him,
'Then why are you baptizing, if you are not the Messiah, or Elijah, or the prophets? Jn 1: 25.
John confirmed that he is not Elijah. He is the voice, not to himself, but to the Lord, said prophet Malachi 3:1. He is a messenger who prepares the way for the Lord, said prophet Isaiah 40:3. It is hard for the questioners and the Temple authority to swallow this bitter truth, because they prided themselves on their expertise of the scriptures, and yet they didn't know John, a new prophet, who lived amongst them. His message and his mission confused them even more when he said,
'I baptise you with water, but among you stand one whom you do not know' Jn 1: 26.
They now have two unknown persons. The first one was John, and the second was much more important than John. John opened their eyes to see, but pride and jealousy concealed their eyes to recognize the One who is not far away, but 'stands among you', and they do not know. They failed to recognize Jesus simply because they thought they could bypass John. They believed they didn't need John but simply relied on their knowledge, and that would be enough for them to know the Messiah when he came.
Human knowledge is useful to query faith, but knowledge alone can't lead to faith. It needs revelation, and the two leads to have faith in Jesus. The revelation is the work of the Spirit and that is what Jesus gives to anyone with a humble heart. Humility is shown through repentance and manifests itself through the water of baptism John gave. John is very strong about this when he says,
'Jesus(He) will baptise you with the Holy Spirit'. Jn 1:33
The Spirit is given to a humble heart. The Spirit will lead, guide, and direct that person to a deeper faith in Jesus. The Spirit has been working quietly in a person's heart before that person came to John's baptism.
John is not the Light but the herald, and witness for the Light. John declared openly that the Light is much more power than him, and he is unworthy to undo his sandals. John, a creature, and the Light the Creator; according to John, there is an immense gap between a creature and the Creator. We come to know something about the Light, simply because the Light comes to live among us and reveals himself to us.
Welcoming Jesus into our lives can make us truly happy because He is the endless source of joy and peace. This special heavenly gift is given to a humble heart.
Written by Fr Vũđình Tường
St Francis Xavier Catholic Parish
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane Australia
St Francis Xavier Catholic Parish
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane Australia
