Next
2nd Sunday of Advent Year B - 7/12/2014 - Gospel: Mark 1: 1-8
Young shoot
Before we celebrate the birth Christ there is the birth of John the Baptist and his task was to prepare the way of the Lord. John began his ministry in the desert, a lone voice in the wilderness as written in the book of the prophet Isaiah

I am going to send my messenger before you; he will prepare your way. A voice cries in the wilderness. Prepare the way for the Lord, make his paths straight. Mk 1

The wilderness is a dry parched land with dead trees and is a deadly place where people can't survive for long. It is the home of scorpions and reptiles and other poisonous creatures whose way of life is fighting without mercy. Strong and powerful animals control the weak and weak and small animals become food for the strong ones. Animals savage one another as a way to protect their territory or they prey on one another for food.

John the Baptist began his ministry in the deadly desert with his message calling us to repent and come back to God. His message was that wilderness, a deadly place, will become rich soil and produce good fruits. John's message gained strength and power from the One who came after him, the One who has the power to make change, to reverse the deadly place and make it a living place, full of life. He will rule his people with mercy, peace and justice and loving one another will be the way of life. He will give them new life and he will place them in the land where there will be an abundant of fresh milk and honey. The dried land will disappear because God will shower God's mercy on his people and on the land and dead stumps will have a new shoots and the tree will bloom.

The message John the Baptist preached was calling people to return to God to enjoy his goodness. Those who refuse to make to revert and make immediate change towards God will remain living in the wilderness of their hearts.

 In the coming of Christ, a baby king is being born in Bethlehem, a righteous king, the One who will bring justice and peace to the people of good will. There will be a day of reckoning when the new king will rule all over the cosmos and on that day there will be a time of abundant and reversal of fortunes. The desert will become the land for the living, full of life, there will be no more pain and tears and dead has been destroyed. The One who comes after John the Baptist will begin his mission on earth by taking the poverty of the human flesh. He will become like one of us, except sin, so that we may gain the riches of his divinity. He will fill our emptiness and make us share in his fullness. He is the God of power and mercy who will open our hearts to welcome him and those who make him welcome he will remove the things that hinder us from stopping him coming to us. And where God dwells there happiness and peace  will follow and life will be full of joy.

Previous