John the Baptist may seem like a minor character in God’s plan of salvation. However, he is the first to recognize Jesus while He was in the womb. (cf. Lk 1:42) He is the first to point out Jesus as the Messiah to the future apostles. (cf. Jn 1:29) John is the fulfillment of the prophecy that is this week’s first reading. John’s role, his calling, was to point to Jesus that others might recognize Him. Each of us is called to be a John the Baptist for others; we are to point others to Jesus.
When we see ourselves as we are and Jesus as he is, we may despair not only of being a John the Baptist but also of achieving salvation. Do not despair. See these readings as an urging to make those course corrections in our lives so that in the end we may hear, ““Well done, good and trustworthy servant; you have shown you are trustworthy in small things; I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” (Mt 25:21, NJB) This is God’s ultimate plan for you, and He will make it possible for you to be delivered from the kingdom of darkness and slavery into His wonderful light.
The Mass readings can be found here:
Scripture Readings for 12/06/2020
The blog post can be found here:
