In those days John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea [and] saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said: “A voice of one crying out in the desert, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.'” John wore clothing made of camel’s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.
When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruits as evidence of your repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones. Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
Matthew 3:1-12 (NABRE)
Every year we celebrate the birth of Christ while we await His return.
In this reading, John the Baptist calls us to prepare the way of the Lord Jesus. Regardless of the actions taken by John’s audience in order to do this, Jesus comes anyway to effect salvation for a weary, broken humanity. Despite our wretched condition, Jesus comes to us, unafraid of the mess He will find.
In our own lives, we can encounter Jesus regardless of our spiritual condition. In a way, those of us who are the most broken and damaged are the ones that the Lord wants to visit and heal first. This is why the Church particularly invites those who have been away from the Sacrament of Confession for a long time to come back and go during the season of Advent.
Jesus came into a world that was horribly shattered by sin. Jarring sights like the beaten and robbed man of Jesus’ Parable of the Good Samaritan were evidently common enough to be used as an everyday example fit for a parable. God the Son did not have to come down to earth as a simple man and eventually be brutally tortured and executed in order to save us from our sins. He could have done this any other way, but this is the way He chose nonetheless. Jesus over-emphasizes His love for us and His desire to heal the most broken and ugly parts of our hearts by the way He carried out His ministry. He was not afraid of the stench of a man dead for four days. He was not afraid to get up close to lepers. It did not matter to Him. What the Lord was after was conversion, healing, and salvation.
The same goes for us.
Thank you for reading. Peace.
Eat the Scroll 